2017 Fresno State Bulldogs Football Team
The 2017 Fresno State Bulldogs football team represented California State University, Fresno in the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bulldogs were led by first-year head coach Jeff Tedford and played their home games at Bulldog Stadium as a member of the Mountain West Conference in the West Division. They finished the season 10–4, 7–1 in Mountain West play to win the West Division. They lost to Mountain Division champion Boise State in the Mountain West Championship Game. They were invited to the Hawaii Bowl where they defeated Houston. They became only the second team in college football history to win ten games the year after they lost ten or more games (1–11 in 2016). In a twist of irony, Tedford, who was the head coach at California from 2002 to 2011, took over for Tim DeRuyter, who was hired to be the defensive coordinator at California for the 2017 season. Personnel Position key Recruiting class The Bulldogs signed a total of 23 recruits. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jeff Tedford
Jeffrey Raye Tedford (born November 2, 1961) is an American football coach and former player who is currently serving as the head coach at Fresno State, a position which he also previously held from 2017 to 2019. From 2002 to 2012, Tedford was the head football coach at California, where he was twice named Pac-10 Coach of the Year and holds the California program records for most wins, games coached, and bowl game victories. Tedford played college football for Fresno State before playing professionally at quarterback in the Canadian Football League (CFL). In his first head coaching position, Tedford inherited a Cal team that had won only one game in its 2001 season. He was named conference coach of the year in his first season in 2002 after winning seven games. Cal was ranked No. 2 nationwide midseason in 2007, the school's highest ranking since 1951. However, Tedford's teams struggled later in his Cal tenure, particularly from 2010 to 2012, and he was fired after the 2012 seas ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Defensive End
Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is played. History Early formations, with six- and seven-man line defense, seven-man lines, used the end as a containment player, whose job was first to prevent an "end run" around his position, then secondarily to force plays inside. When most teams adopted a five-man line, two different styles of end play developed: "crashing" ends, who rushed into the backfield to disrupt plays, and "stand-up" or "waiting" ends, who played the more traditional containment style. Some teams would use both styles of end play, depending on game situations. Traditionally, defensive ends are in a three-point stance, with their free hand cocked back ready to "punch" an offensive lineman, or in a two-point stance like a strong safety ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Punter (American Football)
A punter (P) in gridiron football is a special teams player who receives the snap (gridiron football), snapped ball directly from the line of scrimmage and then Punt (gridiron football), punts (kicks) the football to the opposing team so as to limit any field position advantage. This generally happens on a fourth down in American football and a third down in Canadian football. Punters may also occasionally take part in fake punts in those same situations, when they forward pass, throw or rush (gridiron football), run the football instead of punting. Skills and usage The purpose of the Punt (gridiron football), punt is to force the team that is receiving the kick to start as far as possible from the kicking team's end zone. Accordingly, the most effective punts land just outside the receiving team's end zone and land either Coffin corner (American football), out of bounds (making it impossible to advance the ball until the next play) or after being kicked exceptionally high (allo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Long Snapper
In American football, the long snapper (or deep snapper) is a center on special teams whose duty is to snap the football over a longer distance, typically around 15 yards during punts, and 7–8 yards during field goals and extra point attempts. Overview During field goal and point after touchdown attempts, the snap is received by the holder, typically 7–8 yards away. During punts, the snap is delivered to the punter from 13–15 yards away. Following a punt snap, the snapper often executes a blocking assignment and then must cover the kick by running downfield and attempting to stop the opposing team's punt returner from advancing the ball in the opposite direction. If the punt goes uncaught, it is the snapper's responsibility to make sure the ball does not enter the end zone or bounce backward resulting in loss of yards. The majority of snappers at the highest levels of competition are specialized, meaning that they uniquely play the position of snapper, or have limited r ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Linebacker
Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, playing closer to the line of scrimmage than the defensive backs (secondary), but farther back than the defensive linemen. As such, linebackers play a hybrid role and are often the most versatile players on the defensive side of the ball; they can be asked to play roles similar to either a defensive lineman (such as stopping the runner on a running play) or a defensive back (such as dropping back into pass coverage). How a linebacker plays their position depends on the defensive alignment, the philosophy of the coaching staff, and the particular play the offense may call. Linebackers are divided into middle linebackers, sometimes called inside linebackers, and outside linebackers. The middle linebacker, often called "Mike", is frequently ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lineman (American Football)
In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A number of NFL rules specifically address restrictions and requirements for the offensive line, whose job is to help protect the quarterback from getting sacked for a loss, or worse, fumbling. The defensive line is covered by the same rules that apply to all defensive players. Linemen are usually the largest players on the field in both height and weight, since their positions usually require less running and more strength than skill positions. Offensive line The offensive line consists of the center, who is responsible for snapping the ball into play, two guards who flank the center, and two offensive tackles who flank the guards. In addition, a full offensive line may also include a tight end outside one or both of the tackles. An offensi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Offensive Tackle
Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict injury or tend to incite an immediate breach of the peace ** Pejorative, or slur words ** Profanity Profanity, also known as cursing, cussing, swearing, bad language, foul language, obscenities, expletives or vulgarism, is a socially offensive use of language. Accordingly, profanity is language use that is sometimes deemed impolite, rud ..., strongly impolite, rude or offensive language See also * * Offense (other) * Offender (other) * Charm offensive (other) {{disambig ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kickoff Returner
A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another position such as wide receiver, defensive back, or running back. The special teams counterpart of a return specialist is a kicking specialist. According to All-American Venric Mark, "Returning punts is harder. You have to judge the ball more, you have to know when to fair catch and when not to. You can't be a superhero and try to catch everything. With kickoff returns, you catch the ball and — boom — you're going." Kickoff returner A kickoff returner (KR) is the player on special teams who is primarily responsible for catching the opposing team's kickoff and attempting to run it towards the end zone to score a touchdown. If the ball is kicked into his own end zone, the kick returner must assess the situation on the field while the ball is i ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Placekicker
Placekicker, or simply kicker (PK or K), is the player in gridiron football who is responsible for the kicking duties of field goals and extra points. In many cases, the placekicker also serves as the team's kickoff specialist or punter. Specialized role The kicker initially was not a specialized role. Prior to the 1934 standardization of the prolate spheroid shape of the ball, drop kicking was the prevalent method of kicking field goals and conversions, but even after its replacement by place kicking, until the 1960s the kicker almost always doubled at another position on the roster. George Blanda, Lou Groza, Frank Gifford and Paul Hornung are prominent examples of players who were stars at other positions as well as being known for their kicking abilities. When the one-platoon system was abolished in the 1940s, the era of "two-way" players gave way to increased specialization, teams would employ a specialist at the punter or kicker position. Ben Agajanian, who started his ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Halfback (American Football)
A halfback (HB) is an offensive position in American football, whose duties involve lining up in the offensive backfield and carrying the ball on most rushing plays, i.e. a running back. When the principal ball carrier lines up deep in the backfield, and especially when that player is placed behind another player (usually a blocking back), as in the I formation, that player is instead referred to as a tailback. Sometimes the halfback can catch the ball from the backfield on short passing plays as they are an eligible receiver. Occasionally, they line up as additional wide receivers. When not running or catching the ball, the primary responsibility of a halfback is to aid the offensive linemen in blocking, either to protect the quarterback or another player carrying the football. History Overview Before the emergence of the T formation in the 1940s, all members of the offensive backfield were legitimate threats to run or pass the ball. Most teams used four offensive back ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Guard (American Football)
In gridiron football, a guard (G), otherwise known as an offensive guard (OG), is a player who lines up between the center and the tackles on the offensive line of a football team on the line of scrimmage used primarily for blocking. Right guards (RG) is the term for the guards on the right of the offensive line, while left guards (LG) are on the left side. Guards are to the right or left of the center. The guard's job is to protect the quarterback from the incoming linemen during pass plays, as well as creating openings (holes) for the running backs to head through. Guards are automatically considered ineligible receivers, so they cannot intentionally touch a forward pass, unless it is to recover a fumble or is first touched by a defender or eligible receiver. Pulling guards Aside from speed blocking, a guard may also "pull"—backing out of his initial position and running behind the other offensive linemen to sprint out in front of a running back to engage a defensive p ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Fullback (American Football)
A fullback (FB) is a position in the offensive backfield in gridiron football, and is one of the two running back positions along with the halfback. Fullbacks are typically larger than halfbacks and in most offensive schemes the fullback's duties are split among power running, pass catching, and blocking for both the quarterback and the other running back. Many great runners in the history of American football have been fullbacks, including Jim Brown, Marion Motley, Bronko Nagurski, Jim Taylor, Franco Harris, Larry Csonka, John Riggins, Christian Okoye, and Levi Jackson. However, many of these runners would retroactively be labeled as halfbacks, due to their position as the primary ball carrier; they were primarily listed as fullbacks due to their size and did not often perform the run-blocking duties expected of modern fullbacks. Examples of players who have excelled at the hybrid running–blocking–pass-catching role include Vonta Leach, Mike Alstott, William Henderson, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |