2017 California Golden Bears football team

The 2017 California Golden Bears football team represented the University of California, Berkeley in the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bears were led by first-year head coach Justin Wilcox and played their home games at California Memorial Stadium. The Bears went 5–7, including non-conference wins over North Carolina and Ole Miss, and three losses by three points or fewer.[1] The season highlight was the Bears' 37–3 defeat of then-No. 8 Washington State, which marked the first time Cal had beaten a top ten opponent since its defeat of No. 3 USC in 2003.[2]

2017 California Golden Bears football
ConferencePac-12 Conference
DivisionNorth Division
Record5–7 (2–7 Pac-12)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorBeau Baldwin (1st season)
Offensive schemeMultiple
Defensive coordinatorTim DeRuyter (1st season)
Base defense3–4
Captain
(14)
  • *Devante Downs (9)
  • *James Looney (8)
  • *Kanawai Noa (7)
  • *Patrick Laird (7)
  • *Matt Anderson (1)
  • *Ross Bowers (1)
  • *Ashtyn Davis (1)
  • *Jordan Veasy (1)
  • *Raymond Davison (1)
  • *Jaylinn Hawkins (1)
  • *Patrick Mekari (1)
  • *Tony Mekari (1)
  • *Vic Wharton III (1)
  • *Addison Ooms (1)
Home stadiumCalifornia Memorial Stadium
Seasons
← 2016
2018 →
2017 Pac-12 Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
North Division
No. 20 Stanford xy   7 2     9 5  
No. 16 Washington x   7 2     10 3  
Washington State   6 3     9 4  
Oregon   4 5     7 6  
California   2 7     5 7  
Oregon State   0 9     1 11  
South Division
No. 12 USC xy$   8 1     11 3  
Arizona State   6 3     7 6  
Arizona   5 4     7 6  
UCLA   4 5     6 7  
Utah   3 6     7 6  
Colorado   2 7     5 7  
Championship: USC 31, Stanford 28
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

Recruiting

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Position key

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Back B Center C Cornerback CB Defensive back DB
Defensive end DE Defensive lineman DL Defensive tackle DT End E
Fullback FB Guard G Halfback HB Kicker K
Kickoff returner KR Offensive tackle OT Offensive lineman OL Linebacker LB
Long snapper LS Punter P Punt returner PR Quarterback QB
Running back RB Safety S Tight end TE Wide receiver WR

Recruits

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The Golden Bears signed a total of 14 recruits.

US college sports recruiting information for 2017 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Gabriel Cherry
DE
Bakersfield, California Centennial HS 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 265 lb (120 kg) Feb 13, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Taariq Johnson
WR
Buena Park, California Buena Park HS 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 213 lb (97 kg) Apr 3, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Jeremiah Hawkins
WR
Buena Park, California Buena Park HS 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) May 6, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Chase Garbers
QB
Newport Beach, California Corona del Mar HS 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jun 26, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Alex Funches
DE
Denton, Texas Trinity Valley Community College 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jul 6, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Biaggo Ali Walsh
RB
Las Vegas, Nevada Bishop Gorman HS 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 186 lb (84 kg) Aug 14, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Michael Saffell
C
Huntington Beach, California Edison HS 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 293 lb (133 kg) Oct 5, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Elijah Hicks
CB
La Mirada, California La Mirada HS 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jan 10, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Poutasi Poutasi
OG
Las Vegas, Nevada Desert Pines HS 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 280 lb (130 kg) Jan 28, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Daniel Scott
S
La Cañada Flintridge, California St. Francis HS 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jan 29, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    RivalsN/A   247Sports:     ESPNN/A
Kyle Harmon
LB
Oakley, California Freedom HS 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 218 lb (99 kg) Jan 29, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPNN/A
Gavin Reinwald
WR
Elk Grove, California Elk Grove HS 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jan 29, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPNN/A
Branden Smith
CB
Lancaster, California Paraclete HS 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Feb 1, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Ben Moos
TE
Pullman, Washington Pullman HS 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 240 lb (110 kg) Feb 1, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "California Football Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  • "2017 California Football Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  • "ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  • "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved March 12, 2017.

Personnel

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Coaching staff

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Name Position Seasons at Cal Before Cal
Justin Wilcox Head coach 1st as head coach
(LB coach, 20032005)
Wisconsin – Defensive coordinator (2016)
Beau Baldwin Assistant head coach / offensive coordinator / running backs coach 1st year Eastern Washington – Head coach (2008–16)
Tim DeRuyter Defensive coordinator / inside linebackers coach 1st year Fresno State – Head coach (2012–16)
Gerald Alexander Defensive backs coach 1st year Montana State – Defensive backs coach (2016)
Jerry Azzinaro Defensive line coach 1st year San Francisco 49ers – Defensive line coach (2016)
Steve Greatwood Offensive line coach 1st year Oregon – Offensive line / defensive line coach (2000–16)
Marques Tuiasosopo Quarterbacks coach / Passing Game Coordinator / recruiting coordinator 1st year UCLA – Quarterbacks coach / passing game coordinator (2016)
Nicholas Edwards Wide receivers coach 1st year Eastern Washington – Wide receivers coach (2014–16)
Charlie Ragle Special teams coordinator / tight ends coach 1st year Arizona – Special teams coordinator (2013–17)
Tony Tuioti Outside linebackers coach 1st year Cleveland Browns – Quality Control, Defense (2014–15)
Desmond Bishop Quality Control, Defense 1st as asst. coach
(LB, 20052006)
Washington Redskins – Linebacker (2016)
Erik Meyer Quality Control, Offensive 1st year La Mirada HS (CA) – Quarterbacks coach (2008–16)
Reference: [3]

Roster

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2017 California Golden Bears Football

Quarterback

Running back

  •  4 Zion Echols –   freshman (5'8, 180)
  •  5 Tre Watson – senior (5'11, 205)
  • 22 Derrick Clark –   freshman (5'10, 210)
  • 23 Vic Enwere – senior (6'0, 245)
  • 26 Biaggo Ali Walsh – freshman (5'10, 190)
  • 28 Patrick Laird  junior (6'0, 200)
  • 30 Billy McCrary III – junior (5'11, 210)
  • 34 Fabiano Hale –   senior (6'0, 225)

Wide receiver

  •  1 Melquise Stovall – sophomore (5'9, 185)
  •  2 Jordan Duncan – sophomore (6'1, 210)
  •  6 Jeremiah Hawkins – freshman (5'8, 170)
  •  8 Demetris Robertson – sophomore (6'0, 185)
  •  9 Kanawai Noa –   sophomore (6'0, 180)
  • 13 Grayson Bankhead –   freshman (6'0, 170)
  • 15 Jordan Veasy  senior (6'3, 225)
  • 17 Vic Wharton III –   junior (5'11, 210)
  • 19 Brandon Singleton –   sophomore (6'0, 170)
  • 24 Matt Rockett –   sophomore (5'9, 195)
  • 31 Chas Peterson –   senior (5'11, 185)
  • 38 Alex Netherda –   sophomore (6'0, 205)
  • 88 Taariq Johnson – freshman (6'2, 220)

Tight end

  • 11 Raymond Hudson –   senior (6'3, 245)
  • 16 Collin Moore – freshman (6'4, 225)
  • 80 Jake Ashton –   junior (6'3, 235)
  • 83 Ben Moos – freshman (6'4, 235)
  • 84 Gavin Reinwald – freshman (6'3, 215)
  • 87 Kyle Wells –   junior (6'3, 245)
  • 89 Matt Laris –   freshman (6'3, 235)
  • 99 Malik McMorris – junior (5'11, 300) (+FB)

Punter

  • 37 Steven Coutts – junior (6'4, 210)
  • 42 Dylan Klumph –   junior (6'2, 235)
 

Offensive lineman

  • 53 Michael Saffell – freshman (6'2, 295)
  • 54 Gentle Williams –   freshman (6'3, 295)
  • 57 Addison Ooms –   junior (6'4, 300)
  • 58 Semisi Uluave – junior (6'5, 345)
  • 60 Daniel Juarez – freshman (6'5, 290)
  • 61 Valentino Daltoso –   freshman (6'4, 310)
  • 65 Tanner Prenovost –   freshman (6'0, 265)
  • 70 Poutasi Poutasi – freshman (6'4, 305)
  • 71 Jake Curhan  freshman (6'6, 325)
  • 72 Kamryn Bennett –   junior (6'3, 310)
  • 74 Ryan Gibson –   sophomore (6'2, 285)
  • 76 Henry Bazakas –   sophomore (6'6, 300)
  • 77 J.D. Hinnant –   senior (6'4, 300)
  • 79 Patrick Mekarijunior (6'4, 300)

Defensive end

  •  9 James Looney  senior (6'3, 280)
  • 44 Zeandae Johnson –   sophomore (6'4, 280)
  • 90 Rusty Becker –   senior (6'4, 280)
  • 91 Chinedu Udeogu –   freshman (6'4, 250)
  • 92 Gabe Cherry – freshman (6'5, 260)
  • 96 Tevin Paul –   freshman (6'4, 270)

Nose guard

  • 50 Hunter Abel –   sophomore (6'0, 275)
  • 93 Luc Bequette  sophomore (6'2, 290)
  • 97 Tony Mekari –   senior (6'1, 295)
  • 98 Chris Palmer –   junior (6'2, 320)

Outside Linebacker

  • 13 Russell Ude –   sophomore (6'3, 245)
  • 19 Cameron Goode  freshman (6'3, 225)
  • 33 Noah Westerfield – senior (6'3, 250)
  • 36 Alex Funches – junior (6'2, 230)
  • 46 Drew Bryant –   junior (6'2, 220)
  • 51 Cameron Saffle – junior (6'3, 250)
  • 89 Evan Weaversophomore (6'3, 250)
  • 94 Trevor Howard –   sophomore (6'3, 250)

Placekicker

  •  9 Matt Anderson –   senior (6'0, 195)
  • 41 Gabe Siemieniec –   freshman (6'1, 220)
  • 49 Matt Abramo –   sophomore (6'3, 190)
 

Inside Linebacker

  •  1 Devante Downssenior (6'3, 245)
  • 11 Hamilton Anoa'i – senior (6'2, 255)
  • 31 Raymond Davison –   senior (6'2, 235)
  • 40 David Ortega Jr. –   junior (5'9, 210)
  • 41 Gerran Brown –   sophomore (6'2, 220)
  • 43 Kyle Harmon – freshman (6'1, 240) (+OLB)
  • 55 Aisea Tongilava –   junior (6'1, 220)
  • 59 Jordan Kunaszyk  junior (6'3, 235)

Cornerback

  •  2 Darius Allensworth –   senior (5'11, 195)
  •  3 Elijah Hicksfreshman (5'11, 180)
  •  8 Nygel Edmonds –   freshman (5'11, 190)
  • 16 Chibuzo Nwokocha –   junior (6'1, 185)
  • 18 Marloshawn Franklin Jr. – senior (5'11, 190)
  • 20 Joshua Drayden – sophomore (5'9, 185)
  • 22 Traveon Beck – sophomore (5'9, 160)
  • 24 Camryn Bynum  freshman (6'0, 180)
  • 27 Ashtyn Davis  sophomore (6'1, 195)

Defensive back

  • 10 Daniel Scottfreshman (6'2, 200)
  • 45 Branden Smith – freshman (5'10, 170)

Safety

  •  4 Derron Brown –   junior (6'1, 210)
  •  5 Trey Turner – junior (6'1, 190)
  •  6 Jaylinn Hawkins  sophomore (6'2, 200)
  • 17 Luke Rubenzer – senior (5'11, 200)
  • 21 Evan Rambo –   sophomore (6'4, 210)
  • 23 Malik Psalms –   sophomore (6'1, 185)
  • 28 Quentin Tartabull –   junior (5'11, 205)
  • 29 Bryce Turner –   freshman (5'10, 175)
  • 32 Jacob Anderson –   senior (5'11, 195)
  • 34 De'Zhon Grace –   senior (5'9, 180)
  • 39 Ricky Walker III –   freshman (5'11, 200)

Long snapper

  • 45 Grant Gluhaich –   sophomore (5'11, 200)
  • 46 Garrett Frum – senior (6'1, 230)
  • 47 Alonso Vera – junior (5'11, 225)

Fullback

  • 40 Justin Norbeck –   junior (6'0, 235)

Source and player details: [1]

Schedule

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DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 29:20 a.m.at North Carolina*ACCNW 35–3049,500
September 92:00 p.m.No. 25 (FCS) Weber State*P12NW 33–2036,209
September 167:30 p.m.Ole Miss*
  • California Memorial Stadium
  • Berkeley, CA
ESPNW 27–1637,125
September 2312:30 p.m.No. 5 USC
  • California Memorial Stadium
  • Berkeley, CA (Joe Roth Memorial Game)
ABCL 20–3046,747
September 307:30 p.m.at OregonFS1L 24–4555,707
October 77:45 p.m.at No. 6 WashingtonESPNL 7–3867,429
October 137:30 p.m.No. 8 Washington State
  • California Memorial Stadium
  • Berkeley, CA
ESPNW 37–326,244
October 214:00 p.m.Arizona 
  • California Memorial Stadium
  • Berkeley, CA
P12NL 44–45 2OT37,525
October 2811:00 a.m.at ColoradoP12NL 28–4447,216
November 42:00 p.m.Oregon State
  • California Memorial Stadium
  • Berkeley, CA
P12NW 37–2335,440
November 185:00 p.m.at No. 20 StanfordFOXL 14–1751,424
November 247:30 p.m.at UCLAFS1L 27–3050,287
  • *Non-conference game
  •  Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Pacific time

[4]

Game summaries

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at North Carolina

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1 2 3 4 Total
Golden Bears 7 7 7 14 35
Tar Heels 7 10 7 6 30

Weber State

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1 2 3 4 Total
No. 25 (FCS) Wildcats 10 10 0 0 20
Golden Bears 7 10 0 16 33

Ole Miss

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1 2 3 4 Total
Rebels 10 6 0 0 16
Golden Bears 7 0 10 10 27
1 2 3 4 Total
No. 5 Trojans 3 10 0 17 30
Golden Bears 3 10 0 7 20

at Oregon

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1 2 3 4 Total
Golden Bears 0 7 7 10 24
Ducks 17 0 7 21 45

at Washington

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1 2 3 4 Total
Golden Bears 0 0 7 0 7
No. 6 Huskies 7 17 7 7 38

Washington State

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1 2 3 4 Total
No. 8 Cougars 0 3 0 0 3
Golden Bears 10 7 3 17 37
  • The game marked Cal's first win against a top ten opponent since 2003.[5]
  • The three points allowed by the Bears defense are the fewest since holding UC Davis to three points in 2010.
  • In the fourth quarter, quarterback Ross Bowers executed a flip into the end zone to put the Bears up 27-3.[6]

Arizona

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1 2 3 4OT2OT Total
Wildcats 14 7 7 377 45
Golden Bears 7 0 14 1076 44

at Colorado

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1 2 3 4 Total
Golden Bears 7 7 0 14 28
Buffaloes 14 13 0 17 44

Oregon State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Beavers 7 6 7 3 23
Golden Bears 14 6 10 7 37
  • The game was the sixth time in program history that Cal had zero punts in a game. It was the first time that Cal had zero punts in a game since playing USC in 2004.[7]
  • Matt Anderson broke the Cal record for career scoring, reaching 297 points after kicking three field goals and four extra points in the game. He broke the previous record of 288 points held by Doug Brien since 1993. Anderson would finish the season with an all-time record of 316 points.
  • Patrick Laird's 214 yards rushing ranks tenth in program history for rushing yards in a single game.

at Stanford

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1 2 3 4 Total
Golden Bears 3 3 8 0 14
No. 22 Cardinal 3 7 7 0 17

at UCLA

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1 2 3 4 Total
Golden Bears 3 6 8 10 27
Bruins 7 10 7 6 30
  • Matt Anderson broke the Cal record for career field goals, reaching 60 after kicking four field goals in the game. He broke the previous record of 56 field goals held by Doug Brien since 1993.[8]
  • Ross Bowers reached 3,000 passing yards for the season and became the seventh player in Cal history to reach the milestone.
  • Patrick Laird reached 1,000 rushing yards for the season and became the sixteenth player in Cal history to reach the milestone.

Awards and honors

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Coaches

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Athlon Sports' National Defensive Coordinator of the Week, vs. Washington State[9]

Offense

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Manning Award Stars of the Week, vs. North Carolina[10]
Burlsworth Trophy semifinalist[11]
First-team Pac-12 All-Academic[12]
All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention[13]
CoSIDA Academic All-District Team[14]
  • Malik McMorris (FB)
SB Nation Piesman Trophy finalist[15]
  • Kanawai Noa (WR)
Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award watchlist[16]
  • Vic Wharton III (WR)
Biletnikoff Award watchlist[17]
Second-team Pac-12 All-Academic[12]
All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention[13]
  • Tony Mekari (G)
Second-team Pac-12 All-Academic[12]

Defense

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All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention[13]
Chuck Bednarik Award watchlist[18]
Lott IMPACT Trophy watchlist[18]
All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention[13]
Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week, at North Carolina[18]
Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week(2), vs. Ole Miss[18]
College Sports Madness National Defensive Player of the Week, vs. Ole Miss[19]
College Sports Madness Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week, vs. Ole Miss[19]
Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week, vs. Washington State[20]
Rose Bowl: Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week, vs. Washington State[20]
Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week, vs. Washington State[20]
College Sports Madness Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week, vs. Washington State[20]
  • Luke Rubenzer (S)
First-team Pac-12 All-Academic[12]

Special teams

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  • Matt Anderson (PK)
Pac-12 Football Scholar-Athlete of the Year[21]
Campbell Trophy semifinalist [22]
Lou Groza Award pre-season watchlist[22]
Senior CLASS Award candidate[22]
Second-team Pac-12 All-Academic[12]
CoSIDA Academic All-District Team[14]

References

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  1. ^ Wild, Andrew (November 30, 2017). "Cal football had severe highs, lows in Justin Wilcox's 1st year". The Daily Californian.
  2. ^ "Cal flips out over signature win against No. 8 Washington State – SFGate". October 26, 2017. Archived from the original on October 26, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  3. ^ "2017 Football Coaching Staff". CalBears.com.
  4. ^ "2017 Cal Football Schedule Announced". CalBears.com. January 18, 2017.
  5. ^ "Cal-WSU Postgame Notes". CalBears.com.
  6. ^ "WATCH: Cal QB nearly pulls off front flip as he scores TD". SI.com. Retrieved October 16, 2017.
  7. ^ "Cal-Oregon State Postgame Notes". CalBears.com.
  8. ^ "Cal-UCLA Postgame Notes". CalBears.com.
  9. ^ "DeRuyter Selected Athlon's National DC of the Week". CalBears.com. October 15, 2017.
  10. ^ "Manning Award Stars of the Week, 2017". Sugar Bowl. Archived from the original on June 18, 2018. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
  11. ^ "Burlsworth Trophy Announces Nominees". BurlsworthTrophy.com. October 31, 2017. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
  12. ^ a b c d e "Laird and Rubenzer First-Team Pac-12 All-Academic". CalBears.com. November 30, 2017.
  13. ^ a b c d "Pac-12 Football All-Conference Team Announced". Pac-12. December 5, 2017.
  14. ^ a b "Announcing 2017 CoSIDA Academic All-District® Football and Volleyball Teams". CoSIDA. November 16, 2017.
  15. ^ "McMorris on Final Piesman Trophy Ballot". CalBears.com. November 27, 2017.
  16. ^ "2017 Watch List for the Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award". Polynesian Football Hall of Fame.
  17. ^ "Wharton III added to Biletnikoff Award watch list". CalBears.com. November 6, 2017.
  18. ^ a b c d "Downs Added to Chuck Bednarik Award Watchlist". CalBears.com. October 6, 2017.
  19. ^ a b "Downs Named Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week". CalBears.com. September 18, 2017.
  20. ^ a b c d "Kunaszyk named Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week". CalBears.com. October 16, 2017.
  21. ^ "Pac-12 Announces Football Scholar-Athlete of the Year". Pac-12. November 27, 2017. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017.
  22. ^ a b c "Matt Anderson Candidate for Senior CLASS Award". CalBears.com. October 5, 2017.