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Provo • A four-game losing skid in October against teams from Group of 5 conferences pretty much ensured something less than a great football season for BYU, but the Cougars say this week's regular-season finale at California presents an opportunity for them to regain some national respect.
"We kinda went through a rough patch, and we are trying to get on a [long] winning streak now, and this is a chance to prove that, yeah, we are a good team, and we are playing well again," said senior defensive back Skye PoVey after the Cougars strolled past Savannah State 64-0 on Saturday. "And to go into a good program like Cal, at their place, I think we want to make a statement."
Cal (5-6) seemingly has more on the line, because the Bears need to win to get eligible to go to a bowl game for the first time since 2011 after losing 38-17 in their rivalry game to Stanford. Meanwhile, BYU (7-4) will play in the inaugural Miami Beach Bowl on Dec. 22 in Florida regardless of what happens at 2:30 p.m. MST Saturday at recently renovated California Memorial Stadium.
In the minds of BYU players and coaches, however, redemption is at stake. They've already defeated the other two teams from the so-called Power 5 conferences on their schedule, Texas and Virginia, but that was before quarterback Taysom Hill went down with a season-ending injury. A win over a Pac-12 team, albeit a mid- to lower-level one, on its field, with fill-in quarterback Christian Stewart at the helm, would go a long way toward saving a disappointing season.
"We are grateful for this matchup," BYU receiver Mitch Mathews said. "We have been looking forward to it for a long time, and we are excited to go to their place and show what we can do."
Stewart initially struggled when he replaced Hill in the second quarter of an eventual 35-20 loss to Utah State on Oct. 3, but has steadily improved to the point where many are acknowledging that he's a better passer than the opening-day starter. Stewart said Saturday that his confidence is at an all-time high.
The offense's play of late "has taught us that we can put up numbers, that we can play with Cal, for sure, and we have a lot of confidence," he said. "We have won three games in a row, and we feel like it will be a great way to close out the regular season."
Said Mathews: "They are a good team, and they throw the ball a lot and score a lot of points, [but] we trust the heck out of the defense to do what they do, and to stop them, and it is going to be up to us on offense to score just as much as they do, if not more."
Certainly, Cal scores a lot of points. The Bears are 13th in the country in scoring, averaging 38.5 points, and are 16th in total offense at 489 yards per game. Quarterback Jared Goff is third in the nation in passing yards, with 3,580, having completed 278 of 450 passes for 31 touchdowns with just six interceptions.
The Bears committed five turnovers against Stanford, though, and are a lot like BYU in that they've been bad defensively.
"We will see what we're made of as a team next week," Cal coach Sonny Dykes said after the loss kept his team from reaching the six-win plateau.
Twitter: @drewjay —
BYU at California
O Saturday, 2:30 p.m. MST
TV • Pac-12 Networks