Norm Frauenheim
The Oregon-California winner Saturday emerges as a challenger to Southern California for the Pac-10 title and keeps itself squarely in the BCS mix, but Cal coach Jeff Tedford also sees the key conference game as another chance to break free of questions about a season-opening loss at Tennessee. "I've never seen such a hangover last so long," Tedford said Tuesday during the Pac-10's weekly conference call. It doesn't matter what the Bears do, and they've done plenty since getting crushed 35-18 at Tennessee more than a month ago. They have won four in a row. They have scored more than 40 points in each of the four victories. They have climbed to No. 16 in the national polls. It's a run that includes its own answers.
"But no one asks a question without bringing Tennessee up," Tedford said. "Oregon is a very good football team. If we won, maybe it would help get us past that. "But I think people are still going to talk about the Tennessee game for whatever reason." The Tennessee debacle might have helped the Bears get ready for their home date against the No. 11 Ducks. Like Tennessee, Oregon's versatile offense, led by quarterback Dennis Dixon and receiver Jaison Williams, can score quickly. "You have to eliminate the big play," said Tedford, whose team failed to do exactly that against the Vols.
No comments:
Post a Comment