Cal To Host Clemson Under The Lights

Friday, September 25

Berkeley, Calif.

7:30 PM

California

Clemson

Tickets From $49 - $494

Cal looks to capture second conference win this week.

9/22/2026 2:00 PM | Football

Tickets Watch (ESPN)Live Stats Gameday Central Game Notes Listen (Varsity Network)Listen (810 AM)Spanish Live Stream

Bears Open Home Conference Slate Friday Night Against Tigers

By: Cal Athletics

California football (2-1, 1-0 ACC) will face Clemson (2-1, 1-0 ACC) under the lights on Friday night for the Golden Bears' first home conference matchup of the 2026 season. Kickoff at California Memorial Stadium is set for 7:30 p.m. PT with the game to be shown live on ESPN. Mike Monaco will be the play-by-play broadcaster with Jordan Rodgers the analyst and Dana Boyle the sideline reporter.

FRIDAY LINEUP
Venue: California Memorial Stadium, Berkeley, Calif.
Time: 7:30 p.m. PT
Watch (ESPN): Mike Monaco (PxP), Jordan Rodgers (Analyst), Dana Boyle (Sideline Reporter)
Listen (English Radio): 810 AM – Justin Allegri (PxP), Mike Pawlawski (Analyst), Ben Ross (Sideline Reporter); Sirius XM Ch. 81/Sirius XM App, The Varsity App, YouTube Live Stream
Listen (Spanish Radio): Cal Football YouTube Live Stream – Carlos M. Ramirez

BEARS VS. TIGERS
- Friday night will be California football and Clemson's first-ever meeting as conference opponents and second all-time.
- The Golden Bears and the Tigers last met in a memorable 1992 Florida Citrus Bowl in which Cal routed Clemson 37-13. It was the only New Year's Day bowl game the Bears have participated in since 1959.
- The 1991 season was an unforgettable one for Cal, as the Bears went 10-2 and finished the season with a No. 8 national ranking. They entered the game ranked 14th in the nation, while the Tigers ranked at No. 13 and were coming off an ACC Championship title. The Bears snapped the Tigers' streak of five consecutive bowl game wins.
- Wide receiver Brian Treggs returned a punt 72 yards for a touchdown to push the Bears to a 17-3 lead at the end of the first quarter and bowl-game MVP Mike Pawlawski completed 21 of 32 passes for 230 passing yards and one touchdown to lead Cal to victory. Consensus All-American running back Russell White amassed 103 rushing yards on 22 carries, one of which was a touchdown run, and wide receiver Sean Dawkins led the Bears with five catches for 55 yards and one touchdown reception.
- Cal will celebrate the 35th anniversary of the historic 1991 season at this Friday night's game with a reunion and special recognition of the team.

CAL...
- Is playing its conference home opener this week. The Bears are 1-0 in ACC play in 2026 after capturing a Week 2 road win against Syracuse on September 12.
- Is playing its only Friday night game of the season this week against Clemson.
- Had a 49-7 victory against Wagner last weekend which was the team's largest margin of victory since a road win at Oregon State by that same 49-7 score on Oct. 20, 2018.
- Scored 29 points in the first quarter against the Seahawks, which was its most in a single period since amassing 35 in the first quarter against Grambling State on Sept. 5, 2015.
- Had 626 yards of total offense last Saturday, which was its most in a game since totaling 679 at North Texas on Sept. 2, 2023.
- Did not have a punt against Wagner, marking the first time the Bears haven't had to punt in a game since Nov. 4, 2017, vs. Oregon State.
- Has produced strong results in the redzone this season with the Bears ranking second in the ACC and tying for 15th nationally in red zone defense (0.667) and fourth in the conference and tied for 43rd nationally in red zone offense (.917).
- Did not allow a sack against Wagner and only allowed one quarterback hurry to be recorded by the Seahawks.
- Ranks first in the ACC and 10th nationally in passing defense efficiency (95.31).
- Ranks second in the ACC and ties for fifth nationally in total interceptions (5).
- Ranks fourth in the ACC and 14th nationally in passing offense (321.7)
- Ranks third in the ACC and ties for 29th nationally in turnovers gained (5).

SAGAPOLUTELE ECLIPSES 4,000 CAREER PASSING YARDS
- QB Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele went over 4,000 yards passing through 16 career games played this past weekend. He is the third-fastest Cal quarterback in recent history to reach 4,000 passing yards as a Bear behind Davis Webb who reached 4,000 passing yards in 12 games in 2016 and Jared Goff who reached the milestone in his first 14 games played between the 2013-14 seasons.
- Sagapolutele completed 27 of 33 passes for a career-high 413 yards and three touchdowns against Wagner. He is the first Cal signal-caller to throw for at least 400 yards in a game since Jack Plummer threw for 406 against USC on Nov. 5, 2022.
- He was named a Manning Star of the Week following his performance.
- Sagapolutele now has four career 300-yard passing games, which is tied for 7th all-time at Cal.
- His 80-yard touchdown pass to Kyion Grayes was Cal's longest play from scrimmage since Chase Garbers' 84-yard TD throw to Trevon Clark in the 2021 Big Game at Stanford (11/20/21). It was also Grayes' first career touchdown reception.
- Sagapolutele's 866 passing yards this season rank fourth in the ACC and 20th in the nation while his seven touchdown passes are tied for third-most in the conference and rank 22nd in the NCAA. He leads the conference in passing attempts with 108.
- In 2026, he set the school record for the most consecutive pass attempts without an interception (210), previously set by Goff (185).

KING OF THE INTERCEPTION
- DB Kingston Lopa leads the nation with five interceptions for the second straight week. He has registered at least one takeaway in each of Cal's three games this season. Lopa needs one more interception to move into a tie for ninth place on Cal's single-season interceptions list.
- Lopa tallied a career-best three interceptions in the Bears' win over Syracuse, making him the first Bear to record three interceptions in a single game since Jaylinn Hawkins intercepted three passes against TCU at the 2018 Cheez-It Bowl.
- The last Bear to lead the nation in interceptions was Nohl Williams who finished the 2024 season atop the NCAA leaderboard with seven before being selected in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs.
- Lopa returned one interception 24 yards for a go-ahead touchdown against Syracuse, which was the first pick-six of his career and the first by a Bear since Williams' 40-yard interception return for a score against Miami on Oct. 5, 2025. Lopa returned his first interception against Syracuse a career-high 53 yards.

MOHAMMED GOES BEASTMODE
- RB Adam Mohammed exploded for 147 yards on 11 touches and three touchdowns in the first quarter against Wagner last Saturday.
- Mohammed has now eclipsed 1,000 career rushing yards. He leads the Bears and ranks fourth in the ACC and 26th in the NCAA with 285 rushing yards this season. His 60 attempts are second-most in the ACC.
- Mohammed caught two passes for a career-best 78 yards against Wagner, including being credited with a career-long 65-yard reception. His 138 receiving yards this season are third-best on the team and his 14 catches are tied for second-most.
- Mohammed set career-highs of 28 carries and 120 yards rushing while adding a touchdown in his Cal debut against UCLA in Week 1. His 120 rushing yards were the most by a Bear in his Cal debut in at least 50 years.

FULL OF FIRSTS
- Several Cal players had "firsts" in Cal's win over Wagner this past weekend.
- WR Kyion Grayes scored the first touchdown of his career with an explosive 80-yard score. Grayes and fellow WR Chase Hendricks led the Bears with 98 receiving yards each against the Seahawks. Grayes now has 101 receiving yards on four catches this season.
- LB Aaron Hampton blocked a field goal for the first time in his career when he got his paw on Wagner's attempt in the fourth quarter.
- TE Dorian Thomas recorded his first catch as a Bear against Wagner on a pass from QB Jackson Brousseau. Thomas transferred to Cal from New Mexico and was listed as the No. 6 tight end in the 2026 transfer portal by both 247Sports and On3 Sports, as well as high as the No. 107 player overall.
- RB Ashten Emory scored his first touchdown as a Bear (fifth overall) on an 8-yard scamper. He also caught the first pass of his Cal career with a 15-yard grab on a pass from Brousseau.
- WR Cooper Perry caught his career-first touchdown pass with a 16-yard toe-tap in the endzone against the Seahawks.
- DB Niles Davis recorded the first TFL of his career against Wagner.
- QB Jackson Brousseau led the first scoring drive of his Cal career when he replaced Sagapolutele in the third quarter. Brousseau directed a drive that resulted in a 37-yard field goal. He completed 8 of 10 passes for 79 yards, including a season-best 20-yard pass.
- Several defensive players registered the first tackles of their Cal careers against Wagner: R.J. Stephens (2), Tre' Harrison (2), LeBron Williams, Dabe Nwude, Nemyah Telona, Beckham Barney, Jude McLellan and Tobey Weydemuller.