Opener features highs, lows for Bears
Before breaking down Cal’s 51-31 win over Hawaii in Sydney, it is important to note that the Rainbow Warriors are probably the worst team on the Bears’ schedule. Securing a second straight bowl berth will require far more complete performances.
Now, as Cal returns stateside to begin preparing for its Sept. 10 game at San Diego State, here are the five biggest takeaways from the Bears’ season opener: 1. Chad Hansen is as good as advertised.
A year after totaling 249 receiving yards as Kenny Lawler’s backup, Hansen is tasked with leading an inexperienced position group. All the offseason praise from coaches and teammates held little weight until he produced big numbers in the opener Saturday (Friday night for viewers in the U.S.).
Hansen finished with 14 catches for 160 yards and two touchdowns. His receptions were two shy of tying the program record, an intriguing development given that Cal’s offense tends to spread the passes around. Hansen recorded nine more catches Friday than any of his teammates.
It is a testament to the rhythm he has found with Texas Tech transfer Davis Webb, his roommate in Australia. The two woke up at dawn this summer for throwing sessions. Not long after being put on scholarship, Hansen looks poised for a memorable season.
“Even after the game, I had no idea how many catches I had,” Hansen said. “As soon as Davis got here in May, we've just had a connection.” 2. Webb is ready for the daunting task of replacing Jared Goff.
Following a No. 1 NFL draft pick comes with inevitable comparisons. While putting Webb in the same class as Goff is premature, Webb proved Saturday that he is an NFL-caliber quarterback in his own right.
His final stat line — 38-of-54 for 441 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions — was Goff-esque. Webb was poised under pressure, working through his reads and finding the open man. He even rushed through contact for a 4-yard touchdown moments before halftime.
Most important, teammates have embraced Webb as the new face of the offense. They voted him one of Cal’s five team captains last week, just three months after Webb arrived on campus.
“It was OK,” Webb said when asked to assess his performance. “I'm glad we got the victory obviously. I'm proud of how they executed the game plan.” As coach Sonny Dykes “has said, there’s a lot of things we need to improve on.” 3. Cal’s run defense needs work.
The Bears returned only three starters from a front seven that finished 11th in the Pac-12 last season with 209.8 rushing yards allowed per game. So perhaps it should come as no surprise that, against a potent Hawaii ground attack, Cal struggled.
In his first game since November 2014, Rainbow Warriors running back Diocemy Saint Juste rushed for a game-high 118 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries. Bears defenders missed numerous tackles as Hawaii’s backfield averaged 6.5 yards per carry.
“I thought Hawaii played well, they were very well coached,” Dykes said. “They kept mixing things up defensively and made some really nice adjustments in their running game. We had a hard time keeping up.”
It is a concerning reality for a Cal team set to face some of the nation’s best running backs this season. If the Bears couldn’t stop Hawaii, how will they do against San Diego State’s Donnel Pumphrey, Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey and Oregon’s Royce Freeman? 4. The pass rush remains a major concern.
The Bears lost four of their top five pass rushers from a defense that finished tied for eighth in the Pac-12 with 28 sacks. Still, defensive coordinator Art Kaufman was so confident in Cal’s rebuilt pass rush that he added a number of blitz packages to the playbook in training camp.
It was to little avail Saturday. Hawaii quarterback Ikaika Woolsey, who has struggled in his career when facing pressure, was afforded plenty of time in the pocket and was not sacked. Defensive ends Cameron Saffle and DeVante Wilson, the two players most charged with generating a pass rush, had a tough time breaking into the backfield. 5. Cal might need to shed its “Bear Raid” nickname.
The “Bear Raid” is rooted in Cal’s propensity for airing it out. However, new offensive coordinator Jake Spavital is intent on having an even run-pass ratio.
The Bears recorded only three fewer carries Saturday than catches. Running behind an experienced offensive line, Khalfani Muhammad (96 rushing yards) and Vic Enwere (73) powered through gaping hole after gaping hole.
Maintaining a reliable ground game helps take the pressure off a young receiving corps. Cal’s next opponent, San Diego State, was second in the Mountain West last season with just 108.7 rushing yards allowed per game.