By Jay Heater
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
UCLA coach Karl Dorrell was asked about his impression of Cal defensive tackle Brandon Mebane, whom Dorrell's team faces Saturday at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. "Mebane? Pain," said Dorrell, who chuckled after noticing he did a bit of rhyming. "Yeah, Mebane can be a pain." Indeed, Mebane has been dishing out pain to opposing offensive linemen and coaches who have to scheme around him. "He does a great job in raising some issues inside," Dorrell said. "He has a good pad level and he has been doing good things for a while. You notice him from the pack." Arizona coach Mike Stoops just had to face Cal and Mebane. "I've been impressed with him all season," Stoops said. "He is a very gifted player and very disruptive. He gets pressure constantly and he plays very hard." Gaining notoriety as a defensive tackle at Cal can be tough. Defensive coordinator Bob Gregory asks his interior linemen to occupy offensive linemen and keep them off the linebackers. For the defensive tackles in the system, that often means few tackles and even less glory. Despite that fact, Mebane has found a way to not only accomplish the main task of occupying bodies but to make big plays as well. Mebane, a 6-foot-3, 300-pounder out of Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles, has 15 tackles, including four sacks. If Cal's defense is a buzz saw, Mebane is the blade, ripping holes in opponent's blocking schemes. "I would suspect that our opponents try to think of things they can do to control Brandon," Bears coach Jeff Tedford said. So far, those strategies haven't worked. "It's pretty much pure domination when I watch Brandon," said Cal senior linebacker Ryan Foltz. "He is a great force. He definitely is able to shut down his area of the line. He weighs 300 pounds and moves like he is 250." That domination of the middle gives Gregory and Tedford some options. "Anytime you are talking about schemes, you look at your personnel," Tedford said. "Do I trust what this person can do? We look at Brandon and try to think of ways we can create one-on-one matchups for him. Do we blitz a guy there?"
Tedford said that former USC defensive tackle Mike Patterson, who was a senior in 2004, was the kind of player who could shut down the inside. Although Patterson might not have gained the notoriety among fans that some of his more celebrated teammates attained, he was deemed important by those who count. "Mike Patterson was drafted in the first round," Tedford said. "That kind of guy can make a major difference inside." Tedford said Mebane is that kind of player.
"He is an animal," said Cal quarterback Joe Ayoob. "I'm glad we aren't going against him. Every day in practice he is in there messing things up. I know even our offensive linemen don't like to block him. If our offensive linemen fear this guy, that speaks for itself." Only a junior, Mebane already is attracting inquiries from sports agents who would like to see him turn pro after this season. "My goal is to come back to Cal," Mebane said. "I want to get my degree. My parents and I already have discussed it. I want to graduate." Besides getting a degree, Mebane has some lofty goals. One is to earn All-America status. If Cal continues to win, Mebane could use that spotlight to gain national attention. He will get some of that attention Saturday at the Rose Bowl. "Growing up in Los Angeles, UCLA always was a top team," Mebane said. "But the team I followed most was Florida State." He said UCLA and USC offered him scholarships, but he chose Cal.
He arrived at Cal in 2003 and immediately started playing as a freshman. Last season, he was an All-Pac-10 honorable mention. He has taken huge steps forward each season. "I recognize plays better now," he said. "I recognize when the guard is pulling and I can read the offense better. I'm still not that good at it. (Fellow defensive tackle) Matt Malele calls plays out for me. He is real smart." As he continues to learn, Mebane expects to make even more plays. "I just give thanks to God," he said. "And I thank my teammates for pushing me so hard every day."
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