Receiving corps takes hit

PULLMAN, Wash. — Junior receiver Kanawai Noa didn’t make the trip to the Palouse for Cal’s 19-13 loss to Washington State on Saturday, weakening a position group that was already extremely thin.

Three receivers expected to be among the rotation (Demetris Robertson, Melquise

Stovall and Taariq Johnson) transferred during the offseason, and Jordan Duncan (hand) and Brandon Singleton (undisclosed) have been on the mend for about a month.

“The next guy has got to play,” Cal head coach Justin

Wilcox said. “They don’t postpone the game. The other team doesn’t feel sorry for you. …

“Nobody cares about our problems. We’ve got to find solutions, and everybody is involved in that.”

Cal didn’t have many solutions against Washington State, which generally played manto-man coverage and dared the Bears to pass. They managed 179 yards in the air, with Vic

Wharton III leading the way with four catches for 47 yards. Among the receiving corps,

Moe Ways also caught three passes for 46 yards, Nikko

Remigio added two receptions for 18 yards, and Jeremiah

Hawkins had one catch for 2 yards.

“With guys going down, we’ve got others who can hop in,” senior fullback Malik

McMorris said. “They’re Division I athletes, too, so they should be able to get the job done.”

With little success throwing to force the Cougars into dropping another defensive player into coverage, Cal struggled to find running lanes.

The Bears averaged 3.1 yards per carry, including senior

Patrick Laird’s 18-carry, 40yard effort.

“We didn’t run the ball near well enough tonight,” Wilcox said. “Give Wazzu credit, but that’s on everybody. It’s the line, the backs, the quarterbacks, the tight ends, the receivers. You’ve got to be able to stretch them and loosen them up, so you can run it.

“It’s everything. I don’t know that it mattered who was the tailback with the ball.”

Getting defensive: Cal held Washington State to a seasonlow 19 points, 21.8 below its then-season average, and

Gardner Minshew was 63.9 yards below his then-nationleading norm (397.9 passing yards per game). Inside linebackers Jordan

Kunaszyk and Evan Weaver shared the team lead with nine tackles apiece. Kunaszyk had Cal’s lone sack, and Weaver had an interception.

“We played well, but it doesn’t really matter, because we didn’t win,” Kunaszyk said. “Obviously, we’re frustrated. We expected to win, so it hurts that we didn’t.”