By Jay Heater
Oregon tailback Jonathan Stewart doesn't have Heisman Trophy credentials, but Ducks coach Mike Bellotti cited a few numbers that he considers more important. "He is 5-foot-11, weighs 240 pounds, runs the 40-yard dash in 4.3, vertical jumps 39 inches, bench presses 400 pounds and squats 500 pounds," Bellotti rattled off in machine-gun style. "He is a tremendous physical athlete who possesses strength and speed." Despite all his amazing natural ability, Stewart still goes into Saturday's game at Memorial Stadium as a guy running in the shadow of Cal tailback Marshawn Lynch.
That's despite the fact that Stewart is the leading rusher in the Pac-10 at 114.2 yards per game. Although Lynch is third at 111 yards a game, he is the guy who gets all the attention when it comes to a Pac-10 tailback being considered for the Heisman Trophy. Will Saturday's game develop into a showdown between Lynch and Stewart? "I'm not too focused on the features of the game," said Stewart, who like Lynch has nursed a sore ankle most of the season. "I'm more worried about Cal's defense."
Likewise, Lynch said he can't spend time worrying about Stewart. "He is a great runner," Lynch said. "He will do his thing." Cal coach Jeff Tedford said that Stewart's thing is to make Oregon's offense balanced and therefore near impossible to stop. "It's going to be a stiff test to try to slow him down," Tedford said. "He has great balance and speed and he catches the ball so well." He does all the things that Lynch does for Cal. "In some regards, they are similar," said Bellotti. "They both are compact backs with a lot of speed and power." Both are 5-foot-11. At 240 pounds, Stewart is about 20 pounds heavier. Stewart has gained 457 rushing yards in four games, while Lynch has 555 yards in five games. Lynch leads the conference in all purpose yardage at 155.8 a game. Stewart is second at 142. The impact they've had shows up in one column, in particular. Oregon leads the Pac-10 in scoring at 40.2 points per game, and Cal is second at 38.4. Whether they can continue to produce Saturday remains to be seen.
One thing both defenses have in their favor is that they face a tremendous running back each day in practice. "It helps facing Marshawn and Justin Forsett every week," said Cal rover Brandon Hampton. "The backs we face (in games) are not going to be quicker and they aren't going to be more aggressive. They might be bigger." Bears linebacker Desmond Bishop said he has been very impressed watching film of Stewart, who was rated as the No. 2 high school recruit in the country by ESPN.com in 2005 when he graduated from Timberline High School in Lacey, Wash. "Like Marshawn, he has that great balance," Bishop said. "You have to wrap up."
Bellotti said Stewart will get better when he learns to use that balance to go around potential tacklers instead of trying to run over them. "When you run over somebody and you are successful, you get pumped up by doing it," Stewart said. "It's something you have to experience. "But I do need to have more faith in my offense in what we run. I need to have better vision." Tedford said he wishes he had a clear vision about stopping Stewart. "But you can't focus on their running game," he said. "They do too good a job with misdirection and they are too balanced. You have to be disciplined with all your assignments." Bellotti said both Cal and Oregon are so balanced offensively that there will be no loading up against the run. "If an offense is one-dimensional, it is going to be in trouble," Bellotti said. "But both Cal and Oregon are in good shape in that regard."
Note: Less than 5,000 seats remain for Saturday's game, and a sellout crowd of 72,981 is expected. Tickets can be purchased by calling 800-GO-BEARS.
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