Cal Football: `Underdog' QB Chase Garbers Unconcerned Where Others Rate Him

His response: `We’ll see at the end of the year where we are and were they are.'

Is Chase Garbers the Rodney Dangerfield of Pac-12 quarterbacks?

Dangerfield was the old stand-up comic who chronically complained he got “no respect," And as the 2021 college football season approaches, Cal’s senior quarterback isn’t getting much love, either.

Oh, his Mom loves him. So do his teammates and coaches. And no doubt many Cal fans.

But Garbers has been conspicuous by his absence from preseason lists ranking the best players in the country or the Pac-12.

CBS Sports ranked the top 49 quarterbacks in the country, classified by five tiers. They included five Pac-12 QBs in the top three tiers, but Garbers is nowhere to be found.

Lindy’s magazine chose first, second and third teams for its preseason All-Pac-12 selections, and Garbers didn’t make the cut on any of them.

Then there were Athlon and Phil Steeele, each of whom selected four All-Pac-12 squads. Again, Garbers were overlooked.

If Garbers’ feelings are hurt, he didn’t let on during our interview.

“I’ve seen a couple of them. Everyone has their own opinion,” he said. “I’ve looked at myself as an underdog for a majority of my life when it comes to athletics. That’s just how I take this approach.”

Garbers cited the “hype” other Pac-12 quarterbacks have received, most notably Kedon Slovis or USC and Jayden Daniels of Arizona State.

“There’s a lot of guys with a lot of hype on there,” he said. “Cal and especially myself technically don’t really have a lot of hype when it comes to the national scene.

“We’ll see at the end of the year where we are and were they are.”

Clearly, Garbers is counting on the Bears exceeding what are generally modest expectations from others. And he understands it, based on Cal’s performance in the pandemic-impacted 2020 season.

"Obviously, we went 1-3 . . . didn’t win as many games. We only played four games,” Garbers noted. A lot more guys in the country had a lot of flashy numbers. So it’s hard not to put them up there, especially with that hype.”

Jayden Daniels

Photo by Cheryl Evans, Arizona Republic

Garbers posted a pass-efficiency rating of 120.3 that ranked ninth among conference quarterbacks a year ago. He threw for just 771 yards in four games — less than 193 per game — and had the forgettable total of six touchdown passes.

Daniels, whose 145.7 efficiency rating is best among returning QBs in the Pac-12, actually threw for fewer yards (701) and touchdowns (five) in the same number of games. But he was picked off just once and had a significantly higher yards-per-attempt number (8.34 to 5.67).

USC’s Slovis had eye-popping stats by comparison. He had conference-best totals of 1,921 yards and 17 TDs in six games (320.2 yards per game) and a 144.1 passer rating. And he did it for a team that was 5-1.

Kedon Slovis

Photo y Robert Hanashiro, USA Today

Still, that’s just two quarterbacks. Garbers has more career starts than any other Pac-12 quarterback and has a record of 14-5 in games where he has started and played more than half the game.

Garbers said he wouldn’t use the lack of off-season publicity as a motivator, but he was not altogether convincing on that front.

“I’ve never really been externally motivated. I’ve always been able to motivate myself internally,” he said. “This just adds another chip to the shoulder.”

More important to Garbers is helping his team generate success and showing NFL scouts what he can do. He believes demonstrating a mastery of offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave’s system will lead to success, which scouts will factor into their evaluations.

“I’m very confident.” he said. “With coach Musgrave, we run the West Coast system, so it’s as hard as it gets in terms of offensive terminology and intelligence. I’ve played for coach Wilcox — going into my fifth year now. I know what on- and off-the-field qualities they need as a team in terms of a quarterback.

“I’m a very above-the-neck quarterback, I would say. A lot of my teammates would say that also. Being able to put me in the meeting room and on the board and in the film room in those situations is definitely helpful when it goes to the next level.”

Garbers doesn’t pretend not to daydream about his possible future as a pro. It doesn’t consume him, but it’s there.

“I’ve thought about it. You see your buddies get drafted and you kind of wonder. It’s always been a dream of mine.” he said. “Right now I’m focused on this season and our team and putting our best foot forward.”

Cover photo of Chase Garbers by Kelley L. Cox, USA Today

Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo