So on a brand-new bike (at least the one I rode Saturday), those oblong bosses don't have holes in them -- that's what I was questioning because the tech said they drill those holes and that's what seemed odd to me. Also seemed like there would be a bracket attached to the fender, rather than attaching the plate directly to the fender.
Doesn't seem right. I bought mine basically right off the truck and sat and watched them do all the prep. In fact, as I recall, I transferred the plate from the old bike to the new myself, and I know I didn't drill any holes.
If there truly aren't any holes my guess would be a random production error.