The Golden Bears saw off the Falcons 56-0 in the American football regular season on Saturday evening. By then it was clear the hosts had something to prove after their narrow win against the Rams the previous month. To be fair, the scoreline told the story without embellishment.
Golden Bears had been building momentum with consecutive victories, including that impressive 45-14 triumph over the Golden Eagles. The Falcons, meanwhile, had only one game under their belt - a 12-20 defeat to the Mustangs. And here's the thing, sometimes a fresh start is all a team needs rather than fatigue from a long campaign.
Fifteen years of watching from the stands teaches you to look beyond the camera angle. The Bears didn't just win, they controlled territory and tempo. Three-and-a-half weeks ago they were pushing for a quarter-point margin against the Rams; this time they ran out of legs only when the whistle blew.
No possession statistics were published, but the numbers speak for themselves. Fifty-six points against none - chances went begging for the visitors in every sense. The Falcons were left flat-footed from the opening exchange and never found their footing again.
What this means for the table remains to be seen. The Bears now sit with four wins from their first four games, while the Falcons have one loss and nothing else to show for their season so far. Cup football has its own rules, but this was league football, and the message was clear.
