Login to view embedded media
I caught up with Cal defensive backs coach Tre Watson via Zoom after today's practice as the Bears go through their bye week. Cal continues to lead the country in interceptions, but there were some miscues in the secondary against Florida State as well. You can see the entire conversation with Watson in the video above where we cover a variety of topics including the play of Nohl Williams, Craig Woodson and Miles Williams plus what the staff is looking for coming out of the bye week. We also chatted a little bit about the matchup with Cam Ward and Miami.

Our Week 4 winner is a tie between @Colonial Bear bear, @hwdake , and @CMBear with a score of 8! Next best were @droski and @freshfunk with a score of 12.

Here are the updates standings through four weeks. Remember, after Week 4 we drop each person’s two worst scores from the average provided they have participated all four weeks (or drop one score if a week has been missed). The bold scores are the scores that have been dropped.

There are fans in this world who would see their team do what Cal did last night, and think it impossible. There are fans in this world, who when they see this account of what happened, will find it impossible to believe unless they saw it with their own eyes.

Let's re-cap the "Only Cal" things from the game:

- Trailing 7-3, Cal commits THREE pre-snap penalties from the 1 yd line, but they convert a 3rd and 11 to get out of jail!
- They drive the ball all the way to the FSU 35, and on 4th and 3, with a kicker who has a big leg and made his first FG, Cal doesn't go for the first, doesn't kick FG, but punts?!?!?!?!
- The teams trade possessions, and Cal gets a 4th down stop at their own 38, but with only 16 seconds left
- Cal somehow moves the ball downfield, aided by a 15 yd FSU penalty for hitting sliding QB, and makes it down to the FSU 11, only able to kick 28 yd FG, to go in at at half down 7-6
- At half, Wilcox says they need to do a better job on 3rd Downs, so Cal gets second half kickoff and drives the ball down field, converting three 3rd Downs in a row!
- Cal has 1st and 10 from the FSU 13! The Offense is ROLLING!
- But then after incomplete passes on 1st and 2nd down. and sacked for 5 yd loss on 3rd Down, Cal promptly MISSES a 36 yd FG to take the lead!
- No worries, Cal's Defense steps up, and forces two straight FSU punts to give the ball back to the Offense
- Cal drives the ball 42 yds to the FSU 33 and faces another 4th and 3. This time Wilcox decides to kick FG from 51 yds, after punting in virtually the same place earlier. It's Good, and Cal leads 9-7!
- Just when you think Cal's D is going to rise up as it had the entire game since the first quarter, it gives up a 79 yd TD drive, capped with a 3rd and 7 TD pass from the Cal 36, FSU leads 14-9
- Cal still has time with 11 mins left, and it could even win with 2 FGs, given how well Cal's D is playing, but the Offense can also do its thing and put a TD on the board
- Cal shows fight and drives the ball down to having 1st and 10 from the FSU 12 with 8 mins to play, and the Calgorithm is starting to get warmed up, because these aren't the same old Cal Bears!
- Then Cal fans are reminded that they are in fact STILL Cal, as they introduce the ACC to the Cal Football brand...
- Instead of Cal trailing 14-12, or maybe even leading 15-14 (if Cal had made the 36yd FG earlier), Cal still trails 14-9, with just over 5 minutes to play
- If Cal's D can get a stop, despite all its gaffes and missed opportunities, Cal could STILL win this game!
- And it does! FSU goes 3 and out, and Cal gets the ball back with 4:38 to go, plenty of time to get the game-winning TD and leave little or no time on the clock for FSU
- Cal drives the ball down the field, converting on 3rd and 14, and even 4th and 13, to give Cal's offense a feeling of inevitability that had been lacking all game long!
- Jadyn Ott, and the Cal run game punches through what looks like a finally tiring FSU defensive front, on 1st and 10 from the FSU 17, for a 5 yd gain, with just 1:20 left!
- With all the momentum on their side, Cal fans are filled with more excitement than they have felt in years! They can see Lucy putting the football down for their Charlie Brown program to finally kick!
- As they eagerly anticipate what Cal has called for this 2nd 5 play from the FSU 12... FALSE START, for Cal's what, FIFTH such penalty of the game?
- OK, no worries, it's still 2nd and 10, three more chances to put the ball in the end zone. Let's ****ing do this!!!!
- Mendoza drops back, but can't get rid of the ball before he is sacked for a 6 yd loss. It's now 3rd and 16, and it is looking grim.
- But this is Hurricane Fernando in the house! He's got the magic Cal has lacked for too many seasons to count.
- Mendoza takes the snap and a few steps back before lofting a pass to the end zone to a Cal WR behind the defense!
- He had been right on target with all his downfield passes in this game, and OMG, it's looking like he might actually be on target again!
- For a few milliseconds, Cal fans watching around the globe had the thrill of anticipating a go-ahead TD with just :56 left on the clock, until seeing the ball graze off the receiver's fingers...
- Still one more play, but it was like the Football Gods. said, "nah, we've seen enough, you've had so many chances, Cal, we're done," as Cal gave up an almost immediate sack to end the game, with a whimper, on 4th and 16.

And to add injury to insult, Cal had its best OL taken off on a backboard after being knocked out trying to block a DB on a poorly executed WR screen pass.

My initial reaction to this game, after watching Cal fart around with SDSU last week, was that I don't think Cal can win because the FG kicker sucks. Then, I bought into the stupid feel good nonsense from Wilcox and some fans on this board about the Kicker, and saw Stanford beat Syracuse with 4/4 FGs. If Stanford could eke out a win at Syracuse, I thought for sure Cal could do the same at Florida State, because I thought Cal was better than Florida State, than Stanford was better than Syracuse, marginally, but still better.

I've watched a lot of football games in my life, and I can't remember seeing any team making so many pre-snap penalties and missing so many makable FGs. Cal also gave up 7 sacks to a team that had only had 7 in its first three games.

What's maddening is Cal has players doing great things on the field. With even mediocre OL play, they win easily, even with a terrible FG Kicker! I mean Mendoza threw for over 300 yds and Cal as a team ran for over 100, and they couldn't even score a TD because the OL couldn't stop committing pre-snap penalties in the red zone. Wilcox emphasized needing to play a clean game, and what did his team do? I don't think the Defense committed two penalties, and the Offense was responsible for 8, with 5 being false starts. Just unforgivable, and an indicator the coach is not inspiring execution from his team. I don't know why.

6-3 last week for 20-11 for the year. 0-1 for my lock of the week for 3-1 for the year: https://cal.forums.rivals.com/threads/lets-pick-the-acc-week-3-games.32950/

Home team in Italics

Syracuse by 9.5 over Furd - Interesting game. People seem to think syracuse is decent, but in retrospect their victories this year aren't that impressive. Mccord is good, but I think the Furd is better than people think and will cover.

North Carolina by 11.5 over James Madison - Oddly low line. North Carolina?

Clemson by 17.5 over NC State - My assumption here is NC State isn't as good as people think they are. I had that as a cal loss. I now have it as a win. Clemson covers.

Virginia by 3.5 over Costal Carolina - Both these teams stink. Virginia?

Louisville by 10.5 over Georgia Tech - Seems like an awful lot of points for a team who hasn't beaten anyone. Why is Lousville ranked and not cal? Because they blew out Jacksonville State? Georgia Tech covers.

Duke by 13.5 over Middle Tennessee - No idea. Middle Tennessee?

TCU by 2.5 over SMU - Hate Sonny Dykes and think his team is garbage, but this will be 50% TCU fans and SMU just isn't good. TCU covers.

Miami by 17.5 over South Florida - South Florida is decent. Wouldn't it be ironic if Miami, not Cal, is the one who screwed up a potential gameday in berkeley? South Florida covers.

Florida State by 2.5 over Cal - This line has dropped from 6.5 to 2.5. Worrisome. I think Cal wins outright as long as Mendoza doesn't turn it over. I think this is a good matchup for us especially if we get some olinemen back.

BC by 6.5 over Michigan State - I'm taking BC because I think Michigan State stinks.



Non conference lock of the week: Missouri by 21.5 over Vandy - Vandy covers.

Game info

Who: Cal (3-0) at Florida State (0-3)
When: 4:00 p.m. PT
Where: Doak Campbell Stadium | Tallahassee, Florida
TV/streaming: ESPN2 [Roy Philpott (play-by-play), Sam Acho (analyst), Taylor Davis (sideline)]
Radio: 810 AM | SiriusXM: 385 or 971
All-time series: First meeting
Odds: Florida State (-2.5), O/U (44.5)

It's almost that time! The Bears are set to open ACC play today in Tallahassee, and here's a full preview for you ahead of kickoff.

Pregame notes

- RB Jaydn Ott is expected to play today. There could be some limitations but he has been cleared and is expected to see the field.

Login to view embedded media
- Florida State is dealing with several injury issues right now including a big one with starting tackle Jeremiah Byers and running back Roydell Williams. Starting left tackle Darius Washington is set to return while linebacker Cam Riley is a game-time decision according to ESPN.

Login to view embedded media
- Uniform combo

Login to view embedded media
- Captains

Login to view embedded media
As always, I invite you to join the conversation as the Bears look to go to 4-0 on the season.

3-7 last week 23-18 for the year. 1-0 for my lock of the week for 4-1 for the year. https://cal.forums.rivals.com/threads/lets-pick-the-acc-week-4-games.32982/

Home team in Italics

Miami by Vtech by 19.5 - Vtech covers?

NC State by 7 over Northern Illinois - Nc State

BC by 13 over Western Kentucky - No idea. Western Kentucky.

Wake Forest by 3 over Louisiana - Wake?

Notre Dame by 5.5 over Louisville - Two overrated teams. Louisville is more overrated. ND covers.

Duke by 3 over North Carolina - Crazy. North Carolina wins.

Clemson by 21.5 over the Furd - Clemson covers.

SMU by 5.5 over Florida State - They are who we thought they were and we let them off the hook. SMU

Non conference lock of the week: USC by 14.5 over Wisconsin - USC doesn't cover big spreads at home. Wisconsin covers.

Login to view embedded media
Login to view embedded media

There are fans in this world who would see their team do what Cal did last night, and think it impossible. There are fans in this world, who when they see this account of what happened, will find it impossible to believe unless they saw it with their own eyes.

Let's re-cap the "Only Cal" things from the game:

- Trailing 7-3, Cal commits THREE pre-snap penalties from the 1 yd line, but they convert a 3rd and 11 to get out of jail!
- They drive the ball all the way to the FSU 35, and on 4th and 3, with a kicker who has a big leg and made his first FG, Cal doesn't go for the first, doesn't kick FG, but punts?!?!?!?!
- The teams trade possessions, and Cal gets a 4th down stop at their own 38, but with only 16 seconds left in Half
- Cal somehow moves the ball downfield, aided by a 15 yd FSU penalty for hitting sliding QB, and makes it down to the FSU 11, only able to kick 28 yd FG, to go in at at half down 7-6
- At half, Wilcox says they need to do a better job on 3rd Downs, so Cal gets second half kickoff and drives the ball down field, converting three 3rd Downs in a row!
- Cal has 1st and 10 from the FSU 13! The Offense is ROLLING!
- But then after incomplete passes on 1st and 2nd down. and sacked for 5 yd loss on 3rd Down, Cal promptly MISSES a 36 yd FG to take the lead!
- No worries, Cal's Defense steps up, and forces two straight FSU punts to give the ball back to the Offense
- Cal drives the ball 42 yds to the FSU 33 and faces another 4th and 3. This time Wilcox decides to kick FG from 51 yds, after punting in virtually the same place earlier. It's Good, and Cal leads 9-7!
- Just when you think Cal's D is going to rise up as it had the entire game since the first quarter, it gives up a 79 yd TD drive, capped with a 3rd and 7 TD pass from the Cal 36, FSU leads 14-9
- Cal still has time with 11 mins left, and it could even win with 2 FGs, given how well Cal's D is playing, but the Offense can also do its thing and put a TD on the board
- Cal shows fight and drives the ball down to having 1st and 10 from the FSU 12 with 8 mins to play, and the Calgorithm is starting to get warmed up, because these aren't the same old Cal Bears!
- Then Cal fans are reminded that they are in fact STILL Cal, as they introduce the ACC to the Cal Football brand...
- Instead of Cal trailing 14-12, or maybe even leading 15-14 (if Cal had made the 36yd FG earlier), Cal still trails 14-9, with just over 5 minutes to play
- If Cal's D can get a stop, despite all its gaffes and missed opportunities, Cal could STILL win this game!
- And it does. FSU goes 3 and out, and Cal get the ball back with 4:38 to go, plenty of time to get the game-winning TD and leave little or no time on the clock for FSU
- Cal drives the ball down the field, converting on 3rd and 14, and even 4th and 13, to give Cal's offense a feeling of inevitability that had been lacking all game long!
- Jadyn Ott, and the Cal run game punches through what looks like a finally tiring FSU defensive front, on 1st and 10 from the FSU 17, for a 5 yd gain, with just 1:20 left!
- With all the momentum on their side, Cal fans are filled with more excitement than they have felt in years! They can see Lucy putting the football down for their Charlie Brown program to finally kick!
- As they eagerly anticipate what Cal has called for this 2nd 5 play from the FSU 12... FALSE START, for Cal's what, FIFTH False start penalty of the game?
- OK, no worries, it's still 2nd and 10, three more chances to put the ball in the end zone. Let's ****ing do this!!!!
- Mendoza drops back, but can't get rid of the ball before he is sacked for a 6 yd loss. It's now 3rd and 16, and it is looking grim.
- But this is Hurricane Fernando in the house! He's got the magic Cal has lacked for too many seasons to count.
- Mendoza takes the snap and a few steps back before lofting a pass to the end zone to a Cal WR behind the defense!
- He had been right on target with all his downfield passes in this game, and OMG, it's looking like he might actually be on target again!
- For a few milliseconds, Cal fans watching around the globe had the thrill of anticipating a go-ahead TD with just :56 left on the clock, until watching the ball graze off the receiver's fingers...
- Still one more play, but it was like the Football Gods. said, "nah, we've seen enough, you've have so many chances, Cal, we're done," as Cal gave up an almost immediate sack to end the game.

And to add injury to insult, Cal had its best OL taken off on a backboard after being knocked out trying to block a DB on a poorly executed WR screen pass.

My initial reaction to this game, after watching Cal fart around with SDSU last week, was that I don't think Cal can win because the FG kicker sucks. Then, I bought into the stupid feel good nonsense from Wilcox and some fans on this board about the Kicker, and saw Stanford beat Syracuse with 4/4 FGs. If Stanford could eke out a win at Syracuse, I thought for sure Cal could do the same at Florida State, because I thought Cal was better than Florida State, than Stanford was better than Syracuse, marginally, but still better.

I've watched a lot of football games in my life, and I can't remember seeing any team making so many pre-snap penalties and missing so many makable FGs. Cal also gave up 7 sacks to a team that had only had 7 in its first three games.

What's maddening is Cal has players doing great things on the field. With even mediocre OL play, they win easily, even with a terrible FG Kicker! I mean Mendoza threw for over 300 yds and Cal as a team ran for over 100, and they couldn't even score a TD because the OL couldn't stop committing pre-snap penalties in the red zone. Wilcox emphasized needing to play a clean game, and what did his team do? I don't think the Defense committed two penalties, and the Offense was responsible for 8, with 5 being false starts. Just unforgivable, and an indicator the coach is not inspiring execution from his team. I don't know why.

The Bears outgained FSU, 410-284, but couldn't leave Tallahassee with a win on Saturday.

Whose idea was it again to replace Bhaghani? A consultant I heard. Whoever made that decision should resign or be fired.

Jwc..

Fernando is a stud and an absolute gamer. Proud to have this kid representing Cal. Doesn’t lessen the sting but I feel he’s good enough to overcome typical Wilcox team limitations

Ott to the outside is still lethal. Too bad our OC can’t see what every fan can

Inside linebackers still very good

In the UK for a bit with crap service and don’t see another thread yet so here goes

Cal 23-13

One of FSU’s two starting OTs confirmed out for this game. They both missed last week’s game, and it was uncertain if they’d be back this week.

Sounds like Washington (their best OL and starting LT) will be back but Byers (starting RT) remains out. Good news for our chances of putting pressure on DJU and forcing mistakes

Our Week 3 winner is @icbear with a score of 0! First one this year! I will make sure Ryan knows! Next best were @BearlyBreathing, @febfeb, @bearborn11, @droski, @petalumabear, @Btmatsu, @gocalbears1994 with a score of 3.


Here are the updates standings through three weeks. Remember, after Week 4 we drop each person’s two worst scores from the average provided they have participated all four weeks (or drop one score if a week has been missed). The bold scores are the scores that have been dropped.

Given the way G-Tech was able to run the ball and control the clock- do we think Cal has a shot to do the same?

Also, as G-Tech QB did a great job running and managing the game do you think that Rodger’s skill set is better suited to do that

Go Bears

who is this guy?

Login to view embedded media

I checked in with our FSU Rivals affiliate for an overview of what the Florida State side of things is looking like this week ahead of Cal's trip to Tallahassee. You can read the Q&A at the link above.

Login to view embedded media
Our latest podcast episode is out and Ryan is back joining me as we discuss the win over SDSU, hand out some early-season MVP awards and look ahead to this weekend's big matchup in Tallahassee.

I’m feeling pretty badly for Ott this year with his injuries, one of my all-time favorite Cal players, who has stuck with us in an era where players with his talent often move around to better programs. I was hoping he’d be in the Heisman running this year at least as someone mentioned, and get all the press he deserves. Unfortunately, it has not worked out that way at least so far.

I am very hopeful he gets healthy soon and gets an opportunity to show what a great player he is and what a great representative he is for the university.

I will also become an instant fan of whatever team drafts him, as I personally think he will be a great NFL back and a very deserving person to root for.

Go Bears!

The ACC and ESPN are apparently in negotiation over new terms for the ACC. The ACC wants the lawsuits to go away and ESPN would like to keep the GOR issues out of the courts.

This is a very important issue and will come to head soon IMO. ESPN needs to exercisethe opt in/out clause by February. They hold the GOR to 2036 if they opt in, or til 2027 if they opt out. There are pluses and minuses for each. ESPN and the ACC do not want to defend the GOR in court. FSU and Clemson are spending a ton of money fighting and they could lose.

The GOR being shortened is the big sweetener ESPN and the ACC is offering. That has value. How much they shorten it is still TBD. The new revenues they may receive are still in discussion as well, but there would be some. Along with the success incentives they want to implement it could be a nice revenue addition for those that perform well in media value and on the field.

This looks like a very nice compromise for all. ESPN could opt in and keep the inventory til 2036. Several schools would like this. About as many would not. If the lawsuits do go forward it could end well for FSU/Clemson and others. But it could be a loss and tie them to the conference til 2036 and be very expensive.

I think an agreement to shorten the GOR throw a bit more revenue the ACCs way and remove the lawsuits has benefits for most of the conference. And ESPN. This needs to happen soon. The February opt in/out date looms. Given all the talk about future realignment I think an agreement is more likely than not to occur.

That ESPN and the litigating schools are at least discussing options tells me they both feel it has some value. I see all sides to this and I am not sure which is more beneficial to Cal. The details matter. They always do.

I have always believed a compromise was a likely outcome and it appears the involved parties are trying to find one. Will be interesting to watch.

I have heard that if Cal wins at FSU , we will be on college game day vs Miami. Who else has heard the same

Login to view embedded media
Receivers Kyion Grayes and Tobias Merriweather will remain out for this week's game against Florida State. Justin Wilcox did say he expects them to play at some point this season, however. Starting nickel Matthew Littlejohn has missed the last two games with an undisclosed injury and he is doubtful. Not to bury the lead, however. Sioape Vatikani, Will McDonald, David Reese and Jaydn Ott are all officially probable according to Wilcox. It does sound as though there is a good chance all four end up playing this week or at least a better chance than against SDSU. Getting the two linemen back would be big for the Bears.

https://calbears.com/news/2024/9/17/mens-basketball-cal-to-host-open-gym-with-mens-basketball.aspx

Cal's MBB is having an open scrimmage on the evening of Friday, September 27 with Mark as host and a post-scrimmage opportunity to talk to the coaches and players. That is an awesome way to be introduced to the new MBB squad. As a donor-courtside season ticket holder, I get to see scrimmages on a regular basis, and I can highly recommend attending one to get an up close ability to evaluate the players in a private setting. Yes, Mark is a marketing machine who reaches out to everyone to increase interest in our MBB program.