Cal players insist Huskies have bite

Washington was 1-10 last season, but Bear seniors know how quickly fortunes can change

Cal football notebook

BERKELEY -- Even though Washington is coming off a 1-10 season, the Huskies won't get a lack of respect from No. 16 Cal on Saturday at Husky Stadium in Seattle. That's because Cal still has some fifth-year seniors who were around when the Bears were 1-10 in 2001. They've seen firsthand how quickly coach Jeff Tedford has turned around the program. Offensive guard Aaron Merz said Cal turned around its fortunes without the benefit of several solid recruiting classes. Therefore, he doesn't see why the Huskies can't reverse their fate just as quickly. "Absolutely we respect Washington," said Merz. "That 1-10 record came after years of solid recruiting. They have a new system now and that brings confidence. The more confidence you have, the better you play."

Merz also said the Huskies have plenty of talent, including defensive tackle Manase Hopoi. "He has a great combination of strength and athleticism," Merz said. Bears senior right tackle Ryan O'Callaghan agreed. "The No. 1 guy to look at on their defense is Hopoi," he said. "They have some very good athletes. And they're playing a different defense now. If you look at (coach Tyrone) Willingham's defense, it has been very good against Cal (when he was at Stanford)." Washington will have to play better defense than in 2004, when Cal rolled up 304 yards rushing in a 42-12 victory. The Bears rushed for 212 yards last Saturday against visiting Sacramento State. "I thought our offensive line played pretty well," Merz said. "But we didn't dominate the way we wanted. Assignment-wise, we were doing well." O'Callaghan said the Bears' offensive line performed well in the opener. "But our first half was poor," he said. "I think we tend to rise to the level of our opponent."

The Bears will need a big performance from its offensive line in Seattle, especially since the coaching staff would like to see quarterback Joe Ayoob get off to a fast start after an 0-for-10 debut against Sac State. "Our job is to make him as comfortable as possible," Merz said.  Ayoob will be trying to get off to a fast start in one of the most hostile environments in the Pac-10.  "It's one of my favorite places to play," Merz said. "There is a lot of energy there and their fans are rowdy."

New schemes

Ayoob said he hasn't watched tape of Washington from last season since Willingham replaced former Huskies coach Keith Gilbertson and inserted new schemes.  "I watched (Washington's) first game this season and I watched some Stanford tape from when Willingham was there," Ayoob said. Although Washington's defense had to adjust to Air Force's option in the opener, Cal's offensive players expect to see the schemes that Willingham has used over the years.  "Coach Willingham is not a gimmick guy," Merz said. "They will be running things that we see all the time. We are going to get up to the line and recognize what they are doing."  Hopoi said the Washington defense will have to make some adjustments now that it is facing a more conventional offense, but he said the biggest difference will be that his unit will play better than it did against Air Force. "We performed OK, but we didn't play to our ability," Hopoi said. "Against Air Force, we saw all the things that we need to correct. We will get better."

Washington linebacker Joe Lobendahn said he is looking forward to the challenge of playing Cal. "Cal has a great team and we have a lot of respect for them," Lobendahn said. "It's going to be a challenge for us and we know we have to communicate better than we did at Air Force. "Plus Cal has Marshawn Lynch, who is a great running back. He is fast, athletic and he causes a lot of problems."

Extra points

Cal has won three in a row against Washington after losing the previous 19. The Huskies lead the overall series 45-35-4. ... Cal's game at Washington marks its earliest Pac-10 game since 1993 when the Bears opened conference play on Sept. 4 with a 27-25 victory over UCLA. ... If the Bears beat Washington, it would be the first time they've won nine regular season games in a row since 1950.