By Morris Phillips
A Pac-12 record for touchdown passes in a season, video game numbers and a convincing win over Air Force at the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl. If this was Jared Goff’s final collegiate appearance, and a precursor to the junior quarterback transitioning to the NFL, he did it with unquestioned style.
Goff threw six touchdown passes, the second most ever thrown in a FBS bowl game, and Cal rolled to a 55-36 win over the Falcons from the Mountain West. Kenny Lawler caught three of those touchdowns, a nice bounce back from the second half of the receiver’s 2015 season in which he dealt with nagging injuries. And senior Bryce Treggs concluded his career at Cal with four catches for 143 yards and a touchdown.
Now Cal faces the likelihood that Goff and Lawler will join Treggs on the NFL job market. Bears’ fans in attendance remained hopeful, chanting “One more year” right before the conclusion of the game. They weren’t the only ones loosening their lungs in the anticipation of the big win, and a potentially bigger Cal season in 2016.
“I was chanting that too,” Coach Sonny Dykes said to a hearty round of laughter.
Goff finished 25 of 37 for 467 yards and he threw his sixth touchdown to Lawler with 17 seconds remaining in the third quarter. The Marin County product had a shot at a record-tying seventh touchdown pass in the fourth quarter, but Cal managed just one more score—a 30-yard Matt Anderson field goal—with 7:54 remaining. Given time by the offensive line, and buoyed by having all his available targets, Goff put on an ESPN highlight show with his touchdown throws alone.
Cal improved to 8-5 on the season, snatching their first post-season win since 2009. Just two seasons ago, Cal was 1-11 and Dykes’ Bear Raid seemed like a reference to a kidnapped picnic at Yosemite Park, not a sophisticated, successful offensive attack. How did the transformation take place in such a short period?
“It was as low as you can really go,” Goff said reflecting on the dismal 2013 season. “And a lot of, a lot of work, a lot of work in the off-season. So much work. And I know the staff had the same thing.”
“Our job is to teach them, teach them about life and the importance of perseverance,” Dykes said. “And these guys are sitting up here today, we’re all sitting up here today because of that. They kept believing, and we had to stay consistent in our message and what we did. And you got to give them credit. They jumped in with both feet when it wasn’t always easy to do.”
Air Force could have been a very difficult opponent for Cal. But the Bears got the jump on the scoreboard and kept the Falcons on their heels with bushel of big plays. This all after Air Force scored the game’s initial touchdown, chewing up the first 6 ½ minutes of the game with 11 consecutive run plays, the last Jacobi Owens 1-yard touchdown.
Air Force would amass 53 rush attempts in the contest for 285 yards, but they finished with three fewer offensive snaps than the Bears.
Cal evened the score in half the time (2:47) and four fewer plays. Vic Enwere’s 1-yard run evened the score, 7-7.
With the score tied at 14, and after an exchange of punts, Dykes’ preferred combination of aggressive play calling and tempo hit Air Force with the knockout blow, three touchdowns in final 7:37 of the first half that put the Bears up 35-21 at the half.
How speedy was the Cal offensive blitz? In a span of 22 plays, 11 for each team, Goff went wild, completing eight straight passes, three for scores and two others for gains of 40 and 55 yards.
Air Force’s contribution to the run was crippling. On the first play after a kickoff, quarterback Karson Roberts’ fumble was recovered by Cal’s Kyle Kragen. Goff then threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Lawler on the next play, increasing Cal’s lead to 14.
Lawler would contribute two more scores moving him into sole possession of second place on Cal’s all-time receiving touchdown list with 27. Treggs’ touchdown catch in the first quarter tied him with his father, Brian, for eighth on that same list.
Goff completed passes to nine different receivers, eight of those nine caught at least one pass for more than 10 yards. This marked the eighth time in Goff’s career that he’s thrown for at least 400 yards.
“The guys got open and made it a lot easier for me,” Goff said. “The O-line started to protect really well. And I’m just sitting back there, like you said, playing pitch and catch. And when they’re that open, I don’t want to say it’s easy, but it’s not as hard as it would be if you had to fit one in there.”
If Goff opts for the NFL, he could be drafted in the first five picks and be the first quarterback to be chosen. The fifth draft position could easily fall to the 49ers increasing the intrigue surrounding Goff’s decision.
If he returns to Cal, he’ll do so surrounded by an inexperienced group of receivers and protected by a younger, less experienced offensive line.
“I’m going to sit down with my parents and discuss it and decide and should know soon,” Goff said.
“I’ll give my two cents and just try to advise him,” Dykes said of Goff’s future. “Look, the way I see this thing is if he’s got an opportunity to be one of the top draft picks or the first quarterback taken in the draft, then I don’t think there’s much of a decision to make, quite frankly. And I’ll be incredibly supportive of him.”
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