This was not a win over top-ranked Washington, a Pac-12 South championship victory over ASU or a last-second field goal toppling Oklahoma.
It was a defensive struggle for Arizona against a California team without 24 players and five coaches because of COVID-19 protocol.
That does not matter one bit as far as the Wildcats and Jedd Fisch are concerned.
The. Streak. Is. Over.
“I’m happy to get that monkey off our back,” Fisch told the Pac-12 Networks crew at Arizona Stadum.
Michael Wiley’s 10-yard touchdown run with 2:17 remaining was the difference in Arizona ending its 20-game losing streak with a 10-3 win Saturday.
“This is just the beginning.” – @CoachJeddFisch #Pac12FB | @ArizonaFBall | #BearDown pic.twitter.com/dNPIHTo1fi
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) November 6, 2021
“The feeling is hard to describe,” Fisch said of the locker room scene after the game. “First of all, there is so much love in that locker room. They were so happy for each other. As much as we talk about one game, each game is a championship opportunity.
“They were so happy for each other. They sung ‘Bear Down’ as loud as possible. They deserve every bit of it.”
Arizona, which had the longest losing streak in the nation, won its sixth straight against California, a nemesis from the past that kept the Wildcats from a couple of potential Rose Bowl trips in the 1990s.
The Wildcats (1-8, 1-5 Pac-12) won for the first time since Oct. 5, 2019, at Colorado – 763 long days ago.
The Golden Bears (3-6, 2-4) were without many of their top players, including quarterback Chase Garbers, because of the COVID-19 outbreak in the program.
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Garbers took every snap at quarterback through Cal’s first eight games. Transfer Ryan Glover, who played last spring at Western Carolina after three years at Penn, was the starter.
Arizona’s defense stymied Glover all day as he completed only 11 of 29 passes for 94 yards.
The teams finally got points on the board in the third quarter when they traded field goals.
Tyler Loop’s 29-yard field goal with 5:46 left in the quarter was answered by Nick Lopez, who made his first career attempt, a 34-yarder with 2:09 remaining.
Lopez replaced Dario Longhetto, one of the players affected by the COVID-19 restrictions.
The Wicked Witch is Dead pic.twitter.com/JeZ1kBdOSR
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) November 6, 2021
In that drive resulting in Lopez’s field goal, Cal achieved its first third-down conversion in the game after failing in its first eight attempts. The Golden Bears also moved past the 50-yard line for the only time in the game.
They finished with only 122 yards of total offense while Arizona tallied 331.
“Getting that win feels good because we’ve been busting our butt every day,” defensive back Christian Young said. “We feel like the weight is off our shoulders. We just have to keep on winning.”
Arizona quarterback Will Plummer suffered a shoulder injury in the first half, forcing him to leave the field twice to the locker room to be examined. He went to the locker room again in the third quarter with a bloody hand that required stitches.
“The thought of not coming back in the game never crossed my mind,” he said. “I wanted to get back out there.”
Plummer completed 16 of 28 passes for 129 yards with two interceptions. He also rushed for 68 yards on 11 carries.
“This is my first win in college so it’s very special to me for sure,” said Plummer, in his second year in the program.
Cats supporting Cats! 🐻 ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/Q6RafxWIVS
— Arizona Basketball (@ArizonaMBB) November 6, 2021
Converted receiver Jamarye Joiner and fifth-string quarterback Luke Ashworth took snaps for Arizona, which has lost Jordan McCloud (knee and ankle injuries) and Gunner Cruz (thumb) for the season.
The MVP was punter Kyle Ostendorp, who consistently pinned Cal deep on its side of the field. He averaged 50.1 yards in his seven punts, one of which stuck the Golden Bears inside their 1-yard line in the fourth quarter.
Arizona’s best scoring situation in the first half with 9:09 left in the first quarter when the Wildcats reached the Cal 7-yard line but Plummer’s pass on third-and-goal was tipped by Nate Rutchena and fellow linebacker Evan Tattersall intercepted the pass.
It was a back-and-forth defensive battle from there with a total of 18 punts in the game.
It was a survival of the fittest and no better example existed than Arizona playing with a makeshift offensive line that included center Josh McCauley playing left tackle because of injuries to former Marana standout Jordan Morgan and backup Donovan Laie.
“Hats off to our staff making sure we were always ready in case something happened,” said Fisch, who added that offensive coordinator Brennan Carroll had McCauley try 10 snaps at left tackle in practice Friday in case of an emergency replacement.
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon. He became an educator five years ago and is presently a special education teacher at Gallego Fine Arts Intermediate in the Sunnyside Unified School District
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