SF Chronicle: Tedford doesn't want too cool down his Jet

Best impressing everyone

Jake Curtis,

One player routinely has left observers shaking their heads in disbelief during Cal's preseason practices. And it's not DeSean Jackson, considered among the most exciting players in college football.  More oohs and ahs seem to be reserved for true freshman running back Jahvid Best, who has "big play" written all over him every time he touches the ball.

"He's special," Cal coach Jeff Tedford said.  Best has not played a single down of college football, will not be the starting tailback for the Bears this season and probably won't even begin the season as the backup. Tedford describes Cal's depth chart at the running back position as "Justin Forsett and the rest of them," with redshirt freshman James Montgomery the likely backup to Forsett and another true freshman, Shane Vereen, in the mix for immediate playing time as well. So obviously comparing Best to Reggie Bush in any way is premature, unwarranted and unfair. Unfortunately, it is also unavoidable.

A California state high school 100-meter champ at Salesian High School, Best had the nation's fourth-best time in the high school 100 meters last season and was ranked second in the 200. Teammates already have nicknamed him Jahvid the Jet.  Besides having Bush-caliber speed, Best has some of the same risk-taking creativity. Best is not afraid to reverse fields on a play, ending up on the opposite side from where the play started, a habit coaches tend to discourage for fear of a big loss. Tedford does not even consider squashing that tendency in Best, though. "You can't put a leash on him," Tedford said. "He does have great instinct, and when he reverses field, it could be a big, big play."

Best shrugs about his penchant for inventing plays on the fly. "If it gets shut down, I just look for an outlet," Best said. Best turned down offers from Oregon and USC to come to Cal, and though Tedford knew he had something pretty good when he signed Best, the coach now says without hesitation that Best is better than he expected.

At 5-foot-10, 185 pounds, Best is not an overpowering back, and his ego is kept firmly in check. He has made no assumptions about how much he will play this year, focusing entirely on learning the offense and getting used to the speed of college ball. "The first couple plays, everything was blurry," he said. Best is the one who's blurry now. Tedford suggested strongly that Best will get some playing time at running back this year, and it seems a near certainty that Best will be returning kickoffs. Kick returns are a bigger part of the game this season with kickoffs moved back 5 yards to the 30-yard line, and Best is eager to give it a try. "I love returning kicks," he said.

-- Montgomery, who is more of a straight-ahead power back than Best, was back on the field Sunday after missing a few days with a concussion. Although he is the No. 2 tailback at the moment, Montgomery says that whoever becomes the backup to Forsett will get plenty of opportunities. Cal's backup tailback has rushed for more than 600 yards each of the past four seasons. "We have a two-back system," Montgomery said.

Briefly: Matt Malele, the only returning starter on the defensive line, sat out practice with a knee problem that required it to be drained, but Tedford said he will be ready for the Sept. 1 opener against Tennessee in Berkeley. Tedford said he will start installing the game plan for the Tennessee game Wednesday.