There is not any scarcity of plotlines coming into Cal’s sport Saturday evening at Memorial Stadium towards No. 8 Miami:
— Can the Bears decelerate quarterback Cam Ward and a Hurricanes’ offense that ranks second nationally, averaging 49.4 factors per sport?
— Will the bye week have helped the Bears clear up the pre-snap penalty points that plagued them in their 14-9 loss at Florida State?
— Has Cal sorted out its kicking sport, the place Ryan Coe drilled a 51-yard area aim at FSU however missed six kicks this season together with 4 from inside 40 yards?
There is one different elephant in the room as the Bears (3-1, 0-1 ACC) prep for the Hurricanes (5-0, 1-0): Keeping quarterback Fernando Mendoza upright.
Mendoza was sacked a career-high seven instances in the loss to FSU.
He was taken down six instances per week earlier in a win over San Diego State.
That’s 13 sacks in two video games after surrendering simply three in the first two video games. The present tempo is a recipe for failure, not to point out the potential hurt it might do to Mendoza.
It provides up to 16 sacks or 4.0 per sport, which ranks Cal in a tie for a hundred and thirtieth nationally. They share that spot with South Carolina, higher than solely South Florida, which is giving up 4.2 sacks per sport, and Old Dominion, which has absorbed 4.75 per sport.
There isn't a single offender right here. Like most issues in soccer, plenty of people have a hand in this. The offensive line is the best goal. But receivers should get open, giving the quarterback a viable goal.
(*13*)And the quarterback — in this case, Mendoza — performs a job.
On the Bears’ remaining offensive snap at Florida State — fourth-and-16 from the Seminoles’ 23-yard line with lower than a minute left — coach Justin Wilcox hardly let Mendoza off the hook after he took his seventh sack.
“We have to throw the ball. We can’t eat the sack,” Wilcox stated after the sport. “They’re in zero across the board. We’ve got to throw the ball. It’s not going to get better than 1-on-1. We have to give our guys a chance to make a play. And we did not do that.”
The problem Saturday is made tougher by the incontrovertible fact that Miami leads the ACC and ranks third nationally, averaging 3.6 sacks per sport.
The Canes’ defensive ends are coached by Pro Football Hall of Famer Jason Taylor, in his second season with the program. The 50-year-old was a star for the Miami Dolphins, compiling 139.5 profession sacks.
Miami might be stronger up entrance nonetheless with the anticipated return of 2023 ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year Rueben Bain Jr., sidelined by harm since the opening collection of the season's first sport. A 6-foot-3, 275-pound sophomore, Bain had 13 tackles for loss and seven.5 sacks last season.
“We know what type of player he is,” Canes coach Mario Cristobal stated. “He looked great in warmups last week. I mean he was right there and could have probably could go this past week, but we chose and medically chose the right route. The correct route because it just guarantees him better health going forward.”
The state of Cal’s O-line stays unsure. Starting guard Sioape Vatikani, maybe the crew’s high offensive lineman, made his season debut at FSU after lacking the first three video games due to harm.
But Vatikani was taken off the area at Florida State on a cart after sustaining what appeared to be a head or neck harm. He was examined at an area hospital and Wilcox confirmed he had motion in his extremities however had no additional info.
We could have our first entry to Wilcox since then throughout his Tuesday media session, however it’s extra doubtless than not that we gained’t get a definitive report on Vatikani’s availability for Saturday.
