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American college football season
The 1982 California Golden Bears football team represented the University of California, Berkeley during the 1982 NCAA Division I-A football season .[ 1] [ 2] For the Golden Bears this season is historically known for its last game – the 85th Big Game against Stanford on November 20, 1982. Specifically – The Play . A last-second kickoff return on which Cal was able to score a touchdown to win the game. Because of the context of the rivalry, the timing of the play and the unusual multi-lateral way that it occurred, it is recognized as one of the most memorable plays in college football history and among the most memorable in American sports.
Date Opponent Site TV Result Attendance Source September 11 at Colorado * W 31–1733,835 [ 3] [ 4]
September 18 San Diego State * W 28–035,000 [ 5] [ 6]
September 25 No. 14 Arizona State California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA L 0–1535,673 [ 7] [ 8]
October 2 San Jose State * California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA W 26–737,136 [ 9] [ 10]
October 9 at No. 1 Washington ABC L 7–5056,500 [ 11] [ 12]
October 16 Oregon California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA W 10–731,736 [ 13] [ 14]
October 23 No. 11 UCLA California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA (rivalry ) L 31–4751,600 [ 15] [ 16]
October 30 at Oregon State W 28–1425,000 [ 17] [ 18]
November 6 at No. 16 USC L 0–4254,670 [ 19] [ 20]
November 13 Washington State California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA W 34–1434,060 [ 21] [ 22]
November 20 Stanford California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA (Big Game ) USA W 25–20 75,662 [ 23] [ 24]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
[ 25]
1982 California Golden Bears football team roster
Players
Coaches
Offense
Defense
Special teams
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
Injured
Redshirt
Not listed: Mariet Ford, Richard Rodgers
Stanford at California85th Big Game
1
2 3 4 Total
Cardinal
0
0 14 6
20
• Golden Bears
0
10 0 15
25
Scoring summary 2 9:22 CAL Joe Cooper 31-yard field goal Cal 3–0
2 2:42 CAL Mariet Ford 29-yard pass from Gale Gilbert (Joe Cooper kick) Cal 10–0
3 5:29 STAN Vincent White 2-yard pass from John Elway (Mark Harmon kick) Cal 10–7
3 1:42 STAN Vincent White 43-yard pass from John Elway (Mark Harmon kick) Stanford 14–10
4 13:28 CAL Joe Cooper 31-yard field goal Stanford 14–13
4 11:24 CAL Wes Howell 32 yard pass from Gale Gilbert (pass failed) Cal 19–14
4 5:32 STAN Mark Harmon 22-yard field goal Cal 19–17
4 0:04 STAN Mark Harmon 35-yard field goal Stanford 20–19
4 0:00 CAL Kevin Moen 25-yard kickoff return after numerous laterals (conversion not attempted) Cal 25–20
[ 26] [ 27]
[ 28]
^ "1982 California Golden Bears Schedule and Results" . SR/College Football . Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 21, 2016 .
^ "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 .
^ "California opens with win for Kapp" . The Modesto Bee . September 12, 1982. Retrieved February 21, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Colorado vs California Summary of Football Game Statistics" (PDF) . NCAA Football Statistics . NCAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018 .
^ "Cal 28, San Diego St. 0" . The Daily Herald . September 19, 1982. Retrieved February 21, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "California vs San Diego State Summary of Football Game Statistics" (PDF) . NCAA Football Statistics . NCAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018 .
^ "ASU defense turns Cal QB into 'fall guy' " . Santa Cruz Sentinel . September 26, 1982. Retrieved February 21, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "California vs Arizona State Summary of Football Game Statistics" (PDF) . NCAA Football Statistics . NCAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018 .
^ "Cal rips Spartans 26–7" . The Sacramento Bee . October 3, 1982. Retrieved February 21, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "California vs San Jose State Summary of Football Game Statistics" (PDF) . NCAA Football Statistics . NCAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018 .
^ "Dogs go Bear hunting and bag a biggie" . The News Tribune . October 10, 1982. Retrieved February 20, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Washington vs California Summary of Football Game Statistics" (PDF) . NCAA Football Statistics . NCAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018 .
^ "Cal edges UO on late TD, 10–7" . Statesman Journal . October 17, 1982. Retrieved February 21, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "California vs Oregon Summary of Football Game Statistics" (PDF) . NCAA Football Statistics . NCAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018 .
^ "Bruins frustrate Bears" . The Tampa Tribune-Times . October 24, 1982. Retrieved February 21, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "California vs UCLA Summary of Football Game Statistics" (PDF) . NCAA Football Statistics . NCAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018 .
^ "Cal no treat for Beavers" . Statesman Journal . October 31, 1982. Retrieved February 21, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Oregon State vs California Summary of Football Game Statistics" (PDF) . NCAA Football Statistics . NCAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018 .
^ "USC steals 8 passes in 42–0 rout of Bears" . Oakland Tribune . November 7, 1982. Retrieved February 21, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "California vs USC Summary of Football Game Statistics" (PDF) . NCAA Football Statistics . NCAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018 .
^ "Ex-cager's 'circus catches' make Cougars miserable" . The Daily Herald . November 14, 1982. Retrieved February 21, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "California vs Washington State Summary of Football Game Statistics" (PDF) . NCAA Football Statistics . NCAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018 .
^ "Wildest Big Game finish ever!" . The San Francisco Examiner . November 21, 1982. Retrieved February 21, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "California vs Stanford Summary of Football Game Statistics" (PDF) . NCAA Football Statistics . NCAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018 .
^ 2015 Football Information Guide (PDF) . Cal Athletics. 2015. p. 166. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 26, 2016.
^ "Cal defeats Stanford on final play, 25-20" . The San Bernardino Sun via newspapers.com . November 21, 1982. Retrieved November 2, 2019 .
^ "Weird, last-second TD leads Cal over Stanford" . Santa Cruz Sentinel via newspapers.com . November 21, 1982. Retrieved November 2, 2019 .
^ "1983 NFL Draft Listing - Pro-Football-Reference.com" . Pro-Football-Reference.com . Archived from the original on December 21, 2007.
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