Fresno State sells out L.A. Bowl ticket allotment, requesting more for its Red Wave

Shortly after Fresno State secured its spot in the Dec. 17 L.A. Bowl by winning the Mountain West Conference championship, Tim Collins, the Bulldogs’ senior associate athletics director for development, made a phone call.

He wanted to warn L.A. Bowl officials that the Red Wave was coming, and in a matter of days Bulldogs fans snapped up almost all of the available suites at SoFi Stadium to watch Fresno State’s matchup against Washington State. Fresno State officials on Wednesday also requested more tickets to sell beyond its allotment of 2,000.

“We have seen great interest and excitement from the Fresno market for the Jimmy Kimmel L.A. Bowl presented by Stifel,” said Andrew Bragman, vice president of ticket operations for the bowl, in a statement. “We are almost sold out of available suites and based on sales so far, we are expecting lots of fans from Fresno to be at the game.”

Bowl officials, Collins said, had to make more suite inventory available the day after the Bulldogs won their fourth Mountain West title with a 26-18 victory on the blue turf of Boise State.

The inaugural game last season between Utah State and Oregon State had an announced attendance of 29,896.

Fresno State had a big year, rebounding from a 1-4 start. The Bulldogs averaged 39,067 in attendance for their six home games, the third-highest among Group of Five conference programs and their highest since 2005. Quarterback Jake Haener also has confirmed that he will play in the game, given the compelling matchup. Los Angeles is a short drive, and tickets have been moving quickly.

Some of the Bulldogs’ allotment of tickets are reserved for player families, but Fresno State sold its original allotment Wednesday afternoon, said Frank Pucher, senior associate athletics director for external relations.

Fans can check on ticket availability through the athletics website. They also are available through the bowl.

“As we’ve seen all year and for several decades, the Red Wave is as good as it gets in terms of a passionate fan base here on the West Coast,” Pucher said. “We just averaged more than 39,000 at home games. They’ve made their presence felt in road venues all year long and now their sights are set on L.A. and SoFi Stadium.

“Our coaches and student-athletes truly appreciate and feed off the Red Wave on game days, but their impact extends beyond that. The magnitude of their allegiance and support throughout the Central Valley differentiates us here in California and the Pacific Time Zone and is more in line with programs in the Midwest and Southeast.”