The Best and Worst from each Pac-12 North Football Program in Week 3

Troy-Dye-Oregon-Football-Shout

The PAC-12 North had an up-and-down second week of the season, finishing with a 3-3 record.

No. 15 Oregon, No. 20 Washington State and Cal (surprisingly) took care of business this week. Stanford, Oregon State and No. 23 Washington all faltered.

Here is a quick look at the highs and lows from each team in their Week 2 games.

Oregon (1-1)

Last Week: (W) 77-6 Nevada

Oregon absolutely demolished the Wolfpack of Nevada in week 2, avenging their heartbreaking loss to Auburn with a 77-6 destruction. 11 different players scored a touchdown for the Ducks in what was a nearly perfect game of football.

Highs

Just about everything. Oregon got a chance to play their first, second and even third stringers in this contest, and virtually everyone found success.

Justin Herbert completed 19 passes for 310 yards and five touchdowns, while backup quarterback Tyler Shough went 8/9 with 92 yards and two touchdowns of his own.

The team ran the ball well, with six different players totaling 39 carries for 210 yards and three touchdowns.

The receivers did even better, with 14(!) different players hauling in at least one reception, for a grand total of 410 yards in the air and seven receiving touchdowns. Wow.

The defense was excellent as well. Brady Breeze recovered a fumble for a touchdown, and the team had two interceptions, five sacks and 13 tackles for loss.

Heck, even the kick and punt return games did well, and the kickers didn’t miss a single extra point. Hard to find anything wrong in this one.

Lows

Uh, I guess the fact that Nevada wasn’t a great opponent was a low? The starters didn’t play long enough to get experience playing a full 60-minute game? Haki Woods fumbled the football?

Really, I think my editor gave me this article assignment to see if I could find anything bad about the Oregon game, which I could not. It was an all-around demolition.

Washington State (2-0)

Last Week (W) 59-17 Northern Colorado

WSU’s 42 point margin of victory would normally be the talk of the town in the PAC-12 North, but Oregon takes that cake. Still, the Cougars really took care of business against Northern Colorado.

Highs

The air-raid offense marches on even without Gardner Minshew. New QB Anthony Gordon looked great, completing 31-of-39 passes for 464 yards and four touchdowns. His lone blemish was an interception, but it was an otherwise excellent performance.

The team had 481 total yards through the air, with both Brandon Arconado and Easop Winston, Jr. hauling in over 100 yards receiving.

Defensively the team recovered four fumbles, and on the special teams kicker, Blake Mazza made his one field goal and went a perfect 8/8 on extra points.

WSU is now 2-0 and could move into the top-15 this week.

Lows

WSU’s run defense was pretty suspect. They allowed Northern Colorado to rush for 216 yards and two touchdowns, and that would have been higher had they not brought down second-string quarterback Connor Regan twice for a total of negative 18 yards.

WSU will need to shore up the run defense if they want to make a push for a championship season.

The pass defense was a little better, although the lack of pressure is also a concern. They only had one sack on the evening, and only hurried quarterback Jacob Knipp twice. Another area the team will need to grow this season.

Cal (2-0)

Last Week (W) 20-19 Washington

Cal earned an absolutely huge victory over the No. 23 ranked Huskies of Washington last week, in their first conference matchup of the year. They now sit atop the Pac-12 North. So they got that going for them, which is nice.

Highs

It was an incredibly sloppy game. A 2.5 hour thunder and lightning delay really made it so neither team played well, but Cal was still able to find some advantages – namely in the running game.

Cal rushed for 192 yards and two touchdowns, often finding ways to extend drives by driving through UW’s maligned defensive front.

Defensively, Cal generated four sacks and seven tackles for loss, often making QB Jacob Eason uncomfortable for the Huskies. Evan Weaver had a monster game for the Golden Bears, recording 18(!) combined tackles.

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Lows

If you’d told me Cal would beat UW with their quarterback, Chase Garbers, posting a 29.8 QBR, I’d have told you you were crazy. But Garbers didn’t look great, completing 11 of 18 passes for just 111 yards and no touchdowns.

Again, the crazy weather and the lengthy delay made passing the ball a challenge for both sides, but for this team to have any level of success their QB play will need to improve.

It’s hard to find too many faults when you upset a ranked team, but Cal didn’t do a great job of stopping UW’s running attack, as they allowed the Huskies to rush for 186 yards on the ground. Now granted that was on 46 carries (4.0 ypc) and they did get stops when they needed to, so it’s not a great criticism, but the defense does need to tighten up.

Stanford (1-1)

Last Week (L) 45-20 USC

It was a tale of two halves for the Cardinal against USC last week. They went into the second half only down 24-20, but got outscored 21-0 in the final two quarters, leading to the lopsided final score. It was a tough loss for Stanford and the Pac-12 North.

Highs

Stanford had a respectable 237 yards through the air, although the efficiency wasn’t there for QB Davis Mills, as he only completed 22 of 36 passes.

Still, the short-yardage passing game had its benefits, and kept Stanford in the game for the first half.

Defensively Stanford was able to force a fumble, and on the special teams they did have a 60 yard kick return from Connor Weddington.

Lows

Stanford’s efficiency on offense was nearly non-existent, and they were unable to get anything going on the ground – which allowed USC to play the passing game well.

Stanford only rushed for 98 total yards, for an average of just 3.3 yards per carry.

Defensively, the team allowed USC QB Kedon Slovis to throw wherever he wanted, as he completed 28 of 33 passes for 377 yards and three touchdowns. For them to have any success this year, the pass defense will need to tighten up – quite a bit.

Oregon State (0-2)

Last Week (L) 31-28 Hawaii

Oof. This is a rough one. Oregon State was not expected to be good this year, but blowing a lead against an Mountain West Conference school – even a good one like Hawaii – is not a good look.

Highs

Oregon State ran the ball really well. Star RB Jermar Jefferson had 31 carries for a whopping 183 yards on the ground, including a touchdown. They totaled 263 yards and three touchdowns in the running game, an excellent, well-rounded attack.

The passing game was less successful, but Isaiah Hodgins still had seven receptions for 96 yards and a touchdown – another solid outing.

The Beavers also had two takeaways, a fumble recovery and an interception.

Lows

Oh boy. We all knew Hawaii was going to throw the ball a lot, but Oregon State’s defense still seemed unprepared. Hawaii QB Cole McDonald completed 30 of 52 passes for 421 yards and four touchdowns in what was a blitz through the air all game long.

Oregon State did stop the run effectively, but they did not generate nearly enough pressure to prevent Hawaii from making a quick comeback through the air – an issue that will no doubt plague them all season long.

Washington (1-1)

Last Week (L) 20-19 Cal

The weather delay that took the stadium from a full 66,000 rapid fans to somewhere around 15,000 really sucked the air out of Husky Stadium, and the UW football team as a whole. That led to an embarrassing 20-19 loss at the hands of Cal, and likely cost them a shot at a playoff bid this season.

Highs

Salvon Ahmed had an excellent day running the football, rushing for 119 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries, good for a 5.7 yards per carry average.

The rushing game overall was successful, with a total of 186 yards on the ground. In an environment that made passing the ball nearly impossible, it was good that UW was still able to attack on the ground despite Cal stacking the box.

Lows

More or less everything else. Eason was awful, only completing 18 of 30 passes for 162 yards and no touchdowns, along with an interception. He never got comfortable, and took a big step backward from his promising start.

Defensively, UW struggled to contain Cal’s running game, and the defense was not able to force Cal into many mistakes – allowing them to dictate the tempo and keep UW’s offense off the field.

The defense also only had four tackles for loss. In a sloppy game, that number needs to be higher.

Bay Area Football California Golden Bears Victorious in Week 1

California Golden Bears win debut against UC Davis

On a beautiful warm sunny day in Berkeley, the California Golden Bears won their 2019 debut against the UC Davis Aggies. With the win today the Bears have now won their sixth consecutive season opener.

Sophomore running back Chris Brown Jr and Junior transfer student KeKoa Crawford were difference makers. Brown, a 6’1″ 230 pound sophomore, carried 26 times for 197 yards, both career highs. He is also the nation’s third leading rusher. Crawford, the 6’1″ 190 pound transfer student from Glendale Community College, had three big catches for 84 yards and two touchdowns.

While the result was in Cal’s favor, it wasn’t the easy win most hoped for. The ballgame had quite the auspicious start as the Aggies won the toss, choosing to differ. They proceeded to strip Cal’s kickoff return man Ashtyn Davis on the 21 yard line and recovered the fumbe to take possession. Not ideal.

Then, after the turnover the Aggies went 21 yards in four plays, scoring on a 2 yard plunge by Ulonzo Gilliam.

The Aggies didn’t letup either, stifling Cal’s passing game throughout the first quarter. The Bears came out flat and the majority of the offense came from the legs of running back Chris Brown Jr.

Chase Garbers completed just two passes. Meanwhile the Aggies forced two turnovers in the first quarter, with a third coming mere seconds into the second quarter.

A win not without mistakes

Offensive mistakes came early and often including a couple Garbers throws. In back to back plays he rolled out to his right, nearly threw one interception and had the second picked.

But it wasn’t all Garbers’ fault. In the second quarter Cal receiver Jordan Duncan caught a pass, broke a tackle but fumbled the ball. The results? Another turnover.

Garbers weighed-in on what he thought attributed to the slow start.

“I think also offensively we came out too loose. I think we were lackadaisacal to start in a way, I think just getting that first game out of us and we regrouped and we came back in the second quarter and the second half and did what we do.”

Once Cal found their rhythm, however, they didn’t look back. Fortunately this took place in the second quarter.

Cranking up the pressure and going uptempo the Bears started taking it to the Aggies. Garbers started things off with a 13 yard run, followed with a three yard run by Brown Jr. After an incompletion came the chunk plays. First was a 30 yard pass to Nikko Remigio. Next was a four yard run by Brown Jr. and finally capped off by a beautiful 37 yard catch and run by Kekoa Crawford with the exclamation point dive into the end zone.

Calming the nerves

When asked about how he settled his young quarterback down, coach Justin Wilcox had this to say.

“It was calming down and trusting his preparation. We expect him t make plays. He kept his composure and didn’t panic by any means. Overall, I liked that he battled back from a slow start. It was good to see.”

Next drive Garbers completes a 30 yarder to tight end Jake Tonges on the seam route. Garbers goes three completions in a row throwing for 98 yards and appeared to find his rhythm. The Bears scored three times in the second quarter, on a touchdown and two field goals, finishing the quarter winning not only the possession battle 08:20 to 06:40 as well as amassing 177 yards to the Aggies 57.

Aggies take a knee in the end zone on the kickoff and proceed to take the ball 60 yards on 10 plays and kick a game-tying 32 yard field goal from Max O’Rourke.

On Cal’s first possession of the second half they mixed up their play calls beautifully and kept the Aggies off balance. Garbers scrambling and running with the football mystified the Aggies, and they had no answer for it. After a scramble that would have come up short the defense hit him late and the free 15 yards put Cal in position to score. Brown ran the ball in from five yards out off of a nice cutback on an outside zone run giving the Bears a 20-13 lead.

Later in the third Garbers rolled out to his right and threw a pass to Crawford in the end zone, but the pass was tipped by the Aggies Jaylin White. Crawford, made sure to get both feet down in bounds while tracking the ball on the tip drill and caught it for a 26 yard score. The last score would put the Bears up 27-13 and would be the final nail in the coffin.

Next up: Washington Huskies

Cal would finish the day with 471 yards total offense, Garbers was 16-28 for 238 yards 2 TDS and 1INT. The Bears rushed as a whole 51 times for 263 yards 1TD and an average of 4.6 yards per carry. Kicker Greg Thomas was 2/3 on field goals with makes of (44,47) missing on the last 44 yarder. Sophomore linebacker Kony Deng led the Bears in tackles with 12 total, 2 pass break ups, and 2 quarterback hits.

Next up for the Bears is a trip to Washington to take on the Pac-12 champions the University of Washington Huskies.

These Games Could Land the Pac-12 on ESPN College Gameday

Pac-12 ESPN College Football gameday

College football is back, and with it comes the return of the best sports show in all of sports: ESPN College GameDay. Now in its 26th year of the live show format (the program technically began in 1987 as an in-studio show), College GameDay kicked-off the season in proper fashion at Disney’s Magic Kingdom, highlighting the huge Miami vs. Florida ‘Week 0‘ matchup. And while the atmosphere was outstanding, next week’s feature of Auburn and Oregon in the Advocare Classic is bound to be something special, and is just one of the many college football matchups that could feature the Pac-12 on College GameDay.

Having national attention shift to the Pac-12 is critical, especially as the conference looks to bolster its reputation. There’s no better way of doing this than a featured matchup on College GameDay. Yes, the conference has to win on the field and yes, many of the games listed below could have their “watchability” change as the season progresses, but there’s no denying the influence ESPN College GameDay has in drawing national attention.

Here are the games that could get the Pac-12 on College GameDay throughout the course of the year.

Weeks Ruled Out

Before taking a dive into what weeks and games could see Pac-12 teams featured on College GameDay, there are a few weeks where the show is pretty much booked sans Pac-12.

  • Week 2: Texas A&M vs. Clemson
  • Week 4: Michigan vs. Wisconsin OR Notre Dame vs. Georgia
  • Week 9: Auburn vs. LSU OR Notre Dame vs. Michigan OR Penn State vs. Michigan State
  • Week 10: LSU vs. Alabama
  • Week 14: Ohio State vs. Michigan

With just five weeks out of contention to feature the Pac-12 on College GameDay, the conference could see itself attract a fair share of national attention, even if this means Rece Davis and the gang will have to wake up a bit earlier.

Stanford vs. UCF OR Oklahoma vs. UCLA (Week 3)

After College GameDay’s undoubted visit to Clemson for Texas A&M vs. Clemson, the Pac-12 has a legitimate shot at seeing one of its teams featured on the show in week three, with Stanford, Arizona State and UCLA all in play. Much of this will depend on the outcome of UCLA’s week one matchup against Cincinnati and Stanford’s brutal first two weeks (vs. Northwestern, at USC), but should both those teams head into week three undefeated, their matchups are attractive enough for a College GameDay appearance. Oklahoma vs. UCLA, in particular, could be an outstanding matchup. The backdrop of the Rose Bowl would be a welcomed bonus.

PASADENA, CA – SEPTEMBER 15: Head coach Chip Kelly of the UCLA Bruins talks with Dorian Thompson-Robinson #7 during the second quarter against the Fresno State Bulldogs at Rose Bowl on September 15, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

Biggest Competition: Iowa vs. Iowa State, Clemson vs. Syracuse

Washington State vs. Utah OR USC vs. Washington (Week 5)

The Washington schools have a great shot at seeing the Northwest’s best on College GameDay come week 5 of the season, especially if their opponents can play to some lofty expectations. Washington State vs. Utah is particularly intriguing and would be a great feature of the Pac-12 on College GameDay, giving Utah a shot to showcase its passionate fan base and WSU to continue its upward trajectory.

Biggest Competition: Ohio State vs. Nebraska

California vs. Oregon OR Washington vs. Stanford (Week 6)

Both of these games could be pivotal in the outcome of the Pac-12 North. With the California Golden Bears being a sleeper pick in the conference, should Cal surprise the Huskies in week two and hold steady at Ole Miss, their visit in Week 6 to Eugene could be a big matchup in the Pac-12 and in the College Football Playoff Picture.

Conversely, if the Huskies play to expectations and Stanford survives its brutal start to the season, their matchup in Palo Alto could see the Pac-12 on College Gameday. While The Farm isn’t the most raucous atmosphere for the show, the matchup between these two Pac-12 heavyweights does more than makeup for the fans (or lack thereof).

Biggest Competition: Iowa vs. Michigan OR Auburn vs. Florida OR Georgia vs. Tennessee OR Purdue vs. Penn State

USC vs. Notre Dame (Week 7)

One of the classic matchups in all of college football, USC vs. Notre Dame is an attractive week 7 matchup the producers of ESPN College GameDay will hope happens. With USC’s roster filled with talent that just needs to see its potential realized, this could be a statement game for USC, especially if they manage tough games against Stanford (Week 2), Utah (Week 4) and Washington (Week 5).

Sports Illustrated Notre Dame USC Cover
USC and Notre Dame have had some classic matchups throughout college football history.

Biggest Competition: Alabama vs. Texas A&M OR Florida vs. LSU

Oregon vs. Washington OR Arizona State vs. Utah (Week 8)

Don’t sleep on Herm Edward’s Arizona State Sun Devils in the Pac-12 South. They’re a talented squad and freshman quarterback Jayden Daniels is ready to turn some heads. A week 8 matchup with Utah is another opportunity for the Utes to be on college football’s national stage, but they’ll face stiff competition from Oregon vs. Washington in the Pac-12 North.

Likely the game of the year in the Pac-12 North, Oregon vs. Washington is the conference’s fiercest rivalry and the unique atmosphere of Husky Stadium is going to be an attractive option for College GameDay.

Biggest Competition: Michigan vs. Penn State

Oregon vs. USC OR Utah vs. Washington (Week 10)

For a few years, a game featuring Oregon vs. USC was an easy feature for the national stage. With both their 2009 and 2010 matchups on College GameDay, when Oregon and USC clash in week 10 of this year, the teams could once again see Los Angeles serve as the backdrop for College GameDay. Known to Oregon fans as the ‘Storm LA’ game, this could be an opportunity for each program to reclaim college football glory and capture national attention in a big way.

Utah vs. Washington is another outstanding option, with Husky Stadium once again proving an attractive option to see the Pac-12 on College GameDay. Both these games could easily be previews of the Pac-12 Conference Championship.

Biggest Competition: Georgia vs. Florida

Week 11 – UCLA vs. Utah

UCLA is another one of the Pac-12 South teams a little under-the-radar this year. With Utah not having any defined competition in the division, this week 11 matchup between UCLA and Utah could be a game that determines the Pac-12 South crown.

Biggest Competition: Georgia vs. Auburn, Michigan State vs. Michigan

Week 12 – Oregon vs. Arizona State

Another potential preview of the Pac-12 Conference Championship, Oregon vs. Arizona State in Tempe could provide an outstanding stage for the Pac-12 on College Gameday. By this time in the year, we’ll know where each team stands and freshman QB Jayden Daniels will have had plenty of time to establish himself. Oregon, meanwhile, will be hoping senior quarterback Justin Herbert is forwarding a Heisman Campaign by leading the Ducks through a difficult road schedule. Their final road test? This big matchup against the Sun Devils.

Biggest Competition: Penn State vs. Ohio State, TCU vs. Oklahoma, Texas A&M vs. Georgia

Pac-12 Football: Cal Golden Bears Looking Good After Spring Game

On a beautiful spring day in Berkley, California, the California Golden Bears open up the gates and welcome everyone to the Spring Game and showcase its talent.

The Cal Golden Bears football team finished last season with a wining record of 7-6, giving them just their third winning season in nine years. Looking forward, the PAC-12 conference appears to be wide open and the Bears are poised to bring back 13 players from last seasons stingy 10th ranked defensive units.

The defense features Sr. ILB Evan Weaver a 2nd team All-American, and redshirt Jr. CB Camryn Bynum, leader of the #Takers, the defense, is working towards being even better.

The #Takers, Cal’s defensive back unit was live on the scene when sophomore Safety Daniel Scott made a beautiful play. Dropping back into zone coverage Scott read the eyes of quarterback Robby Rowell and elevated snagging an interception.

Cal Golden Bears gear at Fanatics.com

Kuony Deng the 6-foot-6 Jr. ILB dropped back into coverage and somehow managed to avoid detection from sophomore City College of San Francisco transfer Jack Newman, and get setup with for a pick-6.

Transfer student Deon White, OLB, laid down the Hitstick “Crush of the Game” when he stuffed a Gun zone run and completely blew up the ball carrier. The Bears have a long way to go and will find it difficult to fill the shoes of Jordan Kunaszyk, but they appear ready to #EarnIt and be up to the challenge.

Cal Golden Bears gear at Fanatics.com

Offense

Cal has 4 quarterbacks on the roster Chase Garbers, UCLA transfer student Devon Modster, freshman Robby Rowell, and Jack Newsome. Collectively in the spring game the quarterbacks went 23-32 177 yards 1TD 2INTS. Modster recorded the only passing touchdown of the day and would finish 6-7 27 yards and 1TD. Garbers completed 7-10 for 60 yards with a rushing touchdown. Rowell looked sharp early with the ball coming out on time and with zip. He had the offense in a nice rhythm up until feeding Scott the interception. Rowell’s stat line was 7-10 for 68 yards and 1INT.

Offensive coordinator Beau Baldwin has his work cut out for him as the Bears offense seeks ways to put more points on the board. Returning quarterback Chase Garbers appears to be the likley starter, and his confidence in his ability in the passing game is growing. Last years Bears scored 280 total points and averaged 21.5 points per game.

Baldwin must also find ways to replace Patrick Laird’s production. Laird’s 223 carries accounted for 47% of the run game and his 9 scoring plays (5 rushes, 4 receptions) were 29% of the Bears 29 scores in 2018.

Luckily for Bear enthusiasts everywhere, the 2019 have a healthy sized stable of young workhorses ready to carry the load. Alex Letherda had a team longest run of 29 yards, and would finish the afternoon with 12 carries for 76 yards. Deshawn Collins rushed nine times for 39 yards including a 2yd TD run. The Bears offense appears to be featuring two special players.

Dancing Dancy and J-Hawk

Marcel Dancy turned in one of the top performances of the day, Dancy is a playmaker with vision, speed, power, hands, some shimmy/wiggle, and an ice cold spin move. Dancy would finish the day with 8 carries for 33 yards and a TD, he would also catch 3 passes for 29 yards including this 16 yard catch and run ending in pay dirt.


Jeremiah Hawkins introduced himself to the Golden Bear family with impressive displays of speed, moves, and a punishing stiff arm. Hawkins brings a very much needed shot in the arm to the speed department. What shouldn’t be understated is Hawkins knowledge of how to use his speed. Knowing that the best application of it is actual changing speeds and mixing it up so as to throw off the timing of defenders.

These two dynamic young players look to factor in heavily into Cal’s offensive attack and rightfully so. Dancy runs with power can churn through tackles and freeze defenders in their tracks when he puts them through spinning off of defenders.

Hawkins is 5-foot-8 185 pounds of pure dynamite, and if he’s not blowing past you, he’s embarrassing you with a smooth peel-back block or a merciless stiff-arm to the ground. Hawkins is one tough cookie, and we should hope that he has remedied his ball security issues.