Can the Cal game be a launchpad for Rivaldo Fairweather... again?

Auburn's top receiving target from 2023 was quiet in Week 1. That happened last year — and then he broke out in a big way against the Bears.

TE Rivaldo Fairweather (Austin Perryman/Auburn Tigers)

Hugh Freeze doesn’t like talking about last year.

Payton Thorne called the first Cal matchup “a pretty boring game, offensively.”

Rivaldo Fairweather is happy to look back on that one, though.

“What do I remember?” Fairweather said with a big smile. “I remember scoring the game-winning touchdown.”

Fairweather pulled Auburn’s offense from the depths last year in Berkeley. Auburn’s offense had gone five straight scoreless drives of five plays or fewer, and it was on the verge of another one when the Tigers lined up to face third-and-17 while trailing by 4.

Lining up in the slot, Fairweather sized up his man before releasing to the outside. Nearly 30 yards down the field, Fairweather turned and snagged a back-shoulder ball from Thorne before a Cal safety could get over to him in time.

“That was a clutch moment,” Fairweather said this week. “I love the clutch moments. I did that in practice a whole bunch of times. I repped it a lot of times in practice and made those plays in practice.

“So, when they call my number, late-game situation, I’m going to be ready, because I’ve done in it practice and I trust my skillset and my training.”

A few plays later, Thorne went back to Fairweather in a 1-on-1 matchup. This time, he was lined up on the outside, all alone, while Cal stacked the box against a heavy pistol set. Thorne made the pre-snap read in the RPO and lofted a fade toward Fairweather.

He rose up and came down with it. Touchdown Auburn. The Tigers finally led, and they would hold onto that 14-10 advantage the rest of the way.

“I got my first (Auburn) catch and first touchdown in that game,” Fairweather said. “That game really started everything off — and, hopefully, it’s going to start everything off again this year.”

Like it was in 2023, the 2024 season opener was a quieter one for Fairweather. In a blowout against UMass last fall, Fairweather didn’t get a single target.

Against Alabama A&M, Fairweather was targeted three times in his 22 snaps. Auburn’s passing attack exploded for 451 yards and six touchdowns, but the Tigers’ top receiving target from the previous season wasn’t heavily involved.

“He didn’t play much the other night, probably a quarter and a half,” Freeze said this week.

Things changed for Fairweather in Week 2 last season, as he became a valuable option in the clutch for Thorne and a struggling offense. He would get three or more targets in every single game the rest of the way, finishing with team-highs in receptions (38), yardage (394) and receiving touchdowns (6).

Could the rematch with Cal on Saturday be the launching pad for Fairweather’s second and final season on the Plains? There’s a good chance of that happening.