108TH BIG GAME
Backup QB and friend says he's still pulling for starter
Bruce Adams, Chronicle Staff Writer
Quarterbacks Steve Levy and Joe Ayoob made a pact in the spring when Ayoob transferred to Cal from City College of San Francisco. "We stuck together," Levy said. "We made sure we'd never leave each other's sides. And we haven't."
The friendship is holding strong even as the Bears go through uncertainty at quarterback heading into Saturday's Big Game at Stanford. Ayoob has started every game since Nate Longshore was lost with a severe ankle injury in the season-opening win over Sacramento State. After Ayoob's latest outing, in which he was 9-for-19 for 98 yards, no touchdowns and four interceptions in Cal's 35-10 loss to USC, coach Jeff Tedford said he would be reviewing playing time at quarterback. He's giving both Ayoob and Levy plenty of reps in practice this week. He's also doing his best to ease up on Ayoob in an effort to restore his confidence. Levy is also part of that effort. "It's difficult ... the way the media and the fans portray him," Levy said. "He's my buddy and I don't like to see anything happen to a friend of mine." At the same time, Levy finds himself in an uncomfortable spot. "It's been frustrating on the other side because this could be my opportunity," he said. Ayoob has completed 49.2 percent of his passes this season for 1,707 yards and 15 touchdowns. He has been intercepted 14 times. Levy, with brief appearances late against Sacramento State and USC, is 8-for-11 for 86 yards, with one touchdown and one interception. Ayoob said he's taking a "reverse approach" this week, trying to relax and have fun at practice. The strain of his poor outing against the Trojans, combined with going 10-for-26 for 88 yards and three interceptions the week before in a 27-20 overtime loss to Oregon, was beginning to wear on Ayoob. He admitted after the USC game, his tone somber and subdued and his eyes red and watery, that he had lost his confidence.
Ayoob was smiling again this week as he talked about dealing with the negative reaction from fans. He recalled three young women approaching him on campus and asking, "Are you the quarterback?" He told them he was, and they began giggling. One said, "You suck." "They thought it was funny," said Ayoob, who turned and left for class. He avoids reading the Internet sites frequented by Cal fans, but said his teammates, "in good fun," repeat some of the more outrageous posts. "The fans don't know what it's like to play in front of 70,000 people against the No. 1 team in the nation," Ayoob said. "They don't know what they're talking about." So he's trying to move on. "The longer you let this bother you, the longer it's going to affect you," he said. Meanwhile, Levy, a redshirt junior, said he's enjoying the expanded practice time. "It feels great and I'm a lot more confident," he said. Levy was part of Tedford's first recruiting class, but was down on the depth chart at quarterback. In the spring of 2004, Levy met with Tedford and asked if there was anything else he could do to get more playing time. He was moved to fullback that spring. "The journey from quarterback to fullback and then back to quarterback was pretty tough," said Levy, saying he was out of position at fullback and, lacking the proper technique, found he often was getting beaten down. At the end of last season, he had a talk with quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who suggested he move back to his original position. The journey from the East Coast -- his family lives in New York and he went to an all-boys Catholic high school in New Jersey -- has been equally harrowing, especially as the only Easterner on the team. "I went into some sort of depression when I first got here," he said, "being away from home, my family, my friends, just being away from life." He has made the adjustment, although it has taken a bit of doing on the pregame bus rides to the stadium when he hears most of his teammates listening to West Coast rap and techno music. So he slips on his headphones and listens to James Taylor or the Dave Matthews Band. "I have my calm-down mode," he said.
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