California Golden Bears Athletics

The atmosphere on the Cal campus is filled with a buzz of anxious excitement. It must means Big Game week is upon us.
 
The electric pulse from California Memorial Stadium can be felt throughout the entire campus, but the Golden Bears are preparing as they have been the entire season.
 
Saturday marks the 120th Big Game, which will be held this year at Stanford Stadium at 5 pm. The Big Game is tied for the sixth-longest active rivalry between Football Bowl Subdivision teams.
 
The Big Game will always be known for "The Play", a five-lateral, 57-yard kickoff return through the Stanford Band that lifted Cal to a 25-20 victory over the Cardinal on the final play of the 1982 Big Game that is considered by many to be the greatest play in college football history.
 
For head coach Justin Wilcox, this will be his first time involved in the Big Game as a head coach, although he went 3-0 as an assistant coach at Cal from 2003-05. Wilcox fully understands the magnitude of this rivalry, but he has been keeping his team focused on preparing like it is any other opponent.
 
"I've been a part of it before and I understand it's one of the greatest rivalry games in college football," Wilcox said. "For the university, the alumni and the entire student body, it's a huge deal, but we're preparing like we do every other week. We have a ton of respect for Stanford and what they've done. They've been playing really good football for a long time. It'll be a really good challenge for us, and we're going to have to prepare really well and go out and play well."
 
Stanford holds a 62-46-11 lead in the series, and the Bears will be vying for their first win over Stanford since 2009.
 
Cal is also after the coveted Axe, given annually to the winner of the Big Game. Like all of the current Bears, senior linebacker Raymond Davison III has never had the chance to hoist the Axe in his tenure in Berkeley.
 
"This is a very special rivalry for us," Davison said. "We know how much this game means to our program, but we've been focused and preparing like we have all season long. We know that Stanford is a good team, and it's going to take a great game for us to come away with the win, but a win on their field in my last Big Game would be huge. I've never had a chance to touch the Axe."
 
The Bears are currently sitting at 5-5 and are one win away from becoming bowl eligible. It would be the second time in three years that Cal has qualified for a bowl game.
 
With all the various factors looming ahead of the Bears heading into such a momentous rivalry game, it has not been difficult for them to remain level-headed and focused. For senior running back Vic Enwere, the excitement of the moment is a welcomed pleasure.
 
"The biggest thing we have done as a team is remain humble, stay calm and even-keeled," Enwere said. "We've been really focusing on putting in the work and not letting the outside things distract us. It is the Big Game, but what really goes on in the Big Game is determined in our preparation through the week. The tradition of this rivalry is built off the wins and losses and the football played in between the lines. So right now we're focused on everything in between the lines."
 
Senior nose guard Tony Mekari is no stranger to the Big Game, but the thrill of competing in the historic game is hard to contain.
 
"We're all excited to be a part of such a long-standing tradition in college football, but we're taking it as any other game," Mekari said. "We've still kept the same intensity we have been bringing every week throughout the season."
 
Junior wide receiver Vic Wharton III has fully immersed himself with the history of the Cal-Stanford rivalry and has not taken his opportunity to participate in this historic rivalry lightly.  
 
"It's special to get a chance to play in one of the biggest rivalry games in the history of college football," Wharton said. "The game means brotherhood and the memories you will never forget with your teammates and coaches. It an honor to be able to play in this game, but we've just been laser-focused as a team and understanding this game is a chance for us to do something very special."
 
The Bears are preparing this week as they have every other week this season, but there's no doubt that a win on Saturday would be a little sweeter for many reasons.