Fresno State Adds Wisconsin to List

Fresno State pulled off another upset, but to the players it was no surprise.

“We’re for real! We’re for real!” the Bulldogs hollered Saturday after they defeated Wisconsin, 32-20, for the school’s first victory over a Big Ten team.

“We were the better team this afternoon,” Coach Pat Hill said after the 19th-ranked Bulldogs beat the 23rd-ranked--but favored--Badgers behind Bernard Berrian’s 300 all-purpose yards.

Hill’s crusade to move the Western Athletic Conference favorites into consideration for a bowl championship series game certainly gained momentum with the victory before 78,506 fans, the largest crowd ever to see the Bulldogs win.

And, in their eyes, it legitimized earlier upsets of Colorado and Oregon State.

The Bulldogs, in their first game as a ranked team since 1993, trailed, 20-10, at halftime. But they weren’t intimidated by the Badgers or their frenzied fans.

“We didn’t work hard all summer to come to Wisconsin and lose,” defensive tackle Alan Harper said. “We came out to win. Otherwise, people would have said the first two games were a fluke.”

The Bulldogs are the first team since Colorado in 1995 to beat the Badgers in a nonconference game at Camp Randall Stadium.

Hill said there was no denying his team’s legitimacy.

“Well, this was a big one, because I think today we played against a team that I don’t think [will cite] any excuses,” Hill said.

Berrian’s big day was highlighted by a game-turning, 96-yard touchdown return of the second-half kickoff. He had eight receptions for 102 yards, two carries for 16 yards, two punt returns for 29 yards and four kickoff returns for 153 yards.

His return for a touchdown sparked a 22-0 spurt and dropped the Badgers to 1-2 for the first time since 1991, Barry Alvarez’s first season as coach.

“We never seemed to recover after that,” Alvarez said. “I thought the first half offensively we were able to keep them off-balance, which allowed us to run the ball and throw. In the second half when we got behind, we got predictable and were put into passing situations where they could really tee off and blitz.”

Berrian’s return gave him 287 yards just 14 seconds into the third quarter. His day was just about done--he added a 12-yard catch and a one-yard run.

Alec Greco ran in the conversion to pull the Bulldogs to within 20-18.

Two plays later, Tierre Sams stepped in front of Lee Evans, who had seven catches for a career-best 182 yards, and intercepted Jim Sorgi’s pass at the Wisconsin 31.

Quarterback David Carr, who completed 22 of 38 passes for 240 yards with two touchdowns and one interception, needed only four plays to give the Bulldogs their first lead on a 16-yard scoring pass to Rodney Wright. Carr ran in the two-point conversion for a 26-20 lead.

Asen Asparuhov added field goals of 34 and 17 yards.

Anthony Davis and Evans, who entered the day leading the nation in total yards rushing (277) and receiving (303), ignited the Badgers after the Bulldogs deferred on the opening kickoff.

Evans caught a 24-yard pass on the Badgers’ first play and Davis reeled off a 48-yard run to the Bulldogs’ five-yard line.

Davis gained another four yards before Sorgi took it in himself only 1:14 into the game.

The Bulldogs didn’t back down, picking on freshman cornerback Scott Starks, making his first collegiate start. Starks surrendered three third-down receptions on his first series, including a 20-yard touchdown pass to Marque Davis that tied the score, 7-7.

Sorgi connected with Evans on a 53-yard touchdown pass and a 14-7 Wisconsin lead.