I’ve been saying Cal is a sleeper team! Might even be ranked at some point this season! BUT jobs not finished, still have a lot of football left to play, and I’m just excited where this team will go this year and in the ACC! SHOUTOUT TO OUR DEFENCE THAT SHOWED UP AND PLAYED. #GOBEARS #NANDO4PRESIDENT
Defense showed up and destroyed an SEC blue blood. If refs had not called PI to give Auburn ANOTHER set of downs at the One, the (eventual) FIVE interceptions would have been beyond embarrassing for Auburn. Kudos to Mr. Sirmon for getting the pieces in place to create havoc for the Tigers.
nice writeup. Interesting description in the ESPN round the horn recap today: they are calling this an "embarrassing" loss to Auburn. "Frustrated", "Disappointed"? Sure. But embarrassing? WTF. Auburn barely crept out of Berkeley with a win last year. And for all the talk about how Auburn upgraded in the portal offseason.....uh, what about Cal? They expected to win, and the 12 point line reflected that. Really though - embarrassing?
The other thing I saw was a reference to the game officially being a "white out" for Auburn. I knew they wanted to play home whites, and certainly at least some shots of the student section showed a bunch of white outfits (but frankly it looked like they all came from some garden tea party before the game). So in essence, the white out worked - just not how intended.
A veteran of dozens of Cal trips, now grounded by age, felt the joy of this victory along with Cal fans who never give up. Your group photo is indeed epic! Go Bears!
Some hiccups, some mistakes here and there. In the end Cal came to play, and played 60 minutes of inspired football that made up for any shortcomings. It was glorious.
This win is in my top ten of all Cal wins I've seen in my 87 years of existing on this planet. Of course number one is the play which I witnessed in person. This one was so gratifying because it was in front of 83,000 screaming fans who, and many so called experts, thought Cal was a pushover and not a good team. Hope we can have so many more.
We need to establish a commitment to the highest level and play to that every week. That''s what happens, in the past, we go into an ergonomic "save mode" and play only to the level of the competition. Hopefully the new chancellor can rally support campus wide.
For me, a diehard Cal fan for most of my 78 years, it was a game of courage and resilience, helping us rise above all the heartbreak and frustration. It is not always easy to be a Cal football fan, but rewards like yesterday’s game bring pure joy! Go Bears!
Glad I'm not the only one who flashed back to Rodgers at USC in the first half. Fernando was "on" and as close to perfection as a QB can get. I think he feeds off the big crowd and adversity. So happy for our new found stars on O, D, and ST!
Auri: DON'T EVER bring back those god-awful white helmets (aka, "surrender whites"). As far as I can recall, every time they wore those, disaster followed. The current helmet color rotation looks awesome!
There's been this unnecessary fascination with the "Stormtrooper" look white helmets among the fan base for a while now. Younger Blues don't know that Cal has more options with the proper colors than simply defaulting to the white helmet because it's what everyone else is doing. Yesterday's lids took me back to my undergraduate days before Kapp arrived. Even with the slight difference in blue, it was nice to give some sort of nod to the era of Rich Campbell, Paul Jones, and Rich Dixon...
I love it. I hope they go full Helmet Project and do a game with the bear claws from the Kapp era, or the Block Cs from the Craig Morton years or even the numbers on them from earlier than that.
While I did not attend the game, I watched every minute. I must say that this article seems to fully encapsulate the feelings of every Cal fan who attended, watched on TV or heard on the radio. Very well done! Go Bears!
Yesterday was one of the happiest days as a Cal fan that I can remember. Haven’t been that happy since the Lightning game in Washington. Even my son was all a Twitter. Memories, friends, and it’s making me dream of more than just a winning season for the first time in a long time.
At first I was kind of in shock. My friends came over for a watch party and today one of them said I looked "catatonic" when that last interception sealed the game. But then I felt the same as you. I was singing Cal songs the rest of the night and into today.
So, the back “bumper” of Nando Mendoza’s helmet says “VICIS” (or maybe “VIC15”?), which is part of the quote attributed to Julius Caesar: Vini, vidi, vici —I came, I saw, I conquered. On purpose? I’d like to think so. And I’d like to think it reflects a change in attitude of the Cal Bears Football program.
I checked their website. They chose their name, Vicis, because it means “change.” Still fitting. And I hope thie new technology reduces concussions and other head trauma.
Oh, man. Too bad. It would have been so cool to have a QB who was also into Classics. Not impossible for a QB initially accepted at Yale who came to Cal.
Heartfelt and accurate article. As I hoped in a post earlier in the week, Auburn gave our team billboard material and we made them pay. The 21-14 final does not reflect Cal’s undisputed dominance, which they needed to overcome the SEC refs. But they barreled thru it all. Very impressive: the players and the coaches !
First of all, I'm sorry that, what for many of you, may be your only trip ever to Alabama, you had to be spent in Auburn. I promise we have cities with more buildings, plenty of tolerant people & fewer cows (even a couple where you won't find a single one). I was certainly a Cal fan Saturday & loved watching your Bears play their hearts out, showing people what a "team" looks like. Auburn fans are among those with the most unwarranted entitlement & backward thinking you'll ever come across. They talk some much trash but then make so many excuses when they lose. It's like they just can't give credit where credit is due because they're so hung up on thinking they're superior for some reason.
So, congrats, y'all! Every time I see a Cal Bear I'll smile & say thank you!
I had a great time in Auburn, and 99% of people we met were friendly and welcoming. Stayed at Lake Martin - absolutely beautiful and jumping in the lake at night was a perfect way to celebrate the victory.
If the we manage to stay undefeated until week six, we could see College Station in Berkeley for a showdown with Miami.
Week 3 Cal vs SDST
Week 4 Cal vs Florida State
Week 5 bye week
Week 6 Cal vs Miami
These are the marquee matchups for week 6 (or teams that could be undefeated heading into week 6). Would they pick any of these games over Cal vs Miami?
We would welcome College Game day...and you make a good points about the competition...lots to be seen, but I bet the execs are looking for an excuse to come to Cal/SF...best view shots in the biz...we can dream
The Oregon game isn't relevant since it's on Friday. I'd say UCLA @ Penn State and Michigan @ UW scan as potential competitors too, but Ole Miss at South Carolina is the presumable frontrunner assuming no losses (S. Car. vs LSU next week, for instance).
I decided not to include the Michigan game since they have a loss on their record. I hope that if we (and Miami) remain undefeated until Week 6, it will give us the edge over them. As of now, the ESPN Matchup Predictor has us at 40.9% and Miami at 59.1%, which suggests that, at least for now, Miami is projected to be more competitive than the UCLA game. UCLA is only given an 8.2% chance of beating Penn State. However, if UCLA can get through #16 LSU and #9 Oregon, I think they would get the nod over us versus Miami.
I’ve been saying Cal is a sleeper team! Might even be ranked at some point this season! BUT jobs not finished, still have a lot of football left to play, and I’m just excited where this team will go this year and in the ACC! SHOUTOUT TO OUR DEFENCE THAT SHOWED UP AND PLAYED. #GOBEARS #NANDO4PRESIDENT
Defense showed up and destroyed an SEC blue blood. If refs had not called PI to give Auburn ANOTHER set of downs at the One, the (eventual) FIVE interceptions would have been beyond embarrassing for Auburn. Kudos to Mr. Sirmon for getting the pieces in place to create havoc for the Tigers.
nice writeup. Interesting description in the ESPN round the horn recap today: they are calling this an "embarrassing" loss to Auburn. "Frustrated", "Disappointed"? Sure. But embarrassing? WTF. Auburn barely crept out of Berkeley with a win last year. And for all the talk about how Auburn upgraded in the portal offseason.....uh, what about Cal? They expected to win, and the 12 point line reflected that. Really though - embarrassing?
The other thing I saw was a reference to the game officially being a "white out" for Auburn. I knew they wanted to play home whites, and certainly at least some shots of the student section showed a bunch of white outfits (but frankly it looked like they all came from some garden tea party before the game). So in essence, the white out worked - just not how intended.
Great “they still don’t respect us!” Bulletin board material!
A veteran of dozens of Cal trips, now grounded by age, felt the joy of this victory along with Cal fans who never give up. Your group photo is indeed epic! Go Bears!
Some hiccups, some mistakes here and there. In the end Cal came to play, and played 60 minutes of inspired football that made up for any shortcomings. It was glorious.
This win is in my top ten of all Cal wins I've seen in my 87 years of existing on this planet. Of course number one is the play which I witnessed in person. This one was so gratifying because it was in front of 83,000 screaming fans who, and many so called experts, thought Cal was a pushover and not a good team. Hope we can have so many more.
We need to establish a commitment to the highest level and play to that every week. That''s what happens, in the past, we go into an ergonomic "save mode" and play only to the level of the competition. Hopefully the new chancellor can rally support campus wide.
For me, a diehard Cal fan for most of my 78 years, it was a game of courage and resilience, helping us rise above all the heartbreak and frustration. It is not always easy to be a Cal football fan, but rewards like yesterday’s game bring pure joy! Go Bears!
Glad I'm not the only one who flashed back to Rodgers at USC in the first half. Fernando was "on" and as close to perfection as a QB can get. I think he feeds off the big crowd and adversity. So happy for our new found stars on O, D, and ST!
It's worth noting that taking the 2022 Big Game into account, Cal's 2-0 while wearing gold helmets with a script "Cal" on them in this century.
Enough talk of white helmets returning, the real alternative to our standard blue helmet is emerging...
I thought they looked great!
Auri: DON'T EVER bring back those god-awful white helmets (aka, "surrender whites"). As far as I can recall, every time they wore those, disaster followed. The current helmet color rotation looks awesome!
There's been this unnecessary fascination with the "Stormtrooper" look white helmets among the fan base for a while now. Younger Blues don't know that Cal has more options with the proper colors than simply defaulting to the white helmet because it's what everyone else is doing. Yesterday's lids took me back to my undergraduate days before Kapp arrived. Even with the slight difference in blue, it was nice to give some sort of nod to the era of Rich Campbell, Paul Jones, and Rich Dixon...
I love it. I hope they go full Helmet Project and do a game with the bear claws from the Kapp era, or the Block Cs from the Craig Morton years or even the numbers on them from earlier than that.
Superstition says to keep using the yellow helmets. They looked in them too!!
Gold. Our colors are blue and GOLD.
I stand corrected. Yes, gold helmets but they look more yellow.
We got some votes in AP and Coaches poll
While I did not attend the game, I watched every minute. I must say that this article seems to fully encapsulate the feelings of every Cal fan who attended, watched on TV or heard on the radio. Very well done! Go Bears!
Same for me.
Well said. It was a magical day for the BEARS and for their FANS all over the country, but so sweet for those who witnessed it at Auburn. GO BEARS!💙💛
Yesterday was one of the happiest days as a Cal fan that I can remember. Haven’t been that happy since the Lightning game in Washington. Even my son was all a Twitter. Memories, friends, and it’s making me dream of more than just a winning season for the first time in a long time.
At first I was kind of in shock. My friends came over for a watch party and today one of them said I looked "catatonic" when that last interception sealed the game. But then I felt the same as you. I was singing Cal songs the rest of the night and into today.
I did not dare break the spell.
And my voice was gone from yelling, inside my own house.
My neighbors, whether they liked it or not, were treated to call fight songs serenading the block.
It was a good day, but born of hard work and an absence of smug assumptions.
This is how a winning program begins.
It was great!
So, the back “bumper” of Nando Mendoza’s helmet says “VICIS” (or maybe “VIC15”?), which is part of the quote attributed to Julius Caesar: Vini, vidi, vici —I came, I saw, I conquered. On purpose? I’d like to think so. And I’d like to think it reflects a change in attitude of the Cal Bears Football program.
I'd like to think so too, but it's a helmet brand that focuses on QBs. My son tried one, they give QBs a very bobble-head look.
I checked their website. They chose their name, Vicis, because it means “change.” Still fitting. And I hope thie new technology reduces concussions and other head trauma.
We all know it's a VIC-20.
Oh, man. Too bad. It would have been so cool to have a QB who was also into Classics. Not impossible for a QB initially accepted at Yale who came to Cal.
Classics are not too common in colleges, anymore (*sigh), let alone secondary schools.
But, Nando, does have classic manners. "Yes, Mr. Farrudo, thank you for that question."
Heartfelt and accurate article. As I hoped in a post earlier in the week, Auburn gave our team billboard material and we made them pay. The 21-14 final does not reflect Cal’s undisputed dominance, which they needed to overcome the SEC refs. But they barreled thru it all. Very impressive: the players and the coaches !
First of all, I'm sorry that, what for many of you, may be your only trip ever to Alabama, you had to be spent in Auburn. I promise we have cities with more buildings, plenty of tolerant people & fewer cows (even a couple where you won't find a single one). I was certainly a Cal fan Saturday & loved watching your Bears play their hearts out, showing people what a "team" looks like. Auburn fans are among those with the most unwarranted entitlement & backward thinking you'll ever come across. They talk some much trash but then make so many excuses when they lose. It's like they just can't give credit where credit is due because they're so hung up on thinking they're superior for some reason.
So, congrats, y'all! Every time I see a Cal Bear I'll smile & say thank you!
I had a great time in Auburn, and 99% of people we met were friendly and welcoming. Stayed at Lake Martin - absolutely beautiful and jumping in the lake at night was a perfect way to celebrate the victory.
What a flaming clown. The Auburn fans were all incredibly nice to us before and after the game. Go back to Tusca-trash.
If the we manage to stay undefeated until week six, we could see College Station in Berkeley for a showdown with Miami.
Week 3 Cal vs SDST
Week 4 Cal vs Florida State
Week 5 bye week
Week 6 Cal vs Miami
These are the marquee matchups for week 6 (or teams that could be undefeated heading into week 6). Would they pick any of these games over Cal vs Miami?
Michigan State vs Oregon
Ole Miss vs South Carolina
Boston College vs Virginia
Alabama vs Vanderbilt
We would welcome College Game day...and you make a good points about the competition...lots to be seen, but I bet the execs are looking for an excuse to come to Cal/SF...best view shots in the biz...we can dream
I agree. Where else can you find the weather that you do in the Bay Area. Plus, it would make those guys look "cool" and young to be in Berkeley.
Texas A&M in Berkeley?
Moooo.
Great for the brand, but winning is better. I hate the idea of the distraction, frankly.
The Oregon game isn't relevant since it's on Friday. I'd say UCLA @ Penn State and Michigan @ UW scan as potential competitors too, but Ole Miss at South Carolina is the presumable frontrunner assuming no losses (S. Car. vs LSU next week, for instance).
I decided not to include the Michigan game since they have a loss on their record. I hope that if we (and Miami) remain undefeated until Week 6, it will give us the edge over them. As of now, the ESPN Matchup Predictor has us at 40.9% and Miami at 59.1%, which suggests that, at least for now, Miami is projected to be more competitive than the UCLA game. UCLA is only given an 8.2% chance of beating Penn State. However, if UCLA can get through #16 LSU and #9 Oregon, I think they would get the nod over us versus Miami.
Gameday was announced as LSU at South Carolina next week, which removes them as a possibility in Week 6.