The California Golden Bears (2-1) fell to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (1-2), 17-24, continuing its losing streak against the blue-blood college football program.
They were by and large polite and welcoming. Definitely some hubris, but they had been humbled two weeks in a row. In the stadium, save for one guy, everyone was cheering loudly and very positive. Also everyone was disappointed with the refs.
We were on the opposite side of the stadium for that penalty and only found out it was bs from texts from people watching on tv. ND doesn’t show a lot of replays of contentious plays
We were in Sec 14, 30 rows up. Basically 2yds deep in the end zone. The video board was fantastic, albeit a solid second behind the action and the audio was poorly synched. We went to the CAA tailgate and it was sold out (1500 tix), it was decently setup, food/bev was fine, location was convenient, people were nice. I did go to Ole Miss, but it was such an early game that our pregame tailgating was limited, post game their fans were the most welcoming I’ve met. I didn’t explore ND’s tailgates, but The Grove would be hard to beat IMHO.
The ND OC did his f-ing job, unlike Musgrave...he adjusted his play calling and game plan based on what Cal was doing. Musgrave continued to call the same schitt, with zero regard for what Notre Dame was doing defensively.
Wilcox has whiffed on 2 OC hires....gonna be his downfall.
Musgrave did a fine job calling plays. When your O-line is failing, it doesn't matter what plays you call. Something has to give with respect to the o-line.
New coach and hit the portal hard. That being said, Musgrave did call enough WR or RB screens. We need a full reboot at one offense. Musgrave has always been an average OC and runs a dinosaur offense. The west coast offense has no place in CFB or at Cal.
Haha, we are never firing Wilcox. He is about to get 10 years to try to have a winning conference record. He might get one in 2026 when we are in the MWC but he isn’t going to ever have a winning Pac12 conference record
How Angus has a job come Monday will be beyond me. Coleman needs to be moved back inside. The coaches claim his is our best and most athletic lineman. If true, the rest of the lads aren't D1 players. Move Coleman to LG, Driscoll to C, Vatikani to RG. Keep mixing / matching LT and RT until you find the right combination. But neither Rohme nor Session are playing well so no need to keep that experiment going.
I do not think harshly of Plummer. We were outmatched on both offensive and defensive lines with us being more fearsome than David, but somehow not as daunting as Goliath. He had virtually no pocket to pass from, which is something of a Cal trademark, remembering, what I like to call, "Jared Goff and the three alligator pass offense." Goff learned to do his reads and pass sooner rather than later or be crushed. One alligator, two alligator, three aligator, and the rush was manhandling him. Plummer just has not figured that out, yet. His legs were good and, oh my God, having Ott block for him, man, you gotta' love his brass and presence of mind in that moment.
If you may forgive the mixed metaphor, we brought a knife to a gunfight and almost won.
The team made me proud, even though it is frustrating just how close we came.
And maybe that is the only really bothersome thing- we dared to hope, even though it was not well-considered.
We're Goliath's smaller cousin, for now, and we should be happy we went the distance.
As I watch the way that Washington is dismantling No. 11 Michigan State, and earlier the way that Oregon blew past a ranked BYU team, and the way that WSU boatraced Colorado State, I am wondering how this Cal team is going to assemble four wins, let alone six that would get them to a bowl game.
My eye test says that Cal is stuck in quicksand while the rest of the conference - save Colorado - has made great strides.
Entertaining game versus a bad Notre Dame team, really? I have been watching Cal teams for 35 years, and I never felt this one was in doubt. Cal's defense could not make a stop in the second half when it mattered, and Plummer's heroics with his feet could not overcome a woeful sub 50% completion rate.
Cal desperately needs a win next week against a vastly improved Arizona team, but the casual fans that the program needs to fill the stadium will stay away in droves because they view the product as boring. I always know when I have watched a truly exciting Cal game because my voice is totally gone after the game. I feel like I could sing for the Met Opera right now.
I got to sleep on this. I don't even see five wins for Cal this year. The rest of the conference has improved that much. Just where outside of Colorado does anyone see a Cal win? I mean, Cal kind of struggled against FCS UC Davis two weeks ago. Oregon State just put up 66 points on Montana State, the team that made it to the FCS finals last year. Arizona just took care of FCS champion North Dakota State, a team that previously had a six game win streak against FBS teams. This is not to mention what those two teams up in Washington did to their opponents yesterday. Arizona State was the only other Pac 12 team that lost yesterday, and Cal is not playing them.
Until they shore up the OL to at least a passable unit, this team can lose to anyone on the schedule. Plummer’s inaccurate, that’s a problem…but the lack of time is troubling.
Year 6 under Wilcox, and another “moral victory.” Everyone knows the offside penalty was horseshit and a total backbreaker, but we had plenty of chances against what is a bad ND team. How the hell is our o-line the worst position group year after year after year? You’d think at cal the one group we could recruit are the big dudes who go to class. But of course under the Wilcox regime of mediocrity, everyone will keep their jobs, and we’ll just keep on with the same shit. Meanwhile, Washington is in year one with a new coach, up 14 on Michigan state, in front of a full stadium. Insert ‘must be fuckin nice’ gif here.
Yeah but Wilcox is the opposite of Dykes and wants to be at Cal!
We are seriously about to keep a mediocre coach at Cal because he turned down Oregon. Wilcox is a smart guy. He knows he can be 6-6 and say all the right things and he will never be fired.
I honestly do not think any coach we could reasonably expect to hire could do better at Cal than Wilcox is doing right now. There isn’t the support and commitment from administration and Athletic Department. Add in the conference uncertainty and we see how the recruiting just isn’t good enough to be in the top-25.
To show my biases, I actually think Wilcox is a really good coach in terms of football, but he has missed on some assistant hires. That’s crucial for CFB success. I don’t know if he’ll recover from it.
I’m not even sure Musgrave is that bad. Our guys have limited ability to execute, particularly the QB, so that limits what he can call. I think the biggest thing that would help JW succeed would just be getting lucky with a QB prospect.
Even if Cal somehow establishes an excellent developmental program (akin to Wisconsin, Iowa, etc...) you still need the players to get over the top. I see it with Wisconsin. The players are outstanding in regard to maximizing their potential, but when going up against teams like tOSU the talent gap is glaring. You need the horses to win.
They just lost at home to a Marshall team that lost to Bowling Green today. Yes, by notre dame standards, this is a bad ND team. At what point do we expect more from Wilcox and co?
ND has really good recruits across the board. They will probably e d up winning 8ish games. I don’t think they are that bad at all, just were kind of hungover from Ohio St when they played Marshall in the way 18-22 year olds often are.
Our biggest failure this weekend was not jumping out further ahead in the first half when their new QB still had no feel for the game yet. And that is no small credit to the ND D line which stuffed Ott and kept constant pressure on Plummer
It’s not the job of fans to assess whether or not we could hire a better o-line coach. That’s the job of the guy making $4.75 mil a year. We are in year 6 of mediocre to bad play from the group that really should be one of the easier ones to recruit to cal. I’m so sick of the mentality of our fan base being this bullshit, defeatist “well could we really do any better?” You have to at least try. Wilcox negotiated raises for himself and his staff after he turned down oregon. Time to start expecting more from that group.
Bill Musgrave has to go. The complete lack of adjustments in play calling in light of a struggling offensive line is inexcusable. Continuing to call long developing pass plays on deep drop backs in the face of heavy pressure? What are we even doing here Musgrave...
Stop trying to gaslight him. We all have eyes and can see, plus look back at the history of Musgrave at all his previous stops at OC and his time at Cal. We are an average to below average offense with Musgrave. Look at where this offense currently ranks in statistical categories.
Gimme a break, Rugbear. I was in the stands, watching Musgrave make zero adjustments. Everyone saw it.
You’re continuously defending Musgrave, blaming it all entirely on a porous O-line and laying zero blame on the OC…instead it’s all on McClure or the players.
He continuously defends Musgrave and Wilcox. It’s year 6, it’s time for Wilcox to have a winning Pac12 record and a competent OL and offense or it is time to move on. How much more time do we give him?
We are the crew that noted that Wilcox is the one note wonder. He is the upside down, the inverse Dykes. All defense and no offense. We are just using our eyes and stats to show that Wilcox can’t produce a complete team.
If Wilcox wants to play ball control offense and defense, why doesn’t he recruit a kicker who can make a 45 yard FG. Use a scholarship for a great kicker because it is apparent he isn’t using it to recruit a a great QB or OT. It’s year 6, excuses are running thin for why he can’t field a competent offense coordinator, let alone a competent offense.
No, the one note wonder is Wilcox at this point. All defense, no offense.
alpha, I’m not even calling for Wilcox to be fired….he’s not going anywhere.
But he’s whiffed on two OC hires, despite what Rugbear says about Musgrave…there should have serious doubts about his scheme fit with today’s HS players.
Have you watched the film? What adjustments would you have made? I'll watch the film this week. Any adjustments that needed to be made were on the O-line. That's not on Musgrave. Really, do you understand how it all works on the field? I'm happy to lose my legitimacy if you explain to me what adjustments Musgrave could have made that would have made Plummer throw better passes and our o-line block better.
I’d love to hear it. Again, I respect Rugbear & his opinions - I do know something about football though, and it sure seems that Musgrave could be helping out his O-line more.
Condescendingly saying I don’t know what I’m talking about, and then claiming that when an O-line is struggling there is nothing you can do, is suspect tho.
I need to watch film before I can make educated comments. That goes for anyone on this thread. Knee jerk reactions after watching the game are fan responses and as such usually way off base. Second. like I said before, I'd like Jimmy to tell me what kind of adjustments that Musgrave could have made that would have resulted in Plummer throwing the ball earlier, throwing the ball more accurately and our o-line executing better.
However, 3 years into the Musgrave experiment, and 6 years into the Wilcox regime, and we’re still watching a sputtering, inefficient offense with poor OL play…that is hardly a knee jerk reaction.
With ND selling out to stop the run, how about some more play action…more quick hitters, using the short passing game…where were designed roll-outs to move the pocket, even a little bit, get Terry the ball in the flat. Plummer’s inaccuracy was definitely an issue, as he missed more throws than he hit…my frustration came from watching them continuously call slow developing pass plays in the face of heavy pressure, and the absence of any sign of adjustments by the offense.
But I look forward to seeing your reaction after watching the film.
Musgrave can adjust better to what is happening on the field. Read Gerald Alexanders live tweets of the game to note our sets and how we can leverage TE's more against a dominant rush rather than 4/5 wide.
The offense without an effective o line against an elite D line, isnt an accurate representation of what our offensive coordinator is capable of. Plummer missed on some well scripted plays that don't help the cause.
That's a fair statement except that before Covid hit we were on an upward trajectory. Covid was a two year debacle for us, and the first year I don't count against either Wilcox or Musgrave. Hell, I don't attribute the AZ loss last year to them (that turned out the be the main reason Mettauer left the program). Let's see how the season unfolds. Notre Dame is a good team loaded with talent and we went into their house and gave them a game. Even the announcers came around to CAL during the game. Let's see where the season ends up.
Our OL is just brutal. Even in plays where their DL was blocked, the pocket just collapses on Plummer in under 3 sec most of the time.
I counted at least 5 times where simple T E stunts or just plain missed assignments let a free rusher in. OL isn't just overmatched but not properly coached and prepped.
For all the talk about how talented our WRs are, we do a piss poor job of actually getting them the ball. Having 21 incompletions is inexcusable. Even ND switched to simple screen passes and PA passes to the flat to adjust to their qb being totally ineffective. What does Musgrave do? Just drop Plummer back, run double moves with our WRs while our OL collapses.
Lastly Musgrave needs to go. Forget whether if you think his play calling is good or not, his system is a relic of outdated 90s west coast offense. Offense are all about spacing, putting defenders in conflict, and letting qbs just make 1 or 2 simple reads. We do none of that. Musgrave is almost as bad as the guy calling for the T formation here.
I think he was just part of the event, like how Justin Tuck, Shane Vereen and Jason Kidd were there for the broadcast. (and I think Lou Holtz? was supposed to be there, but didnt see him on tv).
I'll give NBC credit for that.
Back to Manti -- I recently saw the "Untold" netflix documentary about that whole incident and I really felt bad for him. Yet still couldnt resist the joke!
Not sure what to say aside from the fact that we just don't have the horses and coaching on the O Line. It was absolutely brutal to watch the poor technique and 1-on-1 losses. Lots of off-balance pass pro, overcommitting to the DL's first move, lack of quickness. That's what separates the big boy teams from the rest--line play.
Frustrating end, but Cal fans overall seemed to have a fantastic time at the game. We had a great presence, tons of loud cheering, lots of good vibes and what an amazing atmosphere for college football. The only pre-game, negative shit-talking interaction with drunk ND fans was quickly de-escalated with a quick “hey hey hey, fuck $C, right?” All four guys in the group looked at each other and immediately agreed “that’s right, fuck $C” and high fives were had by all.
Agree on the atmosphere. Went with my son and couldn’t be happier with the Cal presence and the interaction with ND fans. Not sure what would have happened if they lost.
Plummer looked way more confident running (probably out of necessity). However his overthrows on short routes are frustrating. Unfortunately, our o-line is a weakness we haven't yet figured out how to either fix or scheme around (or if that's even possible at this stage) and I'm sure that's not helping.
Was glad I went to this game even though we lost. ND fans were great hosts and I was certainly entertained throughout. We were 2nd to last row and actually had decent sightlines. The American flag at half mast did block some of the action but it wouldn't have interfered if at its regular height so it's not like they tried to obstruct the visitors.
I don’t know about everybody, but that was an extremely entertaining game to watch. OLine is a hot mess, but that was some fun college football.
That was our takeaway from inside of the stadium.
We're the ND fans gracious or mostly snarky about us?
They were quite polite and friendly and it seemed genuine. Left South Bend with a very good impression of them.
Almost like an old money/new money distinction where they don't need any nouveau riche flash, swagger, or boorishness.
ND fans were great. No snark at all.
One drunk student was an a$$hole - otherwise everyone I encountered was awesome!
They were by and large polite and welcoming. Definitely some hubris, but they had been humbled two weeks in a row. In the stadium, save for one guy, everyone was cheering loudly and very positive. Also everyone was disappointed with the refs.
We were on the opposite side of the stadium for that penalty and only found out it was bs from texts from people watching on tv. ND doesn’t show a lot of replays of contentious plays
We were in Sec 14, 30 rows up. Basically 2yds deep in the end zone. The video board was fantastic, albeit a solid second behind the action and the audio was poorly synched. We went to the CAA tailgate and it was sold out (1500 tix), it was decently setup, food/bev was fine, location was convenient, people were nice. I did go to Ole Miss, but it was such an early game that our pregame tailgating was limited, post game their fans were the most welcoming I’ve met. I didn’t explore ND’s tailgates, but The Grove would be hard to beat IMHO.
I just finished watching the second half. Frustrating. But a crazy last drive (how many lives did we get?) that ended in an almost hail mary.
ND coach needs to work on his body language. Showed his frustration a lot.
The ND OC was losing his shit talking to his QB on the phone. Looked like he was verbally assaulting Pine.
Do your F**ing Job!
Yep, it was very easy to read his lips.
The ND OC did his f-ing job, unlike Musgrave...he adjusted his play calling and game plan based on what Cal was doing. Musgrave continued to call the same schitt, with zero regard for what Notre Dame was doing defensively.
Wilcox has whiffed on 2 OC hires....gonna be his downfall.
Musgrave did a fine job calling plays. When your O-line is failing, it doesn't matter what plays you call. Something has to give with respect to the o-line.
Respectfully disagree, Rug. No arguments on the failing O-line…but zero quick hitters, no screen passes…long developing pass plays, all…day…long.
New coach and hit the portal hard. That being said, Musgrave did call enough WR or RB screens. We need a full reboot at one offense. Musgrave has always been an average OC and runs a dinosaur offense. The west coast offense has no place in CFB or at Cal.
Haha, we are never firing Wilcox. He is about to get 10 years to try to have a winning conference record. He might get one in 2026 when we are in the MWC but he isn’t going to ever have a winning Pac12 conference record
Not so fast my friend! Cal could run the table as early as next year in Division 3, depending on which Regents scenario gets the most votes.
6 sacks!!
6 sacks!!
How Angus has a job come Monday will be beyond me. Coleman needs to be moved back inside. The coaches claim his is our best and most athletic lineman. If true, the rest of the lads aren't D1 players. Move Coleman to LG, Driscoll to C, Vatikani to RG. Keep mixing / matching LT and RT until you find the right combination. But neither Rohme nor Session are playing well so no need to keep that experiment going.
Lastly, Angus was left on the tarmac, right?
6 Sacks.
Good thing the game didnt go OT, or we might be talking about 7 sacks. Hell, maybe even 10!
He isn’t going to fire angus. He might reassign him but I doubt he fires him.
To ST Coordinator?
Because lol accountability, who wants that?
Well because then people might hold Wilcox accountable.
I do not think harshly of Plummer. We were outmatched on both offensive and defensive lines with us being more fearsome than David, but somehow not as daunting as Goliath. He had virtually no pocket to pass from, which is something of a Cal trademark, remembering, what I like to call, "Jared Goff and the three alligator pass offense." Goff learned to do his reads and pass sooner rather than later or be crushed. One alligator, two alligator, three aligator, and the rush was manhandling him. Plummer just has not figured that out, yet. His legs were good and, oh my God, having Ott block for him, man, you gotta' love his brass and presence of mind in that moment.
If you may forgive the mixed metaphor, we brought a knife to a gunfight and almost won.
The team made me proud, even though it is frustrating just how close we came.
And maybe that is the only really bothersome thing- we dared to hope, even though it was not well-considered.
We're Goliath's smaller cousin, for now, and we should be happy we went the distance.
As I watch the way that Washington is dismantling No. 11 Michigan State, and earlier the way that Oregon blew past a ranked BYU team, and the way that WSU boatraced Colorado State, I am wondering how this Cal team is going to assemble four wins, let alone six that would get them to a bowl game.
My eye test says that Cal is stuck in quicksand while the rest of the conference - save Colorado - has made great strides.
Entertaining game versus a bad Notre Dame team, really? I have been watching Cal teams for 35 years, and I never felt this one was in doubt. Cal's defense could not make a stop in the second half when it mattered, and Plummer's heroics with his feet could not overcome a woeful sub 50% completion rate.
Cal desperately needs a win next week against a vastly improved Arizona team, but the casual fans that the program needs to fill the stadium will stay away in droves because they view the product as boring. I always know when I have watched a truly exciting Cal game because my voice is totally gone after the game. I feel like I could sing for the Met Opera right now.
Next weeks game will be the difference between 6-6 and 5-7.
Wilcox football is both average and boring. Memorial, despite an even year schedule will be a ghost town.
I got to sleep on this. I don't even see five wins for Cal this year. The rest of the conference has improved that much. Just where outside of Colorado does anyone see a Cal win? I mean, Cal kind of struggled against FCS UC Davis two weeks ago. Oregon State just put up 66 points on Montana State, the team that made it to the FCS finals last year. Arizona just took care of FCS champion North Dakota State, a team that previously had a six game win streak against FBS teams. This is not to mention what those two teams up in Washington did to their opponents yesterday. Arizona State was the only other Pac 12 team that lost yesterday, and Cal is not playing them.
Until they shore up the OL to at least a passable unit, this team can lose to anyone on the schedule. Plummer’s inaccurate, that’s a problem…but the lack of time is troubling.
Next week is HUGE. You gotta
I don't see any clearly inferior teams to Cal other than Colorado. Otoh UNLV won big yesterday scoring 58 points.
Well our defense isn't the problem. We can stop potent offenses.
Especially if they can dial back the targeting calls that lead to ejections and 1st downs.
UNLV O looked like it had some potential.
If they beat ND, that will sear my ass and I will have to use my standup desk to post next week.
Don;t forget how good Oregon State looks this year. Yeah, ouch.
Year 6 under Wilcox, and another “moral victory.” Everyone knows the offside penalty was horseshit and a total backbreaker, but we had plenty of chances against what is a bad ND team. How the hell is our o-line the worst position group year after year after year? You’d think at cal the one group we could recruit are the big dudes who go to class. But of course under the Wilcox regime of mediocrity, everyone will keep their jobs, and we’ll just keep on with the same shit. Meanwhile, Washington is in year one with a new coach, up 14 on Michigan state, in front of a full stadium. Insert ‘must be fuckin nice’ gif here.
Yeah but Wilcox is the opposite of Dykes and wants to be at Cal!
We are seriously about to keep a mediocre coach at Cal because he turned down Oregon. Wilcox is a smart guy. He knows he can be 6-6 and say all the right things and he will never be fired.
I honestly do not think any coach we could reasonably expect to hire could do better at Cal than Wilcox is doing right now. There isn’t the support and commitment from administration and Athletic Department. Add in the conference uncertainty and we see how the recruiting just isn’t good enough to be in the top-25.
I agree with this, especially now when UCLA/USC bolting will probably permanently screw us
To show my biases, I actually think Wilcox is a really good coach in terms of football, but he has missed on some assistant hires. That’s crucial for CFB success. I don’t know if he’ll recover from it.
I’m not even sure Musgrave is that bad. Our guys have limited ability to execute, particularly the QB, so that limits what he can call. I think the biggest thing that would help JW succeed would just be getting lucky with a QB prospect.
Even if Cal somehow establishes an excellent developmental program (akin to Wisconsin, Iowa, etc...) you still need the players to get over the top. I see it with Wisconsin. The players are outstanding in regard to maximizing their potential, but when going up against teams like tOSU the talent gap is glaring. You need the horses to win.
Yep, 100%.
I would welcome him with open arms and link a Wikipedia page to your first post on CGB about hiring him as our HC.
His wikipedia page will include a paragraph about Bob R.
No one is and never was against hiring Troy Taylor. Everyone was against you harassing us with the same comments a million times.
We were on the road, and that 'bad' team held Ohio State to 21 points in Columbus.
They just lost at home to a Marshall team that lost to Bowling Green today. Yes, by notre dame standards, this is a bad ND team. At what point do we expect more from Wilcox and co?
The “Bowling Green > Marshall > Notre Dame” > Cal lists are going to be fun this season. Sigh.
ND has really good recruits across the board. They will probably e d up winning 8ish games. I don’t think they are that bad at all, just were kind of hungover from Ohio St when they played Marshall in the way 18-22 year olds often are.
Our biggest failure this weekend was not jumping out further ahead in the first half when their new QB still had no feel for the game yet. And that is no small credit to the ND D line which stuffed Ott and kept constant pressure on Plummer
Make that up 21
It’s not the job of fans to assess whether or not we could hire a better o-line coach. That’s the job of the guy making $4.75 mil a year. We are in year 6 of mediocre to bad play from the group that really should be one of the easier ones to recruit to cal. I’m so sick of the mentality of our fan base being this bullshit, defeatist “well could we really do any better?” You have to at least try. Wilcox negotiated raises for himself and his staff after he turned down oregon. Time to start expecting more from that group.
Thanks Rick.
Bill Musgrave has to go. The complete lack of adjustments in play calling in light of a struggling offensive line is inexcusable. Continuing to call long developing pass plays on deep drop backs in the face of heavy pressure? What are we even doing here Musgrave...
Jimmy, with all due respect, you really have no idea what you are saying.
Stop trying to gaslight him. We all have eyes and can see, plus look back at the history of Musgrave at all his previous stops at OC and his time at Cal. We are an average to below average offense with Musgrave. Look at where this offense currently ranks in statistical categories.
Gimme a break, Rugbear. I was in the stands, watching Musgrave make zero adjustments. Everyone saw it.
You’re continuously defending Musgrave, blaming it all entirely on a porous O-line and laying zero blame on the OC…instead it’s all on McClure or the players.
Musgrave is awful - you’re losing legitimacy.
He continuously defends Musgrave and Wilcox. It’s year 6, it’s time for Wilcox to have a winning Pac12 record and a competent OL and offense or it is time to move on. How much more time do we give him?
We are the crew that noted that Wilcox is the one note wonder. He is the upside down, the inverse Dykes. All defense and no offense. We are just using our eyes and stats to show that Wilcox can’t produce a complete team.
If Wilcox wants to play ball control offense and defense, why doesn’t he recruit a kicker who can make a 45 yard FG. Use a scholarship for a great kicker because it is apparent he isn’t using it to recruit a a great QB or OT. It’s year 6, excuses are running thin for why he can’t field a competent offense coordinator, let alone a competent offense.
No, the one note wonder is Wilcox at this point. All defense, no offense.
alpha, I’m not even calling for Wilcox to be fired….he’s not going anywhere.
But he’s whiffed on two OC hires, despite what Rugbear says about Musgrave…there should have serious doubts about his scheme fit with today’s HS players.
Have you watched the film? What adjustments would you have made? I'll watch the film this week. Any adjustments that needed to be made were on the O-line. That's not on Musgrave. Really, do you understand how it all works on the field? I'm happy to lose my legitimacy if you explain to me what adjustments Musgrave could have made that would have made Plummer throw better passes and our o-line block better.
Rug, could you explain why you think Jimmy is so off base here?
I’d love to hear it. Again, I respect Rugbear & his opinions - I do know something about football though, and it sure seems that Musgrave could be helping out his O-line more.
Condescendingly saying I don’t know what I’m talking about, and then claiming that when an O-line is struggling there is nothing you can do, is suspect tho.
How can Musgrave help his o-line more. Tell me what he can do for them?
Why did he continue to call slow developing plays when the OL was a sieve?
Because he will say it is on Angus and the OL, which is true but Musgrave kept calling plays like the OL could actually block for more than 5 seconds.
The real failure is Wikcox. This is his second OL coach and OC. None of them worked.
Maybe we just don't have the talent to compete with Notre Dame yet?
I need to watch film before I can make educated comments. That goes for anyone on this thread. Knee jerk reactions after watching the game are fan responses and as such usually way off base. Second. like I said before, I'd like Jimmy to tell me what kind of adjustments that Musgrave could have made that would have resulted in Plummer throwing the ball earlier, throwing the ball more accurately and our o-line executing better.
That’s fair on the film review comment.
However, 3 years into the Musgrave experiment, and 6 years into the Wilcox regime, and we’re still watching a sputtering, inefficient offense with poor OL play…that is hardly a knee jerk reaction.
With ND selling out to stop the run, how about some more play action…more quick hitters, using the short passing game…where were designed roll-outs to move the pocket, even a little bit, get Terry the ball in the flat. Plummer’s inaccuracy was definitely an issue, as he missed more throws than he hit…my frustration came from watching them continuously call slow developing pass plays in the face of heavy pressure, and the absence of any sign of adjustments by the offense.
But I look forward to seeing your reaction after watching the film.
Two things can be true here.
Musgrave can adjust better to what is happening on the field. Read Gerald Alexanders live tweets of the game to note our sets and how we can leverage TE's more against a dominant rush rather than 4/5 wide.
The offense without an effective o line against an elite D line, isnt an accurate representation of what our offensive coordinator is capable of. Plummer missed on some well scripted plays that don't help the cause.
Absolutely on Plummer…his inaccuracy is a concern.
That's a fair statement except that before Covid hit we were on an upward trajectory. Covid was a two year debacle for us, and the first year I don't count against either Wilcox or Musgrave. Hell, I don't attribute the AZ loss last year to them (that turned out the be the main reason Mettauer left the program). Let's see how the season unfolds. Notre Dame is a good team loaded with talent and we went into their house and gave them a game. Even the announcers came around to CAL during the game. Let's see where the season ends up.
And he is making a cool $1 million per year.
Our OL is just brutal. Even in plays where their DL was blocked, the pocket just collapses on Plummer in under 3 sec most of the time.
I counted at least 5 times where simple T E stunts or just plain missed assignments let a free rusher in. OL isn't just overmatched but not properly coached and prepped.
For all the talk about how talented our WRs are, we do a piss poor job of actually getting them the ball. Having 21 incompletions is inexcusable. Even ND switched to simple screen passes and PA passes to the flat to adjust to their qb being totally ineffective. What does Musgrave do? Just drop Plummer back, run double moves with our WRs while our OL collapses.
Lastly Musgrave needs to go. Forget whether if you think his play calling is good or not, his system is a relic of outdated 90s west coast offense. Offense are all about spacing, putting defenders in conflict, and letting qbs just make 1 or 2 simple reads. We do none of that. Musgrave is almost as bad as the guy calling for the T formation here.
Bears made a game of it. Just not enough offensive firepower in the end.
Happy to see Shane Vereen and Jason Kidd in Cal gear at halftime.
The offside call on the missed FG was tough. But Plummer is not accurate enough on passes 5+ yds downfield.
That offsides penalty was about as real as Manti Te'o's girfr-- no, I wont do it. Nevermind.
He was on tv. Is he a coach?
I think he was just part of the event, like how Justin Tuck, Shane Vereen and Jason Kidd were there for the broadcast. (and I think Lou Holtz? was supposed to be there, but didnt see him on tv).
I'll give NBC credit for that.
Back to Manti -- I recently saw the "Untold" netflix documentary about that whole incident and I really felt bad for him. Yet still couldnt resist the joke!
Thanks. I'm traveling and the game started at 3:30am so I vaguely saw the actual plays and not much else
That call was 100% the difference in the game.
Edit: and in case anyone has not seen it. Absolutely no one was offsides. Free td for Notre Dame in a 7 point game.
https://twitter.com/snelson2127/status/1571223290743603205?s=46&t=mdHtSpzXXCRnydcDAo43uA
100% agree.
The offsides call was bullshit.
It was a WTF moment and a momentum killer.
VERY suspicious!
I know it was early in the game, but I gotta' wonder why neither the booth nor Wilcox called for a review.
The best part of that twitter link is the kid playing soccer further down the page! "Focus on what you good at"
The evidence was the $10k in the envelope he received from the Bishop on the way out...
Not sure what to say aside from the fact that we just don't have the horses and coaching on the O Line. It was absolutely brutal to watch the poor technique and 1-on-1 losses. Lots of off-balance pass pro, overcommitting to the DL's first move, lack of quickness. That's what separates the big boy teams from the rest--line play.
is it really hard to recruit good OL? The OL has sucked for the last 10 years
In a surprise twist, "green out" meant money for the refs, not clothing
Frustrating end, but Cal fans overall seemed to have a fantastic time at the game. We had a great presence, tons of loud cheering, lots of good vibes and what an amazing atmosphere for college football. The only pre-game, negative shit-talking interaction with drunk ND fans was quickly de-escalated with a quick “hey hey hey, fuck $C, right?” All four guys in the group looked at each other and immediately agreed “that’s right, fuck $C” and high fives were had by all.
Agree on the atmosphere. Went with my son and couldn’t be happier with the Cal presence and the interaction with ND fans. Not sure what would have happened if they lost.
0-3 is a hard bagel to swallow
Plummer looked way more confident running (probably out of necessity). However his overthrows on short routes are frustrating. Unfortunately, our o-line is a weakness we haven't yet figured out how to either fix or scheme around (or if that's even possible at this stage) and I'm sure that's not helping.
Was glad I went to this game even though we lost. ND fans were great hosts and I was certainly entertained throughout. We were 2nd to last row and actually had decent sightlines. The American flag at half mast did block some of the action but it wouldn't have interfered if at its regular height so it's not like they tried to obstruct the visitors.
Wilcox and his offensive staff haven’t recruited and developed one HS QB recruit in 6 years.