Throughout the week, Cal's players remained resolute that the Bears stood as much of a chance of winning Saturday's matchup against Auburn as their opponent from the Southeastern Conference. Cal found itself in a battle and was willing to go blow for blow with the Tigers, but it wasn't enough as the Bears managed only 273 yards of offense in a 14-10 loss at California Memorial Stadium.
On a night when there were seven turnovers between the two teams, it was the Bears defense that was the story for most of the game. As the offense sputtered and struggled to get the ball in the end zone, Cal's defense came away with takeaway after takeaway to put the team in good position to score.
It just simply didn't happen.
The Bears went 4 for 18 on third down and scored on just one of four trips to the red zone. It was a recipe for a difficult night for offensive coordinator Jake Spavital only a week after his group posted 58 points in its win over North Texas.
"What I learned is we have to do a better job taking advantage of opportunities," Wilcox said. "When we're in the red zone, to score touchdowns. When we're on the field goal team, whatever it might be. Defensively, getting a stop on that last third down so we have another shot to put our offense on the field.
"The lesson is you have to take advantage of the opportunities you get. We have a lot of want to, and I love that. They play hard, but unfortunately want to isn't the only ingredient you need. So, the level of execution. You only get so many chances in a game like this against a talented opponent, you only get so many chances. And, you gotta take advantage of more than we did."
The Cal offense had plenty of adversity to overcome with another rotation at quarterback, a banged up offensive line and an injury to its star running back. However, the Bears had plenty of chances to build a lead and take control.
Michael Luckhurst missed three field goals in the game, and the Bears could only turn four turnovers into 10 points by the night's end.
A couple key penalties also proved costly for the Bears. Cal finished with four penalties resulting in a loss of 41 yards.
To add injury to insult Saturday night, Cal had star running back Jaydn Ott go down with an injury he suffered attempting to hurdle a defender in the third quarter. The sophomore had to be helped off the field and he never returned.
Wilcox did not have an update on Ott's status. He ended the game with 78 yards rushing on 20 carries.
The Bears also had to use multiple quarterbacks once again this weekend after Sam Jackson V, last week's starter, was brought in to relieve Ben Finley, who earned the start against Auburn after throwing for 279 yards when Jackson went down with an injury.
The Cal offense struggled to score with Finley taking the snaps, and he finished the game with just 34 yards passing on seven completions.
Jackson ultimately sparked the offense and guided a scoring drive that ended with Ott's touchdown when he entered the game in the second quarter.
The redshirt sophomore, too, ended up having issues getting the ball into the end zone and finished with just 126 yards passing to go with two interceptions.
The key drive in Saturday's game came late when the Bears failed to convert a scoring opportunity on Luckhurst's final miss. The ensuing drive featured one of the few explosive plays allowed by the Cal defense when Auburn quarterback Payton Thorne hit Rivaldo Fairweather for 28 yards.
It took the Tigers into Cal territory, and despite two sacks the drive resulted in a touchdown after a costly pass interference call against Bears defensive back Craig Woodson in the end zone.
That mishap for the Cal defense set up a 5-yard pass from Thorne to Fairweather, which eventually served as the game-winning score.
