Arlington, Texas, native wasn't recruited by any of the state's major schools
Cal football notebook
BERKELEY -- Although Cal junior tailback Justin Forsett says he isn't a revenge kind of guy, he wouldn't mind showing Texas A&M what it missed when the Golden Bears and Aggies meet in the Holiday Bowl on Dec. 28. Forsett led Grace Prep of Arlington, Texas to back-to-back private division state championships in his junior and senior years of high school. He played his freshman and sophomore years of high school ball in Mulberry, Fla. Before his senior year of high school, Forsett attended five summer football camps. Besides attending Texas A&M's camp, he also participated in the Texas, TCU, Florida and Florida State camps. None of those universities offered him a scholarship. "Texas A&M called me a couple of times, but they never offered me," said Forsett, who signed with Cal after Notre Dame backed out on its scholarship offer to him. "I did take an unofficial trip there."
Forsett said he doesn't think much about the fact that none of the major programs in Texas offered him a scholarship. "But you always do get that feeling that you want to prove yourself," he said. The 5-foot-8, 185-pound tailback has little left to prove. He has rushed for 1,550 yards and has scored 11 touchdowns at Cal, where he figures to be the starting tailback next season if Marshawn Lynch enters the NFL draft as expected. As far as playing in Texas, where high school football is king, Forsett said that he loved the dedication of the fans and they way they turn out to see high school ball. However, he said he thought the skill position players in Florida were as good, if not better, than those in Texas. "But everybody is big in Texas," Forsett said. "Their offensive linemen, their linebackers were like grown men."
Developing Nate
Although Cal sophomore quarterback Nate Longshore saw his numbers slip a bit down the stretch, coach Jeff Tedford said he was pleased with his first-year quarterback's performance the entire season. "He has learned a lot, he threw the long ball well and I thought he did a nice job of running the offense in some hostile environments," Tedford said. Longshore completed under 50 percent of his passes (48 of 101) in the final three games and threw five interceptions. Tedford said that was a reflection of facing some tough defenses. In the Holiday Bowl, Tedford said he wants Longshore to concentrate on just running the offense and not worry about doing anything out of the ordinary. As far as next season, Tedford said he would like to see the 6-foot-5, 235-pounder lose a little weight to increase his mobility. Longshore rushed to the airport following practice on Saturday so that he could fly to Southern California to catch Saturday night's CIF Division I state championship bowl game between Canyon Country and De La Salle at the Home Depot Center in Carson. Longshore's brother, Ben, is Canyon Country's quarterback.
Extra points
Cal had seven recruits at practice on Saturday at Memorial Stadium. "Recruiting is going well," Tedford said. "We have 14 (oral) commits. They are all quality guys. We are excited about this class." ... Bears senior tailback Marcus O'Keith (turf toe) was hoping that by sitting out the Big Game, he would be able to play in the Holiday Bowl. However, his injury hasn't responded to treatment and Tedford said it was doubtful that O'Keith will be back.
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