(The Betting Fool is a columnist on sfgate.com)
SFGate
Cal had the chance to make a statement. Cal could say it can beat someone other than five of the worst teams in the country. They couldn't beat the Bruins in a game they botched as much as UCLA won. Final statement: Same ol' Cal. I've received numerous e-mails about the Cal collapse. Bear Backers are mad. They expect more. They had stopped thinking, "How is Cal gonna blow it?" They don't expect Deadford to screw up a game, but he did. Oh, sure, they should have punted away from Drew. And at the end of the game, they should have let UCLA score. It's hard to tell your team to let the other guys score, even though it would have given Cal its only chance to win. The Packers did it in Super Bowl XXXII, letting Denver score to get the ball back instead of trying to grind out a goal-line stand. My main gripe was the misuse of the running game. I've never seen a Cal team run the ball so well. Forsett and Lynch were naming their yardage. Why would you ever put the ball in Ayoob's hands for a crucial pass when he's been shaky much of the season? Lynch and Forsett were averaging nearly a first down per carry, and the best way to destroy a team's will is to run it down their throat -- then do it some more. Cal never did that. This is the first instance of Tedford, and his staff, partly blowing a game. A win over USC might still save the season, but that looks less possible as the Bears showed that once they step away from the awful teams, they have trouble finishing.
1 comment:
wow that was an interesting article that i liked very much though i am very curious as to who at the chronicle authored it as i have neither seen it on their site or in the printed edition. who wrote this, did you? i like it...
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