BERKELEY — Under the lights at Memorial Stadium and in front of a national TV audience, Cal faces its biggest challenge of the young season Saturday when Minnesota pays a visit.
Both teams bring 2-0 records to the 7:30 p.m. kickoff on ESPN.
“We will need to play our best game so far,” coach Justin Wilcox said. “I’m confident we can do that.”
The Bears started fast and cruised past Oregon State 34-15 on the road in their opener. Then they started slowly before pulling away from Texas Southern 35-3 last Saturday at home.
This will be a different task.
“It’s Big Ten football. They’re going to try to wear you down until you give up,” said Cal offensive lineman Bastian Swinney, who grew up in Edina, Minnesota, just 13 miles from the Golden Gophers’ campus. “We’re fired up. It’s going to be a good time.”
Wide receiver and return specialist Jacob De Jesus said there was a different vibe at practice this week.
“I would definitely say there’s a little bit more energy going into this game,” he said. “It’s going to be a big challenge for us, which I’m excited for . . . to see where we’re at as a team.”
We’ll find out how the Bears’ defense, which has been solid so far, contends with a Minnesota offensive line that averages nearly 6-foot-6 and 320 pounds.
We’ll see if Cal’s running game, which showed encouraging signs against an outmatched FCS opponent last week, can consistently move the ball against a defense that has given up just 63 rushing yards over two games.
And we’ll get our first look at how freshman quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele functions against the level of opponent the Bears will see every week once ACC play begins on Sept. 27 against Boston College.
Kyle Cefalo, Cal’s first-year receivers coach and passing game coordinator, said everyone has been impressed by Sagapolutele’s poise.
“He’s not scared of the big moment. He embraces it, he enjoys it. He can rally the troops,” Cefalo said. “It’s hard to show leadership as a freshman because you’re just trying to make sure you know what to do.
“You can’t lead if you don’t have your own self in order. He’s starting to make strides in that area. You can just see his confidence building.”
Sagapolutele was sharp from the start in the road opener against Oregon State, completing his first nine passes while playing turnover-free football with three touchdowns.
A week later, the Bears were much less crisp to start the game, producing just three points on their first six possessions against Texas Southern.
“It wasn’t just him. It was on all of us, the whole offense,” De Jesus said. Sagapolutele found his rhythm, and the Bears grew their lead to 25-0 by the middle of the third quarter.
“I’m not surprised,” De Jesus said. “He has that kind of swagger, that kind of confidence about himself. That’s who he is.”
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Cefalo said Sagapolutele showed his talent and feel for the position from his first few spring practices.
“It’s funny because he’s still a freshman . . . (but) he plays the position like an adult,” Cefalo said. “From a receiving standpoint, he’s going to give us a chance. That’s incredible for a young guy to see the field the way he does, to see space the way he does and to be willing to pull the trigger and be fearless.”
Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck has taken notice.
“He doesn’t look like a true freshman. He looks like he’s been there a long time,” Fleck told reporters this week. “He’s got good pocket presence. He knows when to use his legs. He’s very accurate.
“He is a really, really talented QB. The poise for him as a true freshman is very rare. We’ve got our work cut out for us, that’s for sure.”