Fresno State Athletics has announced a five-year agreement with The Wonderful Company that represents the largest corporate partnership in the history of Bulldog Athletics and, according to the school, the first portfolio-wide jersey patch partnership in collegiate athletics.

The deal unites two of the Central Valley’s most recognizable names. Beginning with the 2026-27 academic year, each of the 18 Fresno State Athletics programs will feature a jersey patch representing one of three Wonderful Company brands, Wonderful Pistachios, Wonderful Halos mandarins and POM Wonderful, creating a first-of-its-kind platform that strategically aligns multiple brands from a single corporate portfolio across different Bulldog teams. In addition to the jersey patch, Wonderful Pistachios will have its logo on the playing surface at Valley Children’s Stadium for all Bulldog football home games.

A Partnership Rooted in the Valley

For Fresno State’s leadership, the appeal was as much about identity as revenue. “There is no more natural partner for Fresno State than The Wonderful Company, whose impact on the Central Valley extends far beyond the products it grows and markets,” said Fresno State President Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval. He added that for decades Wonderful has invested in the people, communities, and future of the region, and that together the two are creating lasting opportunities and investing in the next generation of leaders.

Athletic Director Garrett Klassy framed the arrangement as something deliberately larger than a conventional sponsorship. “A traditional jersey patch sponsorship would not reflect the scale of our shared ambitions,” he said. “By bringing together Wonderful Pistachios, Wonderful Halos and POM Wonderful across all 18 Bulldog programs, we have created something truly distinctive in collegiate athletics. This partnership celebrates iconic brands grown in the Valley while creating meaningful new opportunities for our student-athletes and our university.”

Klassy described the pairing in more personal terms, saying the department needed a partner who was authentically “The Valley,” and that the two sides “chose each other” to create an iconic partnership. He also signaled the deal is only the beginning of the athletic department’s commercial push, noting that the school can now sell helmet bumpers, logos on crossbars and goal posts, and field aprons, with more announcements to come.

More Than a Logo

The agreement, facilitated by Bulldog Sports Enterprises, extends well beyond game day. The three brands will be featured through game-day signage, sampling activations, concessions, hospitality spaces and special events, with additional opportunities to engage students through campus events and student-athlete spaces. The collaboration will even reach the virtual gridiron: Fresno State’s jersey patches and field branding will appear in the EA SPORTS College Football video game. To reach fans beyond Fresno, Bulldog Sports Enterprises, the Fresno State Alumni Association and Wonderful Pistachios will host an annual away-game football tailgate, beginning with the Bulldogs’ September 4 matchup at USC.

The partnership also builds on a long-standing relationship. It reflects the longstanding commitment of The Wonderful Company’s co-founders and owners, Lynda and Stewart Resnick, whose support includes the Lynda and Stewart Resnick Student Union, which opened in 2022.

Andy Anzaldo, chief operating officer of corporate social responsibility at The Wonderful Company, emphasized that community connection. “At the heart of this partnership is a shared belief in the future of the Central Valley and the people who call it home,” he said, noting that no university in California is home to more graduates supported by Wonderful and the Resnicks. The company points to its scholarship reach as evidence: of its 1,200 Wonderful College Scholars attending universities across the country, nearly 400 are attending Fresno State this year.

Ryan O’Rorke, Vice President and General Manager of Bulldog Sports Enterprises, said the goal was to build a platform that delivers for both sides. “We sought to create an innovative platform that not only delivers meaningful brand integration for Wonderful’s portfolio of world-class products, but also generates transformational resources that directly benefit Bulldog student-athletes while celebrating the pride of the Valley,” he said.

The Bigger Picture

The deal lands as Fresno State enters a new era in the Pac-12 and as college athletic departments nationwide adapt to revenue sharing with student-athletes. Financial terms were not disclosed, though the partnership is described as worth several million dollars. It also reflects the broader scale of The Wonderful Company’s giving: the company and its founders, along with their foundations, have contributed more than $2.5 billion in philanthropy worldwide, including more than $850 million to-date in the Central Valley.

For a program that has long defined itself by grit and regional pride, the message from both sides was consistent. In a shared commitment to hard work and an unwavering blue-collar mentality, the Bulldogs proudly represent the entire Central Valley, now with the continued support of The Wonderful Company.