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Yet Plummer earned the respect of his teammates and coaches in ways that can’t be quantified.

Plummer played through two injuries against the Golden Bears this past Saturday, to his right shoulder and hand. Given that Plummer is a right-handed quarterback, that’s no small feat.

He made multiple trips to the home locker room at ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Stadium to get medical attention. He refused to exit the game. He ended up making a critical 19-yard completion on the drive that ended with Michael Wiley’s 10-yard touchdown run, which gave ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ a 10-3 win and snapped its 20-game losing streak.

“He was a worn-down guy after the game,� UA coach Jedd Fisch said Monday. “His body took some hits. He was our leading rusher. Definitely got dinged up a bunch and just had no interest in not playing. And that to me is the greatest attribute a quarterback can have. The one that says, ‘Whatever it takes for me to finish this game, I'm going to finish this game.’ �

On the first play of the second quarter, Plummer took a hard hit after releasing the ball and landed on his right shoulder. In the third quarter, he bloodied his hand at the end of a 21-yard scramble.

Plummer attended the team’s workout Sunday evening but did not throw, Fisch said. Plummer was among several players receiving treatment Monday, when the Wildcats were off. Fisch said he expects Plummer to be able to start in Saturday’s home finale against Utah, even if he’s limited during the week.

It was especially important for him to finish against Cal.

“He’s just tough as nails,� Fisch said of Plummer, a second-year freshman from Gilbert. “His toughness shined through. His resiliency shined. He's certainly somebody that you are proud of to call a teammate.

“You want that. You expect that. You want your quarterback, who's your leader on the field, to be somebody that wants to always find a way to get going and to get out there and to be the guy that leads the team.

“And I think he would have been hard-pressed to not want to take that knee. We practiced victory formation since spring football. So it was nice to get into that. I know he wanted to be the one that did it.�

It’s unclear what direction Fisch would go if Plummer had a setback or couldn’t play against the Utes. Jamarye Joiner, who has shared time with Plummer the past three weeks, likely would be the top option, even though he has a sprained knee and a limited menu of plays.

If you include Wiley, who took a handful of direct snaps vs. Cal, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ has used six “quarterbacksâ€� this season.

Barrs, Ostendorp honored

For the first time this season, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ made the cut for the Pac-12’s weekly performance awards. Not only that, but two Wildcats were honored.

Defensive tackle Kyon Barrs earned Defensive Lineman of the Week, and punter Kyle Ostendorp won Special Teams Player of the Week.

Barrs led ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ with a career-high 2.5 sacks vs. Cal. The Wildcats’ defense controlled the game against the Golden Bears, allowing just three points (fewest since 2013) and 122 total yards. Barrs, a third-year sophomore, finished second on the team in tackles (five) and is now tied for third in the conference in sacks (five).

Ostendorp, also a third-year sophomore, has been among ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s most consistent players this season and had his best performance of the year against Cal. Four of his seven punts were downed inside the 20-yard line, including one that was pinned at the 1.

Ostendorp is the first UA punter to win the weekly award since Drew Riggleman in 2014. Through nine games, Ostendorp is averaging 48.2 yards per punt, good for fifth in the nation, and leads the Pac-12 in most punts of 50-plus yards (24).

‘Special’ celebration

Fisch gave out multiple game balls after ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s first win. He also received one from wideout Stanley Berryhill III.

Technically, it was the second game ball Fisch has received in his coaching career. The first came after he led UCLA to a victory in the 2017 regular-season finale as the Bruins’ interim coach. Jim Mora had been fired the previous weekend.

“I got one, but it was a totally different feel,� Fisch said. “I really felt like that was Jim Mora’s game ball, and I just happened to have accepted it for him.

“In this case, it was so special. What (Berryhill) said was super special to me, how he presented the ball. ... Just the pure joy that they felt, it was really something. I'll never forget the smiles, the jubilation, the love that we all shared for one another.�

Sideline situation

While Cal had to overcome missing multiple players because of COVID protocols, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ had its own hurdles to clear.

Besides Plummer, the Wildcats lost several players to injury during the game. They also had to keep the score tied despite a pair of penalties that could have swung the outcome.

With the game knotted 3-3 in the fourth quarter, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ was flagged for sideline interference and unsportsmanlike conduct — the latter against defensive coordinator Don Brown for protesting the former.

Fisch explained what happened as best he could.

“One of the officials was backpedaling and clipped one of our strength coaches, who was trying to keep two of our players back,� Fisch said. “I don't think anybody tripped. I don't think anybody fell. Their feet might have touched. They called a penalty, in addition, on our reaction. They said Coach Brown was the one that caused the penalty. He was not. That caused another reaction, which cost (us) 30 yards.

“I think all of us felt for a second, is this a ‘here we go again’ moment? It goes from a third-and-10 from the minus-1 to a first-and-10 on the minus-31. The guys that were on the field weren't a part of that penalty. How are they going to respond?�

The Golden Bears netted minus-2 yards on the next three plays and had to punt. The Wildcats scored the go-ahead TD on the following possession.

Extra points

• How did Fisch get the team to refocus when it reconvened for practice Sunday? “The first thing we did was put them on the line and ran for penalties,â€� he said. “Then we put the coaches on the line and ran for penalties. And then we went right to individual (drills) and tried to figure out a way to get better.â€�
• Fisch expects to have close to a full roster available vs. Utah, but several players are still “working through some things,â€� he said. They include offensive lineman Donovan Laie, who missed the Cal game because of a concussion suffered the previous week at USC. Laie, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s starting left guard, likely would play left tackle if Jordan Morgan (lower leg) can’t go.
• Fisch said he expects 30-31 players to participate in the pregame Senior Day ceremony Saturday. ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ lists 16 seniors or redshirt seniors on its roster and 18 juniors or redshirt juniors. The 2020 season did not count against any player’s eligibility because of the pandemic.