By LOWELL COHN
Before this college football season started, anyone with the remotest interest in Cal or USC or college sports or sports in general or happenings on Planet Earth had to circle Nov. 12 on the calendar. Forget a circle. A flaming red bull's eye would have been more like it. Nov. 12, this Saturday, is the Cal-USC game, the Bears hosting the Trojans. And at one time - it seems so long ago now - that game might have been for No. 1 in the country. Maybe that's a bit of a stretch because you don't think of Cal, even in its best days, competing for No. 1. But the game would have represented something large.
It doesn't any more. Two years ago, Cal defeated USC in triple overtime. And last year Cal lost but gave the Trojans a terrible time and, honestly, quarterback Aaron Rodgers outplayed Matt Leinart. This is not a putdown of Leinart, a terrific quarterback. It's just that Rodgers was better that day. So this game, if it meant what it was supposed to mean but doesn't mean any longer, posed a tremendous threat to the Trojans and their aspirations in the Pac-10 and the nation. Jeff Tedford knows how to beat USC. Jeff Tedford knows how to build a powerhouse football program. Jeff Tedford may not be God, but around here he's the son of God, or at least a cousin. Anyway, that's all in the past. That's before we found out the truth. USC kept up its part of the bargain, but Cal couldn't. To a large extent it has to do with Bears quarterbacks. Nate Longshore was supposed to be the starter but broke his leg in the first game. This does not mean Longshore was the answer, because he was untested and no one knows how good he is. But he got eliminated right away, and Tedford turned to the other guy in an emergency. The other guy is Joe Ayoob, and now things get sticky. Ayoob is a college athlete, does not earn one of those bloated NFL salaries, merely has his scholarship and plays for the pure fun of it. He certainly did not sign on for verbal abuse at Memorial Stadium, which he's getting and doesn't deserve. He's a friendly, upbeat, polite guy and no one should want to hurt his feelings. He's a kid, for heaven's sake. But whatever Cal needed, he did not bring. Everyone wishes he brought it. Everyone wishes he fulfilled his own dreams - he wants to play in the NFL. Everyone wishes he kept Cal in a position for Saturday's game to count for something. Sure, he does certain things well. He's brave and he runs with passion. But he is not a consistent passer and he's deficient at throwing long. These are major sins in Tedford's offense, which is like a pro offense. The quarterback establishes a limit of performance and if that limit is low, Cal is sunk. In fairness to Ayoob, he came from junior college and was overwhelmed by Cal's playbook. He innocently admitted that in the preseason. He is improving, and next season he may be just what Cal needs. Not now. They say context is everything and in this case that's true. It's no longer a game with national implications. It's no longer a game that defines Cal's season - that already has been defined. And although USC needs to win, Cal does not represent the awesome threat it seemed to pose before the Bears lost three games. USC won't lose. It is impossible to imagine Ayoob being efficient enough to defeat the Trojans. He couldn't beat the Oregon Ducks last weekend, so how is he going to defeat these guys? Because his drives will stall or he will throw interceptions, the Cal defense will end up on the field more than is safe and the Trojans will take advantage. That is how football works when the quarterback is having problems. Don't take any of this the wrong way. Cal will play hard and Ayoob will give everything he has. And the game will be tense and exciting and the fans will cheer and they'll shoot off the cannon on Tightwad Hill. But it won't mean what it was supposed to mean. Instead of being a great game, it will be just another very good game. And then everyone will go home.
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