The California Golden Bears trail the Utah Utes, 14-3, after one quarter of play in Salt Lake City on Saturday night.
With yards scarce, the difference in the game has been in defense and special teams, especially for Utah. Utes wide receiver Reggie Dunn returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown, patiently weaving through traffic before bursting down the field for a 7-3 lead.
Then late in the quarter, Cal quarterback Zach Maynard hit Chris Harper on a short dump-off pass, but Harper was stripped and Utah's Reggie Topps returned the fumble 17 yards for a touchdown.
The Bears opened the game well, driving 43 yards on a balanced mix of three runs and three passes, but had to settle for a 49-yard field goal from Vincenzo D'Amato.
Neither team had reached 50 yards of total offense until late in the first quarter when Maynard connected with tight end Richard Rodgers for a 51-yard pass down the sideline. That play set up Cal in Utah's red zone when the quarter ended.
Maynard is 4-7 for 69 yards, while Isi Sofele leads the Bears in rushing with 34 yards on seven carries.
