Cal Plays Well, But Loses Tight Game To Ohio State

Even though Cal lost to Ohio State, and they won’t be rewarded for their performance, there’s lots to cheer about for Cal fans.

Yes, Vincenzo D’Amato and Jeff Tedford combined to doom the Bears at the end of the day. Yes, the Bears’ defense could only stop Braxton Miller for so long. And yes, the Bears are just 1-2. But, they showed us that they can hang with the big boys.

Brendon Bigelow and Zach Maynard highlighted a number of great performances, and they both scored. Maynard threw a touchdown and ran for another, while Bigelow broke a few tackles while running for a 81-yard touchdown. Until his interception that sealed the win for Ohio State, Maynard was amazing.

Miller was amazing in the first half for the Buckeyes, but Cal shut him down in the third quarter. Miller went 10-for-14 with 129 passing yards and two touchdowns in the first half, but he finished the day 16-for-30 (meaning he completed just six of 16 passes in the second half). However, he came up with some big throws.

He kept multiple plays alive by running, and by doing that on one play, he froze cornerback Marc Anthony by faking a run, and then he threw a deep pass to a wide-open Devon Smith for a touchdown. He faked a run on third-and-goal and hit Jake Stoneburner on a jump pass for a touchdown, and he finished the day with five total touchdowns. Maynard only scored two, but he definitely outperformed Miller. He was making great throws and throwing the ball before Cal’s offensive line collapsed and forced a sack.

Bigelow and Keenan Allen were great on offense too. Bigelow ran for an 81-yard touchdown, breaking tackles and keeping his balance when everyone thought he was down. Allen caught nine passes for 80 yards, and he had an 8-yard completion to Maynard. However, despite these offensive performances, Cal scored just 28 points. Why? Because of Vincenzo D’Amato.

D’Amato missed three field goals and failed to reward Tedford’s faith in him on a fourth-and-one from the 23-yard line. The score was 28-28, and if Cal had converted the fourth down, they could’ve won. However, D’Amato kicked the ball into New York and angered Cal fans, who knew that a touchdown could’ve really helped. Especially against Miller, who then hit Smith for the game-winning score. However, Bears fans have a lot to be happy about.

Maynard and Allen finally stepped up, Bigelow was amazing and the Bears’ D showed they could contain Miller for short periods of time. Even though they don’t have a win to show for it, and even though they’ll probably be 1-3 after the USC game next week, Cal fans have a lot to be happy about.

Why? Because if they keep playing like this, the Bears will be bowling in December.