Cal Sports Report

Cal Equipment Man's Heroics Earn Praise Across the Board

He rescued a helmet from a would-be thief in the on-field pandemonium after Saturday's Big Game

Jeff Faraudo

Justin Wilcox shows the technique for punching a ball loose.
Justin Wilcox shows the technique for punching a ball loose. / Photo by Jeff Faraudo
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The list of Big Game Heroes on Saturday at Memorial Stadium did not end with quarterback Fernando Mendoza and wide receiver Jonathan Brady, who teammed up for two fourth-quarterback touchdowns in Cal’s 24-21 win over Stanford. 

Trevor Skogerboe, Cal football’s assistant director of equipment, is getting his 15 minutes of fame after rescuing a helmet after a fan on the field tried to dash off with it during the post-game pandemonium. 

Cal coach Justin Wilcox praised Skogerboe, who is in his first season on the staff, and gave him high marks for his tackling technique.

“The one critique I would have is when we teach tackling on a chase tackle, we really want to secure the tackle and then come over the top violently to separate the runner from the ball, Wilcox says in the video at the top of this story. “Or in this case, the helmet. 

“Other than that, flawless technique by Trevor. He was enforcing one of the beliefs we have as a program: Don’t steal things. 

“I think we’d all be a lot better off with more Trevors out there.”

Wilcox joked that all of his players could benefit from watching how Skogerboe accelerated and brought down the would-be thief.

“He’s going on the teach tape, for sure,” Wilcox said. “It’s a good lesson for all: Don’t steal stuff.”

Wilcox shared a video of the moment during a team meeting and Cal’s players responded enthusiastically in support of Skogerboe.

The Minneapolis area native also got some love on social media.

Jim Nagy, executive director of the Senior Bowl all-star game, posted, “If anyone knows this equipment guy, please tell him we have a spot on staff for him during Senior Bowl week.”

“Cal’s equipment manager needs to be promoted to kickoff and punt coverage immediately,” another fan wrote on Twitter.

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Jeff Faraudo
JEFF FARAUDO

Jeff Faraudo was a sports writer for Bay Area daily newspapers since he was 17 years old, and was the Oakland Tribune's Cal beat writer for 24 years. He covered eight Final Fours, four NBA Finals and four Summer Olympics. 

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