Want to discuss tonight's Virginia-Miami game? You have come to the right place!
While you're here, you might as well read up on the latest round of predictions for the Cal-UCLA game.
California 31, UCLA 20: Will the Bruins rally for coach Rick Neuheisel? There hasn't been any evidence they will so far. And Cal QB Zach Maynard seemed to find his rhythm last week in a win over Utah.
CAL (minus-5.5) at UCLA: Three years of blowouts (21, 19 and 28 points) suggests Rick Neuheisel has no clue how to deal with Jeff Tedford. Hard to envision the one-dimensional UCLA offense scoring consistently on the Bears. Pick: Cal.
- Both Yahoo/Rivals! writers (as well as a majority of their readers) pick Cal to beat the Bruins.
- Vegas thinks we're doomed: the Bears opened at 6/5.5 point favorites, but the spread has dropped as low as 4.5.
But wait, we're not done yet! Check out this profile of everyone's favorite Italian field goal kicker, Giorgio Tavecchio!
Giorgio Tavecchio Feature (via CalBearBlog)
After the jump Marc Anthony regains his starting role, UCLA plans to debut a pair of receivers, and we check in on the Bears' recruiting efforts for offensive linemen.
Football
- The Bears move up to seventh (technically, sixth) in Wilner's Pac-12 rankings.
- Mychal Kendricks is second in Ted Miller's ratings of Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year.
- Consistency for the Bears--on offense and defense--has been elusive this year. If they want to win the next three games, they must find some consistency.
- JO reports from Tuesday's practice. Marc Anthony returned and will regain his starting role this weekend. Cattouse makes some comments on the NCAA's proposal to boost players' grants by $2000.
- JO reports from Wednesday's practice. In his usual Wednesday meeting with the press, Maynard said he spent much of the past week working on his footwork. His performance against Utah has built up his confidence after the Oregon and USC games.
- Of the Bears players who joined the team in 2004, only 54% received their degrees, good for 11th in the conference.
- UCLA safety Tony Dye, one of their best players on defense, will miss the rest of the season due to a neck stinger whose symptoms are very similar to the one that ended Zach Follett's pro career.
- Amid the suspensions, UCLA receiver Jerry Johnson will make his season debut on Saturday. Jerry Rice Jr will also see his first playing time of the season.
- Ted Miller's "What to Watch" this week asks if Maynard will show the sharpness and consistency he demonstrated against Utah.
- GoldenBearLair checks in on offensive line recruiting for 2012. The Bears' targets will make their decisions late in the recruiting cycle, so it will be a while before the Bears receive any commitments.
- Monty is back in the office and his sense of humor is intact. He's a bit tired, but happy to be back.
- Jill Costello has posthumously received the NCAA Inspiration Award. She will be honored at the Honors Celebration at the 2012 NCAA Convention in Indianapolis along with World War II vet and USC runner Louis Zamperini.