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It begins. The Jeff Tedford hot seat is on full blast. Bruce Jenkins of the San Francisco Chronicle files this report.
Before the game, I visited a tailgate party full of wealthy, influential alums. One of them, particularly well-connected and in the know, cast a grim outlook on Tedford's future. He asked not to be quoted by name, and that's always an unsatisfying experience for the reader, but there are times when off-the-record comments reflect the tone of a crisis, and that could well be the case here.
"I'm the last one off the bus when it comes to (firing) Tedford," he told me. "But we have to move on. His game management has been awful. I mean, that 4th-and-one call at Ohio State (opting for a field goal) when we'd already racked up 500 yards! I like the guy, personally. This beautiful new stadium doesn't get done without him. But it's so frustrating. If this doesn't turn around, I really think they'll buy him out. I'm predicting that if we finish under .500, he's gone."
Jeff Tedford started his tenure at Cal with a 59-30 record, but he's now 21-22 since 2009 with a 12-17 record in the Pac-10/Pac-12. With a new stadium to fill and rising expectations that Tedford himself set, a reboot may be in the works in the next couple of months barring a drastic change.
Discuss.