The Mustangs fell to the No. 5 California Golden Bears 101-0 on Saturday, Jan. 10 in Berkeley, opening 2026 with a loss — and much to build off of as a break-free stretch of rugby quickly approaches.
“It’s tough to get kicked in the teeth like that, but there are lots of lessons and a lot we can build on,” head coach Chris O’Brien said. “They beat us pretty good last year, and we had a strong comeback during the season.”
The reigning national champion Bears are 2-0 and have yet to allow a single point defensively. They’re led by 43-year head coach and 30-time national champion Jack Clark, who was recently inducted into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame. Leading into the game, O’Brien told Mustang Rugby Inc. he thought they were the nation’s top team once again this season. Former USA Eagle and current technical director for Major League Rugby, Will Hooley, described the Bears as “seriously impressive.”
“When you go up against the national championship team, they’re that for a reason,” O’Brien said. “They’re bigger, stronger, faster. That’s one of the biggest, most athletic teams I’ve seen in college rugby in a while.”
O’Brien said Cal Poly’s leader, inside center Coby Baker, stood out on the pitch — but the Bears keyed in on him, particularly when flyhalf Connor King went down with an injury. Former Mustang Ryan Wenstrom, who played for O’Brien for four years, started at No. 8 for the Bears.
“You can take a lot from video. A lot of little lessons,” O’Brien said. “I think we’ll recover well from it.”
The Mustangs have a bye week next before traveling south on Jan. 24 to take on San Diego State — a team the Mustangs defeated by triple digits last season. That match kicks off a stretch of 10 games without a break.
After San Diego State, Cal Poly will have two matches back to back on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1 against the Santa Clara Broncos and Western Washington, respectively. O’Brien described the Vikings as one of the top teams in D1AA.
“We have to put in good showings,” O’Brien said. “Playoffs are really going to come down to the Saint Mary’s and UCLA games. That’s the big picture.”