Athlon Sports: Cal Preview

No. 11: Electric offense sparks Bears in '07

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No. 11: California

If the Heisman Trophy were to go to the player with the ability to change the complexion of a game on one play better than anyone else in America, DeSean Jackson would be front and center at this year’s ceremony, and probably would have been last year. Jackson has been Cal’s leading receiver in both of his first two seasons, averaging 17.1 yards on 97 catches with 16 touchdowns. He also ran back four punts for touchdowns last year, giving him five for his career, and was the recipient of the Randy Moss Award as the top return man in the nation. He takes just about one out of every five punts he touches the distance.

Quarterback Nate Longshore returns along with his top three receivers, including Jackson and tight end Craig Stevens, who was second-team all-conference in a Pac-10 known for great tight ends. Wideouts Lavelle Hawkins and Robert Jordan combined for 92 catches with nine touchdown grabs last fall. Three starting offensive linemen also return, led by first-team All-Pac-10 center Alex Mack.   The biggest void is at tailback, where Marshawn Lynch took off for the NFL after rushing for 1,356 yards and 11 touchdowns last year. Softening the blow is the return of Justin Forsett, who has run for 1,625 yards at 6.5 per carry with 10 touchdowns over the last two seasons, and 2005 Parade All-American James Montgomery, who redshirted last year.

The top three tacklers from a year ago need to be replaced along with most of the defensive line. Three of the top four returning tacklers are DBs. Linebacker Zack Follett notched 12.5 tackles behind the line and 5.5 sacks among his 62 total stops coming in off the bench and is the new man in the middle. Follett, linebacker Worrell Williams and 335-pound tackle Matt Malele will be counted on to hold a mostly new front seven together.  The Golden Bears are champing at the bit to get at Tennessee after the Vols shot them down in last year’s opener in Knoxville. The Cal-Tennessee game opens the 2007 campaign for both teams in Berkeley on Sept. 1. Coach Jeff Tedford’s club also gets Oregon State and USC at Memorial Stadium but travels to UCLA in October. The Big Game this year is at Stanford.

Notes:

» Jackson scored touchdowns on his first career reception and his first career punt return as a freshman in 2005 — both in the same game.

» In 2006, Cal won a share of the Pac-10 championship for the first time since 1975, when it was the Pac-8.

» The Golden Bears have now posted five straight winning seasons for the first time since 1947-1951.

 

2007 Schedule

S.       1    Tennessee

S.       8    at Colorado State

S.     15    Louisiana Tech

S.     22    Arizona

S.     29    at Oregon

O.     13    Oregon State

O.     20    at UCLA

O.     27    at Arizona State

N.       3    Washington State

N.     10    USC

N.     17    at Washington

D.       1    at Stanford