Cal-BYU Postgame Notes
Brandon McIlwain led the Bears with 74 yards rushing in Cal's 21-18 win at BYU.

FB9/8/2018 11:00 PM | By: Cal Athletics

Cal-BYU Postgame Notes

  • With the 21-18 win, Cal improved to 11-6 in true road openers since 2002. The Bears also improved to 2-3 all-time vs. BYU with the other victory coming in the 2005 Las Vegas Bowl.
  • Cal snapped a five-game road losing streak on Saturday. The Bears' last win away from home was a 35-30 victory in the 2017 season-opener at North Carolina.
  • Redshirt freshman quarterback Chase Garbers made his first career start, completing 18-of-28 passes for 176 yards and two touchdowns, while adding five rushes for 45 yards to give him 231 total yards.
  • Kanawai Noa hauled in a 52-yard touchdown reception from Garbers in the third quarter. It was his fifth career TD reception and his first in 2018. The play was Cal's longest play from scrimmage this season as well as Garbers' longest career completion and Noa's second-longest career catch. Noa finished with a career-high-tying seven catches for 93 yards and passed 1,000 in career receiving yards (now with 1,006).
  • Patrick Laird set a career high with seven receptions for 53 yards, including a 25-yard TD reception from Garbers in the first quarter.
  • Garbers (5-45) and Brandon McIlwain (16-74, team high) combined to rush for 119 yards. Through two games this season, they have combined for 184 yards on the ground. McIlwain scored his first touchdown as a Golden Bear on a 2-yard run early in the fourth quarter.
  • Cal's three touchdown drives of 80, 79 and 85 yards were three of the team's longest four drives of the season with the 79-yarder equaling a drive of 79 yards against North Carolina in the season opener.
  • Cal's defense has not allowed a touchdown in the first three quarters of the game in either of its first two contests and three times in the Justin Wilcox era.
  • After registering a career-high 14 tackles vs. North Carolina, Evan Weaver posted his second career double-digit tackle performance by finishing with 12 tackles. He also posted multiple pass breakups in a game for the first time in his career with three.
  • Jordan Kunaszyk had the fourth double-digit tackles total of his career with 12.
  • After going 1-for-6 on third downs in the first half, the Bears converted 7-of-9 on third downs in the second half to finish 8-of-15.
  • Vic Wharton III collected his 100th career reception at Cal and now has 102 after four against the Cougars.
  • Traveon Beck snared his first career interception in the fourth quarter while national interception co-leader Jaylinn Hawkins intercepted his third pass of the season later in the period, giving the Bears six interceptions in two games that leads the country.
  • Addison Ooms has now started the last 26 consecutive games, the only member of the Cal team to do so.
  • Garbers and Rusty Becker made their first career starts at, while Marcel Dancy, Siulagisipai Fuimaono, Lone Toailoa, Jake Tonges played in their first career contests for the Golden Bears.
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