California

1957 - 59 Golden Bears
(Authentic Reproduction)

The new head coach was Pete Elliot who had been an athletic legend at Michigan, their only twelve-letter winner and the recipient of the Big Ten Medal that was awarded to the person considered to be rated as number-one in both academics and athletics. As an All American, he led the Michigan football team to a 32-5-1 record during one of its most glorious periods and was also an All Conference basketball player. At the age of thirty he took over the Nebraska program and after a year, jumped to Cal, bringing with him a rather complicated Split-T offensive system. Elliot may have complicated the offense but he simplified the helmet, removing the flanking stripes and numbers from the navy blue shell and maintaining only the one-inch athletic gold center stripe. The 1-9 record was highlighted by a lone victory over USC but was otherwise considered the worst in Cal football history. Bear captain Mike White was an effective two-way player, catching QB Joe Kapp's passes and serving as an excellent DB and he would return to direct the football program from 1972 to '77. In the new system however, Kapp was not nearly as effective as he was as a soph. Volatile Proverb Jacobs was reinstated to the team after getting the boot in '56 and to his credit, graduated, played with the Eagles, Giants, AFL NY Titans, and Oakland Raiders in a six-year pro career before becoming a highly respected teacher and coach at Laney College.

The 1958 season ushered in a rules change meant to reduce the frequency of tie games. After a touchdown, teams now had the option of kicking for an extra point or running or passing for two. Elliot was already being criticized going into his second season but after Dick Bass and his College Of The Pacific team beat the Bears in the opener, improvement was noticeable. With QB Kapp the obvious leader, there was a shift in team attitude. Kapp led the conference in rushing and total offense, finished third nationally in the latter statistic, and his All American presence was enough to make the startling difference from the horror of 1957. The rush game was augmented by FB Billy Patton who led the conference in scoring and HB Jack Hart. In The Big Game, the new extra point rule determined the victor and the Rose Bowl invitation as Cal first scored two on Kapp's conversion pass on the go-ahead TD and then the Bears turned back Stanford on their two-point conversion attempt to preserve a 16-15 win and the right to face Iowa in the Rose Bowl. With Iowa the winner, '58 was still a great turnaround at 7-4. Cal assistant Dee Andros who would later be the Oregon State head coach summed the year and the team up well when he said that "Joe Kapp was a great quarterback on an average team" which very much explained the Bears' success.   

SPOTLIGHT ON JOE KAPP:

Originally from Santa Fe, New Mexico, Joe Kapp proved to be one of the most revered on-the-field leaders in Cal's football history. Big, strong, and mobile, he played from the perspective of the ultimate underdog and his teammates loved him. Lost is the statistical fact that he had a losing record at Cal; 3-7 in 1956, 1-9 in '57, and 7-4 in 1958 but in that latter year, he seemed to always find a way to make the big play and win, leading the Bears to their last Rose Bowl appearance. He won coach Pappy Waldorf's final game in '56 with 106 yards rushing and out dueled Stanford's All American QB John Brodie. He completed his career at Cal with 2022 passing yards, led the team in total offense all three of his seasons, was team captain, team MVP, and was a first-team All America selection in '58 and fifth in the Heisman balloting. He followed his Cal career which included varsity basketball, with eleven years in the CFL and four in the NFL, taking the Minnesota Vikings to the Super Bowl with the same fiery leadership that won the hearts of Cal fans. A member of the Cal Athletic Hall Of Fame and The College Football Hall Of Fame, Kapp returned to Cal as their head coach from 1982 to 1986 and was GM of the CFL BC Lions. Active in the Hispanic community Kapp has been involved in many organizations that have furthered the educational and vocational pursuits of minority students, gaining national recognition for his charitable work. 

Cal came back to earth, winning their '59 opener and then tanking eight in a row. Somehow, the Bears pulled together to defeat Stanford in the closer to finish at 2-8, overcoming what was in that era, a huge 110 yards in penalty yards. Future Cal AD Dave Maggard made a number of game-saving tackles and was a shot-putter on the 1968 Olympic team, finishing fifth in the Games. Maggard, went on to a sterling career in athletic administration, first as Cal's track and field coach and then as their AD before doing a very good job in the same capacity at Miami (FL) and Houston. Charles Wayne Crow had played as a two-way back and at QB in his Cal career and was '59's offensive sparkplug with vet backs Patton, Walt Arnold, and newcomer George Pierovich. Crow continued as a two-way back for Oakland and Buffalo in the AFL. At the end of the season, Elliot jumped at the opportunity to return to the Big Ten and was named head coach at Illinois.  He later became the AD at Miami (FL) and took on the added duties of head coach for two seasons before becoming Executive Director Of The Pro Football Hall Of Fame.

If interested in any of these Cal helmets please click on the photos below.

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