Hawaii backup quarterback Luke Weaver threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Nick Cenacle with 10 seconds left and the Rainbow Warriors derailed Cal's hopes for an eight-win season, claiming a 35-31 victory at the Hawaii Bowl on Wednesday. Weaver entered the game after an injury on the previous play to freshman starter Micah Alejado, who engineered a rally from 21 points down.
The Bears take the field without nine-year coach Justin Wilcox, who was fired last Sunday following the Bears' 31-10 collapse in the Big Game at Stanford. Interim head coach Nick Rolovich, who is among at least 14 names on general manager Ron Rivera's list of potential replacements, indicated Tuesday he likely would be open to remaining on the staff even if someone else is chosen as coach. Rolovich served most of this season as senior offensive analyst . . .
Cal storylines: The Bears face their second straight AP Top 25 opponent, having lost 31-21 to then-No. 15 Virginia last week at home . . . Cal has dropped 14 consecutive games to Top 25 opponents, dating back to a 21-17 home victory over No. 21 Oregon in the COVID-shortened 2020 season . . . A loser in back-to-back games for the first time this season, Cal needs one victory in its final three games to secure bowl eligibility . . .
Cal's dreams of early bowl eligibility and perhaps a special season took a major hit Friday night in a 42-34 double-overtime loss at Virginia Tech's sold-out Lane Stadium. Here's how things unfolded in overtime: - Cal scored on one play when Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele fired a 25-yard touchdown strike to tight end Mason Mini. - Virginia Tech answered with quarterback Kyron Drones running it from 17 yards on second-and-2, tying the score at 34-all.
A victory will make Cal bowl eligible for the third straight season. The Bears make their second trip east in ACC play, having won 28-24 at Boston College on Sept. 27. They are coming off a 21-18 home victory vs. North Carolina, but they are just 2-2 since a 3-0 start. A win would put Cal two games over .500 in conference play for the first time since opening 2-0 in the Pac-12 in 2015.
Season 1 of the Bill Belichick era has been a train wreck. The Tar Heels have beaten just one FBS opponent a 1-5 Charlotte team that is ranked 129th nationally in ESPN's SP+ ratings and have given up 120 points in their three defeat. Carolina has been outscored 55-6 in the first half of its past two games, vs. UCF and Clemson.
Cal storylines: The Bears close out non-conference play, seeking their first 4-0 start since 2019, when they had their most recent winning campaign at 8-5. Cal has won three straight games by double-digit margins for the first time since the start of the 2009 season. Freshman QB Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele won ACC Rookie of the Year honors for the second time in three weeks after passing for a season-high 279 yards with three touchdowns in the Bears' 27-14 win over Minnesota. Senior cornerback Hezekiah Masses is one of five players nationally with three interceptions. Fourteen Cal receivers have at least one catch and six different players have caught touchdowns.
The Bears face pressure to assemble their first winning season since 2019. Cal played in bowl games each of the past two seasons, but finished 6-7 each time. Chancellor Rich Lyons has said that a .500 season is not acceptable and new general manager Ron Rivera, who is working with coach Justin Wilcox but reports directly to Lyons, described a successful season as eight or nine wins . . .
