2022 LA Bowl

2022 Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl presented by Stifel
2nd LA Bowl
Washington State Cougars Fresno State Bulldogs (7–5) (9–4) Pac-12 MWC 6 29 Head coach:  Jake Dickert Head coach:  Jeff Tedford
1 2 3 4 Total Washington State 0 0 6 0 6 Fresno State 7 9 6 7 29
Date	December 17, 2022
Season	2022
Stadium	SoFi Stadium
Location	Inglewood, California
MVP	Offense: Jordan Mims (RB, Fresno State) Defense: Devo Bridges (DE, Fresno State)[1]
Favorite	Fresno State by 4[2]
Referee	Lee Hedrick (SEC)[3]
Attendance	32,405
United States TV coverage
Network	ABC
Announcers	Joe Tessitore (play-by-play), Greg McElroy (analyst), and Molly McGrath (sideline)
International TV coverage
Network	ESPN Deportes

The 2022 LA Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 17, 2022, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The second annual LA Bowl, the game featured Fresno State from the Mountain West Conference and Washington State from the Pac-12 Conference. The game began at 12:37 p.m. PST^[4] and aired on ABC.^[5] It was one of the 2022–23 bowl games concluding the 2022 FBS football season. Sponsored by late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel and independent investment bank Stifel, the game was officially known as the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl presented by Stifel.

Teams

The LA Bowl featured the Washington State Cougars from the Pac-12 Conference and the Fresno State from the Mountain West Conference. This was the fifth meeting between Washington State and Fresno State, and Washington State entered the game leading the series three games to one.^[6] They first met in the 1987 season-opener, with Washington State winning 41–24;^[6] their last meeting came on September 10, 1994, in Pullman, with the Cougars winning 24–3.^[6]

Washington State made their 18th bowl appearance, with an 8–9 record in prior games. Their last bowl appearance came in the 2021 Sun Bowl.^[6] Fresno State, whose last bowl game was the 2021 New Mexico Bowl,^[7] made their 30th bowl appearance, with a prior record of 15–14.^[7] Both teams made their first LA Bowl appearance.^[6]

Washington State

Main article: 2022 Washington State Cougars football team

Jake Dickert's second season at Washington State began with a rivalry matchup with Idaho, which the Cougars won by a touchdown.^[8] They earned another win the following week with an upset of No. 19 Wisconsin,^[9] and improved to 3–0 by beating Colorado State the next game.^[10] Their first loss of the season came in their Pac-12 opener, played at home against No. 15 Oregon,^[11] After defeating California for homecoming,^[12] the Cougars entered a three-game losing skid that started with a road contest at No. 6 USC, which Washington State lost by sixteen points.^[13] They then fell to Oregon State for the first time in eight games,^[14] and the third of their three consecutive losses came at home to No. 14 Utah by four points.^[15] Now 4–4, the Cougars turned the tides and went on a three game winning streak, starting with a dominant road win over Stanford^[16] and continuing at home against Arizona State, a win that earned the Cougars bowl eligibility.^[17] Their season's seventh win came the following Saturday at Arizona by eleven points, though they finished the campaign with a home loss in the Apple Cup to rivals No. 13 Washington.^[18] The Cougars entered the game with a record of 7–5 and a conference mark of 4–5.^[19]

Linebacker Daiyan Henley, who was named first-team all-Pac-12 on December 6,^[20] announced three days later that he would opt out of playing in the bowl game, with Dickert saying that Henley would serve as an assistant linebackers coach instead.^[21]

Fresno State

Main article: 2022 Fresno State Bulldogs football team

Fresno State kicked off their 2022 season with a home win against in-state FCS opponents Cal Poly, a four-touchdown win for the Bulldogs.^[22] Their first loss came the following week, as the Bulldogs fell at home by three points to Oregon State.^[23] A three-game road stretch followed, as the Bulldogs traveled to No. 7 USC and lost by four touchdowns,^[24] before falling by five points at UConn^[25] and dropping a rivalry matchup to Boise State by twenty.^[26] The Bulldogs put a stop to the losing streak with a homecoming victory over San Jose State,^[27] and won their first road game with a 41–9 showing against New Mexico the next week.^[28] Two touchdowns in the final 69 seconds of the Bulldogs' next game against San Diego State earned them a come-from-behind win that brought them back up to .500.^[29] Fresno State kept up their good form with a rout of Hawaii to begin November,^[30] and followed that up with a pair of road wins over UNLV, by seven points,^[31] and Nevada, by 27 points; the latter won them the MWC West Division title.^[32] The Bulldogs won their final regular season contest at home against Wyoming in a shutout,^[33] and faced Mountain Division champions Boise State in a rematch in the Mountain West Championship the next week. In their second game this season against the Broncos, Fresno State got the win by twelve points, earning them the conference championship.^[34] The Bulldogs entered the bowl game on an eight-game winning streak, with an overall record of 9–4 and a conference mark of 7–1.^[35]

The day following the conference championship, a pair of Bulldogs defenders–cornerback Cale Sanders and nickelback Emari Pait—entered the transfer portal rather than opting to play in the bowl game.^[36] A week later, wide receiver Josh Kelly announced that he was entering the transfer portal as well.^[37]

Game summary

The game's officiating crew, representing the Southeastern Conference, was led by referee Lee Hedrick and umpire Michael Moten.^[3]

2022 Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl presented by Stifel

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Washington State	0	0	6	0	6
Fresno State	7	9	6	7	29

at SoFi Stadium • Inglewood, California

• Date: Saturday, December 17, 2022
• Game time: 12:30 p.m. PST
• Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 65 °F (18 °C) • Wind: 3 mph (4.8 km/h) north
• Game attendance: 32,405
• Referee: Lee Hedrick
• TV announcers (ABC): Joe Tessitore (play-by-play), Greg McElroy (analyst), and Molly McGrath (sideline)
• Box score

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP Washington State Fresno State 1 11:54 6 75 3:06 Fresno State Zane Pope 22-yard touchdown reception from Jake Haener, Abraham Montano kick good 0 7 2 12:46 4 23 2:00 Fresno State Jordan Mims 4-yard touchdown run, Andre Meono kick good 0 14 2 11:14 Fresno State Cam Ward tackled in end zone for a safety by Leonard Payne Jr. 0 16 3 3:40 9 60 4:48 Wash. State Nakia Watson 1-yard touchdown run, 2-point pass incomplete 6 16 3 0:36 6 75 3:04 Fresno State Nikko Remigio 11-yard touchdown reception from Jake Haener, Andre Meono kick failed 6 22 4 8:29 8 38 4:42 Fresno State Jordan Mims 2-yard touchdown run, Abraham Montano kick good 6 29 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 6 29

Statistics

Team statistical comparison[4] Statistic Washington State Fresno State First downs 13 28 First downs rushing 5 12 First downs passing 7 14 First downs penalty 1 2 Third down efficiency 4–14 6–12 Fourth down efficiency 1–3 0–1 Total plays–net yards 60–182 68–501 Rushing attempts–net yards 28–45 32–221 Yards per rush 1.6 6.9 Yards passing 137 280 Pass completions–attempts 22–32 24–36 Interceptions thrown 1 0 Punt returns–total yards 1–13 0–0 Kickoff returns–total yards 4–65 0–0 Punts–average yardage 5–48.2 4–38.5 Fumbles–lost 1–0 0–0 Penalties–yards 7–52 6–29 Time of possession 27:17 32:43

Washington State statistics[4] Cougars passing C–A Yds TD–INT Cam Ward 22–32 137 0–1 Cougars rushing Car Yds TD Nakia Watson 14 33 1 Dylan Paine 2 16 0 Jaylen Jenkins 1 0 0 Cameron Ward 11 -4 0 Cougars receiving Rec Yds TD Robert Ferrel 10 65 0 Lincoln Victor 5 29 0 Billy Riviere III 1 21 0 Leyton Smithson 3 18 0 Nakia Watson 1 5 0 Tsion Nunnally 1 4 0 Renard Bell 1 -5 0

Fresno State statistics[4] Bulldogs passing C–A Yds TD–INT Jake Haener 24–36 280 2–0 Bulldogs rushing Car Yds TD Jordan Mims 18 209 2 Malik Sherrod 8 24 0 Jake Haener 6 -12 0 Bulldogs receiving Rec Yds TD Nikko Remigio 5 84 1 Zane Pope 4 62 1 Jalen Moreno-Cropper 4 42 0 Erik Brooks 3 40 0 Jordan Mims 2 27 0 Raymond Pauwels 4 22 0 Malik Sherrod 1 3 0 Mac Dalena 1 0 0

See also

• 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship, contested at the same venue on January 9, 2023
• Super Bowl LVI, the NFL championship contested at the same venue on February 13, 2022

References

1. Stoeckle, Savannah (December 17, 2022). "'Dogs make history with 29-6 win in Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl". Fresno State Athletics. Retrieved December 21, 2022.
2. Taddeo, Frankie (December 6, 2022). "Odds for every college football bowl game in 2022–23". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
3. Austro, Ben (December 4, 2022). "2022–23 bowl officiating assignments". footballzebras.com. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
4. "2022 LA Bowl Final Stats" (PDF). Statbroadcast. December 17, 2022. Retrieved December 24, 2022.
5. "2022 College Football Bowl Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
6. "Washington State Football 2022 Media Guide" (PDF). Washington State Football. Washington State Cougars Athletics. July 27, 2022. pp. 75–77, 84–92. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
7. "2022 Fresno State Football Media Guide" (PDF). Fresno State Football. Fresno State Bulldogs Athletics. August 18, 2022. pp. 170–196. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
8. "Recap and highlights: Washington State survives the Battle of the Palouse with 24–17 win over Idaho". The Spokesman-Review. September 3, 2022. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
9. Belz, Matt (September 10, 2022). "Wisconsin football falls to Washington State 17–14 at home". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
10. Lytle, Kevin (September 17, 2022). "3 takeaways: Washington State football team rips Colorado State". Fort Collins Coloradoan. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
11. "Nix leads No. 15 Oregon over Washington State 44–41". CBS Sports. September 24, 2022. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
12. "Ward throws 3 TDs as Washington State beats Cal 28–9". ESPN. October 1, 2022. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
13. Henson, Steve (October 8, 2022). "Travis Dye is Trojans' workhorse as convincing win over Washington State keeps USC unbeaten". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
14. Dahl, Nate (October 15, 2022). "WSU win streak over Oregon State ends at 8". SB Nation. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
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16. "Recap and highlights: Washington State dominates Stanford 52–14 with four takeaways and over 300 rushing yards". The Spokesman-Review. November 5, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
17. Cluff, Jeremy (November 12, 2022). "Arizona State football loses Pac-12 Conference game against Washington State". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
18. "No. 12 Washington outlasts Washington St 51–33 in Apple Cup". CBS Sports. November 27, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
19. Clark, Colton (December 12, 2022). "First look: Seeking first bowl win since 2018, Washington State faces Mountain West champ Fresno State at the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
20. "Henley named first team, 10 earn all-Pac-12 accolades". Washington State Cougars Athletics. December 6, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
21. Green, Travis (December 9, 2022). "Henley opts-out as WSU preps for Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl". KREM. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
22. Nolan, Alec; Flores, Alyssa; Hicks, Stephen; Cardenas, Matthew (September 1, 2022). "Fresno State Bulldogs win 35–7 in season opener against Cal Poly". KFSN. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
23. "Oregon State scores on final play to beat Fresno State in late-night thriller". Yahoo! Sports. September 11, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
24. Nguyen, Thuc Nhi (September 17, 2022). "USC defeats Fresno State convincingly to remain unbeaten in the Lincoln Riley era". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
25. "Houston's late 17-yard TD run helps UConn beat Fresno State". CBS Sports. October 1, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
26. Armstrong, Zack (October 8, 2022). "Boise State wins second-straight game, downing Fresno State 40–20". KTVB. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
27. "Fife rallies Fresno State to 17–10 win over San Jose State". ESPN. October 16, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
28. Martinez, Angelique (October 23, 2022). "Fresno State football defeats New Mexico, 41–9". KSEE. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
29. "Aztecs shocked in final moments of loss at Fresno State". San Diego Union-Tribune. October 30, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
30. Shimabuku, Christian (November 6, 2022). "Hawaii football suffers demoralizing 55–13 loss at Fresno State". KHON. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
31. Moore, Jackson (November 12, 2022). "Fresno State prevails 37–30 in action-packed game at UNLV". 247Sports. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
32. "Haener accounts for 4 TDs, Fresno St. beats Nevada 41–14". ESPN. November 20, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
33. "Mims runs for 3 TDs, Fresno St. beats Wyoming 30–0". CBS Sports. November 26, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
34. "Fresno State defeats Boise State 28–16 in Mountain West title game". KTVB. December 3, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
35. "Bulldogs accept invite to Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl". Fresno State Bulldogs Athletics. December 4, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
36. Bemis, Scott (December 6, 2022). "Sanders, Pait enter portal; Bulldogs excited for bowl game". KSEE. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
37. Moore, Jackson (December 12, 2022). "Fresno State starting WR Josh Kelly enters transfer portal". 247Sports. Retrieved December 14, 2022.