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Fresno St. Wants to End Season the Way It Started

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TIMES STAFF WRITER

Fresno State, the darling of college football after starting the season with victories over Colorado, Oregon State and Wisconsin, can still end up looking pretty good with a victory over Michigan State today in the Silicon Valley Classic.

The No. 20-ranked Bulldogs (11-2) of the Western Athletic Conference are favorites over the Spartans (6-5) of the Big Ten.

There already have been plenty of dramatic bowl games, and this could be another one. Both teams feature high-powered offenses.

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The focus will be on Fresno State quarterback David Carr, who could be the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft. Carr led the nation in yards passing (4,308) and touchdown passes (42). He won the Johnny Unitas Award, which goes to the nation’s top senior quarterback, and the Sammy Baugh Trophy, which goes to the nation’s top passer.

Michigan State has a pretty hot quarterback too. Sophomore Jeff Smoker led the Big Ten and ranked sixth nationally with a passing efficiency rating of 162.8. He threw for 2,203 yards and 18 touchdowns and had a completion percentage of 62.6.

Both quarterbacks have good supporting casts.

Fresno State has two 1,000-yard receivers in Bernard Berrian and Rodney Wright and a 1,000-yard rusher in Paris Gaines. The Bulldogs are the first team in Division I-A history to have a 4,000-yard passer, two 1,000-yard receivers and a 1,000-yard rusher.

Smoker’s favorite receivers are Charles Rogers (1,200 yards, 12 touchdowns) and tight end Chris Baker (36 catches). Junior tailback T.J. Duckett, named second-team all-Big Ten, ranked 20th in the nation with 1,236 yards rushing.

Fresno State was 6-0 and ranked No. 8 when it lost at home to Boise State, 35-30. The Bulldogs lost their next game to Hawaii, 38-34, then routed their last four opponents.

Michigan State, after upsetting Michigan, 26-24, suffered a rash of injuries and lost three in a row before finishing its regular season with a 55-7 victory over Missouri.

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This is the second Silicon Valley Classic, and the second for the Bulldogs. They lost to Air Force, 37-34, last year.

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