FRESNO - A phrase well-known to Fresno State Bulldog fans everywhere, one does not need to look too far to see how appropriately it fits the Rivers family. With a father who is the second-leading rusher in Fresno State football history, a mother who is a Fresno State graduate and a sister who was a softball student-athlete, Fresno State is all junior running back Ronnie Rivers knows.

Born on Jan. 31, 1999, Super Bowl Sunday, Ronnie has been around the game of football his entire life. His father, Ron Rivers, a Bulldog running back from 1991-93 and a longtime NFL player gave Ronnie a unique perspective on the game of football.

"I have always embraced having him as my father and always told him I would come to Fresno State and break all of his records," said Ronnie. "I have been saying that since I was five or six years old and the fact I have an opportunity to be doing that is special. He has taught me a lot about the game of football through my whole journey."

Growing up as the middle child in an athletic household along with his older sister Malia and younger brother Devon, Ronnie grew up playing sports from an early age making the rounds to football, basketball and baseball before getting serious about football as a sophomore in high school.

Much like his father, the younger Rivers stands 5-foot, 8-inches tall and what the duo may lack in height, they more than make up for passion & desire.

Despite being one of six finalists for the Cal-Hi Sports' Mr. Football State Player of the Year as a senior in 2016 at Freedom High School, which included him rushing for a school-record 387 yards and seven touchdowns in one game, colleges were not knocking down the door with scholarship offers.

Despite doing well at a camp at Fresno State, a scholarship offer was never extended by the 'Dogs to Rivers as the Bulldogs suffered through a tough 1-11 season in 2016.

With hopes of becoming a Bulldog possibly going by the wayside, that all changed in November of 2016 when Fresno State introduced Jeff Tedford as the program's new head coach. A former quarterback at Fresno State in 1981-82 along with being an assistant coach for the Bulldogs from 1992-97, Tedford had great familiarity with the Rivers family having coached Ron Rivers while he was a Bulldog.

"I looked it as a clean slate," said Rivers on Tedford being named the 'Dogs new head coach. "He brought in a whole new coaching staff so it was a fresh start."

With Fresno State back in the picture for college options, Ron Rivers got in his son's ear and let him know all of the positives of playing for Coach Tedford.

"My dad talked a lot about Coach Tedford and his history with running backs," said Rivers. "I remember hanging up the phone after talking to Coach Tedford and my dad asking if I wanted to commit, but I was too nervous to do it then. I quickly called him back and told him I wanted to be a Bulldog!"

With his commitment to being a Bulldog in place, Ronnie signed a National Letter of Intent in February of 2017 and soon arrived on campus a few short months later.

With a new era of Fresno State Football starting under Tedford, Rivers and the Bulldogs enjoyed a remarkable turnaround in 2017 going from one win to 10 wins, a berth in the Mountain West Championship game and a Hawai'i Bowl victory. Seeing action in 13 games, Rivers rushed for 480 yards and five touchdowns as a freshman as he got used to a new level of football.

"The game was a much faster pace," said Rivers on adjusting to college football. "But focusing on the things I learned from my father, growing up in the game made the transition much easier."

Tedford quickly noticed the similarities Ronnie had to his father who ended his Bulldog career with 3,473 rushing yards, good for second all-time in program history, before playing professionally for the Detroit Lions and Atlanta Falcons.

"They are really similar," said Tedford on comparing the older and younger Rivers. "Their stature is very similar and Ron Rivers is a little thicker than Ronnie, but both guys are good all-around players, elusive, can catch the ball, competitive and overall really good team players."

After going through his freshman season missing only one game to injury, Ronnie got hit by the injury bug as a sophomore injuring his right foot in spring practice that sidelined him for the first three games of the 2018 season. Never having had surgery, Rivers underwent an operation to get back on the field.

"The doctors actually told me that I may miss the entire season, but fortunately I was able to heal quite quickly," said Rivers. Making his return against Toledo with a two carries for 25 yards, Rivers went on to rush for a team-leading 743 yards and totaled 1,192 all-purpose yards. He also added a team-high 13 touchdowns, including 10 rushing scores as the Bulldogs tallied a program-record 12 wins.

Slowly getting his legs back under him and with his injury behind him, Rivers saved his best performances for late in the season showing up the biggest in the Bulldogs' final two games of the season.

In a moment that will forever be a part of Bulldog football history, Rivers ran for the game-winning touchdown in overtime in the Mountain West Championship game as the 'Dogs knocked off Boise State on the blue turf. Two weeks later, Rivers ran for 212 yards on 24 carries and two touchdowns on his way to earning Las Vegas Bowl Most Valuable Player honors.

"It was unbelievable, very emotional," said Rivers on scoring the game-winning score in Boise. "To go from the thought of possibly redshirting with an injury to turn around and be able to play and have success in the biggest games of the season, I don't know how to explain it. It's hard to explain the feelings scoring the touchdown in Boise and performing well in the bowl game, I was just thankful to be able to be out there and play with my teammates."

With half of his Bulldog career in the books, Rivers entered his junior season entrenched as the leading running back for the Bulldogs. With fellow junior backfield mate Jordan Mims, who has rushed for over 1,000 yards over his first two seasons, sidelined this season with an injury and with additional injuries to other Bulldog running backs, Rivers will carry more responsibility for the 'Dogs this fall.

"It is tough losing great players like that, but we talk about the next man up a lot in the running back room and whoever is on the field, we just want to give it our all," said Rivers. "We want to keep the momentum going from last season. Whoever is on the field, we just want to go out there and play our best and help the team win. That is really what it is all about."

It is not all on Rivers' shoulders this season though as senior Josh Hokit will look to help alleviate the Bulldogs' depth in the backfield. A running back with Rivers the last two seasons, Hokit had made the transition over to linebacker in spring practice with the hopes of possibly taking a redshirt season this fall, but unfortunately those plans were dashed with Fresno State's rash of running back injuries in fall camp. The two-sport athlete quickly moved back to offense where he will once again team up with Rivers to help the 'Dogs form a solid 1-2 punch in the backfield.

Roommates on the road over the last two seasons, the two have become good friends, and will look to carry their tight bond onto the field this season. "It is awesome being back on that side of the ball with him," said Hokit. "That is my travel roommate and one of my best friends on the team so I am happy to be back playing with him. We both bring different things to the table. Ronnie has speed, elusiveness and some power while I am more of a power back and a one-cut guy so we have a good 1-2 punch along with the other backs."

Another teammate who is excited to have the experience and leadership of Rivers in the backfield is starting quarterback Jorge Reyna. A fifth-year senior from Southern California, who despite his class level enters tonight's game versus Minnesota with only one career start under his belt, Reyna knows he is in good hands with Rivers behind him.

"Ronnie is a great guy," said Reyna. "He is the heart and soul of the team and is such an easy-going guy, but also a hard worker so we get the best of both worlds with him. His leadership is remarkable and gets the guys going. He challenges everyone on a daily bases to enhance their performance so having him beside me is a great advantage."

With Fresno State securing 22 wins during his first two seasons as a Bulldog, Rivers is excited to keep the winning going in 2019. "Our goal is always to win the Mountain West and bowl game and we just want to play every game like it is our last and give it everything we got."

With a new leadership role and tasked with being the top guy in the backfield, Rivers knows the time is now to let his play do the talking.

Look out dad, Ronnie is coming for your records.