Bulldogs stifle Aggies’ aerial assault

FRESNO -- Few players get to experience what Jon Monga did Saturday.

Fresno State’s senior defensive tackle had two sacks and a forced fumble already, but his unit was gassed and on the verge of surrendering a game-tying touchdown to New Mexico State — a team that was 0-14 lifetime against the Bulldogs.

Aggies quarterback Chase Holbrook had notched two third-down conversions and one fourth-down conversion on the 13-play, 66-yard drive and appeared poised to move the chains once more.

Until Monga entered his field of vision.

Monga came off the edge and drove Holbrook to the ground, ending New Mexico State’s methodical fourth-quarter drive and preserving a 24-17 victory on senior day.

For a defensive tackle, one would be hard-pressed to go out better than Monga did in his final play at Bulldog Stadium.

“Monga’s a madman and a great athlete,” senior tight end Bear Pascoe said. “He comes up big when we need it. Our whole defense did tonight. They played their hearts out.”

The Aggies can attest to that. New Mexico State (3-7, 1-5 WAC) came in with the ninth-best passing offense in the nation; Fresno held them to 192 yards.

“I was really proud of their effort. The pass rush was there the whole game and they kept coming,” coach Pat Hill said. “I thought we did a good job in the secondary against a team that’s a pretty darn good passing football team.”

Though the Aggies rarely ran the ball, the Bulldogs also broke a school record by holding them to minus nine rushing yards.

Fresno (6-4, 3-3 WAC) hasn’t had much luck getting to quarterbacks this season, having only six sacks in eight games. Monga and Chris Carter notched five on Holbrook.

The 6-foot-5 Aggie’s counterpart did not have a good day statistically either, instead, Tom Brandstater had to rely on uncharacteristic methods to propel his team to victory.

He rushed for just 20 yards, but two of those carries were one-yard touchdowns and a third a game-clinching first down.

“He’s not a natural runner,” Hill said. “He can run OK, but that’s not his forte. But he picked up a couple critical first downs on sneaks where he’s gotta really drive his legs.”

Brandstater, who injured his ankle in the first half, did not have as much luck through the air, throwing for only 146 yards and no touchdowns.

Third-string running back Anthony Harding, starting for the injured Ryan Mathews and Lonyae Miller, picked up the offensive slack, rushing for 101 yards. Though Harding did have a 32-yard jaunt in the fourth quarter to set up Brandstater’s second quarterback-sneak score, most of his damage was inflicted in small doses.

“We got (Devon) Wylie open and the guy made a great play (in the end zone). We had Bear on an explosive (play), but for the most part, it was (runs of) three, four, five, two (yards),” Hill said. “That was an NFL-type game as far as ball control, just try to keep the ball away from them, milk the clock at the end and get out of there.”

While the offenses played it safe, the special teams weren’t lacking in the explosive-play department.

Aggies wide receiver Chris Williams, who torched Hawaii for 221 yards last week, showed the Bulldogs why he’s one of the WAC’s most feared playmakers. Williams faked a reverse to Marcus Anderson, fooling the Bulldogs’ kick-coverage team momentarily, and easily outran the second wave of defenders for a 96-yard score, in the first quarter.

Fresno’s kickoff team made up for its gaffe on its next opportunity, as senior Sherrod Davis stripped the ball from Anderson and returned the fumble 25 yards for a touchdown.

The game was tied at 17 at halftime, but the Bulldogs could have had a bit of breathing room if not for a curious goal-line decision on the last play of the half.

With six seconds remaining, New Mexico State took consecutive timeouts and forced Hill to reconsider his original play call. Hill had pass play in place as he had used all of his timeouts, but switched to a run after the Aggies’ second timeout. The move backfired as Harding was stuffed at the line and the clock ran out with the Bulldogs getting no points after advancing the ball to the one-yard line.

“The one play I’d like to get back is maybe the last play of the half,” Hill said. “We were planning on running a rub route down there and after two timeouts, they probably got the best of me. I thought, ‘well after two timeouts, they saw that formation two times in a row, let’s go out there with our big people and try to ram one up at them.’ They were ready for it, they beat us on the play and we came up with no points. Thank God we were able to survive that one.”

Fresno’s survival means it is now bowl eligible with six victories, though it will probably take at least one more win (over either San Jose State or No. 9 Boise State) to be invited to a bowl game.

Regardless of the season’s outcome, Pascoe, who also concluded his Bulldog Stadium career, doesn’t regret his decision to stay for his senior year instead of opting for the NFL Draft.

“I’m so glad I came back to play with these guys,” he said. “I’d feel kinda bad if they were going through this without me. Just this whole season, going through the triumphs and the trials, it’s all gonna be a memory that’ll stick with me the rest of my life.”

Pascoe led Fresno with three catches for 56 yards while New Mexico State’s A.J. Harris led all receivers with 97 receiving yards and a touchdown.