Sept. 4, 2010
Final Stats
BERKELEY, Calif. - Shane Vereen rushed for two touchdowns and quarterback Kevin Riley threw for another to help Cal score 28 points in the second quarter on Saturday and pull away from UC Davis in a 52-3 season-opening win before 58,040 fans at Memorial Stadium in the first football meeting between the programs in 71 years.
UC Davis, which trailed just 7-0 after a competitive first quarter, was held to just 81 total yards. Junior Sean Kelley had a 43-yard field goal in the third quarter, making him 5 for 5 from beyond 40 yards in his career.
Vereen finished with three touchdowns after opening the scoring with a 23-yard pass from Riley with 4 minutes, 11 seconds left in the first quarter. A 13-yard touchdown pass from Riley to receiver Marvin Jones early in the second quarter made it 14-0, sparking a big second period in which Vereen followed an 18-yard TD pass from Riley to Keenan Allen with a pair of seven-yard touchdown scampers in the final 2:13 before half.
The Aggies, meanwhile, struggled to get an offensive rhythm going, punting on their first seven possessions, including six straight when they were held to just three plays. The Bears outgained UC Davis 332-31 in the first half and had 16 first downs to the Aggies' one. Riley completed 13 of 19 passes for 210 yards before halftime - while Vereen had 70 rushing yards.
Trailing 42-0 in the third quarter, UC Davis put together its only scoring drive. Redshirt freshman quarterback Randy Wright - the first freshman to start an Aggie season-opener in a decade - hit sophomore Anthony Soto for five yards and tight end Cameron Sentance for 15 more to help the Aggies move to the Bears' 25. Kelley followed shortly later with a 43-yard field goal into the endzone containing more than 5,000 UC Davis fans.
Keenan Allen caught a 48-yard touchdown pass from Riley on the Bears' first drive of the second half while backup quarterback Beau Sweeney ran in from four yards late in the third. Giorgio Tavecchio capped the scoring with a 23-yard field goal late in the game.
UC Davis coach Bob Biggs credited Cal in the victory but was also pleased with his team's effort. The Aggies had just one turnover and just two penalties for 14 yards.
"I've been in games when I've been really disappointed with how we played and felt like we gave points away, we put the ball on the ground," said Biggs. "It wasn't that kind of game. They were better. They were much more physical. And I don't mean it wasn't effort on our part that made it not physical. They just moved us around. They controlled the (offensive) line and (defensive) line and made it very difficult, obviously, offensively for us to do anything."
Wright gave UC Davis early enthusiasm, completing a 14-yard pass to tight end Dean Rogers on the game's first play from scrimmage. But Cal stiffened from there, forcing the Aggies to punt. Riley fumbled on Cal's first possession, giving the Aggies the ball at the Cal 46 but UC Davis wasn't able to threaten.
Vereen's TD reception near the end of the first quarter capped an 80-yard drive and was the only score of the period. The Bears scored on their next three drives but were turned away by the Aggies on downs and then by a punt on their next two. However, Vereen scored from seven yards with just over two minutes left before half and then added another less than a minute later after the Aggies turned it over with a fumble on the enusing kickoff.
Riley finished with 258 passing yards and three touchdowns to lead the Bears' offense which had 517 yards overall. Wright completed eight passes for 57 yards for UC Davis and was sacked just once. Running back Josh Reese caught three passes for 15 yards while Rogers had two for 24. Soto also had two grabs.
Sophomore Colton Schmidt had 10 punts in the game, averaging 40.6 yards with a long of 53.
The game was the first time Cal and UC Davis have played since 1939 with the Bears now owning wins in all nine matchups.
UC Davis will open its five-game home schedule next Saturday when it hosts Portland State at 6 p.m. at Aggie Stadium.
