CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2017 California

5–⁠7 (2–⁠7 Pac-12), coached by Justin Wilcox.

Schedule and results

California in 2017, game by game: won at North Carolina 35–30; won vs. Weber State 33–20; won vs. Ole Miss 27–16; lost vs. No. 5 USC 20–30; lost at Oregon 24–45; lost at No. 6 Washington 7–38; won vs. No. 8 Washington State 37–3; lost vs. Arizona 44–45; lost at Colorado 28–44; won vs. Oregon State 37–23; lost at No. 20 Stanford 14–17; lost at UCLA 27–30+34−31Won 35–30 at North Carolina+5North CarolinaWon 33–20 vs. Weber State+13Weber StateWon 27–16 vs. Ole Miss+11Ole MissLost 20–30 vs. No. 5 USC-10No. 5 USCLost 24–45 at Oregon-21OregonLost 7–38 at No. 6 Washington-31No. 6 WashingtonWon 37–3 vs. No. 8 Washington State+34No. 8 Washington StateLost 44–45 vs. Arizona-1ArizonaLost 28–44 at Colorado-16ColoradoWon 37–23 vs. Oregon State+14Oregon StateLost 14–17 at No. 20 Stanford-3No. 20 StanfordLost 27–30 at UCLA-3UCLA
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 2atNorth CarolinaW 35–⁠3032%
Sep 9vsWeber StateW 33–⁠2082%
Sep 16vsOle MissW 27–⁠1656%
Sep 23vs5USCL 20–⁠3036%
Sep 30atOregonL 24–⁠4540%
Oct 7at6WashingtonL 7–⁠3817%
Oct 13vs8Washington StateW 37–⁠337%
Oct 21vsArizonaL 44–⁠4564%
Oct 28atColoradoL 28–⁠4446%
Nov 4vsOregon StateW 37–⁠2378%
Nov 18at20StanfordL 14–⁠1722%
Nov 24atUCLAL 27–⁠3047%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to UCLA 30–⁠27; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 10th in the Pac-12.

In program history: The 48th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 112 on file).

Record
5–⁠7
Conference
2–⁠7 tied for 10th in Pac-12
AP final
Unranked
Points
333–⁠341
Coach
Justin Wilcox
Elo
1518 +9 this season
SP+ rating
-1.0 No. 74 of 128; offense No. 62, defense No. 81, special teams No. 55
SRS
2.3 No. 59 of 130 in FBS
Returning
39% of last season’s EPA, No. 101 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 70 roster talent No. 48 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Beau Baldwin
Defensive coordinator
Tim DeRuyter
Captains
Devante Downs, James Looney, Kanawai Noa, Patrick Laird, Matt Anderson, Ross Bowers, Ashtyn Davis, Jordan Veasy, Raymond Davison, Jaylinn Hawkins, Patrick Mekari, Tony Mekari, Vic Wharton III and Addison Ooms
Offense
Multiple
Defense
3–⁠4

How good, play by play

  • Offense86th of 130
  • Defense74th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted92nd of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted60th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0642%1.1786th of 130
Defense0.1147%1.1174th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.05 off
0.07 def		42% off
45% def		—92nd off
60th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.2own 3017% allowed
Defense3.2own 2815% caused

CORE rating -5.3, 86th of 130 (offense -4.3, defense 1.0).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsRoss Bowers QB3,039 yds
Passing touchdownsRoss Bowers QB18 TD
Rushing yardsPatrick Laird RB1,127 yds
Rushing touchdownsPatrick Laird RB8 TD
Receiving yardsVic Wharton III WR871 yds
Receiving touchdownsJordan Veasy WR6 TD
TacklesJordan Kunaszyk LB74 tkl
SacksRaymond Davison III OLB4.5 sacks
InterceptionsCamryn Bynum CB2 INT

Top recruits in the 2017 class

Chase Garbers PRO★★★★No. 334
Elijah Hicks CB★★★★No. 333
Taariq Johnson WR★★★No. 359
Biaggio Ali Walsh APB★★★No. 651
Jeremiah Hawkins ATH★★★No. 696

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2017 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks14.00.893
Running backs13.00.861
Receivers42.80.836
Offensive line23.00.841
Defensive line13.00.845
Linebackers13.00.811
Defensive backs14.00.893
Athletes and specialists33.00.828
Whole class143.10.844

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2018

The 2018 draft
Rd 7Devante Downs CBMinnesota Vikings
Rd 7James Looney DTGreen Bay Packers

Roster 112

The 2017 roster

112 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2017 line; 58 have a stat line. See the roster

2017 Pac-12 standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
USC8–⁠111–⁠312
Washington7–⁠210–⁠316
Stanford7–⁠29–⁠520
Washington State6–⁠39–⁠4
Arizona State6–⁠37–⁠6
Arizona5–⁠47–⁠6
Oregon4–⁠57–⁠6
UCLA4–⁠56–⁠7
Utah3–⁠67–⁠6
Colorado2–⁠75–⁠7
California2–⁠75–⁠7
Oregon State0–⁠91–⁠11

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.