SF Chronicle: Tedford says everything's fine, even though it's obviously not

Rusty Simmons

It's usually monotonous.  Each Tuesday afternoon, Cal coach Jeff Tedford saunters into a scheduled news luncheon, greets a few media types on his way to the podium where he pauses and says, "Questions?" The monotony ended Oct. 2, when before opening the floor to questions, Tedford coughed into the microphone. Four weeks and three losses later, the Bears had fallen from the pinnacle of the college football world to irrelevant and unranked. The cough remained. A reporter asked, "You've still got that cough?" Tedford responded, "Everything will be OK." That's the public image Tedford has put on during this, his most trying season in Strawberry Canyon. Asked Tuesday about the personal effects of the current 6-5 season, Tedford said, "I would prefer to comment on that after the year, when it's all finally finished." But everything is not OK.  It's conveyed in Tedford's actions and his words. Usually reserved and ever-aware of the media, Tedford blew a gasket, tossing his headset and play card after losing 31-28 to Oregon State on Oct. 13, and verbally let loose on his players after an uninspired, 37-23 loss to Washington on Nov. 17.

"I was not proud of my actions" after the Oregon State loss, Tedford said. "That was in the heat of the moment. I was pretty wound up about what was going on, but you won't ever see me do that again." As for the Washington postgame? "After the season, I'd be glad to talk about all of that. I'll get specific after the season," Tedford said. Here's what we know:

Cal has played in bowl games for a school-record four-consecutive seasons (and is eligible for a fifth bid). Cal is one win away from 50 victories in a six-year period for the first time in more than half a century. Cal is back on the national landscape of college football. Here's what we won't know until the season ends: What effect does Tedford's new contract, which is through 2013, play into the pressure he feels? How annoying is it to work in the shadow of the tree-sitters outside Memorial Stadium who are stalling proposed facility improvements? When will the threatening phone calls and e-mails finally be enough? "When adversity hits, it brings out your true character," free safety Thomas DeCoud said. "Coach Tedford is a really passionate person, and he spends his life devoted to helping us get better. That's shown through all of these struggles."

Tedford averaged 8.6 wins a season in his first five years and has never won fewer than seven games. In his rookie year, 2002, he was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year for going 7-5 with essentially the same team that had gone 1-10 the year before.  This year, there are no excuses. Tedford had a talented quarterback returning for the first time, more than enough weapons on offense and more than enough athletes on defense. Still, the Bears erased a 5-0 start by losing five of the next six games. "He's been pretty consistent, but you can see it weighing on him," tailback Justin Forsett said. Tedford was already known for his work ethic and schedule, which includes an often-used air mattress in his office. Losses have changed nothing. "There are many nights when we don't see him go home," left tackle Mike Gibson said. "His love for the game is more than anyone I've ever known." But during a 6-5 season is there more to be done? Should things be done differently? "It's impossible to do that," Tedford said. "We work and sleep here. Nothing has changed that." Not even a perpetual cough.

 

SF Chronicle: With Jackson hurting, Hawkins has swooped in

DeSean Jackson spent Tuesday's practice on the sideline, limping through drills at a startlingly fast speed and effortlessly riding a stationary bike at an alarmingly quick rate.  Lavelle Hawkins spent Tuesday's practice on the field, perfecting his pass routes and dominating the scout team defense.  For the most part, that's been the story of the season for the Cal receivers. Jackson hasn't been able to live up to unattainable preseason hype, and Hawkins has been a pleasant surprise.

Both Cal receivers are projected as first-round NFL draft picks and both could secure those opinions Saturday against Stanford, which ranks last in the conference in passing yards allowed and total defense. "This year has been a long year and things haven't happened the way I wanted them to happen, personally," Jackson said. "When teams double- and triple-team me, Lavelle has found a way to make big plays. When you're number is called, you have to find a way to make plays.

"Lavelle has done that. I haven't gotten many (chances)." Jackson, a receiving/returning dynamo who is day-to-day with a thigh contusion close to his knee, was heralded as a Heisman candidate. Despite a weak start, he remained in the conversation with a career-high 11-catch, 161-yard performance in a Week 5 win over then-No. 11 Oregon.

Opponents haven't let Jackson continue the campaign. Since he returned a punt 77 yards for a score in the season-opening win over Tennessee, he has gotten only 11 chances in 10 weeks. He's averaging 10.8 yards a return on 12 opportunities.

The same is true of the passing game. Opponents have consistently double-teamed and bracketed Jackson, forcing quarterback Nate Longshore to look for other options. Jackson has 60 receptions for 681 yards and five touchdowns after going for 1,060 yards and nine scores last year. He has been limited to less than 50 receiving yards in six games, including a career-low 5-yard effort against Oregon State. He missed the second-half of last week's Washington loss with a thigh contusion and hasn't practiced much since.

"It would be good to keep the tradition going, but I want to protect my knee from whatever it is," Jackson said. "It's nothing that serious, but I need to get it back to where it needs to be to play."  Despite the numbers, Jackson remains a lock for the first round of the draft because of his skills set. If he decides to enter the draft early, he's expected to be a combine wonder, thrilling scouts with his 4.2-seconds 40-yard dash, explosive vertical leap and agility in the cone drills.

Jackson is listed as the No. 11 overall draft prospect by Todd McShay, director of college football scouting for Scouts Inc. ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. doesn't include the junior on his big board, but rates Jackson as the No. 1 junior receiver.

Hawkins has needed more than "measurables" to get that kind of notice. For most of his career, he has been the Afterthought to Jackson and, at times, Robert Jordan. "If DeSean doesn't play then Robert's the man," Hawkins said. "I'm just the man next to the man." The "other guy" is first on the team in catches (62) and yards (792) and is tied with Jackson for the team lead in touchdowns. He also has a team-high 34 kick returns for a team-best 748 yards, including a 90-yard touchdown against Louisiana Tech. Once projected as a fifth-round pick, Hawkins is now listed as the 22nd overall player on by Kiper. "If you came by here in the summer time, there would be nobody on the field except Lavelle," offensive coordinator Jim Michalczik said. "He has always had talent, but he has truly worked his butt off. "I'm not surprised by his production, but I'm really pleased."

 

AP: WR Jackson misses practice with bruised right leg

BERKELEY, Calif. -- California receiver DeSean Jackson isn't sure he'll play in the 110th Big Game after sitting out of Tuesday night's practice because of a bruised right leg.  Jackson, who has 60 catches for 681 yards and five touchdowns this season, severely bruised his quadriceps during a second-quarter punt return in Cal's loss at Washington on Nov. 17. The junior missed the rest of the game, and a week of rehabilitation hasn't healed him completely before Saturday's meeting with archrival Stanford.

"I'm feeling pretty good, but still not back to where I want to be," Jackson said. "Closer to game time, I'll see how I feel. ... Every year I've played in the Big Game, it's been one of those great years. It would be good to keep that tradition going on. Right now, I just want to protect my knee from whatever it is."

Read the entire article here.

SF Chronicle: Cal assistants candidates for WSU job

Rusty Simmons

Creating a wake that most likely will be felt in Strawberry Canyon soon, Washington State officials announced Monday that coach Bill Doba will not return next season.  The search for Doba's replacement is expected to include Cal coordinators Bob Gregory and Jim Michalczik. Washington State athletic director Jim Sterk identified only one person, former Cougars and current Texas-El Paso coach Mike Price, when discussing his "not very short" list of candidates.

Some of the other logical choices are Washington State offensive coordinator Mike Levenseller, Eastern Washington coach Paul Wulff and Montana coach Bobby Hauck, but many consider Gregory the front-runner. "I would never, ever hold a coach back from looking into an opportunity that they feel could better their career," Cal coach Jeff Tedford said. A Spokane native and Washington State graduate, Gregory, 44, went to Gonzaga Prep in Spokane and earned a degree in English at WSU. "It's flattering to be considered. I appreciate it," Gregory said. "Can we talk about Stanford now?"

In 2004, Gregory was a finalist for the Frank Boyles Award, which is given to the nation's top assistant coach, after leading a defense that ranked among the nation's top 25 in three categories. Before coming to Cal in 2002, Gregory was the defensive coordinator at Boise State, the defensive backs coach at Oregon and the defensive coordinator at Willamette in Salem, Ore.Michalczik, 41, is in his first year as offensive coordinator after five flourishing seasons as the Cal offensive line coach. The Bears are one of five teams to rank in the top 25 in both points scored and total yards in each of the last five years. "I want to beat Stanford," Michalczik said. "Those other things will take care of themselves. I kind of nice to be thought of in those terms, but we've got other things to worry about." Michalczik graduated from Port Angeles (Wash.) High and Washington State, where he was an all-conference guard. He was defensive line coach for national champion Miami in 1991. Pritchard will accept role: Stanford quarterback Tavita Pritchard has been saying it all along, ever since he became the starter back in early October: He'll prepare no differently this week, whether he's the Big Game starter or the back-up to senior T.C. Ostrander, a decision to be made by coach Jim Harbaugh before week's end.

"I'm a competitor and I want to be out there just as much as anybody," Pritchard said. "I'd love to be out there for the opening play come Saturday, but I also have a lot of trust in coach Harbaugh ... a lot of faith in T.C. too." Pritchard said he will be supportive of Ostrander if the fifth-year senior gets the final start of his career. "Mark my words, if T.C. is out there Saturday, I will be his ... biggest supporter, I'll be right in his ear when he gets to the sidelines to tell him what I'm seeing," Pritchard said. "I just want to see us win this game. ... I know what it can do for this program."

Pritchard left Saturday's game against Notre Dame with after a violent helmet-to-helmet collision with Notre Dame's Terrail Lambert. He returned for one series, and then was removed again. Briefly: Sticking with tradition, Cal's scout-team players had white tape on their helmets to look more like Stanford's. Some helmets were completely white, others were adorned with the Stanford S or the tree. ... Stanford practiced with blank jerseys - no numbers and no names. Harbaugh said the gesture represents, "selflessness." ... Cal senior linebackers Greg Van Hoesen and Justin Moye and senior cornerback Brandon Hampton moved into the starting lineup, according to Gregory. "Those guys deserve to start. We didn't play very well, and we had to change something." Stanford receivers Evan Moore and Mark Bradford have accepted invitations to the Hula Bowl. ... Gregory expects defensive end Rulon Davis (knee) to play. ... Neither Stanford center Tim Mattran (ankle) nor tailback Anthony Kimble (shoulder) practiced.

SF Chronicle: Ray Ratto's Look at the Big Game

Cal (6-5, 3-5 Pac-10) at Stanford (3-8, 2-6), 4 p.m. Saturday on Versus, 810, 1050

A lot on the line for two seasons gone awry

Ahh, yes, the Big Game. The pomp! The pageantry! The marching bands! The tradition! The devoted alumni of each school yearning to breathe free and fulfilled, or in some cases, simply to breathe! Yes, the Big Game. One hundred ten years of exciting football, except when it's rugby, and except when it's not very exciting.  This would seem to be one of those years when rugby might be more exciting. Both teams have remarkable momentum - which is to say the gravitational force that is generated from being in full plummet - because of each team having lost five of its previous six games. Such a thing has happened only twice since Franklin Roosevelt could dance, in 1939 and again in 1997, and both the Californii and Stanfords are trying to re-establish the glory days of, well, October, with Saturday's game. You remember October? Cal was 5-0 and ranked first in the nation for about an hour. And Stanford had just polished off an underinspired and surprisingly outplayed USC team. Those were indeed good times.

Since then? Well, er, uhh, ummm ... oh, damn. Two wins (Washington State and Arizona, aggregate record 10-13, total margin of the victories, four points) and 10 losses (two Oregon States, two Washington States, Washington, Notre Dame, USC, UCLA, Arizona State and TCU). Cal's days as a ranked team are well over, and Stanford has lost almost all its momentum since beating the Trojans on Oct. 6. In other words, while you go on about the departing seniors, the alums who live for this game above all others, and the general nostalgia of Bob Murphy's last game behind the Stanford mike (and we continue to offer him $100 if he'll curse the Bears on air as a going-away gift to the rivalry), this game actually matters just as much for everyone coming back to play and coach next year.

Jeff "My Play List Has a Zip Code" Tedford needs the win to get the Bears into a bowl game, even if it is "only" the Emerald Bowl. He and the returners need to leave this bizarre season on an up-note, if only to rinse out the taste of a year that promised much and delivered sixth place. In some college towns we know, Tedford would be a candidate for a new job because he wouldn't have his old one anymore.  On the other hand, there's Stanford, and first-year head coach Wanderin' Jimmy Harbaugh. Other than his occasional postgame walkabouts, in which he does his radio show and then bolts for the first open door he can find, he and the fellows have had enough strange in this year to cover the next decade.

The win over USC speaks for itself and stands on its own ... almost. As six-touchdown underdogs with two wins in two years and a backup sophomore quarterback (Tavita Pritchard) making his starting debut, the Cardinal's victory over the second-ranked Trojans in L.A. was one of the three most extraordinary events of an extraordinary year. It set the nation on its ear and got Stanford more good pub than any football-related event since the '00 Rose Bowl, and perhaps since the first Bill Walsh era.  Then came the loss to TCU, and after a one-point win over the fitful Arizonas, more losses, each more grisly than the last. Oregon State, the two Washingtons and the revoting Notre Dame performance, in which even the Irish played so badly that Touchdown Jesus went Episcopalian. Suddenly, the win over SC, which we all thought would last Harbaugh a lifetime, seems about a lifetime ago.

Wanderin' Jim speaks of changing the culture at Stanford, but the culture at Stanford is five consecutive Big Game losses and a 19-48 aggregate record over that spread. The culture got some change, but it needs a pick-me-up going into a vital offseason.  "The guys who are playing Saturday, that's who this game is for," Harbaugh said, trying to take the deliberately short view. "Next year will be next year." He also admitted, in so many words, that Big Games don't merely float into the ether. "I can't say winning Saturday wouldn't have a very positive impact for us (going into '08)," he said. "But it's a big game for a lot of reasons, and not just for what it means for us next year."

Tedford is no less circumspect about the Big Game's enduring value, especially as a public-relations tool for the already committed. But he also knows that this year was more of a drag than a celebration, and that considerable changes have to take place during the offseason to wipe out the taste of a year that either disappointed or dumbfounded. "I don't know what the Big Game does for us over the summer," he said, "but I know how important it is to win it." He does not know how damaging it is to lose one, though, because he hasn't. And a loss Saturday atop the mess of the last two months would be hard chewing not only for any old, aging or even mostly vibrant Blue, but for himself and his operation. Cal football has structural issue to confront, and though a Big Game win might not change that agenda, a Big Game loss would press its importance.

Thus, as the game approaches - 4 p.m. on Versus - save a thought not only for those who will not play for Stanford or Cal again, but the ones who come back. There is bad karma to be overcome, and someone is going to have to do it Saturday, or pay full retail for the failure.

Stanford Dollies: Scarrier than last Year

Visit this link at your own risk.

SF Chronicle: Hip injury shelves Best for rest of season

Cal freshman tailback Jahvid Best is expected to miss the remainder of the season, coach Jeff Tedford announced Monday.

Best left the Nov. 10 game against USC with a hip injury early in the third quarter and missed the loss to Washington on Nov. 17. Tedford said hip specialists have offered contrasting opinions on both diagnoses and treatment plans.  "We want everyone's opinion, and we're taking our time to make sure we're right about it," Tedford said. "It's something we're going to be very careful with." It's unclear whether Best will require surgery, but Cal's medical staff is keeping him on crutches at least until a final decision is made. Best, a graduate of Salesian High-Richmond, has 221 rushing yards and two touchdowns with a 7.2-yards-a-carry average. He also has 13 catches for 74 yards and a score, averages 27 yards on kick returns and leads the team with 12 special-teams tackles.

Kicking it: Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh, coaching in his first Big Game, said that kicker Derek Belch's struggles might for the Cardinal to abandon "conventional football" principles against the Bears. Belch, a fifth-year senior, has missed eight of his last 10 attempts, including all four against Notre Dame on Saturday. Harbaugh explained Monday why, after Belch missed two 48-yard attempts in the first half, he gave his kicker two more chances, including an attempt on 4th-and-2 from the Notre Dame 8 with the game tied 14-14 early in the fourth quarter.  Stanford took a 5-yard delay-of-game penalty to improve the angle, Harbaugh said. Belch missed the attempt wide right. "I thought it was a chip shot and he'd be able to put that one through," Harbaugh said. Belch also missed from 49 yards in the fourth quarter when Stanford faced 4th-and-20 on the Notre Dame 32 with 8:01 to go. "The game was tied and he was struggling, but it was a go-ahead field goal at that point," Harbaugh said. "The percentages were a lot better (to make the kick). Picking up a 4th-and-20 is like 5 percent. We thought it was the prudent thing to do."  Harbaugh said Belch will be his kicker against Cal. Backup Aaron Zagory is out with an ankle injury, so punter Jay Ottovegio will be Belch's backup.

Stanford injury update: Sixth-year senior center Tim Mattran is "questionable" for Saturday's game with a high ankle sprain on his left ankle, according to Harbaugh. Mattran had a right ankle injury, which required surgery, that cost him all of the 2006 season. Mattran has started all 11 of Stanford's games this season.  Also questionable is right guard Alex Fletcher (knee), who left and returned to Saturday's game.  Tailback Anthony Kimble aggravated his right shoulder injury late in the game against Notre Dame and sat out the final two series. Harbaugh said Kimble also is considered questionable, but Kimble said Monday that he expects to play. Kimble played for the first time in five games against Notre Dame and finished with 80 rushing yards. "I don't know how much I'll be able to go, but I just want to go out and hopefully lay it on the line for (the seniors)," Kimble said.

Golden ticket: Approximately 750 tickets have been made available for Saturday's Big Game, according to the Stanford athletic department. Cal (6-5, 3-5 Pac-10) and Stanford (3-8, 2-6) play at 4 p.m. at Stanford Stadium in a game that could decide whether the Bears earn a bowl berth. Tickets ($65) may be purchased at gostanford.com, (800) 782-6367 or the ticket office, which is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and located near Gate 2 of Stanford Stadium. If tickets remain Saturday, the office will open at 9 a.m.

Briefly: Cal tailback Justin Forsett and free safety Thomas DeCoud have been invited to both the Senior Bowl and the East-West Shrine Game. Receiver Lavelle Hawkins has been invited to the Senior Bowl, and left tackle Mike Gibson got a Shrine invite.

 

Detroit Free Press: If not Miles, U-M should then look out west to Cal's Tedford

BY MICHAEL ROSENBERG

The Les Miles bowling ball started rolling down the hill in September, when Michigan lost to Appalachian State, and it keeps picking up speed. Former Michigan players are sending e-mails to athletic director Bill Martin, lobbying him to hire one of their own. Fans are excited about a true Blue coach who has had some success in two other leagues. But is Miles really the best coach Michigan can find? Is he really the best fit?  I mean, it's nice that he speaks glowingly about Bo Schembechler, but at the end of the day, so what? I know a hundred guys who speak glowingly of Schembechler. That doesn't mean they should sit in the office overlooking the practice field.

Miles is a good coach. He has shown that. And I don't doubt his love for Michigan. But let's step back for a second and look at this rationally.  For years, Miles has been telling people privately (and not so privately) that he wants to be Michigan's coach. In the frenzy over Miles' candidacy, this kind of nugget has been used to support his case. But think about it: Who tells so many people he wants a job that is filled? Is Miles really a disciplinarian in the Bo mold? When Miles left Oklahoma State, new coach Mike Gundy cut or suspended nine players before the start of the next season. "In the past, you could get away with some things around here," Cowboys safety Jamie Thompson told the San Antonio Express-News a few months after the coaching change. "That's not the case now."

Miles had the most talent in the country the past two years. His teams have achieved, but they have not overachieved. He has never put together the kind of season that made anybody say, "Wow, now THAT was a heck of a coaching job. That guy got absolutely everything out of his talent." I know this sounds nutty to some folks, but there are other coaches who can win big at Michigan. It's absurd to say this is Les Miles or bust. (My choice -- since you asked -- would be California coach Jeff Tedford. More on him in a minute.)  One more thing about this "Michigan Man" business: Despite what you have heard and read, not everybody who wears maize and blue is in love with Miles. Of course his friends support him. But I've talked to enough people about him to know he has detractors.

Martin and U-M president Mary Sue Coleman need to do their due diligence. They need to talk to people other than Miles' buddies. And they would be negligent if they hired Miles without talking to Lloyd Carr, who worked on the Michigan staff with Miles for 10 years. Before people get in a tizzy about Carr trying to name the next coach, please understand: He does not want to name the next head coach. He has made that clear. But what if he has a substantive objection to Les Miles -- or to anybody else? Martin and Coleman need to find out. Otherwise, their talk about wanting to "clone" Carr is empty.

Now, about Tedford: He is a proven head coach, but is only 47 years old. (Miles is 54.) He doesn't seem to have any interest in coaching in the NFL. So he could easily coach Michigan for 10 to 15 years, an option Martin has said he desires.

Tedford is happy at Cal, but he has pushed for facility upgrades, and they have been slow to come. He might be open to a change. Ask yourself this: Who will scare the people in Columbus?

See, Ohio State fans don't care if Michigan's coach attended Michigan. They don't care if he has a favorite sandwich at Zingerman's. They just care if he can coach. If I were a Buckeyes fan, I'd worry more about Jeff Tedford than about Les Miles. Tedford's accomplishments at California are more impressive than what Miles did at either Oklahoma State or Louisiana State.  In the 21 years before Tedford arrived, Cal had four winning seasons. The Golden Bears were 4-18 over the previous two seasons. Tedford has put together five straight winning seasons, and he can make it six by beating Stanford on Saturday. Imagine what he could do in Ann Arbor.

Tedford has earned praise from Berkeley administrators for balancing academics and winning -- and Cal is a school that actually cares about such things. According to the San Francisco Examiner, 16 of the 20 players in his first recruiting class graduated.  Tedford is a great offensive coach. He would update the offense. He can earn quarterback Ryan Mallett's trust by telling him he developed five QBs into first-round NFL picks.  The only downside to hiring Tedford -- and I do mean the only downside -- is that he doesn't have Midwest ties. But he has recruited extremely well at Cal, and if he keeps Michigan assistants like Fred Jackson, Erik Campbell and Ron English (a Cal grad), Tedford can catch up on recruiting. If Tedford says no, look at Rutgers' Greg Schiano, another coach who won where nobody thought it was possible. Les Miles coming back to Michigan would be a great story. But Martin isn't hiring a story. He is hiring a coach.

 

AP: California gets back to basics before Big Game

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) -- After a 14-point loss to the Pac-10's worst team nearly two weeks ago, coach Jeff Tedford decided nobody in the California program deserved a few days off.   So in a week previously reserved for holiday relaxation and resting up for Saturday's 110th Big Game against Stanford, Tedford put the Golden Bears through remedial classes in Football 101.   "It's almost like training camp again," safety Thomas DeCoud said. "It's back to the start, to Square One, and we'll go from there."

Read the entire article here.

AP: Stanford's Harbaugh unsure of QB starter, Best out for Season

Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh could make a quarterback change for this week's rivalry game against California after starter Tavita Pritchard was dinged up last week against Notre Dame.  Pritchard was replaced by T.C. Ostrander after being hit hard in the helmet by Notre Dame's Terrail Lambert in the third quarter of Saturday's game. Pritchard returned briefly against the Irish after the hit, but Ostrander finished the 21-14 loss.

Read the entire article here.

Big Game Tickets Available

Thanks to Michael for pointing out that there are still Big Game tickets - in the Cal section - available on gostanford.com. I just checked at 3:21 p.m. and confirmed that there are seats. This better be a sell out or Stanford will tear this stadium down and build an even smaller one.

Cal versus Michigan State

2008 Schedule

Aug. 30 - Michigan State

Sept. 6 - at Washington State

Sept. 13 - at Maryland

Sept. 27 - Colorado State

Oct. 4 - Arizona State

Oct. 11 - Washington

Oct. 18 - at Arizona

Oct. 25 - UCLA

Nov. 1 - Oregon

Nov. 8 - at USC

Nov. 15 - at Oregon State

Nov. 22 – Stanford

SF Chronicle: Possibilities abound for bowl berths

Jake Curtis

UCLA has a chance to get to the Rose Bowl, yet UCLA also has a chance to end up with no bowl berth at all.  Cal could end up in the Emerald Bowl or the Armed Forces Bowl or no bowl at all depending on the results of its game at Stanford and Arizona's game at Arizona State on Saturday.  Obviously, analyzing bowl possibilities is a nightmare at the moment. With one week left in the regular season, half the Pac-10 teams have a chance to earn a share of the conference championship, and USC, UCLA and Arizona State still have a shot at the Rose Bowl berth. So before looking at the national picture, our four Rs will begin with the range of possibilities for Cal and the Pac-10. Range of Cal's possibilities: Four scenarios are relevant:

1. If Cal beats Stanford and Arizona State beats Arizona, Cal gets a bowl berth, probably the Emerald Bowl in San Francisco, with Maryland a likely opponent.

2. If Cal beats Stanford and Arizona State loses to Arizona, Cal gets a bowl berth, probably the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth, Texas, with Air Force or TCU the likely opponent.

3. If Cal loses to Stanford and Arizona State beats Arizona, Cal gets a bowl berth, probably the Emerald Bowl if USC beats UCLA or the Armed Forces Bowl if USC loses to UCLA.

4. If Cal loses to Stanford and Arizona State loses to Arizona, Cal probably will not play in a bowl game.

The salient point for Cal is that a win over Stanford would give the Bears a 7-5 record, which would give them a bowl berth before any 6-6 Pac-10 team, regardless of where they are in the conference standings.  In short, Cal assures itself a bowl berth if it wins Saturday. If Cal loses, it needs Arizona to lose.

Rose Bowl possibilities: Three scenarios are relevant:

1. If USC beats UCLA, the Trojans are in the Rose Bowl.

2. If USC loses and Arizona State beats Arizona, Arizona State finishes alone in first and is in the Rose Bowl.

3. If USC and Arizona State both lose, UCLA is in the Rose Bowl.

The last one requires some explanation. If UCLA and Arizona win, there would be a four-way tie at 6-3 between UCLA, USC, Arizona State and the winner of the Oregon-Oregon State game.  The tiebreakers for determining the Pac-10's Rose Bowl representative is based on head-to-head results. UCLA, thanks primarily to wins over Oregon and USC the final two weeks, would wind up in Pasadena despite a 7-5 overall record. 

Note: If USC and Arizona State both win, USC would go to the Rose Bowl and ASU probably would go to the Fiesta Bowl, giving the Pac-10 two teams in BCS games and seven available bowl slots. If Arizona State loses to Arizona or USC loses to UCLA, the Pac-10 would get only one team into a BCS game and have six bowl vacancies. Ramifications nationally: If the season ended today, the matchups for the five major bowls might look like this:

BCS national title game: No. 1 Missouri vs. No. 2 West Virginia

Rose Bowl: USC vs. Ohio State

Fiesta Bowl: Arizona State vs. Kansas

Sugar Bowl: LSU vs. Hawaii

Orange Bowl: ACC champ (Boston College or Virginia Tech) vs. Georgia.

Missouri would be the first team unranked in the preseason to play in the national championship game.

Random monkey wrenches: In the past nine weeks, there have been eight different pairings of top-two teams, so expecting the expected is naive.  It's still possible for Ohio State, which was No. 5 in the BCS standings after its final regular-season game, to play for the national championship. A loss by either Missouri or West Virginia would make that happen.  It's still possible for a team that did not make it to its conference title game (Georgia) to play in the national championship game. That probably would happen if West Virginia loses to Pittsburgh and Missouri loses to Oklahoma.  It's still possible for the current No. 1 team, Missouri, not to get into any of the five BCS games, but Kansas, which did not win its conference title and lost to Missouri on Saturday, could get one. That could happen if Oklahoma beats Missouri in the Big 12 title game.  It's still possible for LSU to get shut out of the BCS games, which probably would happen if Tennessee beats the Tigers in the Southeastern Conference title game.  It's possible for Hawaii not to get a BCS berth even if it beats Washington to finish 12-0. The Warriors are No. 12 in the BCS standings, and a top-12 finish guarantees them a BCS berth. But if Arizona State and Tennessee both win Saturday, they might jump over Hawaii, which could drop out of the top 12.

 

Contra Costa Times: After the bye, Bears went bye-bye

Coming off open week at 5-0, Cal then saw its season quickly go south

By Jonathan Okanes

BERKELEY — Little did Cal know when it had its bye week in early October that it also was saying bye to its hopes for the 2007 season.   The Bears haven't been the same team since it took the week of Oct.6 off. Cal went into the week coming off a landmark win at Oregon, which improved its record to 5-0 and moved it up to No.3 in the national rankings. By the time the Bears took the field again on Oct.13 against Oregon State, they had risen to No.2.  For whatever reason, Cal hasn't been able to capture whatever formula it had been using during the first half of the season. The Bears have gone just 1-5 since the week off and are in danger of missing a bowl game. But it's the way the season has turned south that has been so striking.  During the first five weeks, the Bears were a crisp machine, overpowering opponents with a dynamic offense while playing mistake-free football. Cal somehow lost that sharpness during the bye week because since then it has been plagued by turnovers, untimely penalties and other assorted mistakes that seem to demonstrate a lack of focus.  "The bye week was a momentum killer," Cal wide receiver Robert Jordan said. "In those early weeks of the season, we were exploding on people. We were trying to blow people out of the water. We have to get back to doing that. We just have to get our confidence back, and I'm pretty sure we'll be all right."  The most glaring difference in the Bears is their tendency to give the ball to the other  team. Through the first five games, Cal turned the ball over only four times, and its turnover margin of 2.20 was tied for third in the country. In the six games since the bye, the Bears have given it away a staggering 18 times and have forced only seven turnovers themselves.

"It's not that we've focused on anything different in practice or anything like that," Cal coach Jeff Tedford said. "It's just kind of the way it's gone. We have to be more protective of the football."  It's not just the turnovers. While the Bears are committing penalties at about the same rate as before the bye, they seem to be coming at more crucial times, and more have been of the undisciplined variety. Cal hasn't been the quick-strike offense it was during the first half of the season, and both sides of the ball haven't been able to maintain a high level of play throughout the entire 60 minutes of a game.  "At that time of year, we really needed (a bye week)," Tedford said. "We were pretty banged-up at the time. It's a culmination of things, of how to handle expectations, how to handle adversity, things like that. It's something that we're probably not used to."  When asked whether the bye week could have had an adverse affect on the Bears, Cal left tackle Mike Gibson said, "That's the way I've been looking at it, too." He said he felt the Bears did the same thing last season after a bye. They beat UCLA in their first game back but had a letdown in a loss at Arizona and fell to USC the following week.  "It's just little mistakes that keep adding up," Gibson said. "The little things keep on getting bigger and bigger. I definitely feel that we're lacking somewhere, and it's the lack of drive to win, like we had in the first five games."  So what happened during the bye week? Was it simply that the time off ruined the Bears' momentum? Did expectations get too high after they moved up to No.2 without even playing? Nobody seems to have an answer, but one thing is for sure: Cal has just one more regular season game — next Saturday's Big Game at Stanford — to solve the problem.  "That's the thing we as a team, each and every player, each and every coach, is trying to figure out," Cal middle linebacker Worrell Williams said. "I can't quite put my finger on it. It's frustrating."

Columbian: Cal Takes Top Spot for Worst MidSeason Collapse

BY NICK DASCHEL, Columbian staff writer

Can a college football team go from nearly achieving the country's No. 1 ranking one week to missing the bowl season altogether? California is sure trying. On Oct. 13, No. 1 Louisiana State lost in triple overtime to Kentucky, opening the door for No. 2 California to make a rare move into the top spot. Except a few hours later, the Bears lost to Oregon State, 31-28.

Cal hasn't recovered. The Bears lost for the fifth time in six games Saturday, falling at Washington 37-23. Though California is technically bowl eligible at 6-5, there is a chance the Bears could get bypassed when bowl berths are extended Dec. 2. The Pacific-10 Conference has contracts with six bowl games. There is a chance the league will land a seventh bowl game, a BCS at-large berth.

But suppose the Pac-10 doesn't get a second BCS game. And Arizona wins its season finale against Arizona State. And UCLA wins one of its final two games. And California loses its final game to Stanford. Then it's seven bowl-eligible Pac-10 teams going for six bowl berths. California, with a 3-6 league record, figures to be odd team out unless one of the bowls decide to dismiss the guidelines and take the Bears because of the Bay Area's large television market. None of this is sitting well with California coach Jeff Tedford, who blasted his team inside the locker room following the loss to Washington. "It was eye-opening," tailback Justin Forsett told the San Francisco Chronicle. "Everybody's ears were open to him."

Outside the locker room, Tedford blamed himself for California's lackluster performance. "They're not coached very well, and that falls on me," Tedford said. "Right now, we're not good enough. When this many mistakes are being made, it is coaching. ... We've got to find a way to stop making mistakes, and the only way I know how to stop it is to coach it better." Linebacker Zach Follett said the Bears have been going through the motions. "We kind of have fake emotion out there," he said. "We know we need to be rah-rah and go out there and be pumped up, but in reality, we're not playing with the heart and passion it takes to win games."

Oakland Tribune: The sky is falling, just not in Berkeley

Eric Gillmore

It's hard to blame Cal football fans for feeling as if they've been blindsided this season by the Bears' thermonuclear meltdown.  Who saw this coming? It's been almost all blue skies and sunshine for the Bears since coach Jeff Tedford arrived in 2002 and turned a 1-10 team into a consistent winner.  The Bears went 7-5 in Tedford's first season, 10-2 in 2004 and 10-3 in 2006, when they shared the Pac-10 crown with USC. In Tedford's first five seasons, the Bears were 43-20. Then they started this year 5-0. At 48-20, Tedford was winning at a 70.6 percent clip. But that was before the Bears lost five of six, reminding Old Blues of a few things they probably forgot amid the euphoria of Cal's football resurrection, when "Tedford is God" T-shirts were selling like tie-dye on Telegraph. Just as in the stock market, past performance in college football does not guarantee future results. The sport is rife with parity and volatility. If you're not careful, it's easy to slip up and fall hard, as the Bears have learned. Cal's margin for error wasn't large enough this season to survive a mediocre defense and a nagging ankle injury to quarterback Nate Longshore. Some uber-conservative play calling by Tedford at times didn't help, either. Once the Bears started losing, they lost their confidence, passion and mojo and went into a football death spiral that continued Saturday with a 37-23 loss to Washington. The college football landscape is littered with  once-mighty programs that have crashed.

Nebraska is 5-6 and gave up 76 points this season in a loss to Kansas. Notre Dame is 2-9 with losses to Navy and Air Force and must be wishing it had scheduled the Coast Guard and some ROTC team instead. Miami, Florida State, Alabama, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Penn State and Michigan used to be considered college football royalty. Not one of those teams is ranked among the top 25 in either the BCS standings or the Associated Press poll. There's not much Tedford can do to salvage this season, although a victory in the Big Game next week and in a minor bowl game would at least ease the Bears' pain. Once the season ends, Tedford will begin arguably the toughest and most critical offseason of his Cal career as he tries to get the Bears back on the top-20 track. Tedford's offseason work surely will include an evaluation of every player, every coach -- including himself -- and every aspect of his program. Tedford faces some crucial questions, including whether he should give promising backup quarterback Kevin Riley a real chance in spring practice and summer training camp to unseat Longshore. Hey, why not? If Longshore holds up under that pressure and wins the competition, it will only make him better and tougher. If Riley prevails, then so be it. The future will arrive a year early. After this season at Cal, no starting job should be considered safe.

Tedford also will have to decide whether to shake up his coaching staff. Defensive coordinator Bob Gregory has taken the most heat. But Gregory is coaching a young defense that lost tackle Brandon Mebane, cornerback Daymeion Hughes and middle linebacker Desmond Bishop to the NFL. Gregory might want to tweak his bend-but-don't-break approach and get more aggressive, but his body of work at Cal has been solid enough to keep his job. In the past four seasons, the Bears ranked fourth, third, first and third in scoring defense in the Pac-10. It may seem like the sky is falling at Cal, but there are still reasons for optimism. Cal's cupboard is far from bare, and the football talent pipeline leading to Berkeley is still wide open. Cal's recruiting classes, according to scout.com, ranked 12th this year, 23rd last year, ninth in 2005 and 29th in 2004. Based on oral commitments to date, Cal's projected recruiting class of 2008 ranks 26th. Compare that to Tedford's first recruiting class in 2002 when the Bears were No. 62 in the nation.  Next year, speedy running back Jahvid Best will move into the starting lineup, giving the Bears a true home run threat in the backfield. Three of five starters on Cal's solid offensive line should return, assuming center Alex Mack doesn't jump early to the NFL. The Bears will boast two solid quarterbacks. And who knows? Maybe junior wide receiver DeSean Jackson will decide to return for his final season and build a better resume for NFL scouts. On defense, 10 starters, counting injured end Rulon Davis, will return. A year's experience alone should make them better. And you can bet some new faces will dot the starting lineup. After this season, the Bears will be ravenous again. Overconfidence certainly won't be a problem because they'll realize that winning, especially in an ever-improving Pac-10, is not a birthright in Berkeley, even during the Tedford era.

ESPN: Cal 23, Washington 37

SEATTLE (AP) -- Washington didn't need Jake Locker, after all. They didn't even need backup quarterback Carl Bonnell. Louis Rankin ran 21 times for 224 yards and a touchdown in less than three quarters as the Huskies shook off not having their team leader Locker and upset California 37-23 on Saturday, the Bears' fifth loss in six games. Rankin's second 200-yard day in three weeks for Washington (4-7, 2-6 Pac-10) came despite not playing the final 1 1/2 quarters because of a hip pointer that he called minor. His backup, freshman Brandon Johnson, ran for 121 yards on 23 carries.  Justin Forsett ran for 141 yards for the Bears (6-5, 3-5). Cal's Nate Longshore, the target of intense criticism after completing less than 50 percent of his passes and committing three turnovers in last week's loss to USC, completed 20 of 28 throws for 236 yards with three first-half touchdowns and one interception. Since Oct. 13, Cal has dropped from No. 2 in the country with realistic hopes for the BCS title game to seventh in the Pac-10, clinging to one of the Pac-10's final spots in a minor bowl. This is Cal's worst stretch since it lost its first 10 games in 2001. That got coach Tom Holmoe fired and brought Jeff Tedford to Berkeley.

One week after USC rolled to 239 yards rushing against the Bears, Washington stomped on Cal for 334. Most came on runs between the tackles by Rankin, who eclipsed 200 yards on a 46-yard run on the opening drive of the second half. That set up a 45-yard field goal Ryan Perkins for a 31-20 lead. Bonnell was making his first start this season because Locker was in uniform but out with a sprained neck sustained in last week's loss at Oregon State, which eliminated Washington from bowl consideration. The fifth-year senior completed just 7 of 19 passes for 108 yards and a touchdown. Locker tossed warm-up throws with Bonnell and stayed close to the field, often stepping onto it to cheer and encourage his offense. Afterward, Washington offensive coordinator Tim Lappano said his dynamic redshirt freshman will return to start next week's Apple Cup against Washington State. Two close calls in favor of the Huskies gave them a 34-23 lead after three quarters.

With Washington leading 31-23 in the third quarter, Bonnell was tossed around by Zack Follett while trying to throw the ball away. His pass flopped two yards behind where he threw it, but referee Jay Stricherz called Bonnell for intentional grounding a forward pass. On the next play, 3rd-and-24, Bonnell found Cody Ellis down the sideline for a 51-yard pass. Perkins then kicked a 30-yard field goal. An overturned call by a replay review allowed Washington to take a 28-20 lead into halftime. Cal's Brandon Hampton, back to return a punt because dangerous DeSean Jackson was on the bench with a bruised thigh, tried a fair catch. Washington's Chris Stevens shoved Cal's Cameron Morrah into Hampton, causing a muff that UW's Joshua Gage recovered at the Cal 21 with 35 second left in the half. Officials initially ruled Hampton had not touched the ball, but a review by television replay reversed that. Marcus Reece then jumped inside Chris Conte and made a leaping catch of Bonnell's 12-yard pass for a touchdown 12 seconds before halftime. Washington took a 14-0 lead by running 16 times on its first 18 plays, with the Bears looking overwhelmed on defense. Rankin ran for 125 yards in the first quarter, including a 5-yard touchdown run. After Rankin's 28-yard run on which he cut back across the entire field, Johnson ran for another 5-yard score. Longshore completed his first nine passes and got the Bears back in the game with three touchdown passes in the first half, 19 yarders to tight ends Morrah and Craig Stevens plus a 14-yard lob to James Montgomery.

USA Today: Weekend Preview

California's fortunes have taken a nose dive, dropping four of five games since last month's triumph at Oregon. The Golden Bears can at least assure a winning record with a win at Washington, which is now officially building for next year. QB Jake Locker, the Huskies' hope for the future, wasn't permanently damaged by last week's scary-looking hit against Oregon State but is unlikely to play. It will be up to senior Carl Bonnell to keep pace with the Golden Bears' powerful attack. WR Marcel Reece and RB Louis Rankin must help him. But Cal hasn't shown its explosiveness of late, relying instead on RB Justin Forsett to carry the offense. QB Nate Longshore will try again to get the ball to WRs DeSean Jackson and Lavelle Hawkins early.

East Bay Business Times: Winning Bears bring in big bucks for Cal

This season - despite recent losses - UC-Berkeley's football team has enjoyed its highest ranking since 1951 and has played in several nationally televised games.  It features a Heisman Trophy candidate in wide receiver DeSean Jackson, and last year's star running back, Marshawn Lynch, is now turning heads in the NFL. Alumni who might have blushed with embarrassment in 2001 and wouldn't give Cal Athletics a dime in donations are now clamoring to support it.  Just as in politics, winners attract money. Since head coach Jeff Tedford's arrival five years ago, Cal's Athletic Department has reaped the rewards of the football team's winning ways. While non-revenue teams like men's rugby and women's swimming have found sustained success, Cal Athletics says the football team's strong performance in recent years has largely been responsible for donations soaring from $8 million in 2004 to more than $34 million last year. The university expects that number to top $38 million in 2007.

In fact, according to a recent article in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Cal's athletic department was No. 8 among American universities for athletic fundraising in 2006 and tops in the Pac-10, raising more than $34 million. This amount is due mainly to efforts for the $125 million Simpson Student-Athlete High Performance Center for which the university has raised about $106 million to date.

 

SF Chronicle: Some interesting story lines in an otherwise dull Cal-UW matchup

Nearly all the buzz and significance to be found in today's game between Cal and Washington comes from two trumped-up quarterback controversies.  Both teams are in the bottom half of the Pac-10 standings. Cal, which has lost four of five, is the picture of mediocrity according to most conference statistical categories, and for Washington, which has dropped seven of eight, the picture isn't even that pretty.  Though they may be a little trivial, there are some intriguing story lines.

At Cal, junior quarterback Nate Longshore threw himself under the bus after a 24-17 loss to USC last week, and some want the bus to stop and back up over him. At Washington, redshirt freshman sensation Jake Locker can't even turn his head, but coach Tyrone Willingham hasn't ruled him out of the game. In Cal's 5-0 start, Longshore completed 63.8 percent of his passes for 1,137 yards and seven touchdowns to only two interceptions. Since spraining his right ankle in the 31-24 win at Oregon on Sept. 29 and missing the ensuing loss to Oregon State, Longshore has completed 57.3 percent of his passes for 919 yards and five touchdowns to eight interceptions as the Bears have gone 1-3. Cal coach Jeff Tedford hasn't forgotten that Longshore is also the quarterback who led Cal to a 10-3 record last season, throwing for 3,021 yards and 24 touchdowns. Tedford used Tuesday's news luncheon as an opportunity to stand up for his guy. "The obvious thing to do is to pile on the quarterback," Tedford said. "Nobody sees missed gap responsibilities or missed blocking assignments, but it's very evident to the eye what the quarterback does. But Nate has done a lot of really good things for us."

No one in Seattle is calling for Locker's job, because he's eight yards away from breaking the conference's rushing record among modern-day quarterbacks with 807 yards. A start Saturday is in doubt, however, because Locker endured a neck stinger and bruised trapezius muscle on a helmet-to-helmet hit by Oregon State safety Al Afalava last week and was taken from the field in an ambulance after temporarily losing feeling in his left arm.  "That was a scary situation," Locker said. "I've never really had anything like that happen, but it's part of the game. ... I remember colliding with the guy and trying to push myself up and I couldn't move my left arm. "That's when I got scared." In a Tuesday's news conference, broadcast on the Washington athletics Web site, Locker turned his upper body instead of rotating his head to address media to his left and right. Reportedly, he's been able to do more each day and actually took some first-team repetitions Thursday, but Willingham has yet to rule Locker out. "I think there's always a shot (he'll play), especially knowing Jake the way I know him," Willingham said. "We're not ruling in or out, but I like the progress I see from him." If Locker doesn't play, the game immediately draws comparison to last season's match-up between the teams. Carl Bonnell, now a fifth-year senior, made his first start, replacing dual-threat quarterback Isaiah Stanback, and threw a last-second, 40-yard touchdown pass to force overtime. Of course, Bonnell also threw five interceptions as Cal pranced away with a 34-27 win, creating the circumstances for one of the season's most indelible images. After Cal middle linebacker Desmond Bishop intercepted a pass to seal the victory, tailback Marshawn Lynch found the keys to a utility cart and zig-zagged across the Memorial Stadium artificial turf in celebration of the Bears' seventh-consecutive win.

Cal today

Who: Cal (6-4, 3-4) vs. Washington (3-7, 1-6)

When: 12:30 p.m.

Where: SeattleTV/Radio: Channel: 7 Channel: 10 /810

Story line: Cal coach Jeff Tedford is looking for his 50th win, and he'll secure the school's sixth straight winning season if he gets it today. Seattle would be a fitting place for the benchmark victory, because Tedford stopped a string in 19 consecutive wins by Washington in the series in 2002.

Washington ranks last in the conference in points allowed and rushing yards allowed and is ninth in total offense allowed. Cal hasn't scored more than three touchdowns in a game for four weeks, but the Huskies' defense should get the Bears back on track. Cal quarterback Nate Longshore wants to prove his doubters wrong, and tailback Justin Forsett could dominate in the rain.

Cal's defense has played probably its best back-to-back games of the season. The Bears figured out how to get off the field, limiting Washington State and USC to 11-of-30 third-down conversions. The two high-powered offenses averaged only 20.5 points againt Cal. The Huskies rank third in the conference in rushing, but will probably be without quarterback Jake Locker and his 800 rushing yards. That leaves tailback Louis Rankin, who is on pace to be Washington's most productive runner since 1997, and senior quarterback Carl Bonnell, who threw five interceptions against Cal last season.