CollegeFootballNews.com: Spring Preview 2006

Cal Excerpts:

 

Ten things to watch for this spring

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8. The California quarterback race
Jeff Tedford is hoarding quarterbacks with Steve Levy, Nate Longshore, Joe Ayoob and Kyle Reed all ready to get an equal shot at winning the starting gig. The winner will be keeping the seat warm until Kevin Riley matures next year. Whoever takes over the starting job will be in for a monster year.

 

Other than USC and Texas, who are the top challengers for the national title?

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11. California

Team: One of the 15 most talented in America with a fearsome offense that'll be among the nation's best.

Schedule: A win at Tennessee in the opener would put the Bears in the hunt, but road trip on November 18th at USC could end title hopes. Otherwise, it's not bad with almost all the tough games at home outside of Tennessee and USC.

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25 non-conference games to get really, really excited about are

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23. Minnesota at California, Sept. 9

11. California at Tennessee, Sept. 2

 

Which conference will be the best in 2006?

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Pac 10 - It's far better than you think. USC might not be the juggernaut of the past few years, but it's not going to fall far. Cal should be incredible, Arizona State's offense will be unstoppable, Washington State should be one of the year's surprise teams, and UCLA and Oregon should be bowling. Arizona and Stanford will be much better, and Washington isn't going to get any worse. The best team should be ... USC

 

The unknown players you'll know about by the end of 2006 are:

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Steve Levy, QB California ...

... or Nate Longshore or Joe Ayoob or Kyle Reed. Longshore was the 2005 opening day starter until he broke his leg. Ayoob was way too inconsistent after taking over the job, and Levy stepped in and was fantastic over the final three games completing 30 of 45 passes for 387 yards and three touchdowns and an interception in wins over Stanford and BYU along with mop-up time against USC.

 

Who are some of the already known players who'll go nuclear in 2006?

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Marshawn Lynch, RB California

Dinged up for most of the year, Lynch still finished with 1,246 yards and ten touchdowns capped off by a 194-yard, three score day against BYU. Justin Forsett will certainly be a factor in the Cal ground game, but Lynch might pull a J.J. Arrington and could hit 2,000 yards if he can stay healthy.