Cal QB situation remains unresolved as ASU lurks
Week 5 of the Cal football schedule has arrived and quarterback questions remain unanswered. Sam Jackson V and Ben Finley are continuing to vie for the starting job as the Bears seek consistency at the position.
“We're only going to be as good as our quarterback play,” Cal offensive coordinator Jake Spavital said.
Finley started at Washington last Saturday but was picked off three times in the first half and ultimately knocked out of the game late in the third quarter with a sore lower back. Jackson, the starter when the season began, came on to direct Cal to three touchdowns but all of it came in garbage time as the Huskies rolled to a 5932 victory.
Jackson, more the dualthreat QB, has completed 57.4 percent of his passes for 426 yards with four touchdowns and two interceptions while rushing for 63 yards. The Bears are 2-0 in his two starts. Finley, a pocket passer with something of a gunslinger mentality, has completed 62 percent for 533 yards, with three TDs and four picks. Cal is 0-2 in his two starts.
“They each have about roughly two games under their belt for us to evaluate,” Wilcox said. “Both of those guys at their best could be good players. We just have to get much more consistent at that position.”
Third-stringer Fernando Mendoza got some practice snaps on Tuesday while Finley sat out to heal up. But Finley was expected to be available the rest of the week and giving reps to three quarterbacks during game week is difficult.
Still, Spavital said he expects Mendoza to be ready if and when his chance comes. “He sees that there's been inconsistent play.”
BEARS KICKER'S PAKISTANI PRIDE >> Cal's new placekicker, freshman Mateen Bhagani, was born and raised in San Diego, where he surfed, skated and played soccer and football in high school.
“I did it all,” he said. “A typical San Diego boy.”
One thing was not typical. Although both of his parents were born in Toronto, Bhaghani's heritage is Pakistani.
He's pretty sure he's the only kicker in the Pac-12 with his family background, possibly the only one in the country.
“I do take pride in my heritage but I did grow up in San Diego,” he said.
At Del Norte High School and even when he was younger, Bhaghani admits, “There weren't many kids like me playing football — it was definitely different. I feel like that kind of inspired me to be like, `I can be the first,' and little kids that look like me can be like, `Oh, I can kick.'”
It's a source of pride also for his mom and dad: “My parents are excited. Obviously, it's an amazing opportunity for my name and my culture in general, just shedding light on it,” he said.
Bhaghani got the nod from Bears coach Justin Wilcox this week as Cal's starting kicker after sophomore Michael Luckhurst struggled the first four weeks of the season. Luckhurst was just 3 for 9 on field goal attempts and last week missed a pair of PAT kicks in the Bears' 27-point loss at Washington.
Bhaghani came on to successfully convert the final extra point.
Bhaghani says he and Luckhurst remain close friends, but that he's ready for his chance. “Everything has been working super well together. I have trust in what I can do and what our (kicking) unit can produce,” he said. “I'm confident.”
Bhaghani made 15 of 18 field goals his junior and senior seasons at Del Norte, including a San Diego-area record 53-yarder in Del Norte's Homecoming game. He was 100 for 101 on PATs.
ZERO TACKLES BUT IMPACTFUL? >> Redshirt junior defensive lineman Brett Johnson is back after missing the past two seasons with a fractured hip and a torn ACL. But through four games, Johnson has no tackles and no defensive stats of any kind.
What does it mean? Defensive coordinator Peter Sirmon noted that the performance of interior D-linemen is not always measured by statistics.
“When he has been out there I think he's been disruptive,” Sirmon said.
Johnson, named to the preseason Senior Bowl watch list, hadn't played in 1,001 days when he took the field in the opener at North Texas. In 2020, the last time he saw action, he had 20 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, one pass breakup and one pass defended — in a shortened four-game season.
“I think it would be difficult to compare anybody to themselves after going through what he went through,” Wilcox said. “I'm impressed with what he's doing considering the circumstances. I think he's going to continue to play better and better. But I am not down on how he's playing at all.”