California 35, Texas Southern 3
When: 6:00 PM ET, Saturday, September 6, 2025
Where: California Memorial Stadium, Berkeley, California
Temperature:
68°
Head Official:
Riley Johnson
Attendance:
35898
By Field Level Media
Kendrick Raphael ran for a career-best 131 yards and a touchdown, quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele complemented 259 passing yards with a rushing score and California broke open a tight game with a 14-point third quarter en route to a 35-3 win over Texas Southern in Berkeley, Calif., on Saturday afternoon.
The win was a costly one for the Golden Bears (2-0), as star linebacker Cade Uluave was ejected from the game on the final play of the third quarter for a targeting infraction, which means he will be ineligible for the first half of next week's game against Minnesota.
Coming off a 34-15 win at Oregon State, Cal led just 11-0 at halftime after a 44-yard field goal by Abram Murray in the first quarter and a 1-yard sneak by Sagapolutele with 1:19 remaining before halftime. A two-point conversion run by Mason Mini produced the 11-0 halftime score.
The Golden Bears took charge with two impressive third-quarter drives. Sagapolutele engineered the first with 4-for-4 passing, capped by a 1-yard plunge by Raphael, before LJ Johnson Jr. scampered 12 yards for a touchdown with 5:27 remaining in the period, extending the lead to 25-0.
Texas Southern denied Cal its first shutout since 2005 when Christian Avelar connected on a 39-yard field goal with 13:58 remaining in the game.
The Golden Bears added a 43-yard field goal by Chase Meyer, then completed the day's scoring when backup quarterback Devin Brown, an Ohio State transfer, threw a 14-yard TD pass to Jayden Dixon-Veal as time was winding down.
Sagapolutele finished 26-for-37 with one interception. A transfer from North Carolina State, where he never rushed for more than 90 yards in a two-year career, Raphael's rushing total came on 18 runs for the Golden Bears, who outgained the Tigers 467-192.
Quarterback KJ Cooper threw for 137 yards on 19-for-35 with one interception and rushed seven times for a team-high 30 yards for Texas Southern (0-2), an FCS school that was playing an Atlantic Coast Conference foe for the first time. The Tigers' Jalen Williams was the game's leading pass-catcher with six receptions, but for just 42 yards.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
Rushing
| Texas Southern |
|
California |
|
KJ Cooper |
Player |
Kendrick Raphael
|
|
7 |
Attempts |
18 |
|
30 |
Yards |
131 |
|
4.3 |
Avg Yards |
7.3 |
|
0 |
Touchdowns |
1 |
|
0 |
Long |
0 |
Receiving
| Texas Southern |
|
California |
|
Jalen Williams |
Player |
Mark Hamper
|
|
6 |
Receptions |
5 |
|
42 |
Yards |
69 |
|
7.0 |
Avg Yards |
13.8 |
|
0 |
Touchdowns |
0 |
|
0 |
Long |
0 |
Team Stats Summary
| |
Yards |
Scoring |
Defense |
| Team |
Tot |
Rus |
Pas |
TD |
FG |
INT |
Sck |
FF |
| Texas Southern |
192 |
52 |
140 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| California
|
467 |
181 |
286 |
4 |
2 |
1 |
2.0 |
0 |
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