Bears tops in yards — and in mistakes
By Connor Letourneau
Jared Goff admitted the obvious this week: For the Marin County native, the Big Game meant more than his typical assignment.
But a memorable individual performance from the thirdyear starter wasn’t enough Saturday. In Cal’s 35-22 loss to Stanford, Goff ’s supporting cast labored through tired errors.
The Bears dropped their sixth consecutive game in the series despite outgaining the Cardinal 495-357. They dropped numerous balls, piled up eight penalties and had no answer for Cardinal running back Christian McCaffrey. Still, Goff finished 37-of-54 for 386 yards and two touchdowns.
Facing a 7-0 deficit midway through the first quarter, Goff marched the Bears deep into Stanford territory on seven completions. Wide receiver Maurice Harris dropped a pass while stepping out of the end zone on second-and-goal. Two plays later, Cal settled for a Matt Anderson’s 20-yard field goal.
The Bears converted a 3rdand-3 on their next possession. But wide receiver Trevor Davis was called for pass interference, negating the Bryce Treggs catch and putting Cal at 3rd-and-18. Wide receiver Chad Hansen’s ensuing catch was three yards short of the first down, and a promising Bears drive ended with a punt.
With his team down 11 points late in the second quarter, Goff again used a flurry of pinpoint passes to put Cal within striking distance. Seven points were reduced to three soon after Hansen caught a Goff pass on 2nd-and-3 while running out of the end zone.
Goff ’s heroics were nullified on the Bears’ next drive. On 3rd-and-2 at the Cardinal’s 8-yard line, a wide-open Tre Watson dove on a short pass. Cal gained no yards on the play and, once again, the field-goal unit trotted onto the field.
“There were some times when we had some guys open and Jared did a good job getting them the ball,” Cal head coach Sonny Dykes said. “Overall, I thought the offense did pretty well. But it came down to not finishing drives.”
Desperate to dig out of a 28-16 hole in the fourth quarter, Goff threw for four of five Bears first downs on a series in which they again pierced field-goal range. A Chris Borrayo personal foul pushed Cal back 15 yards, to 2nd-and-25.
Goff ’s fourth-down heave intended for Harris fell incomplete. Stanford running back Bryce Love raced down the left sideline for a 48-yard touchdown moments later that deflated the Bears’ chances.
Over his first two appearances in the rivalry, Goff had completed 26 of 50 passes for 376 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions. The rebuilding Bears dropped those matchups by a combined score of 101-30.
Goff did his part Saturday. He handled Stanford’s pass rush with poise, compiled a 140.8 efficiency rating and even had his second career catch on a trick play in the second quarter.
Like so many other times in Goff ’s Bears tenure, teammates couldn’t provide the support he needed. Cardinal running back Christian McCaffrey bulldozed his way to 192 yards. Cal’s latest Big Game loss dropped Goff ’s career record to 12-23.