There were glitches and hiccups, but the Fresno State football team emphatically answered the doubters with a perfect 10.

A year after going 1-11, the Bulldogs earned their 10th victory in 2017 — 33-27 over Houston in the Hawaii Bowl at Aloha Stadium.

“It was the cherry on top of the season,” said quarterback Marcus McMaryion, who was named the Bulldogs’ most valuable player after passing for 342 yards and rushing for two touchdowns.

Jimmy Camacho kicked a bowl-record four field goals, and Jaron Bryant’s 44-yard interception return moved Fresno State out of reach with 3:49 to play. But while McMaryion hoisted the MVP paddle, an index-finger-to-the-sky toast was raised for head coach Jeff Tedford.

“We knew our 10th win was important to coach Tedford,” McMaryion said of the 10-4 record. “We owe him the world for the kind of confidence he instilled in this team.

Just the demeanor he brought from the top down has rubbed off on all the players.”

With two weeks remaining in the 2016 season, Tedford was named as successor to fired head coach Tim DeRuyter.

Instead of handling on-field duties, Tedford used what remained of that season to evaluate players — not just on the field, but how they practiced and interacted with each other. Tedford used those assessments in deciding the play-calling and approach.

At this year’s Mountain West Media Summit, the Bulldogs were predicted to finish sixth in the six-team West Division.

“We weren’t paying that much attention to what the media was saying about us,” linebacker Robert Stanley said. “We knew what type of guys we had in the room. We knew the type of things we could do.”

A couple weeks into training camp, McMaryion, who earned a bachelor’s degree at Oregon State, decided to transfer to Fresno State. He grew up in nearby Dinuba, Calif., a town with a population of 25,000 and a passion for all things football. McMaryion made his first start in the fourth game, and the Bulldogs went 9-2 with him at the controls. By winning the West Division and reaching the MWC title game, the Bulldogs earned a trip to paradise.

“Just being able to come back home and play for the (San Joaquin) Valley and for coach Tedford, it’s been a really good situation,” McMaryion said.

There were four ties in the game. The Cougars took a 7-0 lead when nose tackle Ed Oliver, the 2017 Outland Trophy winner, aligned in the backfield and powered his way into the end zone. But the Bulldogs tied it on McMaryion’s 1-yard run.

Camacho and Houston’s Caden Novikioff then traded field goals to even it at 10.

Camacho endured some trials after that. He was wide left on a field-goal attempt from 56 yards.

“Distance or no distance, it’s zero points,” Camacho said. “You have to forget about it, and you have to come out and adjust and kick the next one. There are no ‘almost’ points in football.”

In the third quarter, a Camacho attempt was blocked. Alexander Myres grabbed the football and raced 94 yards to tie it at 20 with 2:54 to play.

“We had to fix a couple things in protection,” Camacho said. “But that’s part of football. You have to change up your schemes. They watch films, too. Obviously, they saw a weakness in our protection or our operation. Our coaches did a good job of adjusting after that.”

In the fourth quarter, Camacho connected on field goals from 26 and, with 6 minutes to play, 33 yards.

In the ensuing Houston huddle, wideout Steven Dunbar said the mood was upbeat. “We tell our team all the time, don’t just ride the wave, keep on playing.”

The Cougars advanced to their 41. The Bulldogs, who try to pressure off a four-man front, flushed quarterback D’Eriq King from the pocket again.

“That was our plan all game to get him moving,” defensive tackle Malik Forrester said. “We didn’t want to let (King) sit (in the pocket). If he sits on the spot, he’ll make a play because he’s a good quarterback.”

King scrambled to his right and tried to throw to Dunbar along the near sideline. But Stanley tipped the pass.

“At first I got a run read, so I thought it was a run play,” Stanley said. “I saw the quarterback. He was looking for a seam right behind me. I put my hand out hoping to get a tip, and I did.”

Cornerback Jaron Bryant grabbed the football, then sprinted 44 yards for a touchdown to make it 33-20 with 3:49 to play.

“It was a blessing,” Bryant said of his pick-6. “Once I saw the ball in the air, it was like, ‘Oh, go get it.’ Rob Stanley always does things like that. From fall camp to spring ball, he makes plays like that.”

Stanley said: “I played volleyball when I was a freshman in high school. Maybe (the tip) is a transition from that.”

The Cougars scored a feel-good touchdown with 45 seconds left. But the Bulldogs recovered the ensuing onside kick to close out the season.

In the celebration after the game, the Bulldogs gathered at midfield and chanted what has become their theme: “The pride and tradition of Bulldog football cannot be entrusted to the timid or the weak.”

“That’s what we’ve using to get us through all season,” Stanley said.