Cal Poly football suffers fourth straight loss — to a winless Portland State team

For a team looking to get back into the win column, Cal Poly’s best chance was against this Portland State team, which came into Saturday’s matchup searching for its first win of the season.

Portland (1-8, 1-4 Big Sky) came out on top however, beating Cal Poly (3-6, 1-4 Big Sky) 40-35 and securing its first and only victory so far in 2025.

Although Portland State entered the matchup winless, Cal Poly’s latest loss was another setback in what has become a frustrating stretch for the Mustangs, who have now dropped four straight.

The usual uncertainty at quarterback was no different on Saturday, as Bo Kelly took the first snap for Cal Poly. A week earlier, Ty Dieffenbach started against Montana State before Kelly came in during the second quarter and finished the game.

Head Coach Paul Wulff has consistently leaned on a two-quarterback system this season, and Saturday followed the same pattern.

Despite getting the start, Kelly attempted just one pass, which fell incomplete, before he was replaced by Dieffenbach five minutes into the first quarter. Dieffenbach played the remainder of the game.

“We want to do everything we can to move the ball and score points,” Wulff said. He added that the decision at quarterback comes down to who he believes gives the offense the best chance in the moment, noting that it’s Dieffenbach’s first year playing college football while also crediting Kelly for his recent performances.

“We’re just doing our best to get these guys to play better and help the football team,” he said.

Even with the constant rotation the Mustangs see under center week in and week out, Dieffenbach said the offense remains seamless and doesn’t lose its rhythm when the switch happens.

“All the quarterbacks, we all work together really well and are all great leaders, so everybody rallies around us no matter what or whoever’s in,” he said.

Dieffenbach brought a spark when he entered, using his legs to extend plays and push the ball downfield, helping Cal Poly flip field position and sustain drives. His mobility gave the offense rhythm and forced Portland State to account for multiple looks — whether he kept it, passed or scrambled, there was a real running threat under center.

“I felt like I was faster than them,” Dieffenbach said. “When I got out, I tried to make a move, and it was working, so I just kept doing it.”

Dieffenbach rushed in for a 16-yard touchdown to put the Mustangs on the board for the first points of the game.

Even with that momentum, the Mustangs still weren’t playing their best football. They never fully closed the gap that Portland created early and went into halftime trailing 24-14.

Portland State’s passing game proved to be the biggest threat, as the Vikings threw for 260 yards and consistently extended drives with timely gains that set up scoring opportunities. Their biggest play came on a 53-yard completion in the second quarter, which led to a field goal and helped Portland State take the lead into halftime.

Cal Poly also lost one of its most reliable receiving targets late in the first half, when wide receiver Logan Booher exited with an apparent knee injury after being targeted in the end zone for a pass. Booher has been a steady option in the passing game this season, and his absence limited the Mustangs’ ability to stretch the field in the second half.

By the third quarter, Portland State had already surpassed its previous season-high of 28 points. Portland led the Mustangs for the entire game, though Cal Poly cut the deficit to 31-28 in the third quarter. That surge was sparked by linebacker Misa Paiau, who scored on back-to-back plays — first on a reception and then on a direct run.

A goal of finding the end zone is not a role linebackers typically fill, but the Mustangs leaned on Paiau’s size in short-yardage situations, and after the first play worked with a 1-yard rush, they went right back to him for a catch in the end zone.

After that, Cal Poly couldn’t get on the board until garbage time when the Mustangs rushed in a touchdown to trail by 5 points. Prior to that, the Vikings had scored a field goal and an additional touchdown, and despite all the efforts throughout regulation to kick a field goal to cut into the game, none went through.

Wulff said Cal Poly made mistakes “in every phase of the game,” and Portland State capitalized on that.

“It’s not who you play. If you don’t play good football, you’re not gonna win,” Wulff said. “And we didn’t play good football today.”

He called it the team’s “worst effort of the year,” a disappointing result after two straight matchups against ranked opponents and what appeared to be one of the Mustangs’ best chances to bounce back.

After back-to-back games against ranked teams, this matchup was Cal Poly’s best chance to reset. Instead, the Mustangs let another game slip away, and Portland State walked out with its first win of the season.

Dieffenbach finished 14-of-23 for 207 yards and added 64 rushing yards. After Booher exited, Michael Briscoe became his primary target and led the Mustangs with 88 receiving yards. On defense, Mikey D’Amato once again paced Cal Poly, recording a team-high 12 tackles.

Cal Poly is back on the road next week to face Idaho State at 3 p.m.

This story was originally published November 1, 2025 at 11:00 PM.