Bears seek rare win at Autzen Stadium
Ross Bowers spent last Saturday night stewing in his room and picking apart his four fourth-quarter turnovers against USC.
The Cal sophomore quarterback will spend this Saturday night trying to rebound, which is the best way for the Bears to have a chance on the road against heavily favored Oregon.
“It’s really my choice. Am I going to let it break me, or am I going to let it really help me along the way?” Bowers said of going 6-of-17, with three interceptions and a lost fumble as USC turned a tie game into a 10-point victory. “I’m going to choose to let it motivate me. …
“I know I’ll be fine, but it’s
always going to bug me. It’s always going to hurt, because I know I let down every single person at Cal in one quarter. It’s not something that is ever going to go away, but it’s something that I’m going to turn into a positive somehow.”
Bowers can turn it into a positive by exorcising his demons of last week in a place that has haunted the Cal football program for decades. The Bears have lost 11 of their past 12 trips to Eugene.
Of course, this is a new day for both schools.
Cal hired Justin Wilcox after the program went 22-39 (.361) with one bowl appearance in the previous five seasons. After Oregon missed the postseason for the second time in the past 20 campaigns, the Ducks hired Willie Taggart.
The first-year head coaches are using contrasting styles to lead two of the more surprising teams in the Pac-12. Oregon and Cal were chosen to finish fourth and sixth in the Pac-12 North, respectively.
Instead the teams will meet Saturday with each looking for its fourth win in just the season’s sixth week. The Ducks (3-1, 0-1 Pac-12) use Taggart’s “Gulf Coast Offense,” and the Bears (3-1, 0-1) are turning into a defense-led group.
“They’re playing really good football, team football,” Taggart said. “They’re physical, wellcoached and playing with a lot of energy. You see the difference. You see a team that is playing their tails off for their coach and taking his personality.”
After allowing 42.6 points per game last season, Cal is giving up just 24 per game this year. The Bears are tied for third in the nation with 11 takeaways.
Senior inside linebacker Devante Downs leads the conference and is tied for fourth in the nation with 11.5 tackles per game, to go along with five tackles for a loss, three sacks, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.
The Bears haven’t allowed a play of 20 or more yards in more than 103 minutes, including more than half of their win over Ole Miss and the entire game against Sam Darnold-led USC. That streak will be put the test by the Ducks.
“The resonating thing is the speed,” Cal defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter said when asked about Oregon’s offense. “It’s just impressive.”
Taggart’s version of the West Coast Offense, which got the name “Gulf Coast Offense” as he led South Florida to national attention the previous two seasons, has reached a new velocity at Oregon.
The Ducks lead the country in scoring (50.8 points per game) and are seventh in total offense (557.0 yards per game). They’re the only offense in the nation ranked among the top 20 in both rushing and passing.
Sophomore quarterback Josh Herbert is 13th in the NCAA in passing efficiency (169.8) and 19th in passing yards (294.5 per game). Senior running back Royce Freeman is second in scoring (15 points per game) and ninth in rushing yards (135.3 per game).
The 5-foot-11, 238-pound Freeman has a school-record 54 touchdowns and in conference history, trailing only Oregon State’s Ken Simonton, who had 59 from 1998-2001. Freeman needs 124 rushing yards to pass USC’s Marcus Allen for fourth place in the conference’s alltime list.
“He’s strong,” Wilcox said. “He’s really good between the tackles. He breaks tackles, and he has hit home runs. He can take it and go the distance.”