Then they rallied from 14 points down to beat Washington State. Travis Wilson and his offensive line provide a challenge unlike those this Cal defense has faced before.
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“We have talented basketball players”, Martin said Wednesday, “but I think a lot of people would say 35 teams have that caliber of talent”.
But none of that registered. The team also fell in the rankings and are now just hanging on placed 25th in this week’s AVCA Poll.
INJURY UPDATE: Cal: DE DeVante Wilson (foot), DT Mustafa Jalil (knee) and RB Daniel Lasco (hip) will play; OT Brian Farley (ankle) is probable. “We’re a different team defensively and I think it’s going to serve us well”. They’re all big-time, according to head coach Sonny Dykes.
To clamber out of a well of that depth is a mighty task for any program. On Monday, the record-setting Bears quarterback shot a “Big Man on Campus” segment with ESPN. McClure, responsible for two of a handful of plays that gave Cal a six-point victory, its third consecutive win decided by less than a touchdown, was awarded Pac-12 honors for Defensive Player of the Week. They’ll start broadcasting from there Friday at 10 am. “I thought they were pretty focused in and played hard and that’s what I hope our guys do”, Petersen said.
Martin is all about providing examples from his own path. Perspective is one of those teaching points. The plus-eight turnover margin is a credit to all involved. And so far that has turned out to be true and that trend will continue this week heading to Salt Lake City.
The first is that after last year’s abysmal showing, any flicker of life on defense constitutes progress.
“There’s only two undefeated teams left in the Pac 12, us and Cal Berkeley”, Coach Whittingham said.
Jason O. Watson/Getty Images Stefan McClure takes down quarterback Luke Falk of the Washington State Cougars. But senior wideout Trevor Davis was a second-team preseason All-American kick returner, per The Sporting News, after taking back-to-back kickoffs to the house in last year’s meeting with Washington State. A favorite name among the National Football League draft set, Goff’s ability is framed largely in the context of potential on Sundays, while his exploits on Saturdays are whittled down to easily shareable snippets. Franklin swears Goff is taller than he was as a sophomore. We get to learn from each other as well as the coaches and the staff who attend. Though Cal has one of the most prolific passing offenses in the nation, Goff has just one target ranked in the top 100 nationally for receptions: Kenny Lawler. Nobody has much of an explanation, but there’s enough data at play that you wonder if maybe, somehow, this indicates an added difficulty of holding serve in this conference. He also has a punt return for a touchdown. “It’s really fun to watch”.
A year ago, the Bears lost to Washington, UCLA, Oregon, USC, Stanford and BYU – all teams that played in bowl games – after their 4-1 start. That may be better for the bears as the country still looks at them without very much respect and that can change very quickly with a great road win this weekend. They’re all big, all important. Plus, Duke is 8-2-1 against the spread on the road the last three seasons.
“In a few ways it’s a little frustrating because we haven’t put our best foot forward”, Dykes said. “It’s just a chance for us to be together and bond”. The loss to Utah was worse – 62-20, all night. Questions are about to be raised on the field that demand answers.
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Speaking of defense, Cal has struggled to field a quality one in recent years. Utah is a good football team. With both schools off to surprising flawless starts, the No. 5 Utah Utes (4-0, 1-0) will host No. 23 California (5-0, 2-0) in Saturday’s potentially conference-shifting matchup at Rice-Eccles Stadium. This is California’s moment before the moment, and that can be scary, but there’s a grim egalitarianism to what it’s about to attempt.
