Where do Bears turn to boost receiver output?
Cal head coach Justin Wilcox said Monday night that Chase Garbers will start at quarterback Saturday against USC.
Exactly to whom the redshirt freshman will be throwing is anybody’s guess.
“Next man up,” graduate-transfer receiver Moe Ways said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re a freshman, a walk-on or on scholarship. Everyone who is out there in a helmet and shoulder pads can play this game at a high level. We trust everybody out there, from the first guy to the 100th guy. …
“When your number is called, be ready to go out there, make a play and contribute to the team.”
A position group already thinned by the offseason transfers of Taariq Johnson, Demetris Robertson and Melquise Stovall, Cal’s wide receivers have added injury to attrition.
Junior Brandon Singleton has missed six straight games, junior Jordan Duncan has been sidelined for four in a row, and junior Kanawai Noa couldn’t make the trip to Washington State for Saturday’s game.
“We’ll just prepare with the guys who are available and hopefully get some of the guys who have been dinged up back,” Wilcox said. “That’s between the players and the sports medicine staff.”
Senior Vic Wharton III is Cal’s leading receiver at 43.8 yards per game, which ranks 24th in the Pac-12. Every team in the conference has at least one player averaging more receiving yards than Wharton, and Washington State has five among the top 23.
The Bears are last in the conference in passing yards (205.7 per game), yards per attempt (6.2) and yards per completion (9.9). Only five of the 129 FBS teams (Central Michigan, Indiana, Northern Illinois, Rutgers and UTSA) average fewer yards per completion than the Bears.
The Cal coaching staff has discussed a variety of position changes to boost the receivers’ production, including simply swinging tight ends or running backs to the position. Tight ends Jake Ashton, Ray Hudson and Kyle Wells all started their collegiate careers as wide receivers, and running backs Patrick Laird and Alex Netherda have each played the position in Berkeley.
Laird is the team’s leading rusher with 160 carries for 700 yards and five touchdowns, and he’s also among the Bears’ top pass-catchers. His 38 receptions rank second on the team, and he’s tied with Duncan for the team lead in touchdown catches (three).
Lining up Laird as a receiver more often would give promising freshman running back Christopher Brown Jr. more carries.
“You’re mindful of: Are we getting better?” Wilcox said.
Cal’s loaded secondary also presents some options as safeties Ashtyn Davis and Jaylinn Hawkins lead a group that had decorated prep careers on offense.
Davis is the team’s best allaround athlete and is sixth in the nation at 29.2 yards per kick return, and Hawkins was rated by Rivals and Scout as one of the nation’s top-25 receiving prospects out of Buena Park (Orange County) High.
“We’ve really talked about everything, but at this point in the season, to say those guys are going to be two-way players the whole game, you’d really be putting them in for a certain route or a certain concept,” Wilcox said. “There’s just kind of a ripple effect to all of that.”
Senior quarterback Chase Forrest runs routes for Garbers and change-of-pace quarterback Brandon McIlwain before every game.
As the receiving corps has dwindled, he has started to jump into pregame drills with the wideouts as well, showing precision and understanding of the entire route tree.
“Everything is on the table,” Wilcox said. “We discuss all of those. The names you’ve mentioned? Absolutely. The positions you’ve mentioned? Absolutely. …
“We’re trying to find the best answers we possibly can.”