Bears Fall To Washington State, 21-6

BERKELEY – The Cal football team struggled to find consistency on offense while allowing Washington State to convert 50 percent of its third downs, and the Golden Bears fell 21-6 to the Cougars at FTX Field at California Memorial Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

The Bears (1-4, 0-2 Pac-12) had been off to a hot start offensively so far this season, entering the game averaging 440.8 total yards per game. But Cal could only manage 273 yards against WSU and converted just 3-of-15 of its third down opportunities.

"We expected to play much better than that," Travers Family Head Football Coach Justin Wilcox said. "We really didn't do much of anything, and that falls on me. It's my job to help our team prepare to be successful, and I failed."

Sophomore running back Chris Street was a bright spot for the Bears, amassing a team-high 51 yards on eight carries. He entered the game with just two career yards rushing.

Cal quarterback Chase Garbers completed 14-of-30 passes for 152 yards with an interception while receiver Kekoa Crawford had three catches for 67 yards.

The Bears recorded two interceptions, including Daniel Scott's third this season and fourth in his career. Freshman linebacker Nate Rutchena made his collegiate debut and also picked off Cougars quarterback Jayden De Laura.

"We need to go out and show that standard that we need to play at every week," Scott said. "We can't look at our record right now – that's behind us. We just need to keep playing and keep improving."

After Washington St. scored a touchdown on the first possession of the game, the Bears immediately answered with a scoring drive of their own, marching 79 yards in seven plays and culminating in an 11-yard touchdown run by running back Christopher Brooks. The Bears failed to convert the extra point and trailed 7-6 with 7:45 remaining in the first quarter.

Brooks finished with 40 yards rushing on eight carries.

The Cougars extended the lead to 21-6 midway through the third quarter and that completed the scoring for the afternoon.

"They flat out they just played better than we did," Garbers said. "It's that simple – you saw it on the scoreboard. We had a great week of practice but they just came out here and beat us. It's as simple as that."

The Bears have a bye weekend before traveling to No. 3 Oregon for a nationally televised Friday night game on Oct. 15.