By Dave Newhouse, STAFF WRITER
BERKELEY — Hollywood hasn't discovered Cal football. But Cal has its own "Rudy." And Cal has its own "Paper Lion." Well, sorta, kinda. But Hollywood has a track record of making things appear more real than they are, and "The Lives of the Brians" could tug at the hearts of movie-goers. Brian Cristol and Brian Harrison are members of the Cal team, though in Hollywood terminology, they are extras. Bit players. Two seniors who play rarely, but who have the same dreams as the team's heroes. "My dream play probably would be sacking (USC's) Matt Leinart," said Harrison, a 6-foot-7, 245-pound, third-string defensive end. That dream has evaporated, and even a tackle in Saturday's Big Game would seem just as unrealistic for Harrison. He is far too thin for a defensive lineman. Cal's offensive linemen work him over in practice. "He's like the George Plimpton of the Detroit Lions," Cal defensive line coach Ken Delgado said. "From an ability standpoint, he has no ability being here." The late Plimpton, a writer, authored "Paper Lion," which became a movie, about his experience of going to training camp with the Detroit Lions as a novice quarterback. He played, badly, in one exhibition game.
Harrison has done better on the gridiron than Plimpton, but not by much. The Granite Bay product has one tackle to his credit. Three years of Cal football boils down to a single solo stop against Sacramento State. "I've never seen a walk-on who has asked for so little and gave so much," Delgado said. "He takes a beating out there, but from an accountability standpoint, he's the best player in the group." Cal takes Harrison on road games, not based on ability, but because he's so committed to the program. He redshirted in 2003, and has played in four games total in 2004 and 2005. "To get out on the field is the best thing in the world," he said, "even if it's for a limited time." Cristol, who's also a walk-on, understands that limited feeling. He is a backup long-snapper, about as low as one can get. At 5-10, 200 pounds, he is built like Rudy. Cristol thinks of himself as a linebacker, but Cal doesn't see him that way. So if he managed to get a sack against Stanford, it would be very Rudy-like. Cristol might have passed through his Cal career as a nonentity if he hadn't asked coach Jeff Tedford for advice. Tedford told him to get on the scout team defense. Cristol then began to lead by example, for most scout teamers are incoming freshmen or non-scholarship types who don't mind being knocked around if there is even a slim opportunity they might play. For Cristol, the only senior on the scout team defense, those opportunities have been few. He suited up once last year, at home against Arizona State. He has traveled this year to only Washington and Oregon. But hard work and sacrifice have paid off. He made a block on DeSean Jackson's 49-yard punt return for a touchdown against Sacramento State. Cristol was on punt returns against USC, and he expects to have the same responsibility at Stanford. "I love the kid because every day he comes in with a smile," Cal special teams coach Pete Alamar said. "He's a team guy first. Every player has a role on this team, and just the opportunity for him to come on the field and have a few plays, what a cool deal."
What a cool deal, indeed. For Cristol, who lives in Danville, wasn't a star at either San Ramon Valley High or Orange Coast College. "People said I couldn't make it at Cal," he recalled. "All my high school friends who were all-league, and who then dropped out of football in college, came to watch me take the field against USC. "Football to me isn't just throwing on the pads and going out and playing. It's overcoming obstacles and challenges."
One such obstacle for Cristol occurred two years ago when his father and maternal grandfather died within two weeks of each other. He thought of quitting football, for the sport is a year-round commitment, and his heart just wasn't into it totally any more. But Cal's players and coaches rallied around him, eased his grieving, and he found he had another family besides the one at home. "We're all best buddies," Cristol said of his teammates. "It doesn't matter how much you play. Playing football at Cal has been a life-changing experience for me." He graduates next month with a degree in American Studies.
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