Stanford's Big Game Dominance Leads to Cal Making Huge Change

Oct 17, 2025; Berkeley, California, USA; California Golden Bears head coach Justin Wilcox looks on against the North Carolina Tar Heels in the second quarter at California Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

It was less than 24 hours following the 31-10 Big Game loss down in Palo Alto, when Cal general manager Ron Rivera elected to meet with head coach Justin Wilcox. Many knew this decision was coming, but on Sunday it was finally confirmed. The Golden Bears front office decided it was time to fire Wilcox and elect to join the coaching search.

Despite some expecting the fate to fall through, it was somewhat out of left field to see such a prominent head coach in the Cal community get fired with one game left in the season. But after the loss to the Cardinal, Cal decided that it was time to go. The Bears had beaten Stanford in four straight chances.

On Saturday night, Stanford took down Cal 31-10 in the Big Game, with the Bears losing in embarrassing fashion. Quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele struggled to move the ball, the run game wasn’t great, and Jacob De Jesus wasn’t able to carry the Bears past the first quarter.

The Cal offense also fumbled the ball twice, leading to a pair of scoop and run touchdowns. This was just one example of how discombobulated the offense was all game long.

Defensively they played fairly well overall, but the faltered down the stretch and allowed the game to get away from them. Running back Micah Ford and wide receiver CJ Williams torched the Bears in the fourth quarter, and Stanford was able to put up 14 total points on the Cal defense in the fourth and outscored Cal 17-0 in the second half.

But it wasn’t a player issue that made the Bears appear so lost, it was numerous coaching mistakes. Whether it was penalties, formation issues, or just an overall sense of no urgency, Cal looked like they needed a leader to get them to the promised land, which is something that they apparently feel Wilcox couldn’t do.

Stanford deserves some of the blame for the firing of Wilcox. Their ability to dominate both sides of the ball and make Cal’s more talented roster look completely disorganized shows how great of a performance they had.

Lots of props should be directed towards interim head coach Frank Reich, who completely out-coached Wilcox, who has led Cal in many Big Games before.

There was just a certain sense of competitiveness that Stanford possessed on Saturday that Cal didn’t, and that’s why the Cardinal ultimately took home the Stanford Axe on Saturday night.

Now both Bay Area programs will be competing for a head coach next season, but Stanford has been conducting their search for months now, and is expected to make a formal announcement following the Notre Dame game next weekend.