Golden Nuggets: “Everything Is On The Table”

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Excerpts from the Golden Bear Report recap of the three press conferences posted here:

"Really, everything’s on the table ... We obviously got a chance to watch the tape and what the issues were, you kinda have an idea during the game, and the tape always paints the clearest picture. We’ve just got to be better in every phase of the game, and individually, there’s a lot of times where it’s 10 out of 11, 10 guys executing, one guy not quite, and that’s not gonna get it done."

The speculation covers the quarterback position, and Wilcox put a damper on some of the immediate QB talk, noting that Ross Bowers would be the starter, but there'd be evaluation at every position.

"Everybody’s getting evaluated, we watched the tape with the players," Wilcox said, "Speaking of the tape, Ross did some good things and he had quite a few things that he needs to be better on. We expect Ross to be the starter, but everything is being evaluated, and it will continue. It would be that way no matter what, won the game, lost the game, it’d be the same each week."

"You see it, Tevin Paul [Cal DB, correction of a previous mistake], he really had a hell of a week this week," Bequette said, "he got a lot of playing in our nickel formation, and he really balled out in that too, so he had a really nice game, and he's gonna get a lot more playing time, which is good. We really need playmakers out there on the field."

"It’s like coach Wilcox is telling us, in football, 10 guys isn’t going to get in done, in baseball, 10 guys you can win a championship, so I think it goes down to winning those one on one battles ... You’re not going to win every one on one battle, but trying to be consistent with it and fighting to be consistent is the biggest part. I think it goes back to one on one battles and being able to communicate out there, it’s going back to the fundamentals. Our fundamentals, we know how to do it, so we’ve just got to get back to it."

Articles

• The San Francisco Chronicle also has a recap on Wilcox’s press conference, and also an interview with Patrick Mekari, with a similar theme: “Sweeping changes” are coming.
• Nam’s Novel on the UW game keeps the loss and season outlook in perspective.

Cal did not go quietly or willingly, and commendably so, but Saturday was a four quarter reminder of how far away the elites of the conference remain, and it is deeply unfortunate that the Bears have had to face these reminders in back-to-back-to-back weeks -- they can sap a team of its momentum, a fanbase of its enthusiasm. They are starting to, somewhat already, at least among the latter.

Take heart.

It will not always be like this.

It won’t even be like this much longer – after Friday, the last five games should be far more competitive, and should they not be, we should already be aware of a fair rationale for why things are declining from the Wilcox-led Bears: Roster flaws can only be managed in-season, not fixed entirely.

• Jon Wilner also has a similar perspective in his report card. After starting 3-0, the team was still expected to lose the four games against difficult teams, and so far that has held true for the first 3.
• Andrew Wild is less positive, saying that the game against Oregon State will likely decide who finishes last in the Pac-12 North and that he has no faith in the offense improving until 2018.
• Cal is still 9th in ESPN’s power rankings.
• Although still a couple years away from graduating high school, fullback and linebacker Opeti Fangupo (nephew of Cal alum Will Ta’ufo’ou) considers Cal to be his dream school.

Misc.

• Earlier, the Pac-12 released the women’s gymnastics TV schedule. The FULL schedule is now out for Cal. The season begins with the “NorCal Classic”, which Cal has won three years in a row, at Stanford on January 8.
• Rugby team manager and director of operations Jerry Figone announced his retirement last month after 32 years of service. Thank you.
• Cal has published online an article, published a few months back in Cal Sports Quarterly, honoring baseball legend Ed Sanclemente who passed away last year.

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