Cal fired soccer coach Justin Wilcox on Sunday, a day after the Bears have been blown out by Stanford, turning the ball over 3 times to sabotage their possibilities of profitable the Large Recreation.
The varsity introduced the transfer Sunday afternoon. Offensive assistant Nick Rolovich will function the interim coach.
Getting into Saturday’s 31-10 loss at Stanford, Wilcox had gained 4 consecutive Large Video games and led the group to a 3rd consecutive bowl-eligible season, however the meltdown proved an excessive amount of to maintain his job.
“After careful consideration, we believe the time has come for new leadership,” Bears soccer normal supervisor Ron Rivera mentioned in a press release. “We wish Justin the best of luck in his future endeavors.”
Rivera, the previous All-American Bears linebacker, took over as normal supervisor of the soccer program final spring, reporting on to Chancellor Wealthy Lyons.
With Rivera on board, the Bears jumped out to a powerful begin, like they’ve a number of instances below Wilcox. After starting the yr 3-0 with promising freshman quarterback Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele shining, although, Cal has misplaced 5 of its final eight video games.
Saturday’s loss was the final straw as two of the Bears’ turnovers have been returned for Cardinal touchdowns and Cal was flagged for 13 penalties totaling 123 yards. Cal outgained Stanford however misplaced by 21 factors.
“I think they were ready to play in terms of energy and excitement,” Wilcox mentioned of the group after the loss. “Unfortunately, want-to doesn’t equal good football.”
Wilcox, the 49-year-old son of 49ers Corridor of Fame linebacker Dave Wilcox, took over the job in Berkeley after spending the 2016 season as Wisconsin’s defensive coordinator. He beforehand held the place at Boise State, Tennessee, Washington and USC.
Wilcox was 48-55 over 9 seasons at Cal, together with 5-4 within the Large Recreation.
The excessive level of his tenure could have been a 2019 win at Mississippi that took the Bears to No. 15 within the Related Press ballot, however that was the final time Cal has been ranked. They misplaced their subsequent 4 video games however recovered to win the Large Recreation, beat UCLA and win the Redbox Bowl over Illinois.
That yr was the Wilcox’s solely eight-win season in Berkeley. Earlier than the season, Rivera recognized eight or 9 wins as his bar for a profitable season. With the loss Saturday, eight wins is the ceiling for Cal’s season.
Rolovich, the previous Washington State coach, joined the Bears workers final offseason together with former Auburn coach Bryan Harsin, as Wilcox sought to spice up the offense.
He’ll lead the Bears subsequent Saturday of their residence finale in opposition to SMU (5 p.m., ESPN2) and in a bowl recreation, this system’s third straight.
