Berkley, CA – Quarterback Bo Nix and the Oregon Ducks offense has looked like one of the most electrifying offenses in the Pac-12. Today the Cal Bears got to see that for themselves. Bo Nix had 3
touchdowns in the air and 3 on the ground and even with 2 picks, Nix still was in full control of
the offense from the opening drive to their final possession.
On Cal’s side of things, this was the 5th loss of the season, but it didn’t come without a fight
from the Bears. Jaydn Ott had his worst performance of the season so far with only 57 yards on
14 carries. Jack Plummer had 214 yards and 1 touchdown, but in the 4th quarter he showed
signs of pain and the rest of the quarter we saw Kai Millner behind center and for the final
touchdown of the game, Milner threw a 55 yard pass to Justin Richard Baker. It would be
Milner’s second of 2 touchdowns during his time on the field, but it wasn’t enough, Bo Nix and
that stacked Oregon offensive core would win 42-24.
Before the game my focus was on two longtime friends and former teammates at
Menlo-Atherton, Cal’s CB Jeremiah Earby and Oregon’s WR Troy Franklin. Playing almost their
whole lives together in Palo Alto and being part of the highly respected Menlo-Atherton football
team, this would be these 2 young stars’ first time going head to head.
When asked how they were feeling going against each other for the first time in college, Earby said “It’s exciting going up against someone I’ve been teammates with basically all my life. It’s definitely going to be intense every snap we line up. “ and Franklin said, “I’m very excited, it’s really just another
game, but it’ll be fun playing at home.”
The excitement was felt the moment they saw each other on the field and when I mentioned the idea of some smack talk just for friendly competition, Earby said “Facts! It’s definitely going to be a lot of words said.” I couldn’t hear it from my seat in the house, but I saw the competition from both the boys. My sources say that between the two of them Earby won the head to head, but it’s because they didn’t try him over the top.
Seeing these kids go from high school to playing on national tv for legendary schools, it’s beautiful to
see and even more heartwarming knowing that they can still be such competitors as well as
good friends.
