1983 California Golden Bears football team

1983 California Golden Bears football
Conference	Pacific-10 Conference
Record	5–5–1 (3–4–1 Pac-10)
Head coach	Joe Kapp (2nd season)
Home stadium	California Memorial Stadium
Seasons ←  1982 1984  →

1983 Pacific-10 Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 17 UCLA $	6	–	1	–	1			7	–	4	–	1
Washington	5	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
Washington State	5	–	3	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
USC	4	–	3	–	0			4	–	6	–	1
Arizona	4	–	3	–	1			7	–	3	–	1
Arizona State	3	–	3	–	1			6	–	4	–	1
Oregon	3	–	3	–	1			4	–	6	–	1
California	3	–	4	–	1			5	–	5	–	1
Oregon State	1	–	6	–	1			3	–	7	–	1
Stanford	1	–	7	–	0			1	–	10	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1983 California Golden Bears football team was an American football team that represented the University of California, Berkeley during the 1983 NCAA Division I-A football season. Under head coach Joe Kapp, the team compiled an overall record of 5–5–1 and 3–4–1 in conference. ^{[1] [2]}

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 3	at Texas A&M *	Kyle Field College Station, TX	W 19–17	51,971	[3]
September 10	at San Diego State *	Jack Murphy Stadium San Diego, CA	L 14–28	19,853	[4]
September 17	San Jose State *	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	W 30–9	40,241	[5]
October 1	No. 3 Arizona	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	T 33–33	40,018	[6]
October 8	at Oregon	Autzen Stadium Eugene, OR	L 17–24	27,102	[7]
October 15	Oregon State	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	W 45–19	35,147	[8]
October 22	at UCLA	Rose Bowl Los Angeles, CA (rivalry)	L 16–20	58,062	[9]
October 29	USC	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	L 9–19	65,867	[10]
November 5	Arizona State	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	W 26–24	36,918	[11]
November 12	at Washington State	Martin Stadium Pullman, WA	L 6–16	15,000	[12]
November 19	at Stanford	Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA (Big Game)	W 27–18	84,804	[13]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Season summary

vs No. 3 Arizona

The Wildcats, unbeaten and ranked third, came out hot and led 26–3 at one point before the Golden Bears stormed back by outscoring Arizona 30–7 to tie it midway through the fourth quarter. Neither team would score the rest of the way, and settled for the tie, which ended the Wildcats’ chances of a possible perfect season, but still had their unbeaten hopes intact. ^[14]

vs Arizona State

Punter Tom Gandsey converted a first down on a fake punt, leading to Randy Pratt's game-winning 38-yard field goal. ^[15]

at Stanford

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cal	7	7	7	6	27
Stanford	3	6	0	9	18

A: 84,804

CAL: Lewis 38 yard pass from Gilbert (Pratt kick)

STAN: Harmon 28 yard field goal

CAL: Garner 1 yard run (Pratt kick)

STAN: Harry 17 yard pass from Paye (run failed)

CAL: Bark 10 yard pass from Gilbert (Pratt kick)

CAL: Pratt 31 yard field goal

CAL: Pratt 43 yard field goal

STAN: Harmon 38 yard field goal

STAN: Mullins 53 yard pass from Paye (pass failed)

Leaders

Passing: CAL Gilbert 22-40-1-263; STAN Paye 19-46-4-303

Rushing: CAL Story 20-58; STAN Paye 12-33

Receiving: CAL McDougald 8-86; STAN Clymer 8-110

^[16]

Personnel

1983 California Golden Bears football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 11 J Torchio Sr QB 14 Gale Gilbert Jr WR 42 Andy Bark Sr RB 43 Dwight Garner So TE 86 David Lewis Jr WR 99 Rance McDougald Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 4 John Sullivan Sr DB Richard Rodgers LB 47 Hardy Nickerson Fr LB 80 Ron Rivera Sr DL Byron Smith Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class P Tom Gandsey K Randy Pratt	Head coach Joe Kapp Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "1983 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. 166. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 26, 2016. Retrieved October 21, 2016.
3. "Bold Cal takes 19–17 victory". The Honolulu Advertiser. September 4, 1983. Retrieved December 22, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
4. Dave Distel (September 11, 1983). "Aztecs get defensive to defeat Cal". The Los Angeles Times (San Diego County ed.). p. III-1. Retrieved February 23, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Cal rips inexperienced San Jose". Oakland Tribune. September 18, 1983. Retrieved February 23, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Golden Bear rally ties Arizona 33–33". The Sunday Oregonian. October 2, 1983. Retrieved February 23, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Fired-up Oregon burns Bears". Oakland Tribune. October 9, 1983. Retrieved February 23, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Cal beats Beavers, 45–19". Statesman Journal. October 16, 1983. Retrieved February 23, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
9. "Cal nipped by UCLA". Santa Cruz Sentinel. October 23, 1983. Retrieved February 23, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
10. "Trojans 'stuff' Bears". Oakland Tribune. October 30, 1983. Retrieved February 23, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Cal pulls out stops to top Arizona State". The Sacramento Bee. November 6, 1983. Retrieved February 23, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
12. "Cougs top Cal; winning season assured". Tri-City Herald. November 13, 1983. Retrieved February 23, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
13. "Cal hands Wiggin a going-away loss". The Press Democrat. November 20, 1983. Retrieved February 23, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
14. "Arizona, Cal Play 33-33 Tie". The Washington Post . October 2, 1983.
15. "Fake Punt Helps Cal Upset ASU". The Washington Post . November 6, 1983.
16. Gainesville Sun. 1983-Nov-20. Retrieved 2025-Oct-10.