Fresno State commit Bryson Donelson apparently can't be stopped

The star running back has rushed for more than 3,000 yards to go with California-best 55 touchdowns

If California wasn’t properly introduced to Bryson Donelson already, the standout Central Valley Christian high school football star surely made his presence known last Saturday in the CIF State Regional Bowl D2-A playoffs.

Just ask Simi Valley.

The standout, do-everything dynamo took the opening kickoff and raced 90 yards untouched for a touchdown.

As he’s done all season Donelson scored again. And again. And again.

You get the picture.

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By the end of the night, the 6-foot, 205-pound senior sliced, diced, juked and jived all night, rushing for 377 yards on 27 carries and scoring on runs of 74, 56 and 29 yards to help the Cavaliers beat the Pioneers 55-38.

The win gave Central Valley Christian 14 wins on the season, the most ever for a Visalia school and will play Los Gatos (12-1) Saturday at Pasadena City College for the D2-A state championship.

“He’s gonna play really hard, he’s super competitive and when he doesn’t score he gets ticked off,” Hughes said of Donelson. “He brings energy to the team. The o-line blocks for the first 5-8 yards and then he’s going to take care of the rest.”

Expectations? Yeah, Donelson has them.

“I’m really hard on myself,” Donelson says. “I believe I can score on every play.”

And he almost does, leading the state in total touchdowns this season with 55.

Bryson Donelson leads the state with 55 total touchdowns scored / Photo by Richard Posada

STAGE STEALER

And there’s no wonder he’s a candidate for California Player of the Year. On 265 carries this season he’s rushed for 3,056 yards–good for 4th in the state–with 44 rushing TDs with 561 receiving yards and 9 TDs.

Oh yeah, and he’s the punter too.

Donelson’s shined brightest on the biggest stage; in three total playoff games prior to his monster game against Simi Valley, he rushed for 839 yards and 10 TDs and added seven receptions for 119 yards and three scores, including the game-winning catch with 4:30 left against Lemoore for the D2 Central Section title.

Donelson transferred to Central Valley Christian — or CVC as it’s more commonly known in the Central Valley — last season from nearby El Diamante in Visalia. He had to sit out the first five games of the season and made the most of it, rushing for 1,466 yards and 18 TDs.

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And on cue, his first carry was a 66-yard TD run against Kerman in a game he ran six times for 261 yards and three touchdowns.

As for the future, Donelson was offered seven total Division 1 scholarships including Boise State, Washington State and Boston College but Fresno State eventually won out.

“It was crazy because on my phone the night before, I was going through Fresno State and Boise State,” Donelson told Gabe Camarillo of Barkboard.com. “I was thinking really hard. I didn’t sleep much that night. Then I woke up the next day, first thing on my phone, I saw Fresno State and a big ol’ Bulldog. I said, ‘Yup, that’s a sign.’”

However, before he dons the Bulldogs uniform in 2024, Donelson has one more game to play–this Saturday–to cement himself in Central Section lore.

A state championship would certainly be a cherry on top for an already storied career.