Matt Weiner (@mattweiner20) – Football Beat Reporter
The Valley Trophy will remain in Fresno as the Bulldogs defeated the Spartans 17-10 in the 85th edition of the Battle for the Valley.
Spartans’ Elijah Cooks tore up the Bulldogs for a team-leading seven catches and 140 yards, but it wouldn’t be enough to make up for a lackluster showing in their run game.
There was a chance to take the game late as the Spartans had the ball down 14-10 with 3:15 left from their own 20-yard line.
However, Chevan Cordeiro, who ended up completing 22 of his 45 pass attempts, took a crucial sack on third down that briefly took him out of the game.
Walker Eget relieved Cordeiro for the fourth down but was unable to connect with Cooks to keep the Spartans in the game.
The Bulldogs’ Abraham Montano kicked a field goal with 10 seconds left, icing the game for the Bulldogs.
Bulldogs’ Logan Fife, who was filling in for week one starter Jake Haener, threw for 230 yards and his first touchdown of the 2022 season since taking over the role late against USC three games ago.
Nikko Remigio, who led the team with 54 yards, caught Fife’s toss as the Bulldogs took a 14-10 lead late in the third quarter.
After a scoreless first quarter, Spartans’ kicker sophomore Taren Schive put the Spartans on the board with a field goal. But, the lead was soon overtaken by the Bulldogs when senior Jordan Mims went for a six-yard touchdown to take a 7-3 lead. Mims would lead all rushers today with 73 yards.
There were multiple opportunities for the Spartans to take control of the game as the Bulldogs had three turnovers, two of which were fumbles and one interception.
The costliest of three came via SJSU senior Junior Fehoko, who stripped and snatched the ball from Fife in one fell swoop. On the next play, Spartans’ Cooks went for a 32-yard touchdown, giving the Spartans a 10-7 lead with 15 seconds left in the half.
SJSU’s run game took a big step back after going for 200-plus yards against UNLV with a 37-yard performance. The inability to run the ball led to a rough 3 for 14 showing on third-down conversions.
The Spartans will look to bounce back against New Mexico State (2-5) next week.