2012 Fresno State Bulldogs football team

The 2012 Fresno State Bulldogs football team represented California State University, Fresno in the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bulldogs were led by first-year head coach Tim DeRuyter and played their home games at Bulldog Stadium. This was their first year as a member of the Mountain West Conference. They finished the season 9–4, 7–1 in Mountain West play to share the conference championship with Boise State and San Diego State. They were invited to the Hawaii Bowl where they were defeated by SMU.

2012 Fresno State Bulldogs football
Mountain West co-champion
Hawaii Bowl, L 10–43 vs. SMU
Conference	Mountain West Conference
Record	9–4 (7–1 MW)
Head coach	Tim DeRuyter (1st season)
Offensive coordinator	Dave Schramm (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Spread
Defensive coordinator	Nick Toth (1st season)
Base defense	3–4
Home stadium	Bulldog Stadium

2012 Mountain West Conference football standings

	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 18 Boise State +		7	–	1					11	–	2
Fresno State +		7	–	1					9	–	4
San Diego State +		7	–	1					9	–	4
Air Force		5	–	3					6	–	7
Nevada		4	–	4					7	–	6
Wyoming		3	–	5					4	–	8
Colorado State		3	–	5					4	–	8
UNLV		2	–	6					2	–	11
New Mexico		1	–	7					4	–	9
Hawaii		1	–	7					3	–	9
+ – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

Personnel

Coaching staff

Name	Position	Seasons at Fresno State	Alma mater
Tim DeRuyter	Head coach	1st	Air Force (1985)
Dave Schramm	Offensive coordinator	1st	Adams State (1984)
Nick Toth	Defensive coordinator	1st

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	7:00 pm	Weber State*	Bulldog Stadium Fresno, CA		W 37–10	27,663
September 8	3:30 pm	at No. 4 Oregon*	Autzen Stadium Eugene, OR	P12N	L 25–42	55,755
September 15	5:00 pm	Colorado*	Bulldog Stadium Fresno, CA	CBSSN	W 69–14	27,513
September 22	5:00 pm	at Tulsa*	Skelly Field at H. A. Chapman Stadium Tulsa, OK	CBSSN	L 26–27	24,236
September 29	7:00 pm	San Diego State	Bulldog Stadium Fresno, CA		W 52–40	33,894
October 6	4:00 pm	at Colorado State	Hughes Stadium Fort Collins, CO	TWCSN/KTVD	W 28–7	25,814
October 13	12:30 pm	at No. 24 Boise State	Bronco Stadium Boise, ID (Battle for the Milk Can)	NBCSN	L 10–20	35,742
October 20	7:30 pm	Wyoming	Bulldog Stadium Fresno, CA	TWCSN/RTRM	W 42–14	29,423
October 27	12:30 pm	at New Mexico	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM	TWCSN	W 49–32	19,856
November 3	4:00 pm	Hawaii	Bulldog Stadium Fresno, CA (rivalry)	TWCSN	W 45–10	30,755
November 10	7:30 pm	at Nevada	Mackay Stadium Reno, NV	NBCSN	W 52–36	22,104
November 24	12:30 pm	Air Force	Bulldog Stadium Fresno, CA	NBCSN	W 48–15	36,240
December 24	5:00 pm	vs. SMU*	Aloha Stadium Honolulu, HI (Hawaii Bowl)	ESPN	L 10–43	30,024
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Pacific time

Game summaries

Weber State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wildcats	0	3	7	0	10
Bulldogs	14	10	0	13	37

See also: 2012 Weber State Wildcats football team

At Oregon

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	3	3	10	9	25
No. 4 Ducks	14	21	0	7	42

See also: 2012 Oregon Ducks football team

Colorado

	1	2	3	4	Total
Buffaloes	0	7	0	7	14
Bulldogs	35	20	7	7	69

See also: 2012 Colorado Buffaloes football team

At Tulsa

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	20	0	6	0	26
Golden Hurricane	7	10	10	0	27

See also: 2012 Tulsa Golden Hurricane football team

Last meeting was in the 2005 Liberty Bowl.

San Diego State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Aztecs	21	6	13	0	40
Bulldogs	7	29	10	6	52

See also: 2012 San Diego State Aztecs football team and Fresno State–San Diego State football rivalry

At Colorado State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	7	7	0	14	28
Rams	0	0	0	7	7

See also: 2012 Colorado State Rams football team

Last meeting was in the 2008 New Mexico Bowl.

At Boise State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	0	0	3	7	10
No. 22 Broncos	7	10	0	3	20

See also: 2012 Boise State Broncos football team and Milk Can (college football)

Wyoming

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cowboys	0	0	7	7	14
Bulldogs	21	14	0	7	42

See also: 2012 Wyoming Cowboys football team

Last meeting was in the 2009 New Mexico Bowl.

At New Mexico

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	0	14	21	14	49
Lobos	14	10	0	8	32

See also: 2012 New Mexico Lobos football team

Hawaii

	1	2	3	4	Total
Warriors	0	3	0	7	10
Bulldogs	21	21	3	0	45

See also: 2012 Hawaii Warriors football team and Fresno State–Hawaii football rivalry

At Nevada

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	7	14	23	8	52
Wolf Pack	7	14	0	15	36

See also: 2012 Nevada Wolf Pack football team

Air Force

	1	2	3	4	Total
Falcons	0	7	0	8	15
Bulldogs	21	10	14	3	48

See also: 2012 Air Force Falcons football team

Last meeting was in the 2000 Silicon Valley Classic.

SMU–Hawaii Bowl

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	0	0	7	3	10
Mustangs	0	22	7	14	43

See also: 2012 SMU Mustangs football team and 2012 Hawaii Bowl

Awards and honors

• Quarterback Derek Carr was named Mountain West Conference's Offensive Player of the Year.
• Strong-safety Phillip Thomas was named the Mountain West Conference's Defensive Player of the Year, and was a unanimous All-American.
• Wide-receiver Davante Adams was named the Mountain West Conference's Freshman of the Year.