By LAURA MEDINA, STATS Writer
When Jeff Tedford took over as California coach in 2002, he led the Golden Bears to a victory over archrival Stanford for the first time in seven seasons. That win also marked the beginning of a turnaround in the series, and Tedford and No. 21 Cal (8-3, 6-2 Pac-10) will be looking for their fifth straight victory over Stanford (1-10, 1-7) when the teams meet in the 109th edition of The Big Game at Memorial Stadium on Saturday.
Cal beat Stanford 30-7 in 2002 to snap the Cardinal's seven-game winning streak in The Big Game, and the Bears have gone on to post their longest run in the series since taking three in a row from 1948-50. Cal's recent domination of its rival has coincided with the rise of the Bears' program under Tedford. Cal is 41-20 under its current coach after winning just 13 games in the four years before he arrived. Now Tedford has the Bears poised for their 15th nine-win season and fourth straight bowl appearance, which would also be a first for a Cal squad.
"I would hope you don't have to tell the guys about how great it is to beat your rival," Tedford said. "They're fully aware of what this game will mean to them on Saturday and for years down the line. I don't worry about anybody forgetting that the Big Game is a big game." The Bears haven't done that in their four straight wins over the Cardinal, outscoring them 126-32. Cal rolled to a 27-3 victory at Stanford in last year's matchup, a year after a 41-6 home win. "We won it in 2002, and we haven't given it up," Cal offensive lineman Erik Robertson said of capturing The Axe, the trophy given to the winner of this game. You definitely don't want to be a part of the senior class that loses it." While the Bears appear to be focused on knocking off their rival, they will also be trying to end a two-game losing streak that cost them a chance at their first Rose Bowl appearance in 48 years. Cal fell 23-9 to then-No. 3 USC on Nov. 18, one week after losing 24-20 to Arizona. The defeats, which followed an eight-game winning streak, will probably send the Bears to their second Holiday Bowl appearance in three years. "The USC game means a lot to us now, but this game is always going to be the biggest," linebacker Desmond Bishop said of the matchup with Stanford. "You just know how important this rivalry is, and we want to win so we're in the right frame of mind going into our bowl game." Cal was held to season lows in points and total yards (275) by USC. The Bears' Nate Longshore threw for only 176 yards, completing 17 of 38 passes with one touchdown and two interceptions. Longshore, who averages 233.5 yards per game, had just seven takeaways in his first nine games. He has not been as accurate in the last two, totaling five interceptions. Longshore and Cal will be looking to get back on track against a Stanford team that's in the midst of one of its worst seasons. Stanford is allowing the second-fewest passing yards in the conference at 173.4 per game, but has the fewest interceptions in the Pac-10 with seven. The Cardinal's run defense isn't nearly as good, allowing 218.1 yards per contest -- third-worst in Division I.
That could mean a big day for Pac-10 leading rusher Marshawn Lynch, who averages 107.1 yards per game. Lynch, who ran for 88 yards on 20 carries against USC, is 68 yards shy of matching last season's total of 1,246. The junior ran for 123 yards and a touchdown in last year's win over the Cardinal. Stanford faces a tough task in trying to contain Longshore, Lynch and the highest-scoring team in the conference. Cal averages 32.4 points per game. "To win this game makes everything we've done worth something," Stanford linebacker Michael Okwo said. "It's the one that people will remember. It will feed into our preparation, our passion and our attitude for next year." The Cardinal followed up their sole win of the season against Washington on Nov. 11 with a 30-7 home loss to Oregon State the following week. Stanford gave up more than 200 yards rushing for the eight time this year and failed to rush for more than 85 yards for the ninth straight game. The Cardinal's passing attack has struggled without quarterback Trent Edwards, who suffered a season-ending injury against Arizona on Oct. 14. T.C. Ostrander has thrown for 714 yards and one touchdown in nine games in Edwards' place. Ostrander took over for Edwards against Cal last season and went 15-of-23 for 152 yards. Despite not beating the Bears since No. 17, 2001, the Cardinal lead the series 54-43-11.
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