Cal Golden Bears Unable To Keep Up With Huskies

Oct 26, 2013; Seattle, WA, USA; Washington Huskies tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins (88) breaks a tackle by California Golden Bears safety Michael Lowe (5) after making a reception during the third quarter at Husky Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

The Cal Golden Bears were handled easily by the Washington Huskies, as they fell 41-17. The Huskies’ offense put the game away by halftime, as the Bears could not simply keep pace with their offensive momentum. The Bears defense surrendered nearly 650 yards of total offense. The offense put up some decent numbers, but it was not efficient and could not finish off drives. It was a game that was typical of its season so far, as the offense could not keep up with the opponent and the defense could not muster any help.

The opening drives set the stage for the opening frame of the ball game. The Bears were able to muster a single first down on their initial drive, but then stalled and punted the ball away. The Huskies then followed with a clinical drive that ate up 97 yards on 11 plays. Keith Price shredded the Bears secondary by going 6-for-6 for 74 yards, setting up Bishop Sankey’s three-yard touchdown run. The trend would continue throughout the quarter, as Washington used big plays to pull ahead to a 17-0 advantage by the end of the first quarter. The Bear Raid would remain grounded, as the longest drive was its opening drive for 19 yards.

The Golden Bears found some traction at the start of the second, as freshman Jared Goff went 7-for-8. He capped off the drive off with a five-yard touchdown pass to Chris Harper. The teams then traded eight straight punts as the defenses finally settled in. The Huskies’ big play ability showed up in a big way right before the half. Sankey broke loose for a 59-yard touchdown scamper to put them back up by 17. The Bears were struggling on the scoreboard and the stat sheet, as the teams went into the half with momentum clearly in the favor of the foes up north.

Washington got the ball to start the second half and just kept rolling. Price hit Jaydon Mickens for their second long touchdown strike, this one from 47 yards (their first scoring connection covered 68) and the Huskies grabbed a 31-7 lead.

The Huskies put up one more touchdown to essentially put this game out of reach. Price added a one-yard touchdown run to add to his already impressive evening to put the Huskies up by 31 at the close of the third quarter.

The Bears put up some points in the fourth, but it didn’t not matter. The Huskies had already put the game away. Khalfani Muhammad gave the Bears a glimpse of his big play ability with a 73-yard touchdown run. The Bears would fall to the Huskies 41-17.

This game came down to explosive plays and the Bears never simply had an answer for the Huskies, who had three of their five touchdowns go for 47 yards or longer. Price had more passing yards than Goff, while having as many attempts as Goff had completions. The Huskies were able to move the ball more consistently than Cal, which could be due to the poor play of the Bears’ defense.

The Bears had another poor defensive performance, as the Huskies shredded them for 642 yards of total offense. Price had 376 yards and two touchdowns through the air, while Sankey added 241 yards on the ground. The Bears were also unable to force a single turnover on defense, which is a must when you play a high powered offense like Washington.

The Bears fell to 0-5 in conference play and 1-7 overall on the season. They will return home next week to take on the Arizona Wildcats, who are 5-2 (2-2). The Bears better come prepare to play defense, as the Wildcats possess a high-powered running attack that can put up a lot of points.