Slippery Rock capitalizes on Cal's miscues

Mistakes can many times be the difference between winning and losing in the game of football, and after Saturday's 41-16 loss to Slippery Rock, nobody knows that better than California (Pa.).

During the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West matchup, the Vulcans made no less than seven major miscues — four lost fumbles, a pair of interceptions and a blocked punt — that led directly to five Slippery Rock touchdowns.

With the loss, California falls to 4-1 overall, 0-1 in the conference, while the victory moves Slippery Rock to 3-2 overall, 1-0 in league play.

"We got our seasons wrong. We started to play Santa Claus two months too early," first-year Cal coach John Luckhardt said. "Obviously, this is a very good Slippery Rock team, and you just can't do the things we did and expect to win. They got five scores off the turnovers, and that is to their credit to take advantage of them when we provided the opportunities."

Regardless of the outcome, Luckhardt was quick to point out that he did see his club do some positive things in the loss.

"We came off the ball on offense better than I thought we could," Luckhardt said. "I don't think that we are a bad football team, but we are still trying to come together as a team. You simply can't make the number and kinds of mistakes that we made today and expect to win."

The loss marks the third straight season that the Vulcans won their first four games, only to come away with a loss in the fifth week of the season. However, despite that fact, Vulcans player Justin Burgh sees it as a whole new ball game this time around.

"The last two years, when we lost the fifth game, we were ready to hang our heads, throw in the towel and say that the season was over," Burgh said. "But this time, this is just another loss, and that is a tribute to our coaching staff and the way they prepared us. Nobody is happy with the loss, but because we did lose, it certainly doesn't mean the season is over. We just have to pick up and get ready for next week."

While Slippery Rock quarterback Jeff Valentino didn't have his best day as far as the numbers were concerned, he spread the wealth around as he tossed a trio of touchdown passes to three difference receivers, Ryan McKavish, Alan Steinman and Tim Arthurs.