Gary Dunn isn’t afraid of a challenge from a Top 25 program.
The first his California University of Pennsylvania football team faced this season came in the form of a 23-19 opening-week loss to Charleston, W.Va., which would go on to finish the regular season with a second straight Mountain West Conference championship and a No. 6 national ranking.
Dunn then coached his team to an impressive 28-7 victory against then No. 6 Slippery Rock several weeks later en route to claiming the Vulcans’ first undefeated finish in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West Division since 2016.
“When our guys come and choose California, this is the reason why,” said Dunn, now in his ninth season coaching his alma mater. “We think that every game we’re in is a big game. I think our season has prepared us well. We’ve learned a lot of lessons.”
The Vulcans’ biggest challenge is just ahead.
No. 17 California (8-1, 6-0) will play host to No. 3 Kutztown (10-0, 7-0) in the PSAC championship game at 12 p.m. Saturday at Adamson Stadium.
The two-time defending PSAC East Division champion Golden Bears — who won their first conference title a season ago and are now one of three remaining undefeated Division II teams in the country — advanced to the national semifinals in 2023. The Vulcans are looking to win their 10th PSAC title and first since 2016.
“They’re a really, really good football team,” said Dunn of Kutztown. “They’re ranked third in the country. They haven’t loss a regular-season game since I don’t know when. They went to the national semifinals last year. They’re averaging 31 points per game and giving up less than nine. They’re just an extremely talented football team that’s well-coached.”
While Dunn may not have been able to immediately recall the Golden Bears’ last regular-season setback, the memory is likely more readily available to Kutztown coach Jim Clements, whose team has Division II’s longest active regular-season winning streak at 19 games.
The last Golden Bears regular-season loss came in the form of a 31-20 defeat at the hands of California in Week 2 of the 2023 season at Adamson Stadium.
“Gary does an awesome job,” said Clements, who has led his team to the PSAC championship game in three of the past four seasons. “He’s one of the best coaches in our conference. We know what we’re headed into. We’ve always had a battle with Cal. It’s always a good game. I anticipate this being another really good game.”
The Vulcans will undoubtedly receive quite a test from the Golden Bears’ defense this weekend.
Kutztown is second in the nation in scoring defense with an average of just 8.3 points allowed per game. The Golden Bears, who are conceding opponents just 216.3 yards per contest, are also fourth in the country in total defense.
Redshirt sophomore Freddie Retter, a 6-foot-3, 260-pound defensive lineman, leads the charge for Kutztown. He has a team-high 6½ sacks and 11½ tackles for a loss to go along with 38 tackles.
Linebacker Eden Johnson, another redshirt freshman, has recorded a team-high 51 tackles for the Golden Bears to go along with graduate student linebacker Jalen Devose’s 45 and redshirt junior Brandon Strausser’s 39.
Kutztown is second in the nation against the run with an average of 65.7 yards allowed per game, second in forced turnovers with 25, third in interceptions with 18 and fifth in turnover margin at an average of 1.5 per game.
“They’re extremely well-coached and they’re always going to be in the right position,” Dunn said. “They don’t give up big plays. They make you drive the length of the field. They’re opportunistic. They’ve created a ton of turnovers and scored a ton of defensive touchdowns. We’ve just got to be about our details, take care of the football and understand that it’s going to be a grind.”
As good as the Golden Bears are defensively, Clements said he has plenty of respect for what the Vulcans can do offensively — and that begins with quarterback Davis Black.
“He beat us last year,” Clements said. “He’ll be the best quarterback that we’ll have faced this season to date. I think he’s special. He’s got some really good receivers that can stretch the field. You always have to be aware of where they’re at and then they have two running backs that are really good that are complemented by a big offensive line that’s really solid.”
Black has thrown for 2,151 yards and 17 touchdowns with just three interceptions this season, while also rushing for 285 yards and a team-high seven scores.
The 6-foot-5, 230-pound senior quarterback’s top targets in California’s passing attack are wide receivers Eric Willis III, who has 834 yards and six touchdowns, along with D’Avay Johnson, who has accumulated 399 yards and four scores, and Omari Hopkins, who has racked up five touchdowns through the air.
Sophomore Bobby Boyd Jr., a McKeesport product, is the Vulcans’ leader in the ground game with 619 yards and five touchdowns, while Eric McKan III has also rushed for 350 yards and four scores.
The last time California played Kutztown, Black threw for 192 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing for a score. The Vulcans also rushed for 120 yards, led by McKan III’s 97 yards and two touchdowns.
“(Black) has been doing a good job of taking care of the ball,” Dunn said. “The thing that I’m excited about is we’ve got weapons on the outside. We’ve got to find a way to get those guys matched up one-on-one on this defense.
“We’ve got an older offense line,” he added. “We’ve got two tailbacks that have been around. I like our experience on offense being able to understand what we’re doing offensively. I think that’s obviously going to give us a good chance.”
John is a copy editor and page designer at the Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at jsanta@unionprogress.com.