On the surface, the two teams playing on Saturday seem quite similar. San Jose State and Fresno State are both 4-7, and neither team has higher than a .500 record in WAC conference play. But if you dig a little deeper, you see that these two teams are going in opposite directions.
Coming off a miserable 1-12 season in 2010, the San Jose St. Spartans are trending upwards under second year head coach Mike MacIntyre. They played well against reasonably tough competition, losing close games to UCLA, Nevada and BYU in 2011. While the season is over after Saturday for the Spartans, they have a lot to look forward to, including the eligibility of incoming Michigan transfer QB Tate Forcier.
Fresno State, on the other side, has regressed from an 8-5 season in 2010, which found them in the Humanitarian Bowl against Northern Illinois. Their early season schedule was tough, with contests against California, Nebraska, Boise State and Ole Miss, which set the tone for the rest of the season.
SJSU hasn't beaten the Bulldogs since 2006, and Fresno State is planning on pushing that losing streak further. Both teams come into this game after winning last week -- SJSU defeated Navy, while Fresno State went to Hawaii and defeated the Warriors. Prior to that, both teams had lost three games in a row.
This game kicks off at 5:00 PM PST on Saturday. You can listen to the game on 1590 AM or head over to Bulldog Stadium and watch it live -- no television will be on hand for this final battle.