Nice write up Jesse, but I would add one thing. Even with stats going our way, you can't win a football game turning the ball over 4 times, especially when you give the opponent a short field.
Maybe I’m a sunshine pumper but I think this team is far better than last year.
Mistakes were made. Missed tackles, alignment issues on defense, and the disaster that were the two 4th quarter drives…. But expect mistakes in a first game with a new HC, new DC, and new OC. UCLA is also a good team and we were right there until the bad snap from our backup center. The scoreboard was ugly but Cal damn near pulled this out. Dont be surprised if we go into the big game at 8-2.
My concern is we had a fair number of returnees on the O & D lines, and neither were functional P4 units. And other than a few glimpses, both units were pretty much manhandled tonight.
Hopefully UCLA is in fact good, and we should play better with more reps, but I didn’t see a markedly better Cal team tonight.
That said, with Cal guys Lyons/RR/Tosh in the lead, I am much more optimistic that this ship is on the way to being righted.
I was at Memorial for the game and our OL and DL were not very good and just consistently getting pushed around. Our WRs looked slow, with little separation.
That said, I’m optimistic. I’d rather have a slow start and build towards a strong middle season and even stronger finish.
Likely it wouldve been a closer loss under JW, as he coached to "not lose" and the secondary + linebackers would've been more sound.
I don't understand how this 4-2-5 defense is supposed to stop outside runs, unless the "star" players are really honed in and developed in that position, not just converted safeties or nickels.
I still owe you on our bet and I haven’t forgotten. Just been a crazy last 8 months with work, family, and life. I’m also trying to step back a bit from the internet and sports and just focus on other things. But like Al Pacino in Godfather Part 3: “just when I thought I was out, Cal pulls me right back in”
Isn’t there usually some sort of meetup for this group? With my last kid off to college I have the freedom to attend games in-person and would love to see the die hards.
While I am trusting the process, I cannot help but agree with you, JImmy, that there was some glaring issues on both sides of the line. And, even our defensive secondary was getting burned. Both offense and defense looked wobbly, here and there, with JKS's making some broken plays work. The Bruin pass rush was all over him several times. Blitzes were not picked up, receivers were not getting open nearly as often as the Bruins, our run game got stopped up, our pass game was usually on broken plays, JKS looked "off" his game, and, then, the Fourth Quarter collapse and domination of us. It was hard to fathom that we could measure so moderately against the Bruins, perhaps because our expectations were set so high, that's not counting the positives.
My positive take aways:
1. We came back from an 11 point deficit! How many times have we seen an early surrender because of failing behind, especially by as much as 11 points?
2. Tosh warned that this is a process. Let's be clear, like it or not, we're in the middle of a rebuild and look at our recruiting successes. Trust in the process with the commitments we have in the pipeline. Our ceiling is higher.
3. When they were on, they were as advertised. The receivers showed us the skills we hoped for. Not gonna' lie, though, I miss Jacob Dejesus, who seemed to use his smaller size as a plus (BTW- recently got cut from the Chiefs as an UDFA).
4. Despite lots of smashmouth running into walls, our RBs made no fumbles. The first INT was a tipped ball (but there were too many close calls for my comfort). But, perhaps set up a domino effect.
5. The students showed up! And they were awesome! The fan experience is MUCH improved. Even those this old Boomer had to put in ear plugs when the DJ came on.
Some notes:
a. Not enough bathrooms when there's a capacity crowd.
b. Food, liked the hot link, the cheeseburger was interesting.
c. No ADA shuttles for the Memorial Glade until 1.5 hours before game time. "Suck
it you cripples". Which meant I had to leave Avi and the W4C Tailgate early
(after we were evicted to another tent without enough chairs- I have to sit when
I can following a back surgery).
d. No ADA shuttles until after the game, once the game has begun. SO, I ended up
in a rideshare with a scammer who wanted $45 flat to go from Boalt Hall to the
Genetics Garage, while the same ride with Lyft was just $10.
6. UCLA showed up, both the fans and team, and this game set a bar to meet for both our team and fans. It's good to have this to learn from. We failed the first test, but, now, there's all those mistakes to correct. We know our needs better. Steel sharpens steel. I think UCLA better than we want to admit.
We did some things well and have room for improvement, but the ceiling doesn't seem that high this year. The OL looks shaky and we don't seem to have the horses to stop the run. The run defense was nonexistent today, UCLA had 9 yards per carry which should never happen.
@Newellbany and I were chatting this week and figured the one thing we really wanted to see in Tosh’s first season was a winning ACC record….that would be for the first time in forever and a genuinely realistic bar at 5-4. And that goal is unchanged, but they have to improve. The schedule is manageable - UCLA was one of their tougher games and came immediately.
But the trenches continue to be a problem, which is concerning.
JKS often had no time to throw and our WRs looked slow and seemed to struggle for separation. Tackling was terrible. Hopefully we improve quickly and I’m still optimistic on this season but the OL and DL need to get better very quickly
After a bunch of life and work since the last time I saw my golden bears play, I was just happy to watch them on the field again. Things rarely magically change overnight. No surprise how JKS played - good and bad. Obviously work to be done on both sides and hopefully we see progress but at least it was an entertaining diversion for a few hours.
I'm thankful I witnessed Cal's last run at greatness back with Tedford but so much has changed with the sport and world. I've traded in my expectations with Cal for more dependable things. Life is too short to be bummed about things out of your control. Oh and I can lead my College Football 27 Cal team to glory, that's on me :)
This team was not ready for prime time. Way too many mistakes as pointed out repeatedly in these comments. Makes the “Indiana Miracle” of last year look all the more impressive. That said, like Cal, UCLA faced a similar problem with resurrecting its football program from mediocrity and if last night was any indication, did one hell of a job in doing so. UCLA had to hire a new coaching staff and build out a portal infused team in the same amount of time that Cal had and produced what looked last night like a pretty good team. Cal clearly was not ready.
The biggest fear all along was thst the OL would not be able to protect JKS, and for much of the game, it couldn’t. The only truly bright spot was a much better running game anchored by Mohamed who with 120 rushing yards did yeoman service in keeping Cal in the game longer than it otherwise would have been. But we lost Vargas early on and that coujd be a RB problem going forward in what was supposed to be a backfield powerhouse.
I’m willing to hang in there as I have for the last 60+ years, but this isn’t going to be a 12-0 season. Tosh and his coaching staff have a lot of work to do in getting this team into ACC shape. Right now they can play with the weaker conference teams but without substantial improvement there will likely be worse games than this one when they come up against contenders. We are just lucky that Miami isn’t on the schedule this year. Let’s see what this team looks like in another month and let’s hope that the injury to JKS’s leg is not serious. Keep going bears — you’re all we’ve got!
I agree we weren't ready, but UCLA effectively imported Chesney's entire James Madison program, in the same way Indiana did with Curt Cignetti. (What is in the water over there at James Madison??)
So, very different situation than Tosh and his OC+DC hires.
Its a shame but we will never have a quality OL while JKS is here, and unfortunately we need to already start thinking beyond JKS as far as the long term vision of the program, and how we are positioned in 2030/31.
-Was Wilcox calling the plays? Way too many runs up the middle. I was struggling to figure out why, then as the game progressed, it was apparent:
-Our offense just isn’t in sync yet. Pro style offenses take time to even become somewhat competent. The throws were too late allowing the UCLA D time to either block or intercept the pass.
-The O line just didn’t give the min protection for JKS to get set and make the throws that we know he can make.
-Our WRs weren’t getting consistent separation and the routes seemed confused
That said, I’m ok (kind of) for it to take time to gel. We have 3 great opportunities with ok teams to get better. They’re almost must wins for a successful season (8+ wins). I’d be more than happy going 3-1 for the first four games.
-Shocked at so many missed tackles on D. There is no excuse Tosh, former D coordinator for Oregon. Also, good things happened when we got aggressive on D.
-Some bad Coaching decisions, the worst being going for it on 4 and 3 at midfield. We had momentum and the D was playing better. We could have pinned them down and forced a mistake. Instead we botched the down and they turned the field on us, forcing us into a mistake.
-The crowd was pumped but for some reason, it seemed that the UCLA players were more hyped throughout the game than ours.
So, the UCLA Coach who brought all his good players, coaches and system that made the playoffs last year was better than our new coaches, system and significant amount of new players. I think that trumps any home field advantage.
"-Some bad Coaching decisions, the worst being going for it on 4 and 3 at midfield. We had momentum and the D was playing better. We could have pinned them down and forced a mistake. Instead we botched the down and they turned the field on us, forcing us into a mistake."
Disagree. Going for it was the right decision. It's too long for a field goal and too short for a punt. You only need three yards to convert. You should go for that every day and twice on Sunday. The problem was the botched snap. That needs to be corrected, but I don't want the coach making decisions because he believes we might screw up the play. That way lies Wilcox.
" I’d be more than happy going 3-1 for the first four games."
Yep. looking more to see culture move in the right direction and with that the wins will come.
"The crowd was pumped but for some reason, it seemed that the UCLA players were more hyped throughout the game than ours."
Dunno'. I think Tosh's culture shift is to more of disciplined, zen-like state of mind. Playing on high emotions is a crap shoot and can subject your team to inconsistent play and boom and bust cycles. Tuning out the periphery and focusing on the job will ultimately mean each player can be counted on to give a certain level of performance, rather like a little leaguer hyped up on too many Cokes. BTW- Bruins, Tommy Trojan called and wants his sideline jump and towel wave back. Also BTW- Tommy Trojan, the Steelers called and want their towel wave back. Wow, I guess originality is not really a thing in Southern California.
Agreed. Was disappointed in Purcell that series. Felt he was flat outplayed, especially on the target in the EZ.
Also, Strong has an NFL body, but felt there were a couple balls a physical WR who figures to play next year on Sundays needs to come down with, including the INT. To cave down the stretch in 4Q like that before a sold-out home crowd was…concerning.
While we can point to Fourth Qtr, like a drama, we saw foreshadowings. The stymied drives; the Bruins advancing at will; the total yards difference. The collapse was in the tea leaves.
You reminded me, sitting on the North Endzone, I had a birdseye view as Mohammed chose a slot that was not clear, when the edge looked clear. Still he's very good and I am glad we have him.
So sad that Cal remains a world class University, but is a mediocre football team in a mediocre football conference. Our OL and DL Jimmies were not up to the FUCLA Joes. Until the line play improves on both sides of the ball, our beloved GBs will struggle, not roar. I hope JKS doesn't get hurt as he runs for his life in 2026. Hope dashed again - well at least the bubble burst early this year. I do hope the team acquits itself better against Clemson and UNLV. I'll still follow the team, but I've already got a huge sadness in my heart...
In his first year, Cal beat Baylor in its home opener 70-22. And we then went to Michigan State and beat them when they were ranked (which I attended). And this is coming off a 1-10 season, not a bowl qualifying season. So...completely different outcomes. The start of Tedford felt likely huge promise. This start...the opposite.
I knew the family that supplied the sound equipment for Cal/CMS, and in Tedford's first year (2002), he made them bring in extra sound equipment during weekday practices to simulate loud crowd noise. She said he was absolutely maniacal about getting everything right. He took a 1-10 team in 2001 to 7-5 in 2002. Assuming Tosh can do the same means a minimal 8-4 record this year. I don't see that yet, and I think there will be a lot of rock fight / tossup games we have to win. Just did not see much improvement in OL and DL last night to justify a better 2026 record... No hate!
Very shocking last night. I would never have thought it. So I don't know whether Tosh will get it right. This actually felt more like a gut punch that Dykes's first game against Northwestern.
Atmosphere and Memorial was great. Lots of positive energy.
Poor OL play really limited our offense, especially in the passing game. Running game was chugging along and grinding, should have stuck with it longer. As the OL seemed to be better at run blocking.
Felt like we could have stuck with it on the 3rd and 3 at midfield, especially when we were committed to going for it in 4th down.
I’m not sold on this WR group, they don’t seem to have much speed, from my seats at Memorial, I didn’t see them get much separation but it is hard to tell because the OL was so bad at pass protection that JKS had to get the ball out quickly.
Defense was a major let down for me tonight. DL got pushed around by the UCLA OL all game. Terrible tacking at all 3 levels and poor angles. No one in defense stood out in a positive way tonight.
Lot to fix but I’m optimistic. I’ll take a slow start to the season if we can continue to improve and have a strong middle and end of the season.
A bunch of things went wrong but this team seemed mentally tough. They need to tackle better and give JKS better protection, but we as fans also need to not give up on them. It is time for us to have the toughness we expect from our team.
I hear you, but when players are making hundreds of thousands and sometimes millions to play in an “amateur” league, expectations ensue.
They put $22 million into this team. If we don’t see an ROI on the investment made to the team, why should we support? They should put a good product on the field for the fana to support.
Feel bad for the boys, their ass was handed to them today. Sadly, in the usual ways: OL/DL. Our OL remains bad, simply said. There were a few moments of success but when it mattered we caved. Until further notice this season is: as JKS goes, so goes Cal. Tonight he had 2 ints, which is almost a third of last year's total.
Fucla had our number on soooo many plays. To see more defensive players at the point of attack, as the play developed, than offensive players would lead one to believe in conspiracy theories. Way too many plays up the middle with our porous OL. Dropped passes from our highly touted WRs...Tackling? Tackling? we don't need no stinking tackling? Although the targeting call was pure bs.
Goog observations Taco. I think they figured out that if they stack the line and stuff our run game and put pressure on JKS, that he would have a hard time completing passes. They were right and he still did a yeoman's job on the run. Right now I am not impressed with Somerville's play calling. His play calling was simple, predictable and easy to defend. We never had the UCLA defense guessing what was coming next. Unlike them with us. And we didn't even have some blitz beaters when they brought 6.
And, we apparently only blitzed twice. UCLA's QB had way too much time throw the ball and their pass patterns were much more effectively run. Hours were merely generic.
I unfortunately had to watch this one at home (live in OC and have a baby) but from what I saw, line pushing wasn’t the issue rather it was just bad execution.
A couple examples, the strip sack was a 6 man rush with 5 in protection. We slid protection right for a roll out. That blind side rusher is JKS’s responsibility and ball needs to be out fast. His first read was covered and rather than throwing it away, he double clutched.
The first sack, ucla ran a corner blitz through the c gap. Muhammad stayed in in protection but chipped on the edge since there was no immediate pressure. When the corner came he was out of position.
Negative run on the field goal drive. TE scrapped to the second level rather than filling for the pulling guard.
These are execution issues, in a first game I’ll take that over getting Jimmy’d and Joe’d. You can clean up execution.
First, really love that there is so much engagement here, seeing many new faces, and some welcome returnees after the off season (looking at you Rugger). I guess it's how I'm wired, or some sort of coping mechanism as a 50 year Cal fan, but as fucked up as the last 8 minutes of the game were, I have real hope. A momentum shift the other way and we win this game. I liked the post game interviews from Tosh and Jaron. I will watch with interest how well fUCLA does the rest of the year. We have a very good RB. Gotta find the things to build upon and hopefully learn from the mistakes. For now, Go Bears, FOREVER, literally.
Looked ugly at times and UCLA looked better on both lines, but Cal managed to play them to an even 24-24 score (and the stat sheet was pretty even at that point too) into the 4th quarter. The game then unraveled because of turnovers. That sucked, but not sure if that is going to be a regular thing or was just unfortunate for this one game. We shall see.
Nice write up Jesse, but I would add one thing. Even with stats going our way, you can't win a football game turning the ball over 4 times, especially when you give the opponent a short field.
That is pretty much the story of this game. It was good and competitive until we started coughing up the ball. Then it turned into a rout.
Maybe I’m a sunshine pumper but I think this team is far better than last year.
Mistakes were made. Missed tackles, alignment issues on defense, and the disaster that were the two 4th quarter drives…. But expect mistakes in a first game with a new HC, new DC, and new OC. UCLA is also a good team and we were right there until the bad snap from our backup center. The scoreboard was ugly but Cal damn near pulled this out. Dont be surprised if we go into the big game at 8-2.
My concern is we had a fair number of returnees on the O & D lines, and neither were functional P4 units. And other than a few glimpses, both units were pretty much manhandled tonight.
Hopefully UCLA is in fact good, and we should play better with more reps, but I didn’t see a markedly better Cal team tonight.
That said, with Cal guys Lyons/RR/Tosh in the lead, I am much more optimistic that this ship is on the way to being righted.
I was at Memorial for the game and our OL and DL were not very good and just consistently getting pushed around. Our WRs looked slow, with little separation.
That said, I’m optimistic. I’d rather have a slow start and build towards a strong middle season and even stronger finish.
Agreed.
Have much more confidence in things moving forward now.
Be a whole lot different if this effort was the kickoff of season 10 of JW.
Likely it wouldve been a closer loss under JW, as he coached to "not lose" and the secondary + linebackers would've been more sound.
I don't understand how this 4-2-5 defense is supposed to stop outside runs, unless the "star" players are really honed in and developed in that position, not just converted safeties or nickels.
I still owe you on our bet and I haven’t forgotten. Just been a crazy last 8 months with work, family, and life. I’m also trying to step back a bit from the internet and sports and just focus on other things. But like Al Pacino in Godfather Part 3: “just when I thought I was out, Cal pulls me right back in”
All good. No worries on the bet - look forward to meeting up eventually and putting faces with handles!
I am def in much better shape mentally after this game than if circumstances were different.
Isn’t there usually some sort of meetup for this group? With my last kid off to college I have the freedom to attend games in-person and would love to see the die hards.
While I am trusting the process, I cannot help but agree with you, JImmy, that there was some glaring issues on both sides of the line. And, even our defensive secondary was getting burned. Both offense and defense looked wobbly, here and there, with JKS's making some broken plays work. The Bruin pass rush was all over him several times. Blitzes were not picked up, receivers were not getting open nearly as often as the Bruins, our run game got stopped up, our pass game was usually on broken plays, JKS looked "off" his game, and, then, the Fourth Quarter collapse and domination of us. It was hard to fathom that we could measure so moderately against the Bruins, perhaps because our expectations were set so high, that's not counting the positives.
My positive take aways:
1. We came back from an 11 point deficit! How many times have we seen an early surrender because of failing behind, especially by as much as 11 points?
2. Tosh warned that this is a process. Let's be clear, like it or not, we're in the middle of a rebuild and look at our recruiting successes. Trust in the process with the commitments we have in the pipeline. Our ceiling is higher.
3. When they were on, they were as advertised. The receivers showed us the skills we hoped for. Not gonna' lie, though, I miss Jacob Dejesus, who seemed to use his smaller size as a plus (BTW- recently got cut from the Chiefs as an UDFA).
4. Despite lots of smashmouth running into walls, our RBs made no fumbles. The first INT was a tipped ball (but there were too many close calls for my comfort). But, perhaps set up a domino effect.
5. The students showed up! And they were awesome! The fan experience is MUCH improved. Even those this old Boomer had to put in ear plugs when the DJ came on.
Some notes:
a. Not enough bathrooms when there's a capacity crowd.
b. Food, liked the hot link, the cheeseburger was interesting.
c. No ADA shuttles for the Memorial Glade until 1.5 hours before game time. "Suck
it you cripples". Which meant I had to leave Avi and the W4C Tailgate early
(after we were evicted to another tent without enough chairs- I have to sit when
I can following a back surgery).
d. No ADA shuttles until after the game, once the game has begun. SO, I ended up
in a rideshare with a scammer who wanted $45 flat to go from Boalt Hall to the
Genetics Garage, while the same ride with Lyft was just $10.
6. UCLA showed up, both the fans and team, and this game set a bar to meet for both our team and fans. It's good to have this to learn from. We failed the first test, but, now, there's all those mistakes to correct. We know our needs better. Steel sharpens steel. I think UCLA better than we want to admit.
We did some things well and have room for improvement, but the ceiling doesn't seem that high this year. The OL looks shaky and we don't seem to have the horses to stop the run. The run defense was nonexistent today, UCLA had 9 yards per carry which should never happen.
Agreed.
@Newellbany and I were chatting this week and figured the one thing we really wanted to see in Tosh’s first season was a winning ACC record….that would be for the first time in forever and a genuinely realistic bar at 5-4. And that goal is unchanged, but they have to improve. The schedule is manageable - UCLA was one of their tougher games and came immediately.
But the trenches continue to be a problem, which is concerning.
UCLA has a new coach and new staff but their O had a lot of imagination with counters, reverses and RPO's. Ours didn't! We were just to plain generic.
Their new coach brought in a lot of his own players and staff, they had a lot more continuity coming into this season.
And his entire staff had coached together in their current roles.
Great point. A good share were in the CFP
Don't bet the rent money on 8-2
Ucla looked better than I had imagined. and Cal looked way way worse than I could have imagined. Absolute disaster on OL and tackling on D.
Mohammed, Strong, Hendricks and JKS looked as good as advertised but we need OL to help.
JKS often had no time to throw and our WRs looked slow and seemed to struggle for separation. Tackling was terrible. Hopefully we improve quickly and I’m still optimistic on this season but the OL and DL need to get better very quickly
The WRs consistently lost battles. I’m a little concerned about journeyman Hilliard’s impact
Ditto! Plus our corners and ILB's
After a bunch of life and work since the last time I saw my golden bears play, I was just happy to watch them on the field again. Things rarely magically change overnight. No surprise how JKS played - good and bad. Obviously work to be done on both sides and hopefully we see progress but at least it was an entertaining diversion for a few hours.
I'm thankful I witnessed Cal's last run at greatness back with Tedford but so much has changed with the sport and world. I've traded in my expectations with Cal for more dependable things. Life is too short to be bummed about things out of your control. Oh and I can lead my College Football 27 Cal team to glory, that's on me :)
You make a good point that I had completely forgotten. I am so happy to watch Cal Bears play for the first time in 8+ months.
This team was not ready for prime time. Way too many mistakes as pointed out repeatedly in these comments. Makes the “Indiana Miracle” of last year look all the more impressive. That said, like Cal, UCLA faced a similar problem with resurrecting its football program from mediocrity and if last night was any indication, did one hell of a job in doing so. UCLA had to hire a new coaching staff and build out a portal infused team in the same amount of time that Cal had and produced what looked last night like a pretty good team. Cal clearly was not ready.
The biggest fear all along was thst the OL would not be able to protect JKS, and for much of the game, it couldn’t. The only truly bright spot was a much better running game anchored by Mohamed who with 120 rushing yards did yeoman service in keeping Cal in the game longer than it otherwise would have been. But we lost Vargas early on and that coujd be a RB problem going forward in what was supposed to be a backfield powerhouse.
I’m willing to hang in there as I have for the last 60+ years, but this isn’t going to be a 12-0 season. Tosh and his coaching staff have a lot of work to do in getting this team into ACC shape. Right now they can play with the weaker conference teams but without substantial improvement there will likely be worse games than this one when they come up against contenders. We are just lucky that Miami isn’t on the schedule this year. Let’s see what this team looks like in another month and let’s hope that the injury to JKS’s leg is not serious. Keep going bears — you’re all we’ve got!
Hard truths.
But I think the real difference is JW would not really make effective changes given such hard truths. I honestly believe Tosh will.
I agree we weren't ready, but UCLA effectively imported Chesney's entire James Madison program, in the same way Indiana did with Curt Cignetti. (What is in the water over there at James Madison??)
So, very different situation than Tosh and his OC+DC hires.
Its a shame but we will never have a quality OL while JKS is here, and unfortunately we need to already start thinking beyond JKS as far as the long term vision of the program, and how we are positioned in 2030/31.
Crazy to say, but now the real work begins. I will be interested to see how the coaches respond.
On the bright side if we start losing now there’s no October downturn
Observations from the game:
-Was Wilcox calling the plays? Way too many runs up the middle. I was struggling to figure out why, then as the game progressed, it was apparent:
-Our offense just isn’t in sync yet. Pro style offenses take time to even become somewhat competent. The throws were too late allowing the UCLA D time to either block or intercept the pass.
-The O line just didn’t give the min protection for JKS to get set and make the throws that we know he can make.
-Our WRs weren’t getting consistent separation and the routes seemed confused
That said, I’m ok (kind of) for it to take time to gel. We have 3 great opportunities with ok teams to get better. They’re almost must wins for a successful season (8+ wins). I’d be more than happy going 3-1 for the first four games.
-Shocked at so many missed tackles on D. There is no excuse Tosh, former D coordinator for Oregon. Also, good things happened when we got aggressive on D.
-Some bad Coaching decisions, the worst being going for it on 4 and 3 at midfield. We had momentum and the D was playing better. We could have pinned them down and forced a mistake. Instead we botched the down and they turned the field on us, forcing us into a mistake.
-The crowd was pumped but for some reason, it seemed that the UCLA players were more hyped throughout the game than ours.
So, the UCLA Coach who brought all his good players, coaches and system that made the playoffs last year was better than our new coaches, system and significant amount of new players. I think that trumps any home field advantage.
Now be a goldfish Bears and get on with it!
Agreed on the UCLA players being loose and vibing with the music and energy. Cal was visibly tight on the sidelines
"-Some bad Coaching decisions, the worst being going for it on 4 and 3 at midfield. We had momentum and the D was playing better. We could have pinned them down and forced a mistake. Instead we botched the down and they turned the field on us, forcing us into a mistake."
Disagree. Going for it was the right decision. It's too long for a field goal and too short for a punt. You only need three yards to convert. You should go for that every day and twice on Sunday. The problem was the botched snap. That needs to be corrected, but I don't want the coach making decisions because he believes we might screw up the play. That way lies Wilcox.
" I’d be more than happy going 3-1 for the first four games."
Yep. looking more to see culture move in the right direction and with that the wins will come.
"The crowd was pumped but for some reason, it seemed that the UCLA players were more hyped throughout the game than ours."
Dunno'. I think Tosh's culture shift is to more of disciplined, zen-like state of mind. Playing on high emotions is a crap shoot and can subject your team to inconsistent play and boom and bust cycles. Tuning out the periphery and focusing on the job will ultimately mean each player can be counted on to give a certain level of performance, rather like a little leaguer hyped up on too many Cokes. BTW- Bruins, Tommy Trojan called and wants his sideline jump and towel wave back. Also BTW- Tommy Trojan, the Steelers called and want their towel wave back. Wow, I guess originality is not really a thing in Southern California.
Purcell had a terrible red zone drive that backed into a FG
Dropped passes
Missed tackles
Missed run fits
Inconsistent line play
Multiple secondary facemask penalties
All of the above are fixable. The team doesn’t seem 100% gelled yet. I expect better performances week to week.
Agreed. Was disappointed in Purcell that series. Felt he was flat outplayed, especially on the target in the EZ.
Also, Strong has an NFL body, but felt there were a couple balls a physical WR who figures to play next year on Sundays needs to come down with, including the INT. To cave down the stretch in 4Q like that before a sold-out home crowd was…concerning.
I dunno…lot to unpack tonight.
While we can point to Fourth Qtr, like a drama, we saw foreshadowings. The stymied drives; the Bruins advancing at will; the total yards difference. The collapse was in the tea leaves.
You reminded me, sitting on the North Endzone, I had a birdseye view as Mohammed chose a slot that was not clear, when the edge looked clear. Still he's very good and I am glad we have him.
So sad that Cal remains a world class University, but is a mediocre football team in a mediocre football conference. Our OL and DL Jimmies were not up to the FUCLA Joes. Until the line play improves on both sides of the ball, our beloved GBs will struggle, not roar. I hope JKS doesn't get hurt as he runs for his life in 2026. Hope dashed again - well at least the bubble burst early this year. I do hope the team acquits itself better against Clemson and UNLV. I'll still follow the team, but I've already got a huge sadness in my heart...
But the point is we're trying to change that image and make a new, better brand for ourselves. Yep, we're starting over in order to do that.
Please fasten your seatbelt.
I get it, but how many times will we have left to do that? At times, the game last night looked like a Sonny Yikes (bad D, no tackling).
Not many, but what was Tedford's record his first few years? I’ll admit, at first I thought it was gonna’ be a Dykesian shoot-out.
In his first year, Cal beat Baylor in its home opener 70-22. And we then went to Michigan State and beat them when they were ranked (which I attended). And this is coming off a 1-10 season, not a bowl qualifying season. So...completely different outcomes. The start of Tedford felt likely huge promise. This start...the opposite.
You don't think he'll get it right?
I knew the family that supplied the sound equipment for Cal/CMS, and in Tedford's first year (2002), he made them bring in extra sound equipment during weekday practices to simulate loud crowd noise. She said he was absolutely maniacal about getting everything right. He took a 1-10 team in 2001 to 7-5 in 2002. Assuming Tosh can do the same means a minimal 8-4 record this year. I don't see that yet, and I think there will be a lot of rock fight / tossup games we have to win. Just did not see much improvement in OL and DL last night to justify a better 2026 record... No hate!
Very shocking last night. I would never have thought it. So I don't know whether Tosh will get it right. This actually felt more like a gut punch that Dykes's first game against Northwestern.
Atmosphere and Memorial was great. Lots of positive energy.
Poor OL play really limited our offense, especially in the passing game. Running game was chugging along and grinding, should have stuck with it longer. As the OL seemed to be better at run blocking.
Felt like we could have stuck with it on the 3rd and 3 at midfield, especially when we were committed to going for it in 4th down.
I’m not sold on this WR group, they don’t seem to have much speed, from my seats at Memorial, I didn’t see them get much separation but it is hard to tell because the OL was so bad at pass protection that JKS had to get the ball out quickly.
Defense was a major let down for me tonight. DL got pushed around by the UCLA OL all game. Terrible tacking at all 3 levels and poor angles. No one in defense stood out in a positive way tonight.
Lot to fix but I’m optimistic. I’ll take a slow start to the season if we can continue to improve and have a strong middle and end of the season.
Can’t blame this loss on poor reffing, either. Refs seemed pretty even-handed with the penalty calls.
A bunch of things went wrong but this team seemed mentally tough. They need to tackle better and give JKS better protection, but we as fans also need to not give up on them. It is time for us to have the toughness we expect from our team.
I hear you, but when players are making hundreds of thousands and sometimes millions to play in an “amateur” league, expectations ensue.
They put $22 million into this team. If we don’t see an ROI on the investment made to the team, why should we support? They should put a good product on the field for the fana to support.
It’s been one game. We need to see if the coaches and team can adjust before we give up.
Feel bad for the boys, their ass was handed to them today. Sadly, in the usual ways: OL/DL. Our OL remains bad, simply said. There were a few moments of success but when it mattered we caved. Until further notice this season is: as JKS goes, so goes Cal. Tonight he had 2 ints, which is almost a third of last year's total.
Fucla had our number on soooo many plays. To see more defensive players at the point of attack, as the play developed, than offensive players would lead one to believe in conspiracy theories. Way too many plays up the middle with our porous OL. Dropped passes from our highly touted WRs...Tackling? Tackling? we don't need no stinking tackling? Although the targeting call was pure bs.
So much work to do, so lil time.
Goog observations Taco. I think they figured out that if they stack the line and stuff our run game and put pressure on JKS, that he would have a hard time completing passes. They were right and he still did a yeoman's job on the run. Right now I am not impressed with Somerville's play calling. His play calling was simple, predictable and easy to defend. We never had the UCLA defense guessing what was coming next. Unlike them with us. And we didn't even have some blitz beaters when they brought 6.
And, we apparently only blitzed twice. UCLA's QB had way too much time throw the ball and their pass patterns were much more effectively run. Hours were merely generic.
Oi Rugbear, hope all is well with you.
I unfortunately had to watch this one at home (live in OC and have a baby) but from what I saw, line pushing wasn’t the issue rather it was just bad execution.
A couple examples, the strip sack was a 6 man rush with 5 in protection. We slid protection right for a roll out. That blind side rusher is JKS’s responsibility and ball needs to be out fast. His first read was covered and rather than throwing it away, he double clutched.
The first sack, ucla ran a corner blitz through the c gap. Muhammad stayed in in protection but chipped on the edge since there was no immediate pressure. When the corner came he was out of position.
Negative run on the field goal drive. TE scrapped to the second level rather than filling for the pulling guard.
These are execution issues, in a first game I’ll take that over getting Jimmy’d and Joe’d. You can clean up execution.
First, really love that there is so much engagement here, seeing many new faces, and some welcome returnees after the off season (looking at you Rugger). I guess it's how I'm wired, or some sort of coping mechanism as a 50 year Cal fan, but as fucked up as the last 8 minutes of the game were, I have real hope. A momentum shift the other way and we win this game. I liked the post game interviews from Tosh and Jaron. I will watch with interest how well fUCLA does the rest of the year. We have a very good RB. Gotta find the things to build upon and hopefully learn from the mistakes. For now, Go Bears, FOREVER, literally.
Needed this, thank you!
Looked ugly at times and UCLA looked better on both lines, but Cal managed to play them to an even 24-24 score (and the stat sheet was pretty even at that point too) into the 4th quarter. The game then unraveled because of turnovers. That sucked, but not sure if that is going to be a regular thing or was just unfortunate for this one game. We shall see.