Cal holds off Belichick’s Tar Heels, but ‘have to play much better’

BERKELEY Cal has forged a - start to its football season for the first time in years But the Bears - triumph over coach Bill Belichick s struggling North Carolina organization on Friday night at Memorial Stadium won t be the standard they aspire to the rest of the way They re hard to come by so we will celebrate a triumph announced Cal coach Justin Wilcox whose gang was favored by as various as points late in the week We have to play much better football moving forward in every phase of the battle that s obvious Cal went to great lengths to improve its offensive production this season bringing on board an almost entirely new staff on that side of the ball led by coordinator Bryan Harsin But after averaging points through their first three games the Bears - - ACC are scoring just points per challenge in four outings since Two plays by defensive backs one early one late saved their bacon against the Tar Heels Cam Sidney forced and recovered a fumble on UNC s first play of the contest setting up a -yard scoring that gave the Bears a quick - lead Kendrick Raphael of the California Golden Bears celebrates after scoring a touchdown in the second half against the North Carolina Tar Heels at California Memorial Stadium on Oct in Berkeley California Photo by Thien-An Truong Getty Images Then with the Tar Heels - - a step or two from taking the their first lead of the night Brent Paco Austin changed everything Carolina had second-and- from the Cal -yard line when quarterback Geo Lopez connected with wide receiver Nathan Leacock steaming toward the goal line Austin a senior transfer from South Florida arrived too late to stop Leacock s momentum into the end zone but he punched the ball free near the -yard line then scrambled after it for the recovery on the left edge of the end zone with left That s as good of an individual sportsman as we ve had this year Wilcox reported That is an elite play Whatever adjective you want to throw in front of it that s what it was Austin called it the biggest play he s made in his football career A LOT TO FIX Aside from the two big defensive plays and the outcome Wilcox wasn t happy about much his group did The problems on offense were prominent Cal totaled just yards the third time in the past four games the Bears have failed to reach yards They did not turn the ball over a big improvement after six turnovers the previous three games but they averaged just yards per rush Quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele completed only percent for for a season-low yards although he did have a touchdown pass and a TD run Penalties for yards were terrible We dropped the ball too a multitude of times We ve got to play the run better Punt match We ve got to do a better job there Wilcox stated referring a -yard average on eight punts Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele of the California Golden Bears throws a pass during the first half against the North Carolina Tar Heels at California Memorial Stadium on Oct in Berkeley California Photo by Thien-An Truong Getty Images That wasn t a complete competition from us by any means far from it slot receiver Jacob De Jesus stated DE JESUS RESPONDS Wide receiver Trond Grizzell and tight end Mason Mini entered Friday night with a combined catches for yards Grizzell didn t catch a pass against Carolina s defensive attention and Mini had just one for yards on six targets Related Articles Austin s late-game heroics enable Cal to hold off Belichick s North Carolina Tar Heels - What to know before Cal kicks off vs Bill Belichick and North Carolina The Bill Belichick tragedy tour provides Cal football weird wonderful opportunity Cal seeks to rebound against Belichick s Tar Heels after bye week Bill Belichick says he s not looking to leave North Carolina job De Jesus was the beneficiary grabbing passes for yards and a touchdown What they were doing gave Jacob more opportunities Wilcox reported He wants the ball he competes really hard and he s got one speed A transfer from UNLV De Jesus had the the bulk catches by a Cal sportsman in nine seasons and tied for the sixth-most ever in a contest He now has receptions for yards with three TDs NEXT UP The Bears play next Friday night at Virginia Tech - - which has lost its past two games and had a bye this weekend A conquest would make Cal bowl eligible for the third straight season