Cal Football: On a Soggy Day in Berkeley, Bears Deal with Elements at Practice

Cal dealt with rainy conditions for part of Sunday's practice, and the elements even affected the postgame interview with Tim DeRuyter.

But all is good with the Bears barely a week from their Dec. 30 matchup vs. Illinois in the Redbox Bowl at Levi's Stadium.

Cal will practice once more on Monday morning before being dismissed to return home for a two-day Christmas break. Players will be back in Berkeley for practice Friday, then the team will relocated to San Francisco for workouts at City College of San Francisco along with bowl-related events.

DeRuyter said the coaching staff is not concerned about the two-day break, explaining they expect a mature squad to return ready to practice on Thursday.

Final exams ended late last week and players weren't as sharp as usual on Friday, according to DeRuyter. But things were back to normal on Saturday and he commented on how he liked the players' focus on Sunday.

Not everything went smoothly during the interview, as you will see in the video above, but DeRuyter handled it like a pro, chuckling and hardly missing a beat.

Aside from starting safety Ashtyn Davis, who had surgery and is out for the game, the Bears are fairly healthy on defense, according to DeRuyter.

Cal is playing in a bowl game for the second straight season after losing 10-7 in overtime to TCU in last year's Cheez-It Bowl at Phoenix.