Sophomore tight end Colby Parkinson had an historic first half Saturday against Oregon State. He caught four touchdown passes in the first half, which is the most for a Cardinal in a 30-minute period since Ty Montgomery single-handedly routed Cal in 2013.

He had 166 yards receiving on six catches. It was a major leap from his previous production this season and was caused in large part by the departure of star receiver JJ Arcega-Whiteside. Parkinson answered questions from the media Tuesday.

Were there any interesting reactions from friends or relatives to your big game?

"Everyone kept asking me if I expected to score four touchdowns. And 'No' is the answer. There is no way to predict that. Like I said after the game, it's a testament to how KJ (Costello) and I have been working this offseason. It's pretty cool to see it come to fruition."

Obviously that film review was mostly a lot of fun. But what were some of the teaching points?

"Right, there are always things to work on across the board in the tight end room. One thing I can work on especially is when I'm blocking to get my hands tighter, so that's something I can do there. In the receiving aspect is getting my eyes around if I recognize a different coverage. There was one play that turned to 'Cover Zero' and I ended up not getting my eyes turned around quickly enough. I still made the catch, thankfully, but being able to recognize that earlier for future games would be very beneficial to KJ as they're bringing seven guys. There is going to be someone free."

How different has it been the past few weeks with the passing game opening up?

"Last year we were more of a run-first team and I think this season, with the way it's gone, we have so many passing threats that they weren't really respecting us earlier in the year. Now that we have that it's able to open up the run game as well. It was really good to see Bryce (Love) getting going a little bit last week as well get myself, Kaden (Smith), Trent (Irwin), Mike (Wilson) and all these guys the ball."

When you watch Kaden obviously you aren't exactly the same type of tight end, but what is transferable from his game and what do you try to take away from it?

"I think the way he catches the ball in traffic is amazing. I think it's something I have had a little bit of trouble with early on in the year. There was a play against Oregon I could have come down with. I think the way he rips the ball away from the opponent is pretty impressive and something I try to emulate."

Coach Shaw said last year there was a chance you might redshirt. What was that conversation like before the season started?

"He actually told me the day we left for Australia that I wasn't going to redshirt. I kind of expected it. Toward the end of fall camp I was getting a lot more reps in practice. I was getting a lot more reps in the scrimmage that we had at the end of camp. But you never know what's going to be worth it in their eyes. I'm really thankful I was able to play last year and get some good experience. I didn't play a whole lot ... but it was definitely helpful for me going into the offseason knowing what I needed to prepare for and what I needed to do to step my game up."

(Parkinson had two touchdowns in his first game against Rice). You probably thought that was what college football was going to be like, right?

"Yeah, I got humbled really quick after that. Don't worry."

Was there a point during the game last week that you saw the coverage and thought, 'They can't stop me'?

"The entire first half that they didn't change anything. They kept leaving me in one-on-one coverage, especially down in the red zone. They were double covering the boundary receiver and leaving us one-on-one to the front side for the jump balls. We're going to take that matchup 10 times out of 10. With JJ down it was Kaden (at the boundary)."

You were a combination of receiver and tight end in high school. Did you know you were going to be a tight end in college?

"I always wanted to be a tight end. I knew last year I would be more of a receiver as I was pretty small. I was 230 pounds, which is pretty light for someone who is 6-foot-7. I knew last year my role would be mainly as a receiver, but it's cool to see this year grow more as a tight end (who) blocks more and hopefully next year I will be kind of what Kaden is." (Parkinson said he is 242 pounds now and wants to about 250, "if not more".)

What do you like about what you've done since the start of the season? What are you focused on improving?

"I like how KJ and I have gotten insync with the seam balls and back-shoulder throws that we were missing on earlier in the season. I was talking to Coach Tavita about it and it has to do more with my timing than his, because I'm able to feel better when I get my eyes around for him. He has a short clock with getting the ball up and down. Something I'd like to work on is my blocking. I'm continually trying to progress during practice."

Cal's defense is playing at a high level right now. What strikes you about what you see from them?

"They play really fast. The coaches have all said that they've changed their culture in recent years. They play fast and hard and physical. But so do we, so it will be an exciting game."

Take us through the juggling catch against Oregon. That's not something you practice: "We practice the fade ball all the time, and that's what the play was, but early in the game I tried to slip outside of the corner and got pushed too wide. I made the catch out of bounds. KJ and I talked about it that next time I'd give him the move outside and slip in. We were on the same page there. Coach Tavita always says gives the guys a chance to make the play and KJ threw it up and I was lucky enough to come down with it.

"I was trying to one-hand it. Everyone was saying I intentionally tipped it, but I tried to catch it with one hand. I was reaching back for it and somehow tipped it over someone and came down with it."

Parkinson said he plays beach volleyball with friends at Stanford. He and Foster Sarell played a couple friends on the beach volleyball team almost every weekend during the spring. On Sarell: "For a big guy he moves super well. He's great at basketball, volleyball, the whole deal."

When you compare the recruiting process to being here for more than a year, how much does it line up with what you thought it would be like?

"It's harder than I expected, but it has blown me away. I committed I think 12 hours after I got offered as a junior. This has been the spot I wanted to come to my whole life. Mainly it was for the academics when I was younger but then seeing the program develop into the Shaw era is the perfect combination. It's really cool to have deep football conversations with my teammates and really deep intellectual conversations. That's not something you get everywhere else. It's unique and a blessing to be here."

(Parkinson said he will major in civil engineering.)

What have the conversations been like in the locker room working through the football problems you guys have faced? How have you seen them react to, I think you would all agree, it not being the season you wanted?

"It has been tough, especially after the Washington games. It was tough following the Washington State game with another loss to Washington. This team is going to fight no matter what. Our scope has changed. Obviously our goals were huge at the beginning of the year and then things change during the year. It was cool to see last week the resiliency of the team to come back and still play top-notch football. Play for the seniors on senior night. We're going to finish the season strong."

You're from Simi Valley and there are fires down there right now. How is that on your mind?

"It's hit me pretty hard with all the stuff going on with the shooting back home, which is down the street from my high school, and then the wildfires coming up the next day. That's been pretty heavy on my heart. I always pray before the game and at halftime and that's the only thing that was on my mind, not even football. It;s bigger than that. It's been really tough. Just so thankful for the firefighters back home and always praying for the victims of the shooting."

How close are the fires to your home?

"We moved my senior year, so my old house is right on a street the fires were raging. My new house is about a town over, so not too close. I've had countless family and friends who have been evacuated and their houses burned. It's heartbreaking to see that. But its cool to see how the whole community is coming together and taking care of each other."