By Morris Phillips
The Art of Sport was overtaken by the Prevalence of Uncertainty at SoFi Stadium, and that was just another layer of bad news for the disheveled Cal Bears on Wednesday night.
The 24-13 loss to UNLV was empty of intrigue after the first quarter, which saw the Bears lead 3-0 and 10-7. The game fell out of reach at that point as Cal kicked just one field goal over the final three quarters while Coach Justin Wilcox was forced to devote all his energy to determining who he had left to compete.
“There were a lot of guys playing who will be working to earn a spot going into spring,” Wilcox said. “Some of these guys really helped themselves. We have a lot of great evaluation. We wish we would have won the game.”
CJ Harris, Cal’s starter at quarterback, completed 13 of 20 passes but departed in the third quarter when he suffered arm and hand injuries. True freshman EJ Caminong stepped in, but with no playing experience at the collegiate level, he suffered, completing just 6 of 19 passing attempts along with a critical fumble on a botched lateral play.
Fernando Mendoza announced his intention to leave the program 10 days ago, entering the transfer portal and leaving Cal with precioulittle experience at the quarterback position.
The Rebels won their first bowl game since beating Arkansas after the 2000 season. They did so without coach Barry Odom, who accepted the Purdue coaching job in the last week. Hajj-Malik Williams threw two touchdown passes as UNLV started slowly but played steadily throughout with one score in each of the four quarters.
“I’ve done this so many times that it is a big deal for the players to experience,” interim coach Del Alexander said. “For them to feel it and get the reward and establish the legacy, it’s important for them.”
Cal finishes the season at 6-7, failing to post a winning season for the first time since 2019. The Bears won 3 of 4 and beat Stanford to gain bowl eligibility but lost their final two games.
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