Category: NCAA

Virginia Hands Stanford Third Loss of Season 48-20

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Virginia Cavaliers wide receiver Trell Harris (11) makes a catch over the Stanford Cardinal cornerback Collin Wright (6) in first half action at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville VA on Sat Sep 20, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

The Virginia Cavaliers (3-1) defense just stuck it to the Stanford Cardinal (1-3) on Saturday at Scott Stadium. The Cardinal just couldn’t get any offense going scoring only 14 points in the first half and six points in the third quarter to keep up with the Cavaliers and picking up their third loss of the season 48-20.

Virginia got right after it in the first quarter taking an early 7-0 lead in the opening minutes. Quarterback Chandler Morris found Trell Harris for three yards and the touchdown. Stanford answered right back scoring in the first quarter at 8:27.

Five plays later quarterback Ben Gulbranson drove downfield for 76 yards and a touchdown to tie up the game seven apiece. Gulbranson found Benji Blackburn for five yards and the touchdown to even this game.

Virginia scored a second touchdown in the first quarter extending their lead to 14-7. Quarterback Chandler Morris threw a bomb downfield to Trell Harris for 75 yards and a touchdown. The Cavaliers went on a run for the rest of the quarter. with Morris again finding Harris, this time a 27 yard pass and Virginia had a 21-7 lead going into the second quarter.

The Cardinal were able to keep stride with Virginia in the second half of this game. The Cavaliers did score first in the second quarter to push their lead out to 28-7. Morris rushed for 13 yards and the touchdown.

The Cardinal were able to score in the final seconds of the half. They took the ball downfield; 80 yards in less than 90 seconds. Micah Ford rushed for 3 yards and the score keeping this a two-touchdown game. The Cardinal were able to match the Cavaliers in the second quarter. Virginia would start the second half with the ball.

The Cavaliers picked up where they left off in the second quarter driving downfield with ease for their fifth touchdown of the day taking a 35-14 lead. Morris connected with Sage Ennis for 13 yards and the score.

This was Morris’ fourth touchdown of the day. The Cavaliers would go on to extend their lead 38-14 kicking their first field goal of the day, a 27 yard Will Bettridge boot. With 5:35 left in the quarter, Stanford had a lot of work to do.

Gulbranson got right to work airing out the ball with just over four minutes left in the quarter for 68 yards caught in stride by Bryce Farrell, his first touchdown this season. The two-point attempt failed and the Cardinal trailed 38-20. Gulbranson had completed a number of impressive passes so far in this game.

Going into the fourth quarter Virginia had established a 38-20 lead looking for their third win of the season. Virginia would drive into the red zone early in the quarter threatening to extend their lead.

Unable to score the touchdown, Virginia kicked their second field goal of the day pushing their lead back out to three touchdowns 41-20. The Cavaliers had their third sack of the game resulting in a Stanford fumble and Virginia had forced the first turnover of the game with under nine minutes left on the clock.

The Cavaliers were back in business in Stanford territory. They would to on to score their sixth touchdown of the night taking a 48-20 lead. Stanford did drive deep into Virginia territory in the final minutes but failed to score. They attempted a field goal at the end but it failed.

Game notes: Saturday evening the Cardinal traveled back east for a matchup with the Cavaliers. Virginia came into this game a 15+ point favorite. The Cardinal faced a power-house offense that put their defense to the test.

The Cavaliers were averaging 265 yards per game. Looking at the Stanford offense, Cardinal quarterback Ben Gulbranson was challenged by the Virginia defense all afternoon. After starting this season and looking like probably the worst Power Four team in football Stanford went out and upset Boston College last week 30-20 despite being a two-touchdown underdog.

Boston had some unfortunate plays and monster mistakes that resulted in the loss. Now the Cardinal travel cross country to take on the Cavaliers who have not not been overly impressive but they may not have to be in this matchup.

Virginia went down to the the wire against NC State, a road game, in their only loss. They blew away Coastal Carolina 48-7 and W & M 55-13. Stanford didn’t pose much of a threat to the Cavaliers. Stanford really struggled with passing issues.

Going forward the Cardinal could run into a lot of trouble against east teams. Virginia had a balanced attack through the air, as well as on the ground. In this game being played at home the Cavaliers they just ran away with this game.

Despite the lop-sided score Stanford was competitive in this game for much of the time. They had some really nice passing plays but just did not have the consistency needed to overcome the Cavaliers. Stanford quarterback Ben Gulbranson finished with 286 yards and 2 touchdowns. Bryce Farrell had 135 receiving yards.

Cal Bears podcast Morris Phillips: Cal heads to San Diego State in next match up Saturday

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Cal Bears quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele (3) prepares to sling a pass against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley on Sat Sep 14, 2025 (AP News photo)

Cal Bears podcast Morris Phillips:

#1 Cal Bears (3-0) quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele had himself an afternoon against the Minnesota Golden Gophers (2-1) throwing for three touchdowns in the Bears 27-14 win on Saturday. It was Cal’s third win in a row.

#2 The Gophers came into Berkeley with a 2-0 record and the Bears were likewise 2-0 and the game was viewed as a toss up but Sagapolutele made it look like easy work in the Cal 13 point win.

#3 Sagapolutele was 24-38 for 279 yards and all of his three passes were short scoring tosses. The win against Minnesota is a victory against a power conference opponent.

#4 The Gophers kicker Brady Denaburgh missed a 51 yard field goal that would have been tied up the game with ten minutes left in the game. Koi Perich mishandled a punt at the Minnesota eight and the Gophers missed their opportunities to get back in the game.

#5 The San Diego State Aztecs lost in their last game to the Washington State Cougars 36-13 and will be Cal’s next opponent. The Aztecs were just demolished on both sides of the ball scoring a one touchdown in the first quarter and six points in the third quarter. Cal is rolling as they travel to San Diego to face the Aztecs. How do you see this match up next Saturday?

Morris Phillips does the Cal Bears podcasts each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Stanford Cardinal podcast Michael Roberson: Cardinal kick off against Cavaliers this Saturday in week 4 action

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Stanford Cardinal celebrate their win over the Boston College Eagles at Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto on Sat Sep 14, 2025 (Stanford Cardinal photo)

Stanford Cardinal podcast Michael Roberson:

#1  Stanford Cardinal (1-2) running back Micah Ford carried for 157 yards and scored a touchdown. Ford reach a career high for yards carried.

#2 The win gave Stanford Cardinal head coach Frank Reich his first win at Stanford and also college win over the Boston College Eagles (1-2) 30-20 on Saturday.

#3 Stanford’s Collin Wright scored on a 19 yard interception in the first half of the game and the Cardinal defense did some prevent defense stopping a changing goal line stand just shutting down the Eagles in third quarter.

#4 Stanford quarterback Ben Gulbranson threw 13-22 passes for 186 yards that help get coach Reich his first college win as a college head coach. Reich was a quarterback in the NFL with the Charlotte Panthers and got a win with the Indianapolis Colts.

#5 The Cardinal head back east to face the Virginia Cavaliers (2-1) this coming Sat Sep 20. The Cavaliers won their last game against William and Mary Tribe 55-16. Cavaliers quarterback Daniel Kaelin went 8-14 for 164 yards and a touchdown.

Join Michael Roberson for the Stanford Cardinal podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Physical Cal Surprises Visiting Minnesota In A 27-14 Win That Takes Them To 3-0

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–Down 14-10 to Minnesota early in the third quarter, the youthful Cal Bears had their first moment of needing belief and a display of confidence.

The test was answered with a 10-play drive that concluded with Mason Mini’s 9-yard catch and run in which he successfully beat a quartet of Gophers defenders to get into the end zone.

For embattled coach Justin Wilcox, the coach was gifted wrapped a drive and a play that encapsulated what he loved of his team’s play on Saturday night in a 27-14 win that takes them to 3-0 on the season.

“I loved the fight the guys showed,” Wilcox said. “That was a physical game.”

Wilcox went on to praise his freshman quarterback Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele, his special teams, and kicker Abram Murray, who converted a 45-yard field goals to give Cal a 10-7 lead at halftime. With each player, assistant coach or position group Wilcox praised, his excitement was evident. Starting 3-0 and for the first time beating a credible opponent was big, and Wilcox obviously felt the vindication.

With an unprecedented 55 new faces on the Cal roster, someone among them had to seize leadership, and the Bears have that in Sagapolutele, who shook off some early missed throws to finish with 279 yards passing, three touchdowns and no interceptions. After Cal trailed briefly, Sagapolutele came up with two of those touchdown passes in Cal’s 17-0 finish that was fueled by two, damaging Minnesota turnovers.

Defensively, Cal frustrated the Gophers’ Drake Lindsey, who threw for just 205 yards along with an interception. The Gophers clearly missed leading rusher Darius Taylor, who missed the game due to injury, in a run game that rushed for 130 yards, but needed 37 carries to get there. Cade Uluave, Cal’s leading tackler, was unavailable for the first due to a suspension for targeting in the Texas Southern game. But he made his presence felt in the second half with nine tackles.

The Bears travel to San Diego State next weekend to face the Aztecs in their final non-conference game before opening ACC play the following week at Boston College.

Cardinal win ACC football opener over BC 30-20

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Stanford Cardinal wide receiver Caden High (6) is thrilled as Stanford wins it’s opener against the visiting Boston College Eagles at Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto on Sat Sep 13, 2025 (Stanford Cardinal photo)

By Daniel Dullum

Micah Ford rushed for 157 yards and a go-ahead touchdown for Stanford Saturday, helping the Cardinal win its first game of the season, a 30-20 Atlantic Coast Conference football victory over Boston College at Stanford Stadium.

The Cardinal improved to 1-2 overall and 1-0 in the league, while BC dropped to 1-2 overall, 0-1 in the ACC.

Stanford opened the scoring with a pair of field goals by Emmet Kenney from 23 and 35 yards, giving the Cardinal a 6-0 lead after one quarter.

The Eagles got on the scoreboard at 13:38 of the second quarter on a 51-yard field goal by Luca Lombardo. Less than two minutes later, Turbo Richard caught a 49-yard touchdown pass from Dylan Lonergan, and Boston College had its first lead of the game at 10-6..

On BC’s next possession, Jordan McDonald ran in on a 2-yard TD with 8:04 left in the second quarter, extending the Eagles lead to 17-6.

The Cardinal scored twice within 18 seconds to regain the lead. At 1:47 of the period, Sam Roush hauled in a 69-yard scoring pass from Ben Gulbranson. Eighteen seconds later, Collin Wright returned an interception 19 yards to put Stanford up 17-13.

Boston College tied the game at 20-20 going into halftime on a 31-yard field goal by Lombardo as the first half ended.

With 1:35 left in the third quarter, Ford’s 5-yard rushing touchdown put the Cardinal back in front to stay at 27-20. Stanford finished the scoring at 11:26 of the fourth quarter on a 26-yard field goal by Kenney.

Gulbranson completed 13 of 22 passes for 186 yards, one touchdown and was sacked twice. Bryce Farrell caught five passes for 72 yards, and Roush caught three passes for 79 yards and a touchdown.

Lonergan completed 30 of 44 passes for 333 yards for BC with one touchdown, one interception and was sacked once. Richard ran 14 times for 54 yards. Reed Harris and Lewis Bond each caught seven passes – Harris racked up 141 receiving yards.

Next Saturday, the Cardinal travel to Charlottesville, Va., for an ACC encounter with Virginia. Kickoff is at 4:30 p.m. Pacific.

Stanford Cardinal podcast Michael Roberson: Stanford gearing up for home opener against Boston College

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Stanford Cardinal offensive linebacker Tre Williams (38) gives defensive lineman Clay Patterson (91) a lift in week two against the BYU Cougars in Provo UT on Sat Sep 6, 2025 (Stanford Cardinal photo)

Stanford Cardinal podcast Michael Roberson:

#1 BYU Cougars quarterback Bear Bachmeier had himself an afternoon against the Stanford Cardinal last Saturday throwing for 175 yards and rushed for a touchdown as the Cougars crushed the Cardinal 27-3 in Provo.

#2 LJ Martin rushed for 110 yards averaging 6.1 yards per carry for BYU. For the second game in a row Martin had rushed for 100 yards and it was his fourth of his career. The Cardinal defense had a tough night trying to stop Martin.

#3 Stanford quarterback Ben Gulbranson threw for 142 yards and 161 total offensive. Gulbranson threw two interceptions and it just wasn’t enough to generate any kind of offensive threat against BYU.

#4 The Cardinal now 0-2 had only 12 first downs and only were two for 13 on third down. The Cardinal have a lot of work in front of them to get back on track.

#5 Next up for Stanford Cardinal the Boston College Eagles for the Cardinal home opener for 2025 after opening their first two games in Hawaii and BYU. The Eagles after crushing Fordham 66-0 in week 1 lost a close game to the Michigan State Spartans 42-40 in week 2. Michael what’s your take on Boston College and Stanford as they kick off this Saturday for the home opener.

Michael Roberson does the Stanford Cardinal podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Cal Bears podcast Morris Phillips: Cal gets ready for red hot Minnesota; Both teams are 2-0 going into week 3

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Sep 6, 2025; Berkeley, California, USA; California Golden Bears linebacker Cade Uluave (0) kneels on the field before the game against the Texas Southern Tigers at California Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Cal Bears podcast Morris Phillips:

#1 Morris the contest against the Texas Southern Tigers wasn’t even a contest Cal Bears (2-0) quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele was airing it out and the receivers and running backs just couldn’t be stopped by the Tigers defense.

#2 The scored three in the first quarter and eight in the second quarter in the second half the Bears ammoed up and scored 14 in the third quarter and ten in the fourth quarter can you talk about the differences in halves as far as the scoring is concerned.

#3 Sagapolutele threw 26-37 for 259 yards and one touchdown talk about the protection he got and he was able to rush a little himself.

#4 The Tigers quarterback KJ Cooper was running for his life all afternoon and had a line of 19-35, 137 yards, and one touchdown. The Cal defense kept it up on him all day long.

#5 The Minnesota Golden Gophers (2-0) are up next at Cal Memorial Stadium in Berkeley. The Gophers are coming off a 66-0 laugher against the Northwestern State Demons for their second straight win. Gophers quarterback Drake Lindsey threw for 139 yards went 8-9 and scored a touchdown. Will the Gophers be a handful for the Bears this Sunday or will Cal be a handful for Minnesota?

Join Morris Phillips for the Cal Bears podcast each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Texas Southern took a historic pounce onto the Cal campus Sat Afternoon

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Texas Southern quarterback KJ Cooper was 19-35 for 137 yards with one touchdown against the Cal Bears at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley for week 1 in NCAA action on Sat Sep 6, 2025 (file photo by Texas Southern Tigers Football)

By Michael Roberson

BERKELEY, Calif. — The Texas Southern Tigers (0-2) made their first ever trip to the Bay Area, and Berkeley in particular; however they have been in California before. In 2008 they played Shaw University in Sacramento. The Tigers came, saw, but did not conquer the California Golden Bears (2-0) 35-3..

The Historically Black College/University, located in Houston, was a prohibitive underdogs (44.5); however, the Tigers clawed and fought the ACC sophomore Ursus Arctos Californicus during the first 15 minutes of the contest

“We have a very good team! Expressed TSU HC and former NFL DB Cris Dishman. “We can face anybody. If our guys play up to their capabilities, we can beat anybody.”

After the first quarter, Cal led the visitors from the Lone Star State 3-0, but the Tigers knew they were in the game and in position for a shocking upset victory. They also had to be cognizant that they let some opportunities get away from them. The Bears added another touchdown and a 2-point conversion to extend the slim lead to 11 by intermission, 11-0.

Halftime was a different story. Texas Southern’s highly acclaimed “Ocean of Soul” band put on a tremendous performance rarely seen west of the Mississippi River, or at a Predominantly White Institution (PWI). During the mid game show, TSU had a zero on the scoreboard, grading the football team’s performance, but the band had to have received 10’s from the thousands of excited fans in Memorial stadium.

Not only is Texas Southern an HBCU, they are also a member of the legendary Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). The 12-team conference has produced some of the greatest players and pioneers in football history.

Texas Southern’s most renowned alumnus, or football player, would be Emmy Award winning TV host, analyst and football hall of fame honoree, Michael Strahan. His 15-year NFL (NY Giants) career garnered him two Super Bowl victories and countless individual awards. For his his professional career, he was inducted into the HOF in 2014. For his days at TSU (1989-92) he also entered the College Football (2025) and Black College Football (2014) halls of fame. Strahan even has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

A few other luminaries from the SWAC would include the incomparable Jerry Rice (Mississippi Valley State), Walter Payton (Jackson State), Doug Williams (Grambling State), Steve McNair (Alcorn State), and countless others from the gridiron.

Back to the second half of the game, this is when the heavy favorite started to open up the lead and continue the shutout. Cal scored two more touchdowns in the third quarter, changing the scoreboard change to 25-0 after 45 minutes of gametime.

In the final quadrant, Texas Southern got off of the “Goose Egg” with a 39-yard field goal, although the Golden Bears followed that score with anther touchdown of their own efforts. After 60 minutes of regulation Cal did not cover the spread with their 35-3 dominant victory, but did secure the home opening win and remained undefeated.

Despite the lopsided game result, Coach Dishman did find enjoyment during their trip to the Golden State. “It’s been great! I didn’t know we had that many California alums out here. They were at the hotel cheering us on to victory.” Stated Dishman. He also humbly and publicly apologized that the Tigers could not secure that victory for the TSU faithful.

Cougars cruise to 27-3 victory over the Cardinal

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BYU Cougars linebacker Jack Kelly (top) assists with the tackle on Stanford Cardinal running back Micah Ford (below) at Bringham Young University in Provo on Sat Sep 6, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Daniel Dullum

Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025

Brigham Young shut Stanford out for three quarters Saturday, as the Cougars defeated the visiting Cardinal 27-3 in non-conference football at Provo, Utah.

The Cougars (2-0) outgained Stanford (0-2) 332 yards to 161 yards in total offense, and collected 18 first downs to the Cardinal’s 12.

BYU opened the scoring with 3:25 left in the first quarter on a three yard touchdown run by Bear Bachmeier. Will Ferrin booted field goals of 36 and 30 yards out in the second quarter. The Cougars added a safety with 5:14 left in the half, and BYU took a 20-0 lead into halftime.

Ferrin kicked a 21-yard field goal with 8:56 remaining in the third quarter, and just over five minutes later, Stone Moa ran in from eight yards out, boosting BYU’s lead to 24-0 after three periods.

Stanford got on the board hen Emmet Kenney kicked a 26 yard field goal with 10:31 to play in the fourth quarter. Ferrin added his fourth field goal of the night, this one from 23 yards to complete the scoring with 6:33 remaining.

LJ Martin was the Cougars’ leading ground gainer, with 110 rushing yards on 18 attempts. Bachmeier completed 17 of 27 passes for 175 yards and no interceptions. Chase Roberts caught five passes for 84 yards.

Ben Gulbranson completed 17 of 32 passes for 142 yards for the Cardinal, but was picked off twice. Micah Ford ran for 21 yards on 12 attempts and Tuna Altahir gained 20 yards on six carries. Bryce Farrell caught five passes for 68 yards and CJ Williams made four receptions for 31 yards.

Next Saturday, the Cardinal’s home opener is an Atlantic Coast Conference contest with Boston College at The Farm.  Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m

Cal Finds Its Way On The Fly: Bears Start Slow in 35-3 Win Over Texas Southern

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–New faces, initial impressions, new surroundings… in this case, after an off-season of unprecedented upheaval, there was more of those elements on the home sideline than there were on the Texas Southern side.

Unusual? In a meeting of a FCS program traveling for a payday and a Power 4 program like Cal, almost unprecedented.

Accordingly, Cal started slow, managing just a 3-0 lead into the final 90 seconds before halftime. Slow wasn’t unsure as the Bears defense proved unyielding from the start. But not until quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele scored the game’s initial touchdown with 1:19 remaining before the break did the tension on the scoreboard relent.

“We had the energy going and some good defensive calls,” TSU coach Cris Dishman said. “We had some good drives going offensive, sustained some drives. So we keep them deep. We lost the field position. Football is mainly about field position. After we lost the field position, we couldn’t get it back.”

Cal’s defense maintained the pressure throughout and Sagapolutele’s touchdown triggered a 32-point explosion across five, consecutive possessions and the Bears pulled away to win 35-3.

Sagapolutele, who was a freshman sensation in Cal’s 34-15, season-opening win over Oregon State was less than that in completing 26 of 37 for 259 yards and one interception against the Tigers. Specifically, with Dishman’s acumen in a decade-plus NFL career as a cornerback, the visiting Tigers all but eliminated the deep outs that plagued Oregon State. Against TSU, Sagapolutele’s longest reception was 27 yards, forcing him to remain patient and work inside.

With a receiving crew with limited experience and even less star potential, Cal made it work. Mark Hamper, Jacob De Jesus and Mason Mini each had five catches and the offense clicked in the second half.

Kendrick Raphael was the only Bear to have a statistical history in Memorial Stadium, an illustration of a green offense that returns just one starter (OG Sioape Vatikani) along with rotation receiver Trond Grizzell. Raphael gained 10 yards in 6 carries last season as an NC State reserve back, but quickly made himself at home on Saturday.

Raphael pounded away in the run game, amassing 131 yards on 18 carries and his touchdown extended Cal’s lead to 18-0 in the third quarter.

Defensively, the Cal front led the way with constant pressure that kept TSU quarterback KJ Cooper off-schedule. Redshirt freshman Luke Ferrelli (11 tackles) and Cade Uluave kept Cal nearly perfect with no missed tackles.

Approximately 50 players departed Cal in the off-season, along with several assistant coaches. Impatient alumni complained loudly about ninth-year head coach Justin Wilcox. And the replacements almost entirely came from lesser programs where they had limited roles. Under those conditions, Cal’s 2-0 start is remarkable.

“If you keep the other team from scoring a touchdown, that’s really good,” Wilcox said. “However, there were just a lot of things we’re going to need to improve on.”