The Sports Xchange
Sep 5, 2015
Junior quarterback Jared Goff picked apart Grambling State's overmatched secondary and California's defense appeared to be much improved in a 73-14 victory on Saturday at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, Calif.
Goff completed 24-of-32 passes for 309 yards with three touchdowns and one interception in the first half for the Golden Bears (1-0).
Goff led the Bears to a 42-0 lead before freshman Chase Forrest came on to start the third quarter. Forrest completed 10-of-17 passes for 162 yards.
Junior wide receiver Kenny Lawler caught all three of Goff's touchdown passes, finishing with six receptions for 69 yards. Senior wide receiver Bryce Treggs had four catches for 81 yards.
Sixteen players caught passes for Cal.
Junior running back Khalfani Muhammad rushed for 92 yards on eight carries, helping the Bears accumulate 212 yards on the ground.
Sophomore Tre Watson, sophomore Vic Enwere, junior Jeffrey Coprich and senior Daniel Lasco all had touchdown runs for Cal.
Senior quarterback Johnathan Williams of Grambling completed only 7-of-22 passes for 103 yards with no touchdowns and four interceptions before being removed from the game.
It was an encouraging effort for Cal, which had one of the worst defenses in the country last season, against an opponent that returned all the major players from a team that led the Southwestern Athletic Conference in passing last season.
The Bears amassed 683 yards of total offense while holding the Tigers to 260.