Cal beat the Air Force Academy in the Armed Forces Bowl by a score of 42 to 36. Kevin Riley replaced Nate Longshore and was almost flawless, completing 16 of 19 passes for 269 total yards and three touchdowns. His passing percentage was 84.2 percent.
Longshore wasn’t bad, completing 5 of 8 attempts for 36 yards, but Tedford said before the game that Riley would get a chance, and when he sparked the team to 14 quick points by the close of the half there was no looking back.
A nice way to close an incredibly frustrating season.
15 comments:
Open competition indeed. After seven games of post-injury Longshore, I've learned to stop saying this, but I'll say it one last time: there's no way Longshore can remain the starter now, and thank goodness.
A thought for the bot that writes Ray Ratto's nonstop analysis-free equivocation-fests: Cal fans who have been bitter this season have not been so because the team is bad. This team is great, and they've played their hearts out. They've been a joy to watch. What's been horrible, and what has been lifted by this victory, is the sense that the head coach couldn't see the very simple writing on the wall, and that no explanation for this uncharacteristic fallibility has been forthcoming.
But man, I am looking forward to 2008.
The performance by Riley today was stellar! I knew he had a gift, despite the Oregon St. loss and he displayed his gift fully today. I see a player who can scramble like Jeff Garcia and has the accuracy of Aaron Rodgers. He has a very powerful arm; reminding me of John Elway or Dan Marino in their early days. When you have a quarterback as young as Riley, with an arm that strong, who can scramble and who is not afraid to run; throwing that football with precision like a bullet, Tedford has a chance to develop a Pac-10 star and a true N.F.L competitor. What an athlete. I'm very proud of the Cal football team. See you all next season at Strawberry Canyon and have a pleasant 2008! Go Bears.
Thanks for a great season of news Dave. I rely on your blog to get my bear fix.
Final thoughts on the season:
What could have been.
What will be.
Riley did look god. He did have a full compliment of receivers, which clearly helped... but he also hit some of them in stride, which was a giddy change for the better.
Was glad to see the team finally get fired up after he made some plays.
good, not god; at least not yet.
ok, im not going to be a hater here, but longshore was 5 of 8 and would have been better if the receiver didnt drop the fourth down pass (this without jordan and jackson for 2 series). Riley looked real good, although i dont think i would come close to comparing his arm strenth with marino or elway, no way. 2 catches come to mind, the jackson touchdown and the 52 yard pass to jordan where they had to wait on the pass to get there. However he was a great spark for the team. The bears will be fine in 08 at QB, but i hope they can play some defense. Without the injury to air force's QB this could have ended in a L.
I agree...Defense is the key...If cal every wants to compete with LSU, etc...they need a much better defense.
I think the defense will improve, if for no other reason, because Riley will be able to keep them off the field for more than two minutes at a time.
I do not think Riley is playing at the level of Dan Marino or John Elway as N.F.L. greats (of course) but didn't Elway get his start at Stanford, he had to develop as well? What I meant by my post is that I see a gift in Riley (traits reminding me of Marino & Elway when they were in college) and if he continues to develop he will be great. It can happen, for example,Joe Kapp (1956-58) Took Cal to the Rose Bowl virtually by himself and of course the great Joe Roth (1975-76), unfortunately his life was tragically cut short by cancer. However, he led possibly the best-ever Cal offense ('75). This could happen again. I'm not saying that Riley will be the one but after what I saw yesterday...he could be!
Dave -
Thanks so much for maintaining this site! It's the best source out there for Bear news and an amazing contribution to the Cal community.
Best wishes in this New Year!
Blaming the offense for the defense's struggles is pathetic.
Three and outs solve that problem.
Pull your head out!
This has been a very frustrating year. But here are a few comments:
1. Riley vs. Longshore. Riley has one HUGE advantage--he is mobile. Longshore has lost his ability to slide in the pocket and buy time. He stands there like a pole and defenses can rattle him. Not so with Riley. He can move and that is huge.
2. Our biggest problem is the defensive line. We pressured NOBODY this year. That is killing. Worse, I saw no inspiration from Bob Gregory all year. If your line is weak, then blitz like hell. But we did not. Watching USC and Georgia last night only convinced me more of what Cal needs to be at the next level.
3. Special teams. Our punt and kickoff coverage has been terrible all year. And I saw no improvement as the season went on. What is happening here. And as for punt returns, after Desean's first game romp, essentially nothing.
4. Wide receiver blocking. Still awful. Our bubble screen has not worked all year. Watch Oregon play if you want to see this play work. Why--wide receivers who block.
5. A complete passing game--what about passes to running backs and the tight end. Way too little of this. Honestly, I attribute much of this oversight to Longshore's inability to move and holding these guys in to block. The best way to open up the wide outs is scare the pants off people with passes to running backs and the tight end.
Riley will win the starting job next year, everyone can see that. Injuries ruined things for Longshore. I wonder how many of you Cal fans watched the WV 3-3-5 defense destroy Oklahoma. This defensive set could make things much better for Cal. If your team lacks an overpowering DT or DE like Dorsey(LSU) or Ellis(USC) then the 3-3-5 formation seems to work real nicely. It gives teams like Cal that are heavy in LB talent an edge against offenses that need to put pressure on QB's. I'll bet Gregory will experiment with it. Nevertheless, I'm hopeful Derrick Hill can become a standout DT and I hope Rulon Davis will emerge as a
solid DE. One way or another we have got to find a way to pressure the QB's in the PAC-10. Agreed?
I agree on the defense comment. This is actually a criticism of what we did this year. The defense should have been adapted to the talent Cal had. I loved watching West Virginia last night and the brilliant scheme they had.
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