Have to do something about the kicking game - short kick offs are really a problem and are going to bite us at some point. Combine that with poor kick off tackling and it's really a big problem that must be addressed ASAP.
Cal won against a team that Cal should have beaten.
We are not looking at a Cal team that threatens to lose to an inferior team.
This Cal team has enough skill and talent to be able to make the right plays at the right time.
The question that everyone wants the answer to is:
Will Cal make the right plays at the right time, enough times, to be a force in the ACC?
With the number of players that were inhaled through the transfer portal, scattered across different teams with different coaches with different football identities, it would seem that the 2026 problem that most P4 teams face is, "How do we get all these players on the same page fast enough to make a difference?"
QB: Money.
O-Line: Needs more push
D-Line: Mostly serviceable at this level of talent. Against bigger guys we need more beef.
WR: Fewer drops than last 2 weeks. Seeing flashes of cohesion, but not De Jesus levels. I would say they need to learn how to do more perimeter blocking, but without an elite O-line, they'd just be doing pushing drills.
RB: Looks nice. Could use a little more elusiveness.
Secondary: More Lopa. If our safeties can lock down just a little better, we can throw more linebackers toward Run support - MLB just has to watch for misdirection plays at an elite level.
Kicking: Where is Tavecchio? I'm sure he can come back from the NFL for one season right?
Very nice to get a laugher…honestly can’t remember the last time we had one like this.
Wagner was simply overmatched….a De La Salle/Seahawks matchup likely would’ve been competitive.
Big picture, there are still plenty of things to work on…namely special teams and the OL…until those become passable units v P4, fear our ceiling may be limited. A still developing coaching staff has the right to improve, but they’re probably gonna have to if this club is to hit 8 or 9 W’s.
But it was certainly a glorious day at CMS and this was a quality, decisive win.
Hmmm, did we play Plough last year? I thought it was the year before and that game was way too close and Ott got hurt in 2H when ideally he would have been watching a blow out.
Have to do something about the kicking game - short kick offs are really a problem and are going to bite us at some point. Combine that with poor kick off tackling and it's really a big problem that must be addressed ASAP.
It appears with headlines we’ve gone all in on European football style and syntax: “Cal flatten Wagner”, “Cal win handily”.
Let's get this out of the way first.
Cal won against a team that Cal should have beaten.
We are not looking at a Cal team that threatens to lose to an inferior team.
This Cal team has enough skill and talent to be able to make the right plays at the right time.
The question that everyone wants the answer to is:
Will Cal make the right plays at the right time, enough times, to be a force in the ACC?
With the number of players that were inhaled through the transfer portal, scattered across different teams with different coaches with different football identities, it would seem that the 2026 problem that most P4 teams face is, "How do we get all these players on the same page fast enough to make a difference?"
QB: Money.
O-Line: Needs more push
D-Line: Mostly serviceable at this level of talent. Against bigger guys we need more beef.
WR: Fewer drops than last 2 weeks. Seeing flashes of cohesion, but not De Jesus levels. I would say they need to learn how to do more perimeter blocking, but without an elite O-line, they'd just be doing pushing drills.
RB: Looks nice. Could use a little more elusiveness.
Secondary: More Lopa. If our safeties can lock down just a little better, we can throw more linebackers toward Run support - MLB just has to watch for misdirection plays at an elite level.
Kicking: Where is Tavecchio? I'm sure he can come back from the NFL for one season right?
Offensive play calling is so bad
Uh, we live in California, not England. Will we say aluminium next?
“Cal’s offense did not look productive until Kyion Grayes…”
Were we watching the same game? Cal had already put together two 75-yard *scoring* drives to open the game. That was pretty productive.
Thanks JMG!
Very nice to get a laugher…honestly can’t remember the last time we had one like this.
Wagner was simply overmatched….a De La Salle/Seahawks matchup likely would’ve been competitive.
Big picture, there are still plenty of things to work on…namely special teams and the OL…until those become passable units v P4, fear our ceiling may be limited. A still developing coaching staff has the right to improve, but they’re probably gonna have to if this club is to hit 8 or 9 W’s.
But it was certainly a glorious day at CMS and this was a quality, decisive win.
We scored 51 points on UC Davis last year. But they also scored 21 points.
Last time we held an FCS opponent to single digit score was in 2010, also against UC Davis. 52-3. That was Keenan Allen's debut for Cal.
Hmmm, did we play Plough last year? I thought it was the year before and that game was way too close and Ott got hurt in 2H when ideally he would have been watching a blow out.
We have a winner:
Yoav Shames
Scoreline: Cal wins 49-10