Cal’s availability picture for Saturday night’s home game against Wake Forest came into focus Wednesday, and it’s still far from clean for either side.
The big question remains at quarterback for the Bears. Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele is listed as questionable after sitting out last week against Virginia Tech, when he was still working through concussion protocol from the hit he took late in the first half against UNLV.
That decision went right down to game time last week, but Cal ultimately held him out. In his place, Jackson Brousseau delivered a steady first start, going 29-for-43 for 321 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions in Cal’s 25-20 upset of Virginia Tech.
If Sagapolutele can’t go again, Brousseau would be making his second Cal start.
Cal is also monitoring running back Adam Mohammed and safety Kingston Lopa, both of whom are questionable after missing the Virginia Tech game. Mohammed remains the Bears’ leading rusher with 336 yards, but he’s in danger of missing his third straight contest. Carter Vargas, Cal’s No. 2 back, has already been ruled out, which would leave Ashten Emory lined up as the likely top option if Mohammed is unavailable.
Lopa, meanwhile, still leads the nation with five interceptions, but he too may miss a third straight game because of a concussion. He played only one defensive snap against UNLV before being sidelined.
Another Cal player listed as questionable is wide receiver Cooper Perry, who has eight catches for 11 yards this season. Defensive lineman Nate Burrell has already been declared out.
Wake Forest has its own notable names on the injury report. Wide receiver Carlos Hernandez, who leads the nation with 49 receptions and ranks third nationally with 720 receiving yards, is questionable. So is defensive lineman Langston Hardy, who has posted 9.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks and four quarterback hurries.
In Other News...
Cal Defense Faces A Brutal Test Against Wake Forest's QB
Cals defense is bracing for one of its toughest assignments yet with Wake Forest quarterback Gio Lopez coming into view this week. Tosh Lupoi and his staff have spent the buildup stressing the same point: Lopez can beat a defense in more than one way, with the kind of passing accuracy that keeps drives alive and the rushing ability that punishes any lapse in contain. For a Cal group that has had trouble handling the run this season, that makes the prep as much about discipline as it is about scheme.
Lupoi and the Bears have talked about mixing looks and staying sound across the board, because Lopez is the sort of quarterback who can turn a single breakdown into a long night. Cal knows it cannot afford to get pulled out of position chasing one part of Wake Forests offense while the other part keeps moving the chains, and the challenge now is translating that recognition into a defense that holds up for four quarters. [Read more 🡒]
Cal Defense Faces Its Toughest Test Yet Against Wake Forest
Wake Forests staff is already treating Cals defense like the standard it will have to measure itself against this week, with head coach Jake Dickert praising the Bears before the matchup and framing the unit as the toughest one the Demon Deacons have seen since Miami. That kind of respect fits the way Cal has played on that side of the ball, where Tosh Lupois group has shown real bite in pass coverage and a knack for attacking the football while making opposing quarterbacks uncomfortable.
The challenge now is less about recognition and more about matchups, because Wake Forest brings a mobile quarterback in Gio Lopez who can change the geometry of a play when the pocket breaks down. Lupoi has acknowledged that the Bears have been strong against dropback passers, but the moving parts that come with scrambling quarterbacks create a different test, and one Cal will have to handle better if it wants its defense to keep the same edge it has shown so far. [Read more 🡒]
Cal Faces A Telling Test Against One Of The ACC's Hottest Teams
Wake Forest arrives in Berkeley riding a three-game winning streak and carrying the kind of profile that makes this a useful measuring stick for California. The No. 21 Demon Deacons sit near the top of the Atlantic Coast Conference, so Saturday night gives Cal a chance to see how its recent win stacks up against one of the leagues hottest teams.
For California, the matchup comes with some extra moving parts after injuries have forced adjustments on the offensive side. The Bears will have to sort through those changes against a Wake Forest team that has been in good form and has already shown it can make opponents pay when things get rolling, which is exactly what makes this one worth watching in Berkeley. [Read more 🡒]