Our next second round match-up again again features two men that have left their mark on Cal football. Ron Gould has created a stable of running backs that have not only done incredibly well at the collegiate level, but also have gone on to have great success in the NFL. Desmond Bishop was the leader of the Bears defense in his time at Cal and has teamed with Golden Bear great Aaron Rodgers on the Packers to win a Super Bowl and lead one of the best teams in the NFL.
Gould advanced to this match-up by easily defeating Steve Rivera while Bishop pulled the mild upset to handily beat Joe Shipp. I think this will be a fairly close vote but Gould's prolonged success and loyalty to the Golden Bears should propel him to a victory. Either way, the winner will move on to face Syd'Quan Thompson in the third round. This match-up comes out of the Pappy Waldorf Region and you can take a look at the whole bracket here. The full write-ups are after the jump and the voting will end on Friday.
(1) Ron Gould
Entering his 15th year at Cal, Coach Gould has proven himself repeatedly to be one of the best in the business. Cal's ground attack has been one of the consistent strengths of the team for the past decade. When combined with solid line play and competent quarterbacking, the results have been a dominant running game. He's done it with blue chip talent and with little-known prospects that no one else wanted. Here are the running backs that he's sent to the NFL:
Tarik Smith - 7th Round, (Dallas) 1998
Adimchinobe Echemandu - 7th Round, No. 208(Cleveland) 2004
J.J. Arrington - 2nd Round, No. 44(Arizona) 2005
Marshawn Lynch - 1st Round, No. 12(Buffalo) 2007
Justin Forsett - 7th Round, No. 233(Seattle) 2008
Jahvid Best - 1st Round, No.30(Detroit) 2010
Shane Vereen - Projected 3rd round 2011 (Edit: He was chosen in the second round by New England)
And let's not forget Big Game hero Joe Igber, or all the walk-on fullbacks that he developed into solid players: Chris Manderino, (also played 3 years in the NFL), Will Ta'ufo'ou, Byron Storer, and Brian Holley. As good as he is as a position coach in teaching balance, ball security, and fundamentals, he might do his best work and building character.
The hallmark of a Ron Gould-coached back is a complete player who can block as well as run and receive. Players are taught that details matter and learn to maximize their talents instead of solely relying on raw physical gifts. He's been deservedly promoted to Associate Head Coach and this year also carries the title of Running Game Coordinator.
(9) Desmond Bishop
Cal vs. Washington 2006 Bishop seals the victory (via HairOfTheBear)
People remember Marshawn owning things on the offensive end in that UW game, but they might forget that Bishop was a one man wrecking crew on D (16 tackles and the game clinching INT).
Throughout 2006 he was our defensive leader, and we certainly missed that fire in 2007.
Twist weighs in:
The Fiery Emotional and Vocally Inspiring Leader - this type of leader is emotional. He'll also have big time emotional celebrations after a big play, inspiring his teammates with confidence and energy. But what makes this type of leader different from the Fiery Emotional Cocky Leader is his ability to emotionally pick up his players. He's the one prowling the benches, screaming, and inspiring his teammates with words and speeches to find the heart within them to play harder and not quit. An example of this type of leader from last year's team would be Desmond Bishop.
As a senior in 2006, he became the first Bear in 13 years to lead the league in tackles with 126 and was named 1st-Team All-Pac-10. He had a knack for the big play - whether it was key stop, forced fumble, or game-clinching interception.
Questions about his speed caused him to drop to the 6th round, but his work ethic and determination quickly earned him the nod over more touted prospects when Green Bay's starters became injured. Already famous for his creative and entertaining twitter persona, http://twitter.com/#!/desbishop55, he backed up his words with solid play throughout the playoffs and in this year's Super Bowl victory.