At the last media luncheon of the year, Tedford was joined by Shane Vereen as the two talked about trying to become bowl eligible, playing the final game in Memorial before renovations, and the impact the upgrades will have on recruiting. Here's a sample of what Vereen said:
On the motivation to avoid a losing season, which Jeff Tedford has never had in his career
"That's huge, but I think not just for coach Tedford, for ourselves, we know that we can play well, we know that we can play better than we have shown and I think it's important for us to go out there on Saturday and do just that."
...On how a renovated Memorial Stadium will affect the football program, including recruiting
"I think it's huge. I remember back when I was getting recruited, the biggest knock that other teams and other programs would tell me about Cal was everything's old and the facilities aren't that nice and everything like that, so the fact that they're going to have state-of-the-art facilities and everything's going to be top notch, I think that's huge for recruiting. I think it's going to bring a lot more talent to Cal and I think everything that they're doing is very positive for all the athletic programs here at Cal."
...On what criteria he will use to consider entering the NFL Draft after this season is over
"I'm kind of waiting for the season to be over to even think about that. The most important thing to me right now is just getting to a bowl game. Haven't really put too much thought into that because I think all of that will take care of itself when I feel like the time is ready. Right now I just want to make it [to] and win a bowl game."
On whether former teammate Jahvid Best's first season with the Detroit Lions affects his thought process regarding the NFL
"You can't really tell the future. If anyone is fortunate enough to go to the NFL, what team they go to, I mean, that's not really much under their control. I think the biggest thing, especially for Jahvid, he was in a very fortunate position, he went, got picked first round. His team is struggling but he loves the NFL. He's having a good time. When that time comes for me to make that decision or what I'm going to do, I'll consult with my family and just do it the right way."
After the jump both the Bears and the Huskies talk about fighting for a bowl game and Tedford talks about the younger QBs who will compete for the starting role next year.
Football
- Cal desperately needs a win Saturday to earn a bowl bid. If they win, they'll be in a high-profile bowl (for a 6-6 team). They'll have to do it without Jeremy Ross who will miss this weekend's game. If Cal qualifies for a bowl game, he might be able to return for that game.
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Washington also is highly motivated to win Saturday to help get them to a bowl game.
- Tedford provides some insight into next year's QB competition by highlighting the strengths of Allen Bridgford and Austin Hinder.
- Will Jake Locker be able to replicate last year's performance against Cal? Let us hope not.
- Bryan Anger was the special teams standout in Ted Miller's Pac-10 Rewind.
- Cal drops to eighth in Ted Miller's Pac-10 power rankings.
- Cal is still projected to go to the Holiday Bowl.