Golden Nuggets: Prediction Thursday

Congratulations to all the members of the football team who made the Pac-10 All-Academic team!  The first team included Mark Boskovich, Alex Lagemann, and Mike Mohamed.  Ernie Owusu, Matt Summers-Gavin, and Giorgio Tavecchio made the second team, and Skylar Curran, Chris Guarnero, and Mitchell Schwartz made received honorable mention.  At a school like Berkeley, it is even more impressive that they made the list.

Despite thinking that one or both teams may come out playing flat, Ted Miller anticipates a big Cal victory.

California 35, Washington 21: The Bears have steadily -- and quietly -- risen in the Pac-10 since suffering those embarrassing consecutive losses to Oregon and USC. It seems like things are clicking on both sides of the ball, and the Bears certainly have the athleticism on defense to handle a scrambling Jake Locker. Moreover, Cal seems to have an advantage coming off a bye week while the Huskies might not be focused after winning the Apple Cup last weekend.

All five CBS experts predict a Cal victory.

All five Yahoo experts predict a Cal victory.

After the jump, we have player quotes from Tuesday's press luncheon (including some humorous remarks from Tepper), injury updates for Cal and Washington, motivation for both Cal and Washington to win this weekend's game, recap/analysis of basketball's loss to New Mexico, 20 questions with DJ Seeley, and a preview of the weekend in Cal sports.

Cal Football

• JO has quotes from a few players from Tuesday's luncheon.  They talk about preparing for the December weather in Seattle, the loss to Washington in 2007, bowl game possibilities, bouncing back from the losses to Oregon and USC, and preparing to take on Washington.  Tepper had some funny quotes that are too good to pass up:

On bowl experiences

It’s gotten to the point with me that I don’t know where we’re going to go. I’ve been to Vegas, I’ve been to Holiday, I’ve been to Texas before – I’ve been a lot of places. I’ve kind of learned over the years that bowl games are what you make of it. Even though I was under 21 in Vegas, I made the best of it. You find ways. In San Diego, they have the whole gaslamp district and the whole party scene down there. Texas, Dallas had its own little scene down there. It’s what you make it. If you want to sit in your hotel room, like previous centers (Alex Mack), and sit there and do nothing, that’s fine with me. But I don’t think I’m ever going back to Dallas unless I’m playing for an NFL team there, or I’m transferring flights there. So I’m going to go have fun. That’s part of the bowl game. You realize you’re playing a game, but you also realize you’re traveling somewhere and you want to have fun with it. I don’t really care where I go. Vegas is always fun, but I’ve had fun in San Diego and I’ve had fun in Texas.

• Tedford seemed quite proud of all the players who made the All-Academic team and made a point to talk about it before any reporters even had the chance to ask about it.  In a surprising development, it seems MSG sustained a concussion against Stanford and he may not play against Washington.
• No one has forgotten the loss to Washington in 2007, what many considered to be the low point of the season.  Holley, Mohamed, and Riley were especially bothered by the loss and are committed to coming out of Seattle with a win.
• Most everyone on Washington has seen the clip of Best's concussion-inducing fall and that got the team thinking about whether or not to hurdle defenders.  While the players are not prohibited from attempting to jump over a defender, their running back coach makes a point to tell them "If you are going to leave your feet, you are on your own."
• Washington's starting center and team captain Ryan Tolar will likely miss Saturday's game after it was determined that he suffered a concussion against WSU.  This seems to be a major blow to the O-line, as it was riding momentum from a great performance against the Cougs.
• After last week's shutout, Washington DC Nick Holt is especially excited about playing this week.  He believes his unit is finally starting to develop into an effective, cohesive group.  He thinks Cal will be a great test for the D and he and his players embrace the challenge.