California general manager Ron Rivera didn’t hold back this week, straight up calling out coach Tosh Lupoi’s first season as a disaster. After the Golden Bears dropped their third straight game, pushing them to a dismal 3-6 overall, Rivera aired his grievances during Cal’s open date, and what he said about Lupoi is just brutal.
Rivera’s Harsh Truth About Lupoi’s First Season
Rivera himself pulled no punches, saying Thursday on KNBR that Lupoi, a first-time head coach, brought in “a couple of inexperienced coordinators.” He flat out admitted, “Things didn’t work out the way we needed them to work out on offense. He has bumped his head a lot. We’ve talked a lot, tried to give him a lot of advice, point him in the right direction and, you know, some of it he’s been very receptive and other portions of it he hasn’t.” Yikes. Talk about a vote of no confidence!
This was supposed to be a big year. Everyone thought Cal could contend in the ACC, especially with Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele back at quarterback after his “head-turning freshman campaign.” But Rivera pushed back on comparing Cal to UCLA, who are currently unbeaten and No. 8 in the College Football Playoff rankings after blowing out Cal 45-24 in the opener. Rivera pointed out UCLA’s first-year coach, Bob Chesney, brought “half of the team that he had that went to the playoffs to begin with.” Lupoi, on the other hand, was new to the top job. The expectations were clearly not met.
From Cornerstone To The Bench: Sagapolutele’s Story
Remember when Lupoi flew to Hawaii last December just to convince Sagapolutele to stay? He was supposed to be the “returning cornerstone” for a team that finished 7-5 last year under the fired coach Justin Wilcox. Nobody expected this kind of regression.
The season actually started 2-1 after wins against Syracuse and Wagner. Things looked okay, setting up that Friday night clash with Clemson. And then… poof. It all disappeared. The Golden Bears couldn’t find any offensive rhythm in a 24-10 loss to the Tigers. Lupoi got desperate, stripping offensive coordinator Jordan Somerville of play-calling duties and promoting passing game coordinator Pat McCann at halftime during their 39-31 loss to UNLV the very next week. They managed one win with a “different signal caller” against Virginia Tech, but the writing was on the wall. Lupoi eventually benched Sagapolutele before a brutal 41-7 loss to Wake Forest. This team has lost five of their last six games!
Win Out Or Go Home: The Grim Reality
Now, the postseason? Forget about it unless they pull off a miracle. Cal has to win *all three* of their remaining games against Virginia, Stanford, and Pitt to even have a shot at avoiding missing the postseason entirely. This isn’t just a bump in the road; it’s a full-on collision course with a completely missed season. Cal fans, what are we even doing here?
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by CBS Sports.
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