Saturday, December 24, 2005

Oakland Tribune: Reed gives Bears higher hopes

CONGRATULATIONS TO the Cal football team and Steve Levy for an entertaining performance at the Las Vegas Bowl, one that leaves me wondering: What if Jeff Tedford had gone with his third-string quarterback from Day 1? You'd think Levy, who was incredibly effective after taking over for Joe Ayoob, would have given the Bears enough of a boost to overturn narrow losses to UCLA, Oregon and Oregon State. Chances are Cal still would have gotten rolled by USC, but a 10-1 regular season and subsequent Holiday Bowl romp over Oklahoma would have shed a whole new outlook on 2006, when Marshawn Lynch and DeSean Jackson will give the Bears a 1-2 punch even the Trojans can't match. Now imagine if a quarterback better than Levy is ready to elevate the team even higher next season. It could be something special, starting with the types of early-season tests (Tennessee and Minnesota) that could have exposed Ayoob this fall and resulted in the best possible year. Here's hoping Kyle Reed is as good as everyone thinks.

DATELINE: Outside the computer. ESPN analyst Mike Gottfried, who worked the Cal game Thursday night, shed some light on college football's polls when discussing how he'd rate the Bears to start the 2006 season. The longtime coach admitted he'd planned to start the Bears off at No.20. But after seeing them play, he was so impressed, he was vaulting them up to No.10. After seeing them play? Uh, this was their 12th game. Hadn't he seen any of the other 11? I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Let's get rid of the human polls in college football. AP or no AP, they remain an embarrassment. DATELINE: Behind the frown. The only negative I took from Thursday's game was Tedford's all-business demeanor. It wasn't the "we're-having-fun" message I'd try to send in a four-hour national advertisement otherwise known as a meaningless bowl game. Hey, I'm all for trying to win the game. No doubt, the Cal program came out of Vegas more highly regarded than it had been before the telecast started. But, c'mon, lighten up a bit. Give me something that prompts a 17-year-old to stand up and scream: "I want to play for this guy!" Thirty-two runs up the middle just doesn't do it for me, although I guess a Jim Otto wannabe would be impressed. Even when informed Justin Forsett needed just 1 more yard to reach 1,000 for the season, Tedford instructed Levy to fall on the ball three times to assure the victory. In the Rose Bowl, OK. But 250 miles to the east, fun should have been the name of the game.

 

 

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