Golden Bears turn to Ayoob against Wash.

By TIM BOOTH

ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

SEATTLE -- Joe Ayoob didn't look much like a junior college player of the year in his debut for No. 16 California.  Still, coach Jeff Tedford has confidence in the junior quarterback, enough to name him the starter for Saturday's Pac-10 Conference opener against Washington.  "I've never had a worse day in any kind of sport in my life," Ayoob said of his 0-for-10 performance last week against Sacramento State. "It was tough, but bad days, you get over them."  The Bears will be attempting a rare feat - four straight wins over the Huskies. It's happened only three times since the teams started playing regularly in 1915, the last coming from 1973-76. After that stretch, Washington won the next 19 meetings, until Tedford's first year in 2002, when Cal beat the Huskies 34-27 in Seattle.

Ayoob transferred to Cal from City College of San Francisco where he was the state junior college offensive player of the year last season. He battled with redshirt freshman Nate Longshore since last spring for the starting nod.   Longshore won the competition, but broke his left ankle in the second quarter of last week's 41-3 route of Sacramento State. Ayoob entered during the middle of a two-minute drill, but instead of showing the arm that completed 61 percent of his passes, and threw for 3,679 yards and 35 touchdowns at CCSF last year, Ayoob stumbled badly.  He was later replaced by junior Steve Levy, but Levy was just 2-for-7 for 52 yards against the I-AA Hornets. Despite the struggle, Tedford was quick to name Ayoob the starter against Washington.

"(He) got thrown into a tough situation. Being the starter will be better for him," Tedford said. "He definitely has the ability to be a big time player."  The Bears' could get away with a lackluster performance from its quarterbacks against Sacramento State, mostly because of talent.  Running back Marshawn Lynch rushed for a career high 147 yards and a touchdown, despite playing sparingly in the second half. Freshman wide receiver DeSean Jackson also made a splashy debut, catching a 31-yard touchdown and returning a punt 49 yards for a score. Still, shaky quarterback play most likely won't cut it against a Washington defense that played three very solid quarters against Air Force before letting an 11-point lead slip away in a 20-17 loss.  There are defensive concerns for the Huskies, which could benefit Ayoob. Defensive backs C.J. Wallace and Roy Lewis both were injured against the Falcons. Lewis is expected to play despite an arm injury, but Wallace's concussion could keep him out, making a thin secondary even more vulnerable.

But, there is some good news for the Huskies: coach Tyrone Willingham, went undefeated (7-0) against California while coaching at Stanford. Those wins came between 1995 and 2001, when the Bears' were under .500 all but one season. The situation is far different with Tedford in charge, and Cal's speed is a key factor that caught Willingham's eye. In particular, Willingham is impressed by Lynch, who the coach said might be the best back in the conference, even with Reggie Bush at USC. "Usually with the more success that you have, the more upgrades you get in terms of speed. Usually the better the players, the bigger, faster, and stronger they are," Willingham said. "When you get these things, they usually play with a lot more confidence." Despite the last-second loss, the biggest positive for Washington was the performance of junior quarterback Isaiah Stanback. Classified more as an athletic QB with a propensity to run, Stanback showed poise and a willingness to stay in the pocket and throw. He completed 19-of-27 passes for 242 yards and a TD in just his second collegiate start. "A couple of my teammates asked, 'why didn't you run more?' I said, 'there's no need.'" Stanback said. "I don't have to make a lot of plays. That's something I figured out. I've got a bunch of other guys on offense who can make plays. Give them the ball and let them take care of it."