This was one ugly game. Losing a game is bad. Losing a game by 22 points is bad enough. But losing a game you need to win, by 22 points, at home in front of a very blasé crowd is horrible. It’s hard to pick someone as the MVP of the game (on the Cal side of things at least), but I had to pick someone. I thought about Khairi Fortt, who seemed to be in on a lot of plays even if he wasn’t credited with the tackle. There was receiving corps, who played well against a very tough secondary that really wasn’t as dominant as I expected them to be. however, the only real choice has to be Jared Goff.
He was the only guy on the field who kept this game from getting out of hand. He passed the ball particularly well, getting it to guys in traffic without really making to many mistake, he had zip on the ball and from the field view, it looked like he was throwing a tight, accurate spiral. He passed for 504 yards, a Cal Berkeley record, on 33-for-55 passing with two touchdowns and only one interception against a very good secondary.
I must be honest, this is also a reward for Goff being able to get through all the racket being slung this week, in regards to his small hands and his inability to play against a good team like Oregon. Quite honestly, the fact that he was splitting time with Zach Kline this week was absolutely ridiculous. Not much else to say except this kid showed poise, heart and an ability to ignore the annoying outside (and inside) forces that have been pointing towards blaming this kid for this team’s shortcomings. He may be the reason this team even flashes potential at times. Jared Goff is the reason watching Cal Football right now is even somewhat worth watching.