I sat in the Chancellor's box next to Carol Christ for many games over the previous seasons and I can tell you firsthand that she doesn't even understand the basic fundamentals of the game.
First thing she told my friend when Lyons was hired that we should be excited because he is an avid sports fan. She would rather go to the opera versus a Cal game.
While she cared little for Cal football and its trajectory, the same can not se said about Rich. I suspect that we will see more positive changes to not just the football team, but the entire athletic department as a whole too. Fingers crossed.
The Clueless Carol appellation was very apt, thank Oski she is gone. Empty Suit Jim Knowlton is hanging around for his pension (3rd one?) and nothing more. He needs to be totally marginalized and deserves no respect because he is nothing more than n nothing. He has sucked all the legitimacy out of the program and wants to milk it for every dollar that he can.
It's time. We all know it. It may be painful -- but how can you keep a coach incapable of delivering an 8-4 season even once in his extended tenure. Sure, maybe it's a stretch to say we should be undefeated -- but it's not a stretch to say we should be 6-1. SHOULD BE, but for an inexcusable number of repetitive, soul crushing penalties, confounding in game decision making (going for 2 after scoring opening TD on the road and then losing by 2 because of that decision and our inability to hit routine FGs)? This simply cannot happen with a roster as good as ours. We're defective and imperfect; our roster is not elite. But it can compete with top ten teams and should be shutting to door on top 25 light weights. I'm firmly in support of ending the Wilcox era right here and now so we can begin looking for a coach and signal to our current roster that we know change is needed and it's coming.
Went to bed last night thinking these same thoughts. After the Auburn game, I allowed myself the thought, “We could go 4-0 into the Miami game.” After that FSU game, I realized the season was going to be a fool’s errand.👍🏽 #gobears
Also, I can’t help but feel bad for the players; some of them will run through a wall for each other. But, it’s no stretch to believe some of them *know* what plays and schemes will work when the game is on the line: JW isn’t calling those.
Let's also look at how many times Wilcox has delivered a letdown after a good start to the season has gotten a glimmer of momentum for the program:
2017: 3-0 with wins over UNC and Ole Miss. Nice crowd out for USC in the Joe Roth game, and we lose 30-20. This is actually pretty forgivable, as no one thought Cal at that point was in a position to beat a top 5 team like USC. This also starts a 3-game losing streak.
2018: 3-0 with wins over UNC and at BYU. We get ranked at #24. Nice crowd at home for Oregon. We lose 42-24 (somewhat forgivable given Oregon's obvious talent advantage), and again start a 3-game losing streak.
2019: Started 4-0 with road wins against Washington and Ole Miss! Coming back home with a #15 ranking against ASU. Again, an amped-up crowd ready to party. Chase Garbers gets hurt and we lose 24-17. This also starts a 4-game losing streak. Again, somewhat forgivable given the QB injury, but the pattern continues. At least this season ended positively when Garbers returned.
2020: Season over before it started, thanks to COVID.
2021: Instead of getting our hopes up, we just open the season with a deflating home loss to Nevada. At least it's different! We also miss bowl eligibility thanks to a terrible road loss to a terrible Arizona team, coming with half the team out with COVID and complaining about Berkeley's harsh regulations. Fun!
2022: Start 3-1 with a nice big win and offensive explosion against Arizona (plus a loss to Notre Dame that everyone agrees should have been a win). Then a 5-game losing streak, including that unforgivable loss to Colorado, who couldn't beat anyone else. Only saving grace was beating Stanford in front of a huge home crowd.
2023: Nice big win at North Texas to start the season, then we welcome Auburn in with another big crowd and chance to make a statement on national TV. Again, deflating loss in a game we should have won, followed by the familiar 4-game losing streak in October.
This season has just been more of the same, only a bigger drop from the emotional high of the Calgorithm and GameDay visit. And taking the big lead at home against Miami in front of a massive, amped home crowd, only to see it all slip away. The usual October losing streak has been marked by agonizingly close losses this time. But it's the same script, and there are fewer excuses this time. This is just who Wilcox is.
Good summary. I will just add that during this time players have come and gone, multiple coaches have been hired and fired, but the constant is Wilcox. 8 years in and he owns all of this.
We can debate about how much or little support Cals administration supports or likes football but they aren’t responsible for poor special teams and kickers who can’t make FGs or poor OL play, that’s all Wilcox.
End of the Miami game felt like the ‘07 Riley game all over. I knew where this was headed next despite trying to convince myself otherwise. We even got Wilcox doing strange things like going for two when he shouldn’t and not going for two when he should. I remember Tedford similarly trying to hard and making uncharacteristic decisions once he felt it all slipping out of his hands. There’s still five games to play and this could and probably will get uglier. But I’ll be there next week to be in the company of more sickos, to support these kids who have yet to five up, and to imagine what might have been and dream of what could come next with the right hire, right luck and right support. Go Bears forever and ever.
I get the frustration and feel it as much as anyone out there. But having been involved in the interworking's of this Athletic Department as a student in the 80s and having contacts that remained through the 2019 season, the department is run like the DMV, a disorganized clusterfarce.
The reality is that we won't get a name coach here. No chance in hell - unless they are overcoming a scandal and have no other options. The perception is that Cal's administration has historically not been committed to winning, just checking the boxes of fielding teams to fill out the schedule for the revenue sports. They are the John Fisher Oakland A's, living off the teat of a conference/league. Look where that got us, on the verge of relegation in 4 or 5 years when the TV Networks blow up Major College Football and create two super leagues of 40 to 60 teams. Whatever that number is, starting over is only going to set us back and we are going to be on the outside looking in. The only option we will have is some O/D Coordinator getting their first HC job. And in all likelihood, before they master the "nuances" of the Cal Athletics Department, he will use Cal as a steppingstone (Sonny Dykes anyone?).
Like it or not, with his contract’s buyout being far more sizeable than Cal can digest at this time, this is going to be a marriage of convenience for the next 2-3 years. Cal simply can’t afford to pay 8 figures to buy him out (not without be detrimental to something else; NIL, facilities, assistant coaching salaries, etc.)
The positive of this is that we know what we have with Wilcox (a great man and a good football mind who is still mastering the CEO role of being a major college football coach). He knows the self-imposed roadblocks that the uniqueness this University imposes. He has also proved his loyalty to Cal and is not “stone stepping” to a better job (turning down Oregun and Mississippi HC jobs).
While the season had the real potential to be 7-0 at this point, we have to accept where the past 80 years of Cal Athletics has put us. Turning this ship around is a First In, First Out situation. MAYBE with the new Chancellor, the first one in decades that cares about sports (and maybe the only one that might be able to do anything to improve the situation) can do something to fix this. I don’t even know if getting a new AD will immediately fix things. But if the masses are clamoring for some type of change, it needs to be Knowlton and not Wilcox.
Whether it’s palatable or not, Wilcox isn’t going anywhere before the 2025 season, unless it’s his choice (personally, considering all factors, I like it)
I don't believe this can't be changed. A full scale revolt of alums, students and backers is what is needed and should be done. That youre still making excuses for wilcox re the admin is a bridge too far. We've all watches the games. We lose because of his coaching decisions not.bc the athletic depth is run like the DMV. This blame admin mindset is a virus that too many continue to use as a buffer...we have always had the talent the last 5 years...he loses games over and over again
Well, there’s always a chance this season is his real deal “come to jeebus” failure with the previous versions being lighter weight in comparison. And he could take more to heed in his options to correct his starkly patent short comings given what’s left on the contract.
Trying to find a way to 3 wins to reach bowl eligibility, but I am just not seeing it with this current O-line.
We should have beat that team yesterday by 3 tuddy’s…NC State is baaaaddd…their true FR backup QB straight beat us.
Oregon State will be a dog fight, and a vintage Wilcox coin toss. Maybe a W?
At Wake on a Friday night? I mean, again, maybe….but doubtful the way our O and ST’s simply can not execute.
Syracuse is 5-1 and can score…big game for them this weekend at Acrisure.
Furd? Hell, anything can happen.
SMU blows us out.
I mean, the way we are playing the last month, there are simply not 3 wins there with this completely overmatched coaching staff. Maybe they rally and figure things out on the OL, or the D single-handedly WINS a game for them…but there’s been very little in 7.5 years to give you confidence that Wilcox can get this team ready to play a consistent 60-minutes of football.
Sure the administration hasn’t been the most supportive but they didn’t tell or make Wilcox go for two in the first TD drive last week against Pitt.
The administration isn’t stopping Wilcox from finding a competent FG kicker or hire a decent special teams coach or OL coach. These are all issues that Wilcox has failed at on his own and you can’t pin the blame for these failures on the administration or athletic department.
I don't think it needs to be about Cal getting a "name" coach, more about just not locking ourselves in to bad or mediocre ones for too long. That's been the issue. Holmoe shouldn't have lasted 5 years. Wilcox shouldn't be here for 8.
It is hard to sustain program momentum and fan excitement when your team doesn’t win at all in the month of October and that is basically what Wilcox has done every season at Cal when he goes on these 3+ game losing streaks. I will also add that during these 3+ losing streaks, we aren’t losing due to us a playing a tough stretch of top ranked teams, we are losing to winless teams like Arizona, Colorado, UCLA, FSU, etc during these losing streaks. We lose to bad teams during these losing streaks.
To the guy who claims “we don’t support football” can’t find your comment so here ya go…
I’m curious where you get this notion that Cal doesn’t support football…
It seems to be a common talking point of Wilcox apologists…
Do we pay coaches the highest tier in d1?
No, but we pay 9 and change mil a year for the staff collectively and that puts us in the top half of the 17 acc schools. Wilcox makes more himself than 8 other acc football coaches.
In terms of football NIL we are ranked 4th in the ACC despite having the only collective of those 4 that doesn’t operate illegally as a 501c.
We have the Simpson center.
We have the number one sports psychology program in the world,
We still draw 30-35k out of 58k despite having a perrenial loser for the last 15 years.
I’m not sure where anyone gets by saying we don’t support football,
We are in the upper half of literally every support metric I can think of despite being bottom 8th in wins and losses.
Fun fact the only other two d1 coaches in at least year 8 with a lower winning percentage are Creighton and Nue at EMU and Ball state. They both make 500k a year and unlike Wilcox they both have won a conference title and had a 10 win season in those 8 years.
Wilcox makes 4.6mm a year and is absolute dog doo at playcalling, recruiting, and defending his players.
NIL, the Calgorithm, GameDay . . . this is not the year to say people don’t support Cal football. They’re out there, just being let down by a poorly run program.
U$C has wildly talented athletes and all the institutional backing SC fans could hope for. Yet, their $10 million-a-year coach has gone 4-3 this season and just lost to Maryland. To make things worse, they owe him $70 million if they were to fire him today!
Even the most storied programs face challenges. So, take heart, Cal fans! Sometimes, it’s all about finding a path forward. Stay hopeful for the future—better days are ahead!
USC is 3-4 with 3 bad loses. Haven't played Oregon or OSU.
This season is very disappointing, but our schedule was tougher than we realized. Miami is a playoff team and Pitt undefeated. Losing at another loaded blue blood, FSU, is frustrating but understandable. NCST inexcusable. Literally a few plays from being undefeated. Sigh.
Honestly, I find the NC State performance a bit more palatable (though it was also very bad). The end of that Pitt game was so egregiously mismanaged by our coaches I could hardly believe what I was seeing.
I preferred Mendoza when he wasn’t scared to death of throwing an interception…..he doesn’t want the coaches to get mad at him. This is a big reason for his problems in the red zone, and his indecision leading to sacks. The same can be said about several FG kickers failing on easy kicks. If the coaching staff encourages more fun and risk taking then maybe the players would loosen up and perform to their abilities. These loses are being caused by a deep fear of making a mistake. Both coaches and players. Can’t win that way
This reflects Wilcox thinking...and frankly I think he knows he's inept...so he turtles hoping to not get fired..and maybe secure the win. Ironically its those turtle decisions that are why he should be fired.
I think Wilcox knows he has no business being a HC. He has no idea to fix anytging...been that way for years....every loss..says same thing..it's on us blah blah...and here we are 8yrs in and it's the same mistakes over and over...and inexplicable play calling that makes us snatch defeat from the jaws of victory
GameDay was a flashback to Tedford era program vibes. We need a coach who can get us back there. Wilcox decidedly isn’t it. But we need to make a change to give our players and our program a fighting chance.
Reading your story...so hopeful and painful. I'm older than you, as my name suggests, but I was a rabid Cal football fan for those good years, Bruce, and hard years, Holmoe. Tedford did for me what he did for you. Hope and Belief. He walked on water. One day I was playing frisbee in Memorial with my buddy. No one there. Jeff Tedford walks out onto the field, chats us up, and asks us to leave. I felt like I was talking to Joe Montana or some football god. He was so polite, and normal, and real. It only added to my appreciation for him. Jeff Tedford is the greatest Cal coach in my living memory, despite his later failings.
Sometimes I wonder if he would do better on a second stint knowing what worked and what didn’t, but he probably wouldn’t want to come back anyway. Agree 100%. He was responsible for so many great football memories for me when he was here.
I truly appreciate all the thoughtful dialog here but the bottom line for me is that I will simply not renew by season tickets of 30+ years unless some very bold action is taken to give me even a glimmer of hope that Cal football will improve.
Donate to the aquatics program. All 4 of them win, or compete, for national championships every year. Why donate to any other program? You might say "well, they need it". But let's be real, a few $100 of donations is a drop in the bucket compared to the millions they're already spending every year.
...aaaaand there it is. The commentary that reflects the desires of the anti-athletics faculty and administration. Athletic success to those folks is measured in Olympic medals and nowhere else.
I wish the faculty and administration staff so inclined would simply come right out and say it: revenue sports (football and basketball) are not what we want at this university.
Football (and basketball) is tolerated only because it pays the bills. Otherwise, they'd be happy to be rid of it.
No way Wilcox should have put the game winning fg on the shoulders of a true freshman playing in his first real game. He should have told his offensive, 5 or 6 plays earlier, “We are not kicking a fg! Put on your big boy pants, suck it up, and put the ball in the end zone!” Period!
Well said and needed saying. The voices here at WFC are important community leaders and I appreciate the decision to go public with what have probably been more private concerns. I've no stomach or need to pile on. Wilcox just needs to go. It's so over that I now spend all my Cal football time thinking about who our next coach should be. No ideas. Wilcox is a great man, a great defensive coach, and a poor HC. Who will lead Cal football into being a smart, well coached, balanced team that plays winning football and gets beat only by much better talent?
There is no greater GO BEARS! right now than supporting a coaching change.
Not so sure he is a great defensive coach given all the games blown by his defenses in the 4th quarter which sadly has become a trademark for Cal football. However, he is certainly a gentleman and a professional, in all a very stand-up guy.
There’s a reason for that. When your offense can’t sustain drives and stay on the field, that means the defense is on the field more than they should be. By the 4th quarter, they’re gassed. Defense is basically the only redeeming thing left. For all the frustrations we have had, I have thoroughly enjoyed not being consistently blown out in the first half of games like in years passed. I just don’t think we have to choose between scoring points or having points scored on our team.
Only a numb-skulled Defensive coach would call a prevent defense in instances when he did (for ex. the late 4th qtr of the Miami game). All of that aside, he's the head coach as well and is in full control of all team matters and didn't solve obvious problems and as a result lost to many winnable games. As I said, I really like Wilcox as a person for many reasons, but he hasn't earned a place in the pantheon of top-notch defensive coaches.
Nothing changes until the AD is gone and which donors want to pony up for the buyout that Knowlton set up by extending JW? I wouldnt want to chip in for current AD to bungle a new hire…
I sat in the Chancellor's box next to Carol Christ for many games over the previous seasons and I can tell you firsthand that she doesn't even understand the basic fundamentals of the game.
First thing she told my friend when Lyons was hired that we should be excited because he is an avid sports fan. She would rather go to the opera versus a Cal game.
While she cared little for Cal football and its trajectory, the same can not se said about Rich. I suspect that we will see more positive changes to not just the football team, but the entire athletic department as a whole too. Fingers crossed.
The Clueless Carol appellation was very apt, thank Oski she is gone. Empty Suit Jim Knowlton is hanging around for his pension (3rd one?) and nothing more. He needs to be totally marginalized and deserves no respect because he is nothing more than n nothing. He has sucked all the legitimacy out of the program and wants to milk it for every dollar that he can.
Knowlton… a worthless administrator, and an embarrassment to the university when he actually has to go in front of the media and answer questions.
Christ used her public position to send political email statements and then in the same email ask for donations. She was the worst.
Thanks for the inside scoop on Chancellor Crist, as well as the hopeful outlook with Lyons.
It's time. We all know it. It may be painful -- but how can you keep a coach incapable of delivering an 8-4 season even once in his extended tenure. Sure, maybe it's a stretch to say we should be undefeated -- but it's not a stretch to say we should be 6-1. SHOULD BE, but for an inexcusable number of repetitive, soul crushing penalties, confounding in game decision making (going for 2 after scoring opening TD on the road and then losing by 2 because of that decision and our inability to hit routine FGs)? This simply cannot happen with a roster as good as ours. We're defective and imperfect; our roster is not elite. But it can compete with top ten teams and should be shutting to door on top 25 light weights. I'm firmly in support of ending the Wilcox era right here and now so we can begin looking for a coach and signal to our current roster that we know change is needed and it's coming.
The immediate messaging to the roster is crucial. We can’t force them to stay, and we can’t afford to replace them en masse.
Went to bed last night thinking these same thoughts. After the Auburn game, I allowed myself the thought, “We could go 4-0 into the Miami game.” After that FSU game, I realized the season was going to be a fool’s errand.👍🏽 #gobears
Also, I can’t help but feel bad for the players; some of them will run through a wall for each other. But, it’s no stretch to believe some of them *know* what plays and schemes will work when the game is on the line: JW isn’t calling those.
Let's also look at how many times Wilcox has delivered a letdown after a good start to the season has gotten a glimmer of momentum for the program:
2017: 3-0 with wins over UNC and Ole Miss. Nice crowd out for USC in the Joe Roth game, and we lose 30-20. This is actually pretty forgivable, as no one thought Cal at that point was in a position to beat a top 5 team like USC. This also starts a 3-game losing streak.
2018: 3-0 with wins over UNC and at BYU. We get ranked at #24. Nice crowd at home for Oregon. We lose 42-24 (somewhat forgivable given Oregon's obvious talent advantage), and again start a 3-game losing streak.
2019: Started 4-0 with road wins against Washington and Ole Miss! Coming back home with a #15 ranking against ASU. Again, an amped-up crowd ready to party. Chase Garbers gets hurt and we lose 24-17. This also starts a 4-game losing streak. Again, somewhat forgivable given the QB injury, but the pattern continues. At least this season ended positively when Garbers returned.
2020: Season over before it started, thanks to COVID.
2021: Instead of getting our hopes up, we just open the season with a deflating home loss to Nevada. At least it's different! We also miss bowl eligibility thanks to a terrible road loss to a terrible Arizona team, coming with half the team out with COVID and complaining about Berkeley's harsh regulations. Fun!
2022: Start 3-1 with a nice big win and offensive explosion against Arizona (plus a loss to Notre Dame that everyone agrees should have been a win). Then a 5-game losing streak, including that unforgivable loss to Colorado, who couldn't beat anyone else. Only saving grace was beating Stanford in front of a huge home crowd.
2023: Nice big win at North Texas to start the season, then we welcome Auburn in with another big crowd and chance to make a statement on national TV. Again, deflating loss in a game we should have won, followed by the familiar 4-game losing streak in October.
This season has just been more of the same, only a bigger drop from the emotional high of the Calgorithm and GameDay visit. And taking the big lead at home against Miami in front of a massive, amped home crowd, only to see it all slip away. The usual October losing streak has been marked by agonizingly close losses this time. But it's the same script, and there are fewer excuses this time. This is just who Wilcox is.
I sound like a broken record. Wilcox is a good Defensive Coordinator.
Good summary. I will just add that during this time players have come and gone, multiple coaches have been hired and fired, but the constant is Wilcox. 8 years in and he owns all of this.
We can debate about how much or little support Cals administration supports or likes football but they aren’t responsible for poor special teams and kickers who can’t make FGs or poor OL play, that’s all Wilcox.
Totally. Four different OCs, but the same hallmarks remain. This is the Wilcox offense.
And he ain’t firing Bloesch.
Nice recounting. This story goes back many decades. Ni e start to season, then inability to win after October 1.
Except in the Tedford years. Oh he was fired because he had a losing season by the AD, Sandy Barbour. Then looked what happened.
End of the Miami game felt like the ‘07 Riley game all over. I knew where this was headed next despite trying to convince myself otherwise. We even got Wilcox doing strange things like going for two when he shouldn’t and not going for two when he should. I remember Tedford similarly trying to hard and making uncharacteristic decisions once he felt it all slipping out of his hands. There’s still five games to play and this could and probably will get uglier. But I’ll be there next week to be in the company of more sickos, to support these kids who have yet to five up, and to imagine what might have been and dream of what could come next with the right hire, right luck and right support. Go Bears forever and ever.
Where you sitting? I’ll come say hey!
Not sure. Haven’t got my ticket, but I generally hit the WFC tailgate.
See you there.
Food for thought:
I get the frustration and feel it as much as anyone out there. But having been involved in the interworking's of this Athletic Department as a student in the 80s and having contacts that remained through the 2019 season, the department is run like the DMV, a disorganized clusterfarce.
The reality is that we won't get a name coach here. No chance in hell - unless they are overcoming a scandal and have no other options. The perception is that Cal's administration has historically not been committed to winning, just checking the boxes of fielding teams to fill out the schedule for the revenue sports. They are the John Fisher Oakland A's, living off the teat of a conference/league. Look where that got us, on the verge of relegation in 4 or 5 years when the TV Networks blow up Major College Football and create two super leagues of 40 to 60 teams. Whatever that number is, starting over is only going to set us back and we are going to be on the outside looking in. The only option we will have is some O/D Coordinator getting their first HC job. And in all likelihood, before they master the "nuances" of the Cal Athletics Department, he will use Cal as a steppingstone (Sonny Dykes anyone?).
Like it or not, with his contract’s buyout being far more sizeable than Cal can digest at this time, this is going to be a marriage of convenience for the next 2-3 years. Cal simply can’t afford to pay 8 figures to buy him out (not without be detrimental to something else; NIL, facilities, assistant coaching salaries, etc.)
The positive of this is that we know what we have with Wilcox (a great man and a good football mind who is still mastering the CEO role of being a major college football coach). He knows the self-imposed roadblocks that the uniqueness this University imposes. He has also proved his loyalty to Cal and is not “stone stepping” to a better job (turning down Oregun and Mississippi HC jobs).
While the season had the real potential to be 7-0 at this point, we have to accept where the past 80 years of Cal Athletics has put us. Turning this ship around is a First In, First Out situation. MAYBE with the new Chancellor, the first one in decades that cares about sports (and maybe the only one that might be able to do anything to improve the situation) can do something to fix this. I don’t even know if getting a new AD will immediately fix things. But if the masses are clamoring for some type of change, it needs to be Knowlton and not Wilcox.
Whether it’s palatable or not, Wilcox isn’t going anywhere before the 2025 season, unless it’s his choice (personally, considering all factors, I like it)
“…a great man and a good football mind who is still mastering the CEO role…”
Lol. That’s awesome. Kinda like I’m still mastering the role of NBA center. And I’m 5’ 6”.
That's kind of like the old joke about the drunk and the old battle axe. Eventually Wilcox will be a great Head Coach...
I don't believe this can't be changed. A full scale revolt of alums, students and backers is what is needed and should be done. That youre still making excuses for wilcox re the admin is a bridge too far. We've all watches the games. We lose because of his coaching decisions not.bc the athletic depth is run like the DMV. This blame admin mindset is a virus that too many continue to use as a buffer...we have always had the talent the last 5 years...he loses games over and over again
Two things can be true:
1. The administration sucks and needs to be overhauled to take revenue sports more seriously.
2. Wilcox doesn’t have it either.
I agree.
With the new Chancellor things will change. He's an avid sports fan whereas the previous knew nothing about intercollegiate sports.
Here's hoping!
The notion of another year of Wilcox is depressing. Two or three years is unthinkable. Getting rid of Knowlton should be the top priority.
Well, there’s always a chance this season is his real deal “come to jeebus” failure with the previous versions being lighter weight in comparison. And he could take more to heed in his options to correct his starkly patent short comings given what’s left on the contract.
Trying to find a way to 3 wins to reach bowl eligibility, but I am just not seeing it with this current O-line.
We should have beat that team yesterday by 3 tuddy’s…NC State is baaaaddd…their true FR backup QB straight beat us.
Oregon State will be a dog fight, and a vintage Wilcox coin toss. Maybe a W?
At Wake on a Friday night? I mean, again, maybe….but doubtful the way our O and ST’s simply can not execute.
Syracuse is 5-1 and can score…big game for them this weekend at Acrisure.
Furd? Hell, anything can happen.
SMU blows us out.
I mean, the way we are playing the last month, there are simply not 3 wins there with this completely overmatched coaching staff. Maybe they rally and figure things out on the OL, or the D single-handedly WINS a game for them…but there’s been very little in 7.5 years to give you confidence that Wilcox can get this team ready to play a consistent 60-minutes of football.
Sigh…
Sure the administration hasn’t been the most supportive but they didn’t tell or make Wilcox go for two in the first TD drive last week against Pitt.
The administration isn’t stopping Wilcox from finding a competent FG kicker or hire a decent special teams coach or OL coach. These are all issues that Wilcox has failed at on his own and you can’t pin the blame for these failures on the administration or athletic department.
I don't think it needs to be about Cal getting a "name" coach, more about just not locking ourselves in to bad or mediocre ones for too long. That's been the issue. Holmoe shouldn't have lasted 5 years. Wilcox shouldn't be here for 8.
It is hard to sustain program momentum and fan excitement when your team doesn’t win at all in the month of October and that is basically what Wilcox has done every season at Cal when he goes on these 3+ game losing streaks. I will also add that during these 3+ losing streaks, we aren’t losing due to us a playing a tough stretch of top ranked teams, we are losing to winless teams like Arizona, Colorado, UCLA, FSU, etc during these losing streaks. We lose to bad teams during these losing streaks.
To the guy who claims “we don’t support football” can’t find your comment so here ya go…
I’m curious where you get this notion that Cal doesn’t support football…
It seems to be a common talking point of Wilcox apologists…
Do we pay coaches the highest tier in d1?
No, but we pay 9 and change mil a year for the staff collectively and that puts us in the top half of the 17 acc schools. Wilcox makes more himself than 8 other acc football coaches.
In terms of football NIL we are ranked 4th in the ACC despite having the only collective of those 4 that doesn’t operate illegally as a 501c.
We have the Simpson center.
We have the number one sports psychology program in the world,
We still draw 30-35k out of 58k despite having a perrenial loser for the last 15 years.
I’m not sure where anyone gets by saying we don’t support football,
We are in the upper half of literally every support metric I can think of despite being bottom 8th in wins and losses.
Fun fact the only other two d1 coaches in at least year 8 with a lower winning percentage are Creighton and Nue at EMU and Ball state. They both make 500k a year and unlike Wilcox they both have won a conference title and had a 10 win season in those 8 years.
Wilcox makes 4.6mm a year and is absolute dog doo at playcalling, recruiting, and defending his players.
He needs to go now!
NIL, the Calgorithm, GameDay . . . this is not the year to say people don’t support Cal football. They’re out there, just being let down by a poorly run program.
U$C has wildly talented athletes and all the institutional backing SC fans could hope for. Yet, their $10 million-a-year coach has gone 4-3 this season and just lost to Maryland. To make things worse, they owe him $70 million if they were to fire him today!
Even the most storied programs face challenges. So, take heart, Cal fans! Sometimes, it’s all about finding a path forward. Stay hopeful for the future—better days are ahead!
USC is 3-4 with 3 bad loses. Haven't played Oregon or OSU.
This season is very disappointing, but our schedule was tougher than we realized. Miami is a playoff team and Pitt undefeated. Losing at another loaded blue blood, FSU, is frustrating but understandable. NCST inexcusable. Literally a few plays from being undefeated. Sigh.
IMO Pitt is not that good. We had the better talent. Our coaching strategy let us down.
Again, unfortunately.
Honestly, I find the NC State performance a bit more palatable (though it was also very bad). The end of that Pitt game was so egregiously mismanaged by our coaches I could hardly believe what I was seeing.
They are in Big 10. Just like Rugbear was saying last year wins will be really hard to come by in that conference.
We have an easy schedule.
Hire me. I’ll do it for cheap, and I’ve got just as many winning conference seasons as Wilcox.
I preferred Mendoza when he wasn’t scared to death of throwing an interception…..he doesn’t want the coaches to get mad at him. This is a big reason for his problems in the red zone, and his indecision leading to sacks. The same can be said about several FG kickers failing on easy kicks. If the coaching staff encourages more fun and risk taking then maybe the players would loosen up and perform to their abilities. These loses are being caused by a deep fear of making a mistake. Both coaches and players. Can’t win that way
This reflects Wilcox thinking...and frankly I think he knows he's inept...so he turtles hoping to not get fired..and maybe secure the win. Ironically its those turtle decisions that are why he should be fired.
I think Wilcox knows he has no business being a HC. He has no idea to fix anytging...been that way for years....every loss..says same thing..it's on us blah blah...and here we are 8yrs in and it's the same mistakes over and over...and inexplicable play calling that makes us snatch defeat from the jaws of victory
He doesn't call the plays. His OC and DC do it. They are the ones who should be fired first.
Consistently playing not to lose.
GameDay was a flashback to Tedford era program vibes. We need a coach who can get us back there. Wilcox decidedly isn’t it. But we need to make a change to give our players and our program a fighting chance.
https://thebandisonthefield.substack.com/p/you-never-forget-your-first
Reading your story...so hopeful and painful. I'm older than you, as my name suggests, but I was a rabid Cal football fan for those good years, Bruce, and hard years, Holmoe. Tedford did for me what he did for you. Hope and Belief. He walked on water. One day I was playing frisbee in Memorial with my buddy. No one there. Jeff Tedford walks out onto the field, chats us up, and asks us to leave. I felt like I was talking to Joe Montana or some football god. He was so polite, and normal, and real. It only added to my appreciation for him. Jeff Tedford is the greatest Cal coach in my living memory, despite his later failings.
Sometimes I wonder if he would do better on a second stint knowing what worked and what didn’t, but he probably wouldn’t want to come back anyway. Agree 100%. He was responsible for so many great football memories for me when he was here.
I truly appreciate all the thoughtful dialog here but the bottom line for me is that I will simply not renew by season tickets of 30+ years unless some very bold action is taken to give me even a glimmer of hope that Cal football will improve.
Completely understandable, Dana.
My donations are going straight to Mark Madsen and his crocs…
Donate to the aquatics program. All 4 of them win, or compete, for national championships every year. Why donate to any other program? You might say "well, they need it". But let's be real, a few $100 of donations is a drop in the bucket compared to the millions they're already spending every year.
...aaaaand there it is. The commentary that reflects the desires of the anti-athletics faculty and administration. Athletic success to those folks is measured in Olympic medals and nowhere else.
I wish the faculty and administration staff so inclined would simply come right out and say it: revenue sports (football and basketball) are not what we want at this university.
Football (and basketball) is tolerated only because it pays the bills. Otherwise, they'd be happy to be rid of it.
Down 28-29, Detroit kicks 44 yard FG for the win at 0:19.
I'm glad Goff is rewarded. I want game winning FGs. Matt Anderson was good at them.
Watching Detroit lead 28-10, and then fall behind 29-28 late in the 4th, reminded me of Cal games. Except that Detroit managed to win.
Oh haha I missed that part. I tuned into the game right at the FG.
No way Wilcox should have put the game winning fg on the shoulders of a true freshman playing in his first real game. He should have told his offensive, 5 or 6 plays earlier, “We are not kicking a fg! Put on your big boy pants, suck it up, and put the ball in the end zone!” Period!
Well said and needed saying. The voices here at WFC are important community leaders and I appreciate the decision to go public with what have probably been more private concerns. I've no stomach or need to pile on. Wilcox just needs to go. It's so over that I now spend all my Cal football time thinking about who our next coach should be. No ideas. Wilcox is a great man, a great defensive coach, and a poor HC. Who will lead Cal football into being a smart, well coached, balanced team that plays winning football and gets beat only by much better talent?
There is no greater GO BEARS! right now than supporting a coaching change.
Not so sure he is a great defensive coach given all the games blown by his defenses in the 4th quarter which sadly has become a trademark for Cal football. However, he is certainly a gentleman and a professional, in all a very stand-up guy.
There’s a reason for that. When your offense can’t sustain drives and stay on the field, that means the defense is on the field more than they should be. By the 4th quarter, they’re gassed. Defense is basically the only redeeming thing left. For all the frustrations we have had, I have thoroughly enjoyed not being consistently blown out in the first half of games like in years passed. I just don’t think we have to choose between scoring points or having points scored on our team.
Only a numb-skulled Defensive coach would call a prevent defense in instances when he did (for ex. the late 4th qtr of the Miami game). All of that aside, he's the head coach as well and is in full control of all team matters and didn't solve obvious problems and as a result lost to many winnable games. As I said, I really like Wilcox as a person for many reasons, but he hasn't earned a place in the pantheon of top-notch defensive coaches.
Fire the DC and the OC
Nothing changes until the AD is gone and which donors want to pony up for the buyout that Knowlton set up by extending JW? I wouldnt want to chip in for current AD to bungle a new hire…