Even garrulous talking heads have senior moments, which is what many believed after ESPN analyst Lee Corso declared in the preseason that California would win the national championship. More startling is that others concurred, even though Cal was just five years removed from a 1-10 season and an unhealthy bout of low self-esteem. Talk all you want about the Golden Bears' skills players and explosive offense. Arizona State's biggest hurdle when it visits Berkeley Saturday is coach Jeff Tedford, who spurred one of the most dramatic turnarounds in recent college football history. This is a mano-a-mano worthy of attention, as offensive gurus Tedford and Dirk Koetter aim to make the top of the Pac-10 Conference a USC-free zone.
The pair is similar in age and experience. Both were finalists for the Oregon offensive coordinator job in 1996 that went to Koetter. When Koetter left for Boise State, Tedford replaced him in Eugene. Both landed Pac-10 head coaching jobs around the same time: Koetter in 2001 and Tedford in 2002.
"Alums love him, and to students, he's right next to God," said former Cal and NFL quarterback Craig Morton, who now works in Cal's development office. "He's quite a hero in the Bay Area. And his quick turnaround here? Incredible." When Tedford replaced Tom Holmoe, Cal was on the heels of a one-win season and an average home attendance that had plummeted to 33,443. Three years later, average attendance surpassed 64,000, thanks in large part to Tedford's ability to win immediately. Cal finished 7-5 his first season with many of the same players that belonged to his predecessor, and followed that debut with 8-6, 10-2 and 8-4 efforts.
"In the beginning, obviously there was skepticism," said Tedford, 44. "The more success we were able to have over the last couple years has really brought everybody out of the woodwork. The fans are very excited, but what comes along with that is very high expectations, which our players welcome." Tedford's greatest ability is in developing quarterbacks. Four of his protégés during his relatively short coaching career were top-six draft picks and six were selected in the first round: Kyle Boller, David Carr, Trent Dilfer, Joey Harrington, Aaron Rodgers and Akili Smith. Look at the list closely. While the jury is still out on Rodgers, none of the remaining five scream "NFL star." That suggests Tedford coaches these guys to play over their heads. This year's starter, sophomore Nate Longshore, has progressed nicely since a rocky start in California's 35-18 season-opening loss to Tennessee. After passing for just 85 yards and an interception against the Volunteers, he was 37 of 54 for 525 yards and six touchdowns in the Bears' subsequent pair of victories that seem to have appeased fans stunned by the performance against Tennessee.
"We still had 61,000 fans last week against Portland State," Tedford said, "so I think everybody was able to get over it." Longshore isn't even California's biggest offensive threat. That honor goes to junior tailback Marshawn Lynch, who has rushed for more than 2,000 yards since arriving at Berkeley. He has contributed to an offense that's ranked 10th in the nation and will face an ASU defense ranked 37th. Tedford has been effusive in his praise of ASU, and Koetter has reciprocated with kind words about his friend, Tedford. "He's a heck of a football coach," Koetter said, "and a really good guy." Saturday will be one time Koetter hopes this nice guy finishes last.
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