Sloppy Bears lack offensive firepower to end Big Game drought
BERKELEY >> Cal simply did not have the offensive firepower to end its drought in the Big Game.
“Everybody just got kicked in the gut,” Cal coach Justin Wilcox said after the Bears’ 23-13 loss to Stanford in the 121st Big Game in front of 57,858 fans at Memorial Stadium on Saturday afternoon. “It hurts really bad and it hurts because we had chances and they know it.”
Stanford will keep The Axe for a ninth straight year — the longest win streak by either team in series history.
The Bears (7-5, 4-5 Pac-12) missed a chance to finish with a winning record in the Pac-12 for the first time since 2009 after turning the ball over three times and converting just one of three red-zone opportunities into a touchdown — and that one came with 10 seconds left when outcome was settled.
Cal, which already was bowl eligible for the first time since 2015, will officially receive an invitation today. If Washington State lands one of the New Year’s Six Bowls, the Bears figure to wind up at the Las Vegas Bowl. Otherwise, they are likely to play in the CheezIt Bowl at Tempe, Ariz.
“We have yet to play our best football,” said running back Patrick Laird, who rushed for 116 yards to become the first Cal player to gain 100 yards in consecutive Big Games since Marshawn Lynch in 2004 and ’05. “We will find out who and where we are playing and hopefully come out and play our best football.”
The Cardinal (8-4, 6-3 Pac-12) led 10-0 after the first quarter before the Bears stiffened defensively. Cal held its previous five opponents to 21 points or fewer and Stanford only exceeded that when Cameron Scarlett scored on a first-down run with 2:27 left after a 43-yard return of an interception by Paulson Adebo put the ball at the 3-yard line.
Chase Garbers hit Jordan Duncan with an 11yard touchdown pass with 10 seconds left for the Bears’ only touchdown.
The damage was done much earlier. Two interceptions by Garbers — one of them in the end zone — and a lost fumble by Malik McMorris struck a tone more similar to early in the season than recently.
Cal’s offense, a work in progress all year with a redshirt freshman quarterback and a banged-up offensive line and receiver corps, gave the Bears the chance to win four of their previous five games by limiting giveaways.
The Bears had just four turnovers in their previous five games. Through their first six games, they coughed up 19 turnovers and were just 3-3.
“It sucks that we lost and had those missed opportunities,” Garbers said. “That’s why it hurts a lot, because we were there.”
Garbers finished 22 of 39 for 197 yards passing and ran for 44 yards. Wilcox said he saw progress in his quarterback’s performance.
“He seemed to be more comfortable. He was in rhythm. He was confident,” Wilcox said. “There were some throws Chase would love to have back.”
For the seniors, such as linebacker Jordan Kunaszyk, a bowl game is a Stanford defensive back Paulson Adebo makes an interception after the ball bounced off Cal wide receiver Vic Wharton III.
nice consolation but hardly a tradeoff for a potential Big Game victory.
“I feel like we had a great opportunity today to be that team to get the Axe back,” Kunaszyk said. “We’ve seen the gap close. I think they know it’s a different Cal team, and obviously we know the culture’s changed here, too. It hurts.”
Stanford, which never trailed, played conservatively on offense after taking the early lead, convinced the Cal offense could not beat them without help. It was a sound strategy.
While Stanford scored on all four of its red-zone chances, Cal got only a field goal out of its first two opportunities inside the Cardinal 20.
“It comes down to the execution. We had chances in the red zone and we weren’t able to capitalize,” Wilcox said. “You’re going to have a hard time beating Stanford without scoring touchdowns.”