Game recap: Cal overcomes sluggish start to take down Texas Southern in home opener
Cal was riding high following its Week 1 win over Oregon State last week. The luster seemed to come off early in Saturday’s game against Texas Southern. The home opener started off much differently than the matchup with the Beavers.
Quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele struggled to find a rhythm early against Texas Southern. It wasn’t just the freshman who was slow to start. The entire offense had issues getting anything going.
Ultimately, it led to a closer game than anticipated through the first half. In the second half the Bears were able to build some momentum. Two rushing touchdowns in the third quarter put the game on ice in what ended as a 35-3 victory over the Tigers.
Sagapolutele finished with 259 yards on 26 completions but was held without a passing touchdown in the game. He did account for the first Cal touchdown of the game on a 1-yard rush with 1:19 to play in the second quarter.
The ground game wasn’t perfect for the Bears, but it looked improved from the Week 1 victory over the Beavers. Cal had three rushing scores in the game including touchdowns by running backs Kendrick Raphael and LJ Johnson Jr.
Raphael had the biggest rushing play of the season with a 33-yard carry to open the second quarter. He finished with 131 yards on 18 carries in the win.
Receiver Mark Hamper came up big for the Bears in the win with five catches for 69 yards to lead all receivers. In all, nine players caught a pass for Cal in the victory.
Ohio State transfer Devin Brown finished the game out at quarterback and tossed a touchdown to Jayden Dixon-Veal with 3:09 to play. The Bears ended the game with 459 yards of total offense.
Cal defense nearly pitches shutout
Defensively, the Bears continued to look stout. Cornerback Hezekiah Masses came up with an interception for the second consecutive game. He also led the team with a pair of pass breakups.
Linebacker Luke Ferrelli shined in his second start. The second-year freshman led the team with 11 tackles helping to pick up the slack for Cade Uluave who was ejected for targeting in the second half. He will miss the first half of Cal’s game next week against Minnesota.
The Bears held Texas Southern scoreless until the 13:58 mark of the fourth quarter. That is when Christian Avelar connected on a 39-yard field goal to help the Tigers avoid being shut out Saturday in Berkeley.
The Tigers had just 193 total yards in the game and were held to 52 yards rushing Saturday.
The Bears will face the Gophers at 7:30 p.m. PT next Saturday at California Memorial Stadium.
Postgame press conference videos
