It’s still the month of September, with much more of the college football schedule in front of us than in the rear-view mirror. But for Cal, even in its ACC opener at Boston College on Saturday (12:30 p.m., ACC Network), this feels like more than just another game.
The Bears stoked optimism with offseason moves that included landing top quarterback prospect Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, an infusion of offensive brainpower on the coaching staff and bringing former All-American Ron Rivera on board as general manager.
After winning its first three games, all by double-digit margins, Cal tanked last Saturday on the road against 14-point underdog San Diego State, losing 34-0.
Coach Justin Wilcox was unhappy postgame and on Tuesday labeled the tone of practice this week as “urgent” and having “an edge.”
“There needs to be urgency in practice,” he said. “And Monday was a good response. Why did it have to get to that point?”
Defensive lineman TJ Bollers hopes the Bears have learned a lesson. “Getting hit in the mouth . . . that’s the taste of blood,” he said of the one-sided defeat. “You never want to taste that taste of blood.”
Cal has repeatedly teased fans at the start of recent seasons:
— The Bears started 3-0 last year before losing four in a row by a combined total of nine points. Cal finished the regular season 6-6, then lost a bowl game.
— In 2023, Cal was 3-2 when its usually dependable defense disintegrated, allowing 199 points in four straight defeats. Just as in ’24, the Bears wound up 6-6 before losing their bowl game.
— And the year before that, the Bears were 3-1, then dropped six in a row on the way to a 4-8 record.
The Bears (3-1) will try to chart a better path forward when they face a pass-happy BC squad (1-2, 0-1 ACC), which comes off a bye week after losing 30-20 at Stanford.
Players and coaches began this week trying to identify what they could do to change things. Practice was devoted to fixing small issues that led to big problems last Saturday.
“Because,” Wilcox stressed, “it can’t happen again.”
This is the first of three cross-country trips the Bears will make for ACC games. A year ago, they had five long flights, including a non-conference game at Auburn and an ACC matchup against SMU in Dallas.
Cal won two of the five last season and four of the games were decided by a touchdown or less. Wilcox said the staff’s prep work makes the trips as comfortable as possible and said travel “is a non-factor” in the outcome of games.
Wilcox said there were position battles at wide receiver and the “work-in-progress” offensive line.
Related Articles
Washington’s Jedd Fisch uses NFL models to determine roster revenue sharing
College football picks: Georgia, Penn State, Washington, USC cover
Why Kenny Dillingham’s contract is a bargain for Arizona State
Holy Score: BYU-Colorado: First test for undefeated Cougars, QB Bear Bachmeier
NCAA permits former G League player to sign with Santa Clara
“We’ve got a lot of work to do there,” he said of the o-line, alluding to the team’s struggles to run the ball. “There’s some talented men in that group but it takes more than (being) 6-5 and 320.”
One position that will remain static is quarterback, where the Bears expect Sagapolutele to revert to his form of the first three weeks after throwing two interceptions and producing no points against SDSU.
The freshman left-hander had six touchdowns and just one pick through three weeks, but completed just 10 of his final 30 pass attempts against the Aztecs.
“Right now, Jaron’s our quarterback and that’s not changing,” Wilcox said. “Jaron will bounce back. He’s very mature for a guy his age. He’s going to play a lot of really good football and that game was not on Jaron by any stretch of the imagination.”