1971 California Golden Bears football team

1971 California Golden Bears football
Conference	Pacific-8 Conference
Record	6–5 (4–3 Pac-8)
Head coach	Ray Willsey (8th season)
Home stadium	California Memorial Stadium
Seasons ←  1970 1972  →

1971 Pacific-8 Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 10 Stanford $	6	–	1	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
No. 20 USC	3	–	2	–	1			6	–	4	–	1
No. 19 Washington	4	–	3	–	0			8	–	3	–	0
California	4	–	3	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Oregon State	3	–	3	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Oregon	2	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Washington State	2	–	5	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
UCLA	1	–	4	–	1			2	–	7	–	1
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1971 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 1971 NCAA University Division football season. In their eighth year under head coach Ray Willsey, the Golden Bears compiled a 6–5 record (4–3 in Pac-8, third), and were outscored 262 to 186. ^{[1] [2]} Home games were played on campus at California Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, California.

California's statistical leaders on offense were quarterback Jay Cruze with 1,284 passing yards, Steve Kemnitzer with 686 rushing yards, and Steve Sweeney with 579 receiving yards. ^[3]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 11	5:30 p.m.	at No. 7 Arkansas *	War Memorial Stadium Little Rock, AR	L 20–51	54,176	[4]
September 18	1:31 p.m.	West Virginia *	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	W 20–10	23,001–25,000	[5]
September 25	1:31 p.m.	San Jose State *	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	W 34–10	16,000	[6]
October 2	10:32 a.m.	at No. 14 Ohio State *	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	L 3–35	86,280	[7] [8]
October 9	1:30 p.m.	Oregon State	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	W 30–27	33,000	[9]
October 16	1:30 p.m.	at Washington State	Joe Albi Stadium Spokane, WA	W 24–23	12,600	[10]
October 23	7:32 p.m.	at UCLA	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA (rivalry)	W 31–24	30,741	[11]
October 30	1:31 p.m.	No. 20 USC	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	L 0–28	54,000	[12]
November 6	1:59 p.m.	No. 20 Washington	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	L 7–30	36,000	[13]
November 13	1:30 p.m.	at Oregon	Autzen Stadium Eugene, OR	W 17–10	18,500	[14]
November 20	1:35 p.m.	at No. 18 Stanford	Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA (Big Game)	L 0–14	86,000	[15]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Pacific time

^{[16] [17]}

Roster

1971 California Golden Bears football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB Jay Cruze WR Steve Sweeney	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB Scott Stringer Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Ray Willsey Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "1971 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. "1971 California Golden Bears Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 21, 2016.
4. "Razorbacks rack California, 51–20". San Angelo Standard-Times. September 12, 1971. Retrieved March 27, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Cal zaps Mountaineers". Oakland Tribune. September 19, 1971. Retrieved January 23, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Cal clobbers San Jose St". The Sun-Telegram. September 26, 1971. Retrieved September 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
7. John Hannen (October 3, 1971). "Buckeyes Pound California". The Blade. Toledo, Ohio. pp. 1C, 2C – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Summary of Football Game Statistics (California vs. Ohio State)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 28, 2016. Retrieved November 28, 2016.
9. "Bears win on incredible finish". Oakland Tribune. October 10, 1971. Retrieved September 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
10. "Bears again find a way; Late kick nips WSU 24–23". The Spokesman-Review. October 17, 1971. Retrieved September 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Bears turn back Bruins 31–24". The Fresno Bee. October 24, 1971. Retrieved September 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
12. "Trojans blast Bears, 28–0 behind QB Jimmy Jones". Ventura County Star-Free Press. October 31, 1971. Retrieved September 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
13. "Huskies humble Bears, 30–7". The Oregon Statesman. November 7, 1971. Retrieved September 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
14. "Bears rally, upset Ducks in rain, 17–10". Independent Press-Telegram. November 14, 1971. Retrieved September 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
15. "Stanford blasts Bears 14–0 before 86,000". The Sacramento Bee. November 21, 1971. Retrieved September 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
16. "1971-72 California Golden Bears; Schedule/Results". National Collegiate Athletic Association . Retrieved May 28, 2025.
17. 2015 Football Information Guide (PDF). Cal Athletics. 2015. p. 165. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 26, 2016.