Cal Sports Report

Cal Football Game Summary: Bears Clobber North Texas 58-21

Jaydn Ott, QB Ben Finley lead the Bears, who score their most points in a game in eight years

Jake Curtis

In this story:

Cal won its season opener by beating North Texas 58-21 on Saturday in Denton, Texas. 

It is the most points scored by the Bears since 2015, when they put up 73 points against Grambling State in the season opener that season. It was the most points scored by Cal against an FBS opponent since the Bears topped Washington State 60-59 in 2014.

Cal finished with 669 yards of total offense.

Jaydn Ott rushed for 188 yards and scored two touchdowns for the Bears, and he did not play after leaving the game midway through the third quarter with Cal holding a big lead.

Cal quarterback Ben Finley replaced injured starter Sam Jackson V in the first half and went 24-for-34 for 279 yards, one touchdown and one interception.  

Jackson apparently injured his left arm in the first half, and he did not return.  It's unclear what his status will be for next Saturday's home game against Auburn. He reportedly wanted to go back in the game Saturday, so the guess is that he'll be ready for next Saturday's game, although Justin Wilcox was reluctant to say anything definitive.

CAL 58, NORTH TEXAS 21

RECORDS: CAL (0-0), NORTH TEXAS (0-0)

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Jaydn Ott barely gets the nod over Ben Finley

TURNING POINT: Cal drove 75 yards in the final two minutes of the first half, ultimately scoring with seven seconds left in the second quarter to increase its 27-21 lead to 33-21. The Bears then got the ball to start the second half and scored a touchdown on that possession to make it 41-21 with a two-point conversion.

CAL INJURY NOTES: Cal quarterback Sam Jackson V and center Matthew Cindric were injured in the first half, and neither returned. Their status for next week is unknown.

KEY PLAY 1: On Cal’s first offensive play, Jaydn Ott runs 41 yards from the Cal 35-yard line to the North Texas 24-yard line.

KEY PLAY 2: Two plays later, Sam Jackson V throws a 23-yard touchdown pass to Jeremiah Hunter to give Cal a 7-0 lead with 12:53 left in the first quarter.

KEY PLAY 3: North Texas quarterback Stone Earle throws a 58-yard completion to Ja’Mori Maclin, putting the ball at the Cal 5-yard line. Two plays later, Earle throws a 3-yard touchdown pass to Maclin to tie the score 7-7 with 11:04 left in the first quarter.

KEY PLAY 4: Cal kicker Michael Luckhurst misses a 32-yard field goal, leaving the score tied 7-7 with 3:58 left in the first quarter.

KEY PLAY 5: Cal defensive back Jeremiah Earby intercepts a Stone Earle pass at the 50-yard line and returns it 36 yards to the North Texas’ 15-yard line. It sets up Jaydn Ott’s 4-yard touchdown run, giving Cal a 14-7 lead with 1:04 left in the first quarter.

KEY PLAY 6: North Texas quarterback Stone Earle throws a 59-yard touchdown pass to Ja’Mori Maclin, tying the score 14-14 with 14:33 left in the second quarter.

KEY PLAY 7: Cal quarterback Sam Jackson V is injured and is replaced by Ben Finley with 13:25 left in the first half.

KEY PLAY 8: On a fourth-and-2 play from the North Texas 26-yard line, Cal running back Isaiah Ifanse runs 26 yards for a touchdown, putting Cal ahead 21-14 with 7:30 left before halftime.

KEY PLAY 9: Cal’s Jaydn Ott runs 66 yards for a touchdown. Michael Luckhurst’s extra-point is blocked, leaving Cal with a 27-14 lead with 5:42 left in the second quarter.

KEY PLAY 10: Cal’s Jaydn Ott fumbles, and it is recovered by North Texas at the Cal 24-yard line. That leads to Stone Earle’s 12-yard touchdown pass to Xzavior Kautai, reducing Cal’s lead to 27-21 with 1:47 left in the first half.

KEY PLAY 11: Cal’s Ben Finley completes a 34-yard pass to Monroe Young, putting the ball at the North Texas 9-yard line. That sets up Isaiah Ifanse’s 8-yard touchdown run with seven second left in the first half. Two-point conversion attempt fails, giving Cal a 33-21 lead.

KEY PLAY 12: Cal's Isaiah Ifanse scores his third touchdown of the game, scoring on 1-yard run with 11:24 left in the third quarter.  Jack Endries caught a two-point conversion pass from Ben Finley to put Cal ahead 41-21.

KEY PLAY 13: Cal linebacker Kaleb Elarms-Orr intercepts a Stone Earle pass at the North Texas 32-yard line, leading to a 4-yard touchdown pass from Bears quarterback Ben Finley to Taj Davis with 8:02 left in the third quarter. It gives Cal a 48-21 lead.

STAT OF THE GAME: Cal had 366 yards of total offense in the first half and finished with 669 yards. Cal rushed for 357 yards.

STAT OF THE GAME II: North Texas has a stable of strong running backs and had a productive run game last season, but Cal limited the Mean Green to 41 rushing yards.

INDIVIDUAL STAT OF THE GAME: Cal running back Jaydn Ott averaged 9.4 yards per carry on 20 attempts.

INDIVIDUAL STAT OF THE GAME II: Backup Cal running back Isaiah Ifanse rushed for three touchdowns.

QUARTERBACK STATS: Cal’s Sam Jackson V was 3-for-4 for 33 yards and a touchdown, and rushed for 18 yards on three carries.  Cal's Ben Finley was 24-for-34 for 279 yards, one touchdown and one interception.  

North Texas’ Stone Earle was 12-for-19 for 174 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. Chandler Rogers played the fourth quarter for the Mean Green.

WHAT IT MEANS: Cal won a game it was expected to win, and they did it in convincing fashion.  The Bears' offense, which has been a weakness the past six seasons, came alive with a big performance, suggesting Jake Spavital's offense may be more productive than past Cal offenses. It's too early to draw grand conclusions, though; North Texas is not USC. Or Oregon. Or Washington. Or perhaps any team in the Pac-12.

CAL'S BOWL BAROMETER: Cal's chances of landing a bowl berth stand at 50%. This was a game the Bears needed to win to give them a chance at a bowl berth.  But by no means does it mean a bowl game is a certainty.  North Texas was picked to finish seventh in the American Athletic Conference, and is probably the second-worst team on Cal's 2023 schedule (Idaho, an FCS team, plays Cal in Week 3).

NEXT GAME: Cal (0-0) vs. Auburn (0-0) at Berkeley on Saturday, September 9. Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. TV: ESPN. Cal plays its home opener against an SEC team that clobbered the University of Massachusetts 59-14 on Saturday in the Tigers' opener.

Cover photo of Jaydn Ott by James Snook, USA TODAY Sports

Follow Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jakecurtis53Find Cal Sports Report on Facebook by going to https://www.facebook.com/si.calsportsreport

Cover photo of Jaydn Ott by James Snook, USA TODAY Sports

Follow Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jakecurtis53

Find Cal Sports Report on Facebook by going to https://www.facebook.com/si.calsportsreport

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Jake Curtis
JAKE CURTIS

Jake Curtis worked in the San Francisco Chronicle sports department for 27 years, covering virtually every sport, including numerous Final Fours, several college football national championship games, an NBA Finals, world championship boxing matches and a World Cup. He was a Cal beat writer for many of those years, and won awards for his feature stories.

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