Conference Pacific-10 Defensive coordinator Bob Gregory (2nd year) | 2003 record 8–6 (5–3 Pac-10) Captain Lorenzo Alexander | |
Offensive coordinator George Cortez (2nd year) | ||
The 2003 California Golden Bears football team was an American football team that represented the University of California, Berkeley in the Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10) during the 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their second year under head coach Jeff Tedford, the Golden Bears compiled an 8–6 record (5–3 against Pac-10 opponents), finished in a tie for third place in the Pac-10, and outscored their opponents by a combined score of 457 to 341.
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The team was led by a junior college transfer student Aaron Rodgers who was named the starting quarterback in the fifth game of the season, against Illinois. In his second start, Rodgers led the team to a 21–7 halftime lead against USC (then ranked No. 3) before being replaced due to injury in the second half by Reggie Robertson. The Bears won in triple overtime, 34–31. Cal defeated Virginia Tech, 52–49, in the 2003 Insight Bowl, as Rodgers passed for 394 yards and was named game MVP. During the 2003 season, Rodgers tied a Cal season record with five 300-yard games and set a Cal record for the lowest percentage of passes intercepted at 1.43%.
The team's statistical leaders included Rodgers with 2,903 passing yards, Adimchinobe Echemandu with 1,195 rushing yards, and Geoff McArthur with 1,504 receiving yards.