The California Berkeley Bears were struck by injuries last season. What injuries lead to: losing. Going 1-11 was not what Sonny Dykes had in his plans as a first-year coach for the Blue and Gold. Stripped of five would-be starters, who missed most or all of last season because of injuries, the Bears were helpless on defense.
“Never seen anything like it,” said Dykes, in his 19th season as a college coach.
Mustafa Jalil, Avery Sebastian, Stefan McClure are three of the key players that suffered season-ending injuries.
The result of last season crushed Berkely’s organization. They are now known as one of the worst teams in the Pac-12, but don’t rank them so low yet. You cannot confuse injury with talent.
The Bears have extremely talented players returning this season such as Jared Goff, Jalen Jefferson, Khalfani Muhammad, and Chris Harper.
Note that the players above are all in positions that are very crucial.
Jared Goff, QB, is coming off of a record-breaking season. Jalen Jefferson, LB, is 6’2 230 poounds and is the unquestionable leader of the defense. Khalfani Muhammad, RB, averaged six yards per carry last season and rushed for over 400 yards as a backup. Chris Harper, WR, is coming off of a great sophomore season with 852 yards and eight touchdowns and seems ready to be the next Keenan Allen of the Bears.
Coming from what the team is saying, they seemed to have forgotten about 2013 and are ready to move on.
“That’s been the most important thing, their mentality. They’ve moved on.” Sonny Dykes said. Adds RB Muhammad: “A season like that, it hurts. It’s a new year, we all come in here with a lot of confidence.”
The first game of the season against the Northwestern Wildcats will be important. It will set the tone for the season, but the Wildcats aren’t easy to beat.
If the California Bears could stay healthy, they have enough talent to succeed. The underrated Bears are ready to win games.
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