Today, we have a matchup from the Brick Mueller Regional. Justin Forsett, another great Cal RB, takes on Dameane Douglas, a great Cal WR. It's football v. football today. And the winner of this matchup takes on DeSean Jackson. So, out of this section of the bracket, one footballer will emerge.
You can read the whole bracket here.
Voting ends on Friday, April 29, at noon. So, go vote and GO BEARS!
Brick Mueller Regional
Justin Forsett (8)
When Marshawn Lynch left for the NFL following the 2006 season, there were some Cal fans who wondered if Justin Forsett cold handle the role of Cal's # 1 running back. Sure, he was great as Lynch's backup and and as a quintessential "change of pace" back during the Beast Mode years, but how would he do as Cal's feature back?
Just fine, thank you very much. Forsett rushed for 1,546 yards and 15 touchdowns as a senior, which led the Pac-10 and tied for the best single-season total in Cal history. On top of all that, Forsett was a second team Pac-10 All-Academic selection.
Forsett finished his Cal career with 3,220 rushing yards and was a valued member of teams that won 35 regular season games and three bowl games. These days, he is a member of the Seattle Seahawks.
Back in the day, danzig wrote one of the classiest tributes ever on this site, dedicated to Forsett (included in the post are his noted highlighted reels), chock full of emotion and memory. Here's the best of that post.
1) He's a great all-around guy: ALL fans love him. Great work ethic, high character, good morals, never got in trouble and patiently waited behind Marshawn without bitching about it. There are so few heros in life, but he's one of them.
All his life he's been told about the body he doesn't have... the speed he doesn't possess... to accept that he wouldn't go far... and he said to all of them... "F*** that, I don't give a shit what you think!!" (Actually, he probably would've have said, "Excuse me sir, I beg to differ" but...). To make it even more improbable, Ty Willingham yanked his only D-1 scholarship at the last minute, but he still became a star at Cal... I bet Ty is sorry now.
His story is downright inspirational and I demand a movie be made about him immediately! Hey Hollywood, cancel that sequel you're about to make and do this instead: The Truth Laid Bear: The Justin Forsett Story. But if it shows up on Lifetime I'm going to F*ing kill you guys.
via sportsnwmag.com
2) He's the son of a preacher man: And so am I. PKs (pastor's kids) don't have what you would call 'normal' upbringings. Pastors are incredibly strict with their kids because the kids' behavior reflects on the Pastor and the church itself. There are only two varieties of PKs... the ones that grow up to be upstanding role models in their communities and the 'rebels' who embrace all evil (I'm the latter). In short, it's tough to grow up as a PK and PKs the world over have somewhat of a kinship that grows from that.
"Genesis says don't be spilling no seed"
via www.fbchamburg.com
3) He's got skillz: Admit it, sometimes when Marshawn was bogging down in a game or fumbling, we all secretly whispered to ourselves, "PUT JUSTIN IN !!!" When announcers said that he could be starting anywhere else in the country... they weren't kidding. He was an outstanding running back with accolades too long to list here. He's got moves and knows when to just run downhill. He's chocked my head full of great game memories...I'll miss him so much...sniff, sniff. (tearing up).
Dameane Douglas (9)
OhioBear: Holds the record for receptions in a season (100), which he accomplished in 1998 - he caught 100 passes for 1,105 yards, standing out as the jewel on an otherwise inept offense. I will remember Douglas as a guy with great hands who always seemed to find a way to get open. He was a tough competitor.
Douglas went on to play for the Eagles and Chiefs in the NFL before having his career cut short prematurely by injury.
Kodiak: Strong and physical, I remember him single-handedly winning a game for us by taking a 5 yard hitch route, breaking a tackle, and taking it to the house. He had the misfortune of playing during the woeful Holmoe Era with a JC-transfer QB (Justin Vedder) who was reasonably accurate, but lacked the arm strength to threaten the whole field. In some ways, he was the precursor to MacArthur, and he's what we hope Calvin can aspire to. He had the size/strength of a possession receiver, but with more speed. A bit of a blend of MacArthur with Lyman. With a real offense and a more consistent QB, he might have lit up the scoreboard. He had a tryout with the Raiders before landing with the Eagles/Chiefs.
Last year, Ohio Bear devoted, of all things, a DBD to Douglas, declaring him to be one of the most underappreciated Cal players of all time.
"I give you Dameane Douglas. When we think of Cal wide receivers of years past, it is natural for us to think of the likes of Desean Jackson, Lavelle Hawkins, Robert Jordan, and Geoff MacArthur -- guys who were productive over long periods of time for the Bears. Back further, you might think of Bobby Shaw, Sean Dawkins, Mike Caldwell, and Brian Treggs. Back even further -- especially if you're like me or CalBear 81 -- you might remember names like Matt Bouza and Rance McDougald.
"But it made me wonder: how often do we think about Dameane Douglas? Douglas played four years at Cal (1995-1998) and in 1998 was our main (some might say only) weapon on offense. In 1998, Douglas caught 100 passes for 1,150 yards, and four touchdowns. He managed that on a team that had fewer than 1,000 yards rushing -- that's right fewer than 1,000 yards rushing as a team. In fact, Douglas's 1,150 yards amounted to 36 percent of Cal's total offensive yards in 1998. Douglas also had a good season (opposite Shaw) in 1997 and a productive 1996 (including an excellent performance -- 6 receptions, 83 yards, and 2 TD -- in the epic 56-55 quad overtime win vs. Arizona).
"Well, I appreciate you Dameane Douglas. Even more so after seeing this old article in which he said before the 1998 Big Game:
"I'm not giving them any locker- room material," he says. "I will say there's not much I like about Stanford [sic]. I don't like that color, that's for sure. That's definitely something you grow to dislike."