1968 California Golden Bears football team

1968 California Golden Bears football
Conference	Pacific-8 Conference
Record	7–3–1 (2–2–1 Pac-8)
Head coach	Ray Willsey (5th season)
Home stadium	California Memorial Stadium
Seasons ←  1967 1969  →

1968 Pacific-8 Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 4 USC $	6	–	0	–	0			9	–	1	–	1
No. 15 Oregon State	5	–	1	–	0			7	–	3	–	0
Stanford	3	–	3	–	1			6	–	3	–	1
California	2	–	2	–	1			7	–	3	–	1
Oregon	2	–	4	–	0			4	–	6	–	0
UCLA	2	–	4	–	0			3	–	7	–	0
Washington State	1	–	3	–	1			3	–	6	–	1
Washington	1	–	5	–	1			3	–	5	–	2
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1968 California Golden Bears football team was an American football team that represented the University of California, Berkeley in the Pacific-8 Conference (Pac-8) during the 1968 NCAA University Division football season. In their fifth year under head coach Ray Willsey, the Golden Bears compiled a 7–3–1 record (2–2–1 in Pac-8, fourth) and outscored their opponents 243 to 114. ^{[1] [2]} Home games were played on campus at California Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, California.

This year's team came to be known as "The Bear Minimum", led by defensive lineman Ed White, an All-American and future member of College Hall of Fame. Relying on its defense, Cal ranked as high as eighth in the AP poll in early November. The Bears won 21–7 at Michigan in the season opener and shut out No. 10 Syracuse 43–0 in late October. Earning three shutouts, California held its opponents to 10.4 points a game. ^[3] As of 2011, The Bear Minimum still held Cal's records for opponents' average gains per play – 3.60, as well as the fewest rushing touchdowns per season – five (same as the 1937 "Thunder Team"). Its average yards per rush was 2.51 which is still second only to the "Thunder Team" with 2.50 yards per rush. ^[4]

California's statistical leaders on offense were quarterback Randy Humphries with 1,247 passing yards, Gary Fowler with 665 rushing yards, and Wayne Stewart with 679 receiving yards. ^[5]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 21		at Michigan *		Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI		W 21–7	71,386
September 28		Colorado *		California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	ABC	W 10–0	37,500
October 5		San Jose State *	No. 18	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA		W 46–0	25,000–31,279	[6]
October 12	11:00 a.m.	at Army *	No. 16	Michie Stadium West Point, NY		L 7–10	32,000
October 19		UCLA		California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA (rivalry)		W 39–15	43,107
October 26		No. 10 Syracuse *	No. 11	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA		W 43–0	52,172
November 2		at Washington	No. 8	Husky Stadium Seattle, WA		T 7–7	52,000
November 9		at No. 1 USC	No. 11	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA		L 17–35	80,787
November 16		Oregon	No. 18	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA		W 36–8	31,253
November 23		Stanford	No. 18	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA (Big Game)		L 0–20	73,987–75,000
November 30		at Hawaii *		Honolulu Stadium Honolulu, HI		W 17–12	19,042
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Pacific time

^{[7] [8]}

Roster

1968 California Golden Bears football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class TE 84 Jim Brady So G 55 Gerald Borgia Jr G 65 Jerome Champion Jr RB 40 Gary Fowler Jr TE 85 George Harris Jr QB 13 Randy Humphries Jr C 51 Bill Laveroni Jr FB 83 John McGaffie Sr OT 77 Mike Meers Jr QB 15 Dave Penhall So TE 83 John Phillips Jr OT 78 Bob Richards Sr G 66 Dan Ryan Jr WR 90 Wayne Stewart Sr WR 21 Paul Williams Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DE 66 Irby Augustine Jr LB 50 Phil Croyle So DT 67 Mark Hultgren Jr DB 38 Gordie Johnson Jr DB 42 Eric Kastner Jr DE 89 Mike McCaffrey Sr LB 56 Dennis Pitta Sr DT 72 Larry Reis Sr DL 73 Steve Schultz Jr DB 35 Jim Sheridan Jr DL 70 Ed White Sr DB 18 Ken Wiedemann Jr LB 53 Jerry Woods Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Ray Willsey Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "1968 California Golden Bears Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 21, 2016.
2. "California 2015 Football Information Guide" (PDF). CalBears.com. Cal Golden Bears Athletics. p. 165. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 26, 2016. Retrieved October 21, 2016.
3. "The Golden Bears". The Bear Insider. November 12, 2013. Archived from the original on October 27, 2015.
4. "California Golden Bears 2011 Football Information Guide" (PDF). p. 171. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 21, 2014. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
5. "1968 California Golden Bears Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 21, 2016.
6. "Summary Of Football Game Statistics – Visiting Team (San Jose State vs. California)" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association . Retrieved May 26, 2025.
7. "1968-69 California Golden Bears; Schedule/Results". National Collegiate Athletic Association . Retrieved May 28, 2025.
8. 2015 Football Information Guide (PDF). Cal Athletics. 2015. p. 165. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 26, 2016.