The red-hot 5-1 Aztecs visit their oldest rival the 5-2 Fresno State Bulldogs for a smash mouth Old-Oil-Can custody battle.
WEEK 9: Fresno State Bulldogs vs. San Diego State Aztecs
WHEN: Saturday, October 25th , 2025, 12:30 PM PST | 3:30 PM EST
WHERE: Valley Children’s Stadium; Fresno, California (40,727)
TV: FS1
STREAM: Mountain West Network (www.themw.com)
SERIES RECORD: SDSU leads overall 31-27-4. SDSU last won 33-18 (Nov. 11, 2023)
ODDS: San Diego State -3
Fresno, CA– The SDSU Aztecs (5-1, 2-0 MW) visit The Raisin Capital of the World to take on long-time rivals the Fresno State Bulldogs (5-2, 2-1 MW) in one final match as Mountain West Conference mates. Next season both universities move to the PAC-12, where they continue competing in all sports, business as usual. The winner of this high-stakes grudge match gets to go home with . . . an Old Oil Can.
Both Aztecs and Bulldogs return fresh off a bye week, granting each extra time to study the other. The Aztecs have major momentum and confidence resulting in them receiving votes in the Associated Press Top-25 poll. If they can keep winning, coach Sean Lewis and co. could soon crack the Top 25. On the other hand, the Bulldogs have stewed on an embarrassing loss for two weeks and have been eagerly waiting for another chance to prove themselves.
Now, let’s take a closer look at Fresno State.
GET TO KNOW THE 2025 CSUF BULLDOGS
First-year Fresno State head coach Matt Entz, from Waterloo, Iowa went 60-11 in five seasons as NDSU’s head coach before joining Lincoln Riley’s USC staff as linebackers/ asst. defensive coach. In December, Fresno State hired Entz as head coach after the Bulldogs went 6-7 under interim coach Tim Skipper following Jeff Tedford’s sudden retirement.
Despite Entz’s record at NDSU and his USC role, his hire wasn’t universally praised, as Entz is a Fresno State outsider. A strong first season and bowl appearance might change all that.
This season, the Bulldogs started rocky with a 31-7 blowout road loss against Kansas, but quickly turned things around. They went on to beat Georgia Southern, Oregon State, Southern U, Hawaii and Nevada over the next five games. On October 10th, however, they surprisingly got hammered in a road game against the struggling Colorado State Rams. They were outscored by 21 points in the first half before losing 49-21 to go to 5-2 overall.
In the road loss, QB1 E.J. Warner (son of Kurt) was 28-of-49 (57.1%) for 350 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions. Leading rusher Brandon Ramirez rushed seven times for 41 yards. Josiah Freeman completed seven passes for 89 yards and two touchdowns as the team’s top receiver during the loss.
To date, E.J. Warner has passed for 1,486 yards (139 of 202), with 10 touchdowns and nine interceptions (212.3 ypg). He’s also rushed 30 times for 91 yards and one touchdown. Bryson Donelson has taken 87 carries for a team-leading 388 rushing yards (55.4 ypg) while scoring three touchdowns. He’s caught 14 passes for 114 yards (16.3 receiving ypg).
Rayshon Luke has 379 yards on 58 carries (54.1 ypg), with five rushing touchdowns. He has 19 receptions for 128 yards and two touchdowns. Josiah Freeman has 24 receptions on 41 passes and leads the Bulldogs with 300 receiving yards (50 ypg) and four touchdowns. Richie Anderson has 21 receptions on 31 passes and contributed with 220 yards and two touchdowns. Ezekiel Avit is averaging 32.8 ypg, with 19 catches for 197 yards.
THE AZTECS ON A FOUR-WIN STREAK
San Diego State kicked off their season with a 42-0 blowout at home over Stony Brook, but then lost 36-13 at Washington State in game two. The Aztecs went of a 4-win streak from there, taking out California, Northern Illinois, Colorado State, and Nevada. During the 45-24 home win over the Rams, the Aztecs racked up 540 total yards, 281 rushing yards, 8.2 yards per play, 24 first downs and 7-of-11 on third-down tries.
On October 11th at Nevada, San Diego State posted a 35-0 lead in the first half, then finished with a 44-10 blowout road win. QB1 Jayden Denegal finished 14-of-17 (82.4%) for 205 yards and two touchdowns while Lucky Sutton led the rushing attack with 16 carries for 76 yards and a touchdown. Leading receiver Jordan Napier had five completions for 110 yards in the dominant win.
To date, Jayden Denegal has thrown for 1,100 yards (83-for-126), with seven touchdowns and two interceptions (183.3 ypg). Lucky Sutton has put up a team-high 526 yards (87.7 ypg) and scored six touchdowns. Byron Cardwell has run for 202 yards (50.5 ypg), with one touchdown on the ground.
Jordan Napier has 37 catches on 47 targets and leads SDSU with 556 receiving yards (92.7 ypg) and two touchdowns. Donovan Brown has added 16 receptions for 198 yards and one touchdown. He has been targeted 26 times and puts up 39.6 receiving yards per game. Jacob Bostick has 157 receiving yards on 11 receptions (20 targets), with three touchdowns, averaging 31.4 yards per game.
KEYS TO A SAN DIEGO STATE VICTORY
1. Unstoppable Offense
The Aztecs are playing an increasingly complete game on offense, in addition to their formidable defensive effort thus far this season. If Denegal and co. exercise speed, versatility and careful execution, they will significantly outpace the Bulldogs, who have had major defensive struggles in some matches including against the Rams in their last outing. Watch for 200+ rush yards and 200+ receiving yards to give SDSU the offensive edge.
2. Triple Trouble
Against the Wolf Pack, the Aztecs decisively scored their first three touchdowns with offense, defense and special teams. When all three teams are scoring, it means nothing is getting past San Diego State. Warner threw three interceptions in his last outing, and the Aztecs defense must exploit additional pick opportunities.
3. High Security
Denegal and the Aztecs have done an exceptional job overall this season securing the football, turning the ball over just two times thus far. Coach Sean Lewis has reinforced in this Aztecs team “ball security is job security. If the Aztecs maintain their high security, it will prevent momentum shifting plays.
/**/PREDICTION
Both Aztecs and Bulldogs will be well rested, and benefit from an extra week of planning. The Aztecs have high momentum; whereas the Bulldogs are bitter after an embarrassing loss. The Aztecs are playing a complete game on offense, defense and special teams, and a recent decisive road win further reinforced their confidence.
The Bulldogs will be looking to prove the Colorado State loss was a fluke, and they have a home field advantage. In the end the Aztecs will execute a more controlled performance in Valley Children’s Stadium in front of a raucous crowd of Bulldogs fans.
SDSU will secure the victory and continue to maintain custody of the Old Oil Can.
FINAL SCORE
San Diego State 37, Fresno State 24
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