Let's start with the gameday experiences of Cal fans. Since this one didn't involve an extended roadtrip of fail and instead a leisurely trip to Homecoming, I'm guessing you guys had plenty of fun this time.
trojanbear: Loved being on campus and being surrounded by Cal fans after spending 4 days last week with Duck fans. I loved the initial energy the crowd provided, but I think our fans let the team down just as much as the team let us down. When Oregon turned the ball over at the begining of the prior game, autzen became louder. When Riley threw the interception the Coliseum on our first drive became the masoleum (aka LA Colisuem before PC).
SoCal Oski: Cold beer, awesome carne asada, and good friends.
pyunny: It was my first Cal game outside of the student section and I've got to say our fans suck. Can we make some noise? People were staring at me as if I were crazy. I used to think that we were pretty good as a student section but even the student section seemed quiet. I understand it's hard to cheer when we don't have much going for us but isn't that when we need it the most?
royrules22: The CGB tailgate was fun?
Nasty_Nate: Nope! Nothing at all!
bluehenbear: USC Band = douchebaggery at its finest
ososdeoro: It was cool that the bowl was filled up a half hour before kickoff. It was cool that it was a sellout. It's going to be awhile before we get another, though.
Berkelium97: Traveling 450 miles to Berkeley was almost worth it to see Tepper hurdle a USC linesman.
Also, one of the roving concession guys (the one with the Kid-n-Play haircut with the bleached front) was walking around, dislocating his shoulder/elbow from their joints and letting his arms flail wildly. This helped make the 4th quarter more tolerable.sec119: When the fourth quarter cleared out most of section RR (or whatever is right next to the band), and there were about 20 empty rows ahead of me, my buddy turned to me and said, "I wouldn't come here if I were a 5 star recruit."
Oh wait, cool experiences? Pre-game cheeseboard pizza and Racer 5 IPA.
DougOLis: I fell asleep during halftime and woke up a minute or so into the 3rd quarter. That was fun.CALumbus Bear: I got to see my Dodgers clinch the West! Whoo hoooo blue crew!! It was fun to watch after all that scotchy scotch scotch scotchy scotch scotchness
Kodiak: I had severe food poisoning/stomach flu prior to the game. I had to go to urgent care where they forced me to pound six huge glasses of vile contrast liquid so that they could scan me to verify that my appendix wasn't about to burst. So, I ran the gamut of nausea, vomiting, and crapping out radioactive contrast liquid. Looking back, it was a much more pleasant experience than watching the game.
Manwich: I started taking shots at 7, drunk by 8:30. All courtesy of USC alums at the bar, at least they're less likely to be dicks (only slightly) outside of the school.
jocko: Wonderful crowd, terrible game.
HOUSE66: Teppers screen play, then going home and drinking to another Emerald bowl victory thats sure to come, Passing out and forgetting why i felt so miserable when i woke up, then i remembered...
Jr. Bear: Getting drunk. Some Alumni have a negativity that can be frankly just tiring. Being in the Cal Spirit DeCal class, I know firsthand that this extends to the faculty. It's hard not to think that some of this doesn't extend to the team. I bet Tedford is getting tired of DURR HURR BAD KARMA UND RUSS BOAWL
aznpursuit: My goal for this team was to score one touchdown. They failed me.
Silver lining: Girlfriend was going to surprise me with tickets to this game, but decided against it. Saved us $150 on tickets, an hour driving up to Berkeley, 3 hours of suffering in a cold and windy stadium, and another hour of driving back home. PRICELESS.BeastMode: Flew in Friday. Had a great weekend with friends. Got drunk. Twice. Game? What game?
BerkeleyChris: I think Kevin Riley's superpower is not being able to hit open receivers.
1988goldenbear: None.
Spazzy McGee: Really, today was an all around shitty day other than the burger I ate for dinner. It continues to be shitty right now, in fact.GBB4188: Blondie's was pretty good today. There was a huge pile of vomit on one of the BART cars. I just ate some nachos.
rollonubears: Me and my sister were having a competition to see who had the worst day. She broke up with her boyfriend and got stuck in an elevator. I attended the USC-Cal game.
I won.Dexter1715: none
jsnell: My wife and I left the game at halftime and went to a lovely asian restaurant in Marin County for dinner. We shared a satay platter. Tasty. And much better than watching this crap game.
polarbear91: I got 4 boxes of Cheerios on sale.
Maisbikkja: I found an onion ring in my fries during the game. I love surprise onion rings.
jpeng: Had to get up at 7:20am in Taipei to watch the game (15hours ahead). Located a bar catering to expats (Brass Monkey) showing the game. Arrived 7 minutes into the game and met some cool Cal alums. Bar was packed with USC fans (why can't you get away from them?)
VN: Turning the TV off. That was nice.
rurata: None.
Ohio Bear: I didn't commit suicide after watching the game.
arkangel99: NONE
California Pete: The best part of my day was probably the fact that I had the game paused on my DVR as I missed the start returning from an afternoon party. By allowing me to skip over the commercial breaks and between-play huddles, this at least turned three hours of agony into something more like two hours. Even Mike Silver can't save me from this post-game depression.
MadBum: Not cool. A good friend of mine called me asking me what the score was...I hung up on him
WTFFF!!!!!!!!: Fuck you.
Yep. Definitely better!
Quarterback: 0.589 (D-)
Running back: 2.004 (C)
Receivers: 1.570 (C-)
Run Blocking: 1.296 (D+)
Pass Protection: 1.393 (D+)
Run Defense: 1.867 (C-)
Pass Rush: 1.178 (D)
Pass Defense: 1.063 (D)
Special Teams: 1.104 (D)
Coaching: 0.856 (D)
Overall: 0.778 (D)
I'm guessing if this is a Cal class, they'd probably be kind enough to give you a P. I think. Thanks to the 45 commenters who took the time to put their thoughts into this one.
WTFFF!!!!!!!!, MadBum, yorzepol, California Pete, arkangel99, Ohio Bear, rurata, VN, jpeng, Maisbikkja, polarbear91, jsnell, Dexter1715, rollonubears, iVinshe, GBB4188, Spazzy Mcgee, 1988goldenbear, BerkeleyChris, BeastMode, aznpursuit, coolingfan, Oaktown123, Haas8388, Jr. Bear, sycasey, HOUSE66, jocko, CaliforniaCMB, BTown85, Manwich, Kodiak, CALumbus Bear, DougOLis, sec119, Berkelium97, ososdeoro, bluehenbear, Nasty_Nate, royrules22, Oaklandishbear, pyunny, SoCal Oski, Sinbad, trojanbear
Awards and best comments are after the jump.
For the second week in a row, our graders agreed on the overall performance, with a standard deviation of 0.708. Position-wise, the agreement was on quarterback play.
The special teams streak is broken! The biggest disagreement was on the receivers, with an SD of 1.048. Special teams was the runner up.
Steven Chu Award
| Commenter/alias name | Total standard deviation |
| CALumbus Bear | 1.141 |
| trojanbear | 1.239 |
| Kodiak | 1.335 |
| sycasey | 1.427 |
| Oaklandishbear | 1.637 |
CGB Supreme Court Ultra Super Justice CALumbus Bear (that's what we call him, right?) shows he is really a man of reason. Here is his full report card, which should be viewed with grave seriousness.
Quarterback (D-): You are entering Overthrow City, population 1. Mayor: Kevin "Throw Harder" Riley. Motto: "We don't win big games." Voted one of the most frustrating places to live 2 years in a row.
Running back (C): Best looked decent when he was given the ball. But we couldn't afford to do it often enough.
Receivers (C-): Would have been a D but for the tight ends. They apparently didn't do a good job getting open, and they didn't make any great catches.
Run blocking (D): Dear O line: WTF?
Pass protection (D): Dear O line: see comment above.
Run defense (C): I think we got tired, and there were some pretty bad tackles. They did make many a play, though, so that kinda evens out the bad-tackling-for-big-gain instances.
Pass rush (D): Need mor sax lol
Pass defense (D): Welcome to USC Receiver City, where we're open all night! Need to improve your TE stats? Play Cal.
Special teams (D-): I thank Oski that no FG/KOs were returned for touchdowns. I also thank Oski that no punts were returned for TDs and that we didn't muff any punt receptions. Oh, wait, fuck.
Coaching (D): Defense coaches get a C, which kinda balances out the Fs and Ds that abound elsewhere.
Overall (F): The only thing that kept the overall grade from being an F was the Oregon game. But this game was at home. You know, I'm gonna go ahead and change the overall grade to F. Yup, they deserved it. Perhaps we should have an "EP" grade for Epic Phail.
Old Blue Award
| Commenter/alias name | Average score (out of 4) |
| MadBum (T-1st) | 0 |
| rollonubears (T-1st) | 0 |
| BerkeleyChris | 0.182 |
| coolingfan | 0.303 |
| jsnell, BeastMode | 0.545 |
From four bagels last week to two. We can build on this!
MadBum & rollonubears give you your weekly dose of pessimism. You've already heard rollonubears sad story up top; here are samples from the former.
Receiving: Too many drops...part of the blame falls on the QB, but they weren't open enough. Our RBs were better wideouts
Run Defense: We seemed to be giving up big runs too often in the 1st quarter. Stepped it up in the 2nd and later, but I think that was SC taking some pity
Special Teams: That missed field goal almost made me cry
Overall: I HATE MY LIFE
Golden Sunglasses Award
| Commenter/alias name | Average score (out of 4) |
| jpeng | 2.636 |
| BTown85 | 2.242 |
| pyunny | 2.182 |
| Manwich | 2.167 |
| Jr. Bear | 2.091 |
I'm glad to hear I wasn't the only optimistic one coming out of this one. Leading up the charge is jpeng (although Manwich cracks the top 5 for the second straight week, keep the love coming!), who has more faith in Kevin Riley than anyone else out there!
Quarterback (B+): Riley overthrew his receivers quite a few times but with USC's pass rush always breathing down his neck I think he didn't do as poorly as his numbers had suggested, he avoided being sacked SEVERAL times throughout the game and was disciplined enough to still look down the field. He may have looked awful to some, but I believe he played decently given the persistent pressure. When our receivers were covered well, Riley even had presence of mind to pick up a couple using his feet.
Running back (B): If our OL can't open up holes, it'll be tough for any back to put up tremendous numbers. Sure JB got chased down a couple times (Mays runs like a 4.29?) but Jahvid and Shane played at a satisfactory level given the very talented defense they were up against.
Run defense (B): Two words, missed tackles. Many times our guys got to the runner, but couldn't bring them to the ground. Sure USC has some shifty backs but many times I watched our tacklers slow down and pull up before attempting to wrap.
Coaching (B+): I liked the improvement over last week. Cal utilizing the wildcat and pulling a couple reverses kept USC on their toes. The trick play with Vereen on the very edge of the field was an AWESOME call. It's a shame he wasn't able to catch it in bounds (overthrown) cause that probably would've been an easy 6.
Overall (B-): I hate USC so much, many times I was wishing season-ending injuries to their playmakers but alas we were outplayed by a VERY talented team (whats with the 5/4-star depth?). Sure we had a chance to beat them, but damn... they're good. which makes is so much easier to hate on them.
Best of the comments
And finally, the most memorable or insightful of the comments. Considering how negative things have gotten in here, I'm starting to wonder if I should put a disclaimer: These comments do not reflect the opinions of Marshawnthusiasts or the Jahvidtician.
Again, I tried to include everyone as much as I could. Really sorry if I left any of you out.
Quarterback
Maisbikkja (D): Riley had confidence on his first series, and he threw like it. He took command of the offense and got the Bears down the field and then OH MY GOD HERE WE GO AGAIN... My only advice would be to give Riley a heavier ball that might bring his passes down to a catchable level. You have the talent man, it's there! UNLEASH THE FURY!
Beast Mode (0): He still overthrows the ball way too much. He is not seeing wide open receivers even with decent protection at times. I just don't see the development with Riley. Honestly, I was never very impressed with him, even taking into account OSU and Air Force in 2007. Let's face it, there's a reason he couldn't hold off Nate Longshore.
Mansion or Sweeney deserve a shot here, for the future of this program. It really can't be much worse than what we've seen, even against two good defenses. Riley's errors were not a function of those defenses, they were his own.GBB4188 (D): I don't know if it's subconscious memory-blocking, but I can't think of a worse QB performance in recent times. This is coming from a Bruin who just sat through a year of Craft.
Berkelium97 (F+): I was very impressed with Riley's scrambling. He really surprised me with his elusiveness (this is why he earned the "+" in F+). Besides that, it was probably the worst performance by a Cal qb since Ayoob against USC in 2005. I don't know how he can be so wildly inaccurate. He was overthrowing, throwing low, throwing left, throwing right, all about 4 feet from where the receiver could catch it. What's particularly troubling was that even when he had time and a wide open receiver he'd blow the pass. The Sneaky Vereen would have gone for 6 had he not missed the throw.
He only has a few more games before I start chowing down at Beau Sweeney's Family-Style Canjun EateryJr. Bear (C-): Too many overthrows, of course, by Riley. But then it's hard to settle down when he got as much pressure as he did. Or perhaps we are seeing shades of Steven Threet of Michigan, throwing to his imaginary 11-foot tall friend. I STILL LOVE HIM, SO DREAMY. I see him at the Golden Bear Cafe all the time, bein' a regular ole goofball with Will Kapp.
Kodiak (F): The demon spirit of Ayoob has clearly possessed Kevin Riley. And unlike the D-movie with Megan Fox, the results ain't pretty. He's clearly lost his swagger and confidence. I think last year's debacle has thoroughly messed with his head to where his competitive psyche is the now equivalent of a boxer with a glass jaw. He has the skills when everything else is rolling, but throw in any adversity and he becomes a weird hybrid of Mr. Magoo and post-Nolanized Alex Smith.
I know the biggest jump in skill is supposed to be between Jr -> Sr years, but it's bluidy ridiculous the skew that jump by setting the bar so low it's underground.SoCal Oski (D-): Riley appears to be completely mentally ripped apart. His passes are like flinging half-cooked spaghetti against a wall - he's just hoping one or two will stick. Even with time and an open receiver he seems to be forcing things, with way too many overthrown balls - always a sign of a hurried throw. Maybe Tedford/Ludwig need to treat Riley the way Ucla treats Craft: no long throws and only tiny dump-offs.
Running back
ososdeoro (C): Well, you can't really blame the running backs for the speed of the USC linebackers, can you? Still, while Best clearly showed how to run against USC (run hard until you see the hole, or don't, and NEVER hesitate in the backfield). Vereen was clueless. Hopefully, he'll learn.
California Pete (D): Couldn't get things going for the second straight week. Some of this is on them, and not being able to pick up that first down against a hobbled Taylor Mays is a major punch in the face for our erstwhile Heisman front-runner.
I'm still inclined, though, to fault the O-line and the overall game plan which is not nearly stubborn enough. Cal's attitude must be: load up the box with 8 or 9 guys, because we're still going to run it down your throats. Riley should not be throwing the ball 30+ times a game. Period.
trojanbear (C-): Given the lack of blocking the backs did as well as expected. It's not easy to gain positive yardage when the oponent has 9 or 10 guys in the box. I liked the wildcat, however, one of the backs has to throw from that formation or it's useless ploy. Maybe they can line Isi, Jahvid and Shane in the backfield and snap it to a different back each time.jocko (C): Great talents, if they were playing for USC.
yorzepol (B-): Best was not going to get going without a viable passing threat, there was none. He juked and jived for all he was worth, but he could not get anything going. I expect every team from here on out is going to stop Best at all costs and if he can not get help we will be in for a LONG season.
coolingfan (D-): Jahvid's overrated... He's just a speedy back, who needs a LOT of help from the O-line to get himself in the open field, but won't produce much otherwise. He's not creating his own plays like Marshawn did years ago.
Receivers
via www.latimes.com
iVinshe (D-): Welcome back, dropsies. I think we need another rainstorm. (at least there weren't any unsportsmanlike conduct penalties? Yay bright side!)
jpeng (C+): Although I wasn't impressed by our receiving corps performance, I don't blame them for being hesitant about going up for the ball. I'm sure taking a licking form Taylor Mays were in the back of their minds every time they had to haul in a higher-than-ideal pass. That aside, we've seen what Jones/Ross and Tucker can do, they're very talented athletes who just didn't play at their full potential today.
Ohio Bear (B): Along with red zone defense, this was probably the bright spot of the night (and there are slim pickings for "bright spots"). Marvin Jones picked up some first down catches and it really seemed like the WRs were generally open. Riley just didn't hit them. Very few (if any) drops that I can remember.
1988goldenbear (D): Some drops when Riley got the ball in a catchable spot; Miller was a bright spot; nice to see Jones out there too.
sycasey (D): Riley's throws were awful, but the WR corps is looking more and more indifferent with each passing game. They don't lay themselves out for passes, and they drop balls that hit them in the hands. At least TE play has been solid.
DougOLis (C-): They weren't as bad as last week, but there were a few poor passes that could have been catchable. It would have been nice to come down with a few of those. The receivers got open for the most part but it's not their fault Riley couldn't hit them.
Run blocking
GBB4188 (C-): Hard to really judge how well the blocking is going when you play a team with so much size and speed on defense.
aznpursuit (D-): Best was surrounded by white jerseys all game like white on rice.
BTown85 (C+): Where are the holes? It's tough when you're facing so many in the box, but it seems like the last two weeks the O-line has been bullied. This is the key to our success; if the O-line can open it up, JB can run and Riley gets more time. O-line NEEDS to win the battle.
Haas8388 (D): I know there are 8 and 9 in the box, but the run blocking is still pretty anemic. Why not go to zone blocking more? Why not run the stretch play?
bluehenbear (C): O line getting blown up. Coaches obviously have no confidence in Oline when we decide to punt on 4th and short on own 40 late in first half, the play call for Best to the outside (against Mays, see above), and the overthrown screen on 4th and 2. Yes, SC has superior athletes, but would we have tried to power it up the gut against other teams? Championship teams need to be able to get the 1-2 yds on a 3rd/4th and short (a la USC's multiple first downs) when ABSOLUTELY needed. This is missing from Cal's repertoir right now, especially near the goal line. PUNCH THE DLINE IN THE FACE AND GET THOSE COUPLE OF YARDS! We're soft, and it's showing.
Pass protection
Kodiak (D+): For the next two weeks, the entire offense should have to play buck-naked. That way, at least everyone is equally exposed.
Yeah, sometimes Riley just plain did the deer in the headlights thing and held the ball. But I also saw a basic 4-man rush blow through a line that had a TE or back held back more than once.
Starting to wonder more than a little about how big a loss it was that Coach M hit the road.WTFFF!!!!!!!! (D): I can't even bare to answer any more questions. (Author's note: That was indeed the last question he answered)
HOUSE66 (D-): Pretty consistaint pressure on Riley all game, gave up two sacks, but the hurrys an hit coloum were also pretty high up there. The running backs blocking comes into play here, as they are the last line of defense for the QB and need to step it up when the pocket starts to break down.
royrules22 (D): Better than Oregon but still miserable. Best is a liability out there. Tepper isn't all that great. Guarnero is no Alex Mack. Etc, etc.
Spazzy McGee (B-): Not half bad. Riley would have plenty of time for a 3-step drop, then wait...wait....wait....until the pocket collapsed and he had to escape.
Rush defense
sec119 (D): I'm grateful I had the chance to see future Heisman winning running back, Joe McKnight.
Manwich (B): A few lapses. Have I said that I hate the term bend don't break. Because if you bend enough, eventually you break, always. I want to see a little bit more aggressiveness.
BerkeleyChris (F): Bradford looked like a bulldozer and McKnight looked like... well... Jahvid. We couldn't stop their run game and it was absolutely killer.
Jr. Bear (B): Not bad on runs to the inside. Outside wasn't that great, but I don't remember any real long runs outside of their first touchdown. I was very upset when Jarred Price was brought in for a goal line stand. Logic dictates a jam middle against their HB Dive, which I don't believe he has the size to accomplish as well as his counterparts.
polarbear91 (C-): It could have been worse considering that they were up against SC's line and got little help from the offense. The effort was better this week. They did a fair job of keeping SC out of the end zone although they gave up a lot of yards.
Pass rush
Haas8388 (C): The weakside LB has not been getting it done in pass rushing. They just don't have a threat like Follet off the edge. Alualu gets through from time to time, but it is asking alot for a 3-4 DE to be the leading pass rusher. At times, Eddie Young looks like a better blizer than MM or kendriks.
Jr. Bear (C): Very bleah. Alualu was the only source of consistent pressure, and the only one to get real penetration. The D-line is very good, but with only 3 rushing on coverage, there's not a whole lot they can do. I don't think it would have been entirely possible, but I would have gone with the 4-3 this year to match our talent. Also did I see a corner blitz with Syd'Quan? That dude should ALWAYS be on a receiver.
pyunny (D): Awful. Or maybe the $C O-line was just too dominant. It felt like Barkley had plenty of time to let the play develop and to throw. When we got into the backfield we couldn't seem to bring him down either.
trojanbear (D): Alualu. Can anyone other than Tyson rush the QB? What happened to Cameron Jordan?
Kodiak (D+): Considering that the stated goal coming in was to pressure/harass/confuse the true freshman QB, I'd have to consider it a miss. Nothing out of the base package. Didn't get anything off the edge. Again, big disappointment from our touted defensive ends and "athletic" linebackers. I think the next time I want to cuss someone out, I'm going to tell them they have potential.
Pass defense
Kodiak (D): We still can't cover a tight end. We stopped one bubble screen for about 3yds. The rest of them went for at least 7, including one that would have gone for 18 yds except for a penalty. Our cornerbacks are playing too soft and scared. Our linebackers remind me of that Charles Barkley quote, "Run like deer, jump like deer, think like deer." But hey, we got an interception on a really bad underthrow...because our safety was too far out of position to actually cover the receiver for an on-target throw, and our "stud" cornerback didn't turn around to look until it would have been too late.
aznpursuit (D-): Actual conversation by Cal defense:
"I bet you $20 he won't catch the ball."
"You're on."
"Ah, shit."
At least we got one interception.sec119 (D): Ezeff got burnt several times playing off the open receiver. IIRC, there was one play in the third quarter where SC had 2nd or 3rd and long, and they lined up THREE receivers in an obvious screen play formation. TWO defenders lined up at the LOS while Syd played 10 yards(!) behind the first down marker. Naturally, USC got an easy eight yards.
SoCal Oski (D-): Someone needs to inform Bob Gregory that it is not a mortal sin to teach your defensive backs to look for the ball instead of just staring at the receiver while waving their arms spasmodically. And once again, short & middle passes were completely uncovered.trojanbear (D): Not enough pressure on Barkley. He's a freshman so we should ahve shown him multiple looks and not allow him to just set in the pocket and pick us apart. Did we ever try a corner or safety blitz. Syd was money but we aren't getting enough out of the rest of the secondary. I think Cal plays way too far off the receivers giving them way too much room underneath.
Special teams
Berkelium97 (F): Why is Syd even returning punts? Cal blows the outside coverage every time, so one of the guys out wide can sprint downfield and be in Syd's face by the time he catches the ball. He's dropped two punts already this year. He has only returned two, maybe three punts all year. I don't want to see him get hurt out there and would rather see someone else calling fair catch and not returning punts (since that's what they're going to do anyway, right?). More frustrating was D'Amato's missed chip shot, Anger's inconsistency, and that soul-crushing punt returned for a touchdown.
iVinshe (B): I think I want to trade back our ST for Offense. I think I'd rather complain about ST than anything else.
1988goldenbear (F): WTF is going on? Scholarship kicker is 50% and our (former) potential Ray Guy award winner boots a line drive to one of the better return guys in the conference and then shanks another; still, better than last week.
Maisbikkja (D): That FG in the fourth ruined SC's shutout bid...
Manwich (B+): Remember Nick Harris? I do, and I'm rooting for Anger in the same way. Anger for Heisman, Anger wins the Ray-Guy Award! D'Amato, reminds me of Mark Jensen, I would hold my head, and pray everytime he came on the field.
Coaching
via www.latimes.com
ososdeoro (F): EPIC FAIL. No matter what else may have been done well, not attempting another play before halftime with 12 seconds left was inexcusable. Waiting 15 seconds to call timeout after USC's previous failed third-down conversion was just as bad. And I'm wondering what Ludwig has against the pitch out, and why Gregory thinks two DBs will stop three stacked receivers. I'm also curious as to what Ludwig has against his own game plan. We killed them with Miller on the first drive....then he was never used again until mid-second-half. What happened to try something until they stop it?
Oaktown123 (A): Tedford had good ideasVN (D): The offensive plan was a joke. Why would you only run Best 14 times? Especially when you KNOW Riley has trouble?
sycasey (F): For the second straight week, it was awful. It wasn't the scheme this time (the play calls actually got receivers open), but rather the total lack of urgency or emotion on the part of the Cal players. Despite the fact that they were getting worked for the second straight week, Cal players were smiling and laughing after making bonehead mistakes. Even Shelley Smith reported during the TV broadcast that the Cal sideline was just plain dead after the first drive ended with an interception. That sounds to me like the coaching staff has lost this team.
OaklandishBear (F): Offensively predictable, again. Wildcat is interesting, but to call it for an entire series? Not taking another shot at the end zone with 12 seconds left in the first half was giving up, in my opinion. Playing scared and just wanted to get some points - and look what that accomplished.
Defensively, the Bears played OK but this year's team seems to be intentionally playing softer in the zones than in the past. It wasn't working with the minimal pressure we put on Barkley, so why not switch it up to Man?Ohio Bear (D): At risk of letting emotion prevail over analysis, the offensive game plan seemed clueless to me. I didn't get the sense that we really knew what we were doing on offense. The frequency of the Wildcat was weird and the call of the outside pitch to Best on 3rd and short, against a defense with THAT much speed and discipline, was epically bizarre. JT's decision to go for the FG with 12 seconds left in the half was also strange and sent the wrong message to his team going into halftime. We're afraid to make a bad play (i.e., sack) that would run out the clock so we're not going to try to take one more shot at the end zone? Weak.
yorzepol (C-): I think we had a plan against U$C that, if executed well, would have won us the game; the problem was we didn't execute. We also threw the playbook at the Trojans and still couldn't get anything going. How much of that falls on the coaches? How soon do you wait for your QB to get hit his stride before changing the game plan? How many miles must a man walk before they call him a man?
Overall
Nasty_Nate (F): Was like watching your son come back from rehab and swear he was going to give up the peruvian powder and then the next morning you have to pick him up from jail.
Eventually you have to cut the little bastard off.
Dexter1715 (D): Season's done for me. I can't take it any longer. It's taken too much to watch this humiliation at the hands of SC and other, weaker teams.
I'd bench KR and start working on a QB who loves to compete and is strong under pressure. Gregory needs to get the Defensive to be more intimidating - we're still too soft.
The O-line was embarrassing the past two games. They looked like doormats.California Pete (F): I remain hopeful, because the schedule makes a nice rebound quite possible, starting with a very welcome bye week. Physically, this team is still pretty healthy, and it's just a matter of guys regaining confidence. The UCLA game just might be the biggest in Tedford's career. Win it, and the Bear's might have a shot at reeling off a bunch of wins and making the Holiday Bowl. Lose it, especially if they do so in ugly fashion once again, and then who knows? Oregon rebounded nicely from its dreadful 2006 season; but there's no guarantee the Bears would bounce back from a bowl-less 2009.
trojanbear (D): I didn't think the players gave up. I also did not see SC having that much of a talent advantage. They executed better. I must be a glutton for punishement becasue I attened both the Oregon and SC games. Having seen both teams. I think at this moment Oregon is actually superior. If we had executed the plays and Riley had been just mediocre instead of horrible this game could have been competitive. There were opportunities we just did not take advantage of them.
HOUSE66 (D-): The first time since ive been a cal fan that i had quit on our team before the 4th quarter. But i also had a good time in the stands joking about how bad we are playing, making it feel like the old days. I DO NOT LIKE THE OLD DAYS, i like being worried, pissed off, not okay with whats happening. The team was just not executing the plays, and alot of them were there. Missed opportunitys early cost us, and now we have two weeks to get back on form.
GO BEARS