Davante Adams almost missed Fresno State jersey retirement ceremony. Here’s what happened

While at Fresno State, Davante Adams and his teammates took Bulldogs fans on a wild ride, winning back-to-back Mountain West Conference championships with one of the most potent offenses in college football history.

On Saturday, Adams returned to campus for the retirement of his No. 15 jersey during a halftime ceremony at a 17-10 Homecoming victory over San Jose State.

Adams almost didn’t make it to the ceremony thanks to another wild ride.

His charter flight from Henderson, Nev., was forced to return to its point of origin when a windshield in the plane cracked shortly after takeoff.

“Not too scary,” Adams said. “It was more so a bummer that I thought I wouldn’t be able to make it on time. We had to land back and then get it right and make sure we got here safe and could have a good time together.”

Adams and a sellout crowd certainly did, the former Bulldogs wideout receiving a rousing and prolonged ovation during the halftime ceremony.

“I don’t take this lightly,” Adams said. “This means a lot to me, I’m trying not to get too emotional right here because, obviously, it’s a lot.”

Adams’ name and number became the ninth added to the press box facade, just to the left of the No. 4 in honor of Derek Carr, the quarterback who he teamed with for a then-school record 233 receptions and still standing-school record 38 touchdown catches.

Carr and Adams are together again as Las Vegas Raiders teammates.

Adams didn’t discuss a recent incident where he pushed a cameraman in Kansas City following the Raiders’ 30-29 loss to the Chiefs on Monday Night Football. The NFL is taking a look at the incident, but there is no timetable for when the league will announce what, if any, disciplinary action Adams might face.

The cameraman filed a police report, and on Wednesday, Adams was charged with a city ordinance violation.

Adams instead soaked up the adulation from 41,031 in attendance, which included his family, Carr, and several former Fresno State teammates, including Josh Harper and Isaiah Burse, who in 2013 became only the fifth trio of teammates to record 1,000-yard seasons. Adams’ two sisters were wearing T-shirts that said, on the back, ‘My brother is better than yours’ with photos of Adams in a Fresno State uniform stiff-arming a Colorado defender to the turf and the three of them smiling together.

A RECORD-SETTING CAREER

Difficult to argue that point. The record-setting wideout absolutely smashed the school record with his 38 touchdown receptions. He had 24 in 2013 alone, and the career record going into that season was 25 set by Henry Ellard and later tied by Charlie Jones and Bernard Berrian. The 233 career receptions came in just two seasons and broke the school record of 222 set in four by Rodney Wright; that record was later eclipsed by KeeSean Johnson, like Adams, a Palo Alto High product, who had 275 receptions in four seasons.

Coach Jeff Tedford said it was planned for Adams to talk to the current Bulldogs in the locker room before the game, but that plan was scratched because of the flight delay.

“I’m really happy that they did the ceremony for him,” Tedford said. “Well deserved. Great representative of this program, as I’ve said many, many times.

“Derek, I didn’t even know was going to be there. I saw him as I was running by. It was nice of him to be there, as well. Those guys obviously are huge parts of the tradition of Bulldog football.”

Fresno State had to scramble to make it happen after Adams’ flight was diverted, but it all worked out. Adams landed in Fresno during the first quarter and was at the 50-yard line, surrounded by his family at halftime.

Paul Loeffler, the radio voice of the Bulldogs, did a countdown to the unveiling of Adams’ name and jersey number as the crowd cheered. Former Fresno State coach Pat Hill, who recruited Adams to Fresno State in 2011, was in the radio booth in the press box, waving his arms.

“Honestly, I don’t even know what to say right now,” Adams said before the countdown to the big moment. “I thought I knew what I was going to come here and say, but the type of love that I got from this Fresno State crowd, I really appreciate you guys. I feel like I was just here. ...

“I had big dreams, but you never know exactly what it’s going to be like. You’re a big fish in a small pond in high school, and then you come here, and now you’re a small fish in a big pond. A lot of work went on. I had a coaching staff around me, teammates that I would never trade for the world, and just the fan base on top of that. The echo is making it really hard for me to think right now, but I really appreciate you guys. Like I said, this fan base and my teammates made it just an experience for me.”

1982 BULLDOGS HONORED

Fresno State on Saturday also honored its 1982 team, which went 11-1, won a Pacific Coast Athletic Association championship and beat Bowling Green 29-28 in the California Bowl.

Tedford was the Bulldogs quarterback then and enjoyed the reunion.

“Some of them look a little different — I haven’t seen them for 40 years,” Tedford joked after the game. “Some of them look a little different. Have to put name tags on them next time. It was so awesome. I’m so thankful that they paid tribute to that group because that was a really special group.”