Rest wait in line while Lynch carries the load

Cal notebook

BERKELEY -- Cal junior tailback Marcus O'Keith gained 69 yards in his two rushing attempts against Sacramento State on Saturday at Memorial Stadium. But don't expect to see O'Keith getting a lot of attempts against Washington in Seattle this Saturday. Although only one game has been played, it's obvious that coach Jeff Tedford will forge ahead with his plan to get his best tailback as many carries as possible.  Marshawn Lynch, who gained 147 yards against the Hornets, carried 24 times. Last season, on his way to a 2,018-yard rushing season, senior J.J. Arrington averaged 24 carries a game. Although Lynch is just a sophomore, Tedford said he can carry that kind of load through the season.  "We're going to find out," Tedford said. "Marshawn is very strong, very tough. And very rarely does he take a real good shot. Most of the hard shots he takes come when teams are gang tackling him as he gets held up."

Cal rushed for 304 yards against the Huskies last season, so it figures that Tedford will pound at the Huskies defense, even though coach Tyrone Willingham is now on the scene. Lynch had the first 100-yard plus rushing game of his career with 121 yards against the Huskies, and his nine attempts included touchdown runs of 32 and 70 yards. Lynch also caught a 29-yard touchdown pass against Washington. O'Keith, who chose Cal over Washington after his senior season at Narbonne High School-Harbor City, is pushing sophomore Justin Forsett, who moved into the backup tailback slot after a solid spring camp. Forsett had 12 yards rushing in four tries against Sacramento State. "All those guys are solid," Tedford said of his tailbacks. "After Marshawn, it's slash with the rest of the guys."  When Cal's coaching staff isn't sure of a starter on the depth chart, it lists one guy, then a slash mark, then the other guy. Tedford was saying that Forsett, O'Keith and senior Terrell Williams are virtually even.

Waiting his turn

Although Cal freshman DeSean Jackson returned the first punt of his career 49 yards for a touchdown against Sacramento State, Tedford said he still will go with Bears cornerback Tim Mixon as his first choice against Washington. "On a punt return, there are a lot of decisions to be made and Tim has much more experience," Tedford said. Mixon, a junior, returned two punts 54 yards against Sacramento State, with a long of 39 yards. Jackson had only one opportunity.

Freshman sensation

Tedford continues to gush about true freshman linebacker Zack Follett. "He made quite a few plays against Sacramento State," Tedford said. "The running back tried to pick him up in pass protection and he annihilated him.  "He has the potential to be one of the best linebackers we've had here, at least in our time."

Extra points

Tedford was asked about his experience coaching against Willingham, the former Stanford coach. "I think I only faced him one time while I was (an assistant) at Oregon," Tedford said. "We missed Stanford on the schedule a couple of times. But they were the only team to beat us in 2001. That broke our 23-game, home winning streak. That stands out." Actually, Tedford was an assistant on the 1998 Oregon team that beat Willingham's Cardinal 63-28. ... Tedford said he understands why Cal fans were shocked to see poor quarterback play against Sac State. "We've been spoiled here," he said. "The expectations are very high. People are used to seeing Kyle Boller and Aaron Rodgers throwing BB's all over the field. With Joe (Ayoob), there are going to be mistakes. We are going to work through it."