Cal defense peaking under Wilcox
Even in a loss, the two-year transformation of Cal football was obvious.
Cal just missed out on an upset bid, falling 19-13 to No. 8 Washington State on Saturday in Pullman, Washington. But the Golden Bears held quarterback Gardner Minshew to one touchdown pass (and had an interception), while the Cougar rushing attack managed less than 80 yards. Cal held high-powered Washington State to just six second-half points.
This came a week after Cal’s upset of ranked Washington, in which the Golden Bears prevailed without an offensive touchdown for the first time this century.
Now, it seems more possible for Cal (5-4, 2-4 Pac-12) to compete against its remaining three opponents and sneak into a bowl. USC hosts Cal at 7:30 p.m. PT Saturday at the Coliseum in Los Angeles.
Cal, while its defense was impressive again against Washington State, needs to rediscover its rushing attack. Senior running back Patrick Laird was held to 40 yards on 18 carries, and the Golden Bears averaged just 3.1 yards per carry.
“We didn’t run the ball near well enough tonight,” said Golden Bears second-year coach Justin Wilcox, who was Wisconsin’s defensive coordinator before taking the Cal gig. “Give Wazzu credit, but that’s on everybody.
“It’s the line, the backs, the quarterbacks, the tight ends, the receivers. You’ve got to be able to stretch then and loosen them up, so you can run it.”
Cal, which has mixed and matched quarterbacks Chase Garbers and Brandon McIlwain throughout the season, did so again in Pullman. Garbers went 15 of 26 passing for 127 yards, one touchdown and one interception, and had a team-high 11 carries for 67 yards.
That’s ironic, given that McIlwain is considered the running QB. McIlwain had six carries for minus-2 yards.
Cal was also without injured standout receiver Kanawai Noa, yet another loss at the position for the Golden Bears. Three wideouts — including former five-star recruit Demetris Robertson (now with Georgia) — transferred during the offseason. And Jordan Duncan and Brandon Singleton have been dealing with injuries the past month.
“The next guy has got to play,” Wilcox said. “They don’t postpone the game. The other team doesn’t feel sorry for you. … Nobody cares about our problems.”
USC (5-4, 4-3), tied atop the Pac-12 South with Utah and Arizona, just snapped a two-game skid by topping Oregon State 38-21 in Corvallis, Ore. Freshman quarterback J.T. Daniels has thrown for 1,806 yards and nine TDs but with seven picks.
Cal finishes the regular season with home games against Stanford and Colorado.
