Cal focused on fundamentals in upset bid at No. 15 Louisville

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In the city where a horse named Donerail once won the Kentucky Derby against 91-to-1 odds, the Cal football team doesn’t face quite as steep a challenge Saturday against 15th-ranked Louisville.

Still, the Golden Bears will take the field as 19.5-point underdogs, the most lopsided point spread they’ve faced all season.

One week after losing to 14th-ranked Virginia 31-21 in a game they trailed by just three points in the final minute, the Bears (5-4, 2-3 ACC) will be chasing what has eluded them most of this season: a complete game.

Asked what it will take to upset the Cardinals (7-1, 4-1), Cal coach Justin Wilcox offered no magic formula.

“Block and tackle. I know that’s going to seem like coach-talk and over-simplification but it’s true,” he said. “We have to block and we have to tackle. Without that, we have no chance. I don’t care what scheme you have. You just have a dry-erase marker at that point.”

The Bears have demonstrated promise at times this season, led by quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, whose numbers outshine those of any Cal freshman at the position other than Jared Goff.

But entering its 10th game of the season, Cal is still struggling to find someone who can deliver an accurate shotgun snap to Sagapolutele. Inconsistency has plagued the Bears nearly everywhere on the field at one time or another.

Their offensive line has been a weak link again this season and there may be changes there on Saturday. The defense, a staple under Wilcox for most of nine seasons, cannot stop the run and couldn’t get off the field on third down last week. Fortunately, junior linebacker Cade Uluave, the team’s best player, is now listed as probable to play after leaving the Virginia game in the first quarter with an injury.

Having lost two in a row for the first time this season, the Bears need one more victory just to become bowl eligible. They’ll need to overachieve to reach seven or eight victories, which is more in line with what they envisioned for this season.

Cal has a bye next week before traveling to Stanford for the Big Game, then closing the regular season at home against SMU.

Wilcox said his team remains motivated. “Unfortunately, it takes more than effort,” he said. “We’ve got to play better football.”

Senior cornerback Paco Austin, who had six pass breakups against Virginia, agreed there is no surrender in the locker room.

“We’re pretty confident right now. We just have to tighten up some screws and start faster,” he said, referring to the 10-0 first-quarter hole they faced against Virginia. “If we play together as one team, we’re unstoppable.”

The Bears weren’t exactly unstoppable while winning their first three games, but it was an encouraging start to the season. Since then, they are 2-4 with victories over ACC bottom feeders Boston College and North Carolina that were not secured until late defensive takeaways.

The losses have taken a toll but haven’t killed the Bears’ spirit, their coach said.

“The mentality’s there,” Wilcox said. “They’re disappointed, they’re frustrated, like everybody. That’s what happens when you don’t win games. But we had opportunities and didn’t get it done. How are we gonna fix that? That’s the attitude.”

Austin acknowledged a win over Louisville would mean a lot to the Bears.

“Every win, whether they’re 0-and-whatever or ranked, every win matters,” Austin said. “I feel like everybody is in a good mood, nobody is dragging their feet like, ‘Oh, we just lost.’ Everybody is next-game mentality.”