I don’t think there are too many people out there who aren’t disappointed with how this football season has gone.  Many were hoping for the Rose Bowl and are frustrated we couldn’t get there.  And certainly this is a very talented team, perhaps a Rose Bowl team. 

 But this Tedford backlash is INSANE.  Utterly insane.  It’s like people have forgotten the institutional apathy that once dominated Cal.  They have forgotten Tom Holmoe.  To them, it was merely a bad dream a few years ago.  But for everybody at this blog, they lived that nightmare.  Some for 4 years, others merely for 2.  But it was enough.  They won’t forget his sterling .291 Win Percentage, the worst since the early 60s when stunningly Marv Levy was the coach and Bill Walsh was his assistant.   By comparison,  Tedford has a  .683 Win Percentage, which, of course, includes going about .500 his first two seasons. 

To help remind our adoring public (Hey, Hovannes!) of how far we’ve come, I decided to post this photo.  To make a long story short, in the Spring of 2002 (and also Fall of 2002), some OX fraternity brothers and I became disastisfied with the unimaginable ego of so-called grass roots student leaders on campus.  And, again, to make a long story short, during a Israel-Palestine rally, we decided to poke those egos by protesting alongside them with unrelated comedic signs such as "1,2, 3, 4 I declare a Thumb War" and "Thumb Wars Are Not The Answer."  High times.  High times, indeed.

 But to draw closure to this rambling retelling, when I busted out the bad boy below, there was an actual crowd reaction.  The reaction?  Hilarious disgust! Anger (perhaps) feigned.  To even think of going from a Holmoe-less existence to an existence packed with Tom Holmoe was physically painful.  From just a sign.  Oh, how the wounds were still fresh.

People, we cannot forget where we came from and how much Tedford has done for this program.   Taken us from laughing stock to national contender (even if we don’t always contend to the best of our abilities).  Letters to the editors calling for Tedford to be fired are laughable.  Changing the entire culture of a school known more for dread locks and sit ins is not an easy task.  I am as frustrated with losing as the next person.  But I’d rather people be frustrated with losing than apathetic towards it. 

 But as they say, keep your friends close and your enemies closer.  No word on frenemies.  Yet.  So, perhaps we should re-hire Holmoe.  But as what?  Janitor?  Trash would just pile up in the hailways as goats roamed free to chow down.  Bowles Hall RD?  Because it’s not like the administration wants anything successful to happen to Bowles.  Lowly Rally Comm Member?  Well, that’d be fine, I mean who could screw up a Rally Commers only real task: rhythmic clapping.

What would you re-hire him as? 

Tom Holmoe:  1997-2001.  Never forgive.  Never forget.   

Normally, I would never bother to write anything regarding Cal Water Polo.  Mainly because I don’t know anything about water polo except that it encourages men to dress in Speedos and kick each other in the nuts.  That’s the sort of introduction that can quickly turn you off to a sport.  Yet, being a Cal fan in general, as well as a hater of all things regarding the University of Spoiled Children, I felt like this was a story I had to pass around.  It’s a story that makes you say ‘Go Bears!’ and ‘Fuck $C!’ at the same time.

In summary, the #2 Bears knocked off the #1 (and defending National Champion) Tojans last weekend, 6-5, to claim the conference championship and a berth in the NCAA Final Four.  In the process, Cal snapped U$C’s 44-game winning streak.  Take it, Tommy Trojan.

Still, the job’s not done yet.  The National Championships are this weekend, and if the Bears get by UCSD on Saturday, they’ll face either Navy (of course Navy has a water polo team; that shouldn’t surprise me) or U$C (who got in by virtue of an at-large berth) on Sunday.  At least Traveller can’t help them in the water.

Go Bears!  Beat $C!

Even though the Big Game is not for 2 more days, there are still some more fun Big Game event left.  First is the Big Freeze.  This is always a fun event, not because anybody in anyway cares about ice hockey around here.  Or even because our team is good.  It isn’t.  It’s 2-10.  Methinks Holmoe got a job coaching ice hockey.

But the Big Freeze is great, bc it’s about the closest you can get to the action.  You can literally get down by the Stanford bench and heckle them.  Very inventive chants arise whenever Cal scores a goal.  It’s unclear to me if we will score a goal.  But heck, you are reading a blog.  It’s not like *you* have anything better to do this Thursday night.

And, of course, Royal Exchange!  Every friday night before the Big Game, there’s a big Cal party in downtown SF.  It is in the financial district at Royal Exchange.  However, it usually gets so big that Royal Exchange itself gets too packed.  So, people spill out into other local bar like Schroeder’s German Restaurant.  The band shows up eventually and good time is had by all.  It generally starts about 5 PM when people get out of their jobs in that region.  So, if you don’t get there until 7 or 8, expect Royal Exchange itself to be way too packed.

And the problem is that Schroeder’s, well, it can be tough to deal with their cartoonishly oversized beverage mugs.  It’s tough to explain, but here is a friend of ours attempting to drink a liquid he rightfully purchased:

As plainly seen, our friend tried several attempts at drinking, each one more comically foolish than the last.  Until, finally he gave up.  As to why they served him a mug that was only partially full.  Well, a magician never reveals his secrets, does he?  No, he doesn’t.   

Fortunately, a lot of times at Royal, you’ll see old friends from Cal you haven’t seen in forever.  Unfortunately, a lot of times at Royal, you’ll see old friends from Cal you haven’t seen in forever.  Those are just some of the great events taking place today and tomorrow in anticipation of (hopefully) another Cal trouncing of the Tree.  

You know what, I’m started to get excited about basketball season.  Now, normally, I wouldn’t pay much attention, because it’s still November, it’s still football season, and our best player plays for the Celtics.  But these guys can play.  Last year, the Bears opened the season without Powe and prompty forgot how to play basketball, getting upset by Eastern Michigan (these guys had an RPI down in the 300s last year).  This year, however, they’re playing fast and loose and not waiting for Powe to jump in and drop 30 on the opponent.  Yes, Ben Braun still coaches this team, so they’re still going to be defense-first, and they’re not going to get into the kind of 98-89 shootouts that OSU and North Carolina did last night, but they’re the first Braun team I can remember that has actually taken an up-tempo, transition offense to heart.

So, how good ARE these guys?  They’re 6-1, with the one loss being on the road at San Diego State, a team that is currently undefeated and knocking on the door to the top 25 (they’re 27th in ths week’s AP poll).  They’ve swept through an uncharacteristically weak Greak Alaskan Shootout field, and won 3 games at home.  None of their opponents have been ranked or are nationally noted, and Kansas State, last night’s opponent, is more well known for its new coach, Bob Huggins, than for its tradition of winning basketball.  Still, I did a little snooping around on the internet, and found a couple of computer rankings.  First, from RealTimeRPI.com, which I’m assuming attempts to simulate the selection committee’s secret RPI ratings, Cal is given a strength of schedule rank of 13 and an RPI of 4!!  What?  Really?  That can’t be right.  Jeff Sagarin of USA Today, one of the guys whose computer rankings are used by the BCS, gives us a SOS of 116 and a ranking of 33.  That sounds more like our Bears.

Still, the rankings, especially this early in the season, don’t mean too much.  We’ll find out a lot more about these Bears on Sunday, when they play their first nationally ranked opponent, No. 20 Nevada, in the Pete Newell Challenge in San Jose.  If you’re not hung over from Big Game, check ‘em out.

As seen here.

"Be honest, what’s more impressive: Troy Smith leading Ohio State to 12-0 and a national title berth, or Darren McFadden leading Arkansas (Arkansas!) to 10-2. McFadden is clearly the best player I’ve seen this year and doesn’t have nearly the quality surrounding cast that Smith has. Why shouldn’t he win the Heisman?
–Matt Mashburn, Atlanta

It’s a valid question. By now, it’s painfully obvious that McFadden is the best running back in college football this season (not counting an injured Adrian Peterson), and that’s not meant with any disrespect toward Steve Slaton, Ian Johnson, Ray Rice or Mike Hart."

Well, at least they’ve stopped mentioning Garrett Wolfe as one of the best running backs in the nation, but what’s up with the omission of Marshawn Lynch?  Let’s take a look at the stats of those mentioned, in order of total rushing yards so far this season.

Steve Slaton - 222 rushes, 1621 yards, 15 rushing TDs, 7.3 avg.; 24 rec., 331 yards, 2 TDs, 13.8 avg.
Ian Johnson - 253 rushes, 1613 yards, 24 rushing TDs, 6.4 avg.; 6 rec., 51 yards, 0 TDs, 8.5 avg.
Mike Hart - 301 rushes, 1515 yards, 14 rushing TDs, 5.2 avg.; 15 rec., 127 yards, 0 TDs, 8.5 avg.rec., 51 yards, 0 TDs, 8.5 avg.
Ray Rice - 286 rushes, 1495 yards, 19 rushing TDs, 5.2 avg.; 4 rec., 33 yards, 0 TDs, 7.5 avg.
Darren McFadden - 244 rushes, 1485 yards, 14 rushing TDs, 6.1 avg.; 9 rec., 122 yards, 1 TD, 13.6 avg.
Adrian Peterson (6 games) - 168 rushes, 935 yards, 11 rushing TDs, 5.6 avg.; 9 rec., 138 yards, 1 TD, 15.9 avg.

And of course, the man of the hour, the man with the power, too sweet to be sour, the women’s pet, the men’s regret, what you see is what you get, what you don’t is better yet, the reflection of perfection, the number one selection, he lifts barbell plates, he eats T-bone steaks, sweeter than a German chocolate cake, how much more of him can you take?

Marshawn Lynch - 188 rushes, 1178 yards, 11 rushing TDs, 6.3 avg.; 35 rec., 338 yards, 5 TDs, 9.5 avg.

(I’m removing Adrian Peterson from this discussion because he’s out with a broken collarbone.  Please.  You know who else broke his collarbone?  Former Detroit Lion uberbust Charles Rogers.  Marshawn plays every week on two sprained ankles.  Get out of here.)

There’s no denying that Marshawn’s sheer rushing yardage doesn’t stack up to the numbers put up by those listed by Mandel.  But what happens when we look at combined TDs, combined yards, and yards per touch?

Slaton - 246 total touches, 1953 total yards, 17 combined TDs, 7.9 avg.
Johnson - 259 total touches, 1664 total yards, 24 combined TDs, 6.4 avg.
Hart - 316 total touches, 1642 total yards, 14 combined TDs, 5.2 avg.
McFadden - 253 total touches, 1607 total yards, 15 combined TDs, 6.4 avg.
Rice - 290 total touches, 1528 total yards, 19 combined TDs, 5.3 avg.
Marshawn - 223 total touches, 1516 total yards, 16 combined TDs, 6.8 avg.

So, there’s no question that, using the statistics, it looks like Slaton is probably the best running back in the country.  He’s got both the total numbers and the yards per touch, but there’s also no question that the threat of Pat White taking off for an 80 yard touchdown helps him in West Virginia’s base spread option offense.  Anyone else notice how no one seems to think Jamaal Charles is one of the great RBs in the country without the threat of Vince Young taking off?  Not to take anything away from what Slaton’s done, at least when he didn’t fall flat on his face against USF, but it’s a different (and admittedly effective) system that they run out there.

Ian Johnson plays on Smurf Turf.  Next.

I may be in the minority, but I’m not a big fan of Mike Hart.  I give him credit for being tough and a workhorse, but he’s a whiny bitch.  Did you hear what he said after losing to Ohio State, saying that they didn’t prove anything?  You just lost.  Take it like a man.  And someone please explain to me why a 42-39 shootout in the Big Ten is a classic, while a 44-34 shootout in the Big East is a mockery of the game of football.  I hate people.

Now if there is one other guy on this list that I do like, it’s Ray Rice.  That might have something to do with the fact that I was born and raised in New Jersey and returned to go there for graduate school after leaving Cal, but the guy is good.  He’s not Marshawn good, since he got caught from behind by some guy I’d never heard of in their game against UConn, but he’s good.  He may yet develop into an outstanding all-around back, but with Brian Leonard sharing the backfield with him this year, there wasn’t any need for him to really pass-block or prove his worth as a receiver.  That’s not to say he isn’t capable of doing that, he just hasn’t shown it yet.

Of course, McFadden’s not bad either.  He’s comparable in terms of sheer statistics to any back not named Slaton, and came up big in those HUGE SEC tilts against LSU and Auburn.  (I think the SEC is horribly overrated, but that’s another story for another day.)   Still, he delivered when the pressure was on.  Brownie points.

But I would argue that Marshawn’s ability to both run for a high yards-per-carry average as well as catch the ball out of the backfield makes him more valuable to the Cal offense than anyone else listed (perhaps short of Slaton) does to their offense.  After factoring in the number of receptions that Marshawn has had on the season, it’s easier to see the impact that Marshawn has on the Cal offense even when he isn’t plunging into the middle of the line for a 2 yard gain.  (Could we please stop doing that, Tedford?  I mean, try a few more toss sweeps away from the teeth of the defensive line.  I don’t ask for much.)  The other backs listed are great runners, but not so excellent as pass catchers.  Even Slaton, who is the only other back to come close to Marshawn’s reception total, gets most of his receptions not on conventional pass plays, but on Pat White option plays where Slaton releases into the flat and is called upon to improvise in space, rather than beat a linebacker or safety.  Marshawn’s versatility and ability as a receiver brings to mind Reggie Bush’s and Brian Westbrook’s abilities to split out wide whenever Tedford gets a mind to, and create personnel mismatches in the same way.

I’m not naive nor shortsighted enough to say that Mandel is outright disrespecting Marshawn (because who really wants to disrespect the closest thing to God that any of us have witnessed during our lifetime?), since Mandel gave plenty of man-love to Marshawn before the team fell flat in showcase games against Tennessee and USC.  And it’s possible he just forgot about Marshawn, since he really isn’t a viable candidate for the Heisman this year any longer.  Just consider this a friendly reminder that Marshawn is still producing and still in the upper echelon of backs in the country.

In a somewhat surprising twist, the Cal bball team has now won 5 in a row after thoroughly dominating Kansas State last night.  In what I hope is a preview of a future Big 12/Pac 10 Challenge (it’s supposedly in the works for next season), Cal won 78-48.  Yes, we scored 78 points.  Ben Braun, who wouldnt know how to draw up a play if he was forced to take a coaching class at Harvard, managed to let his players shoot and run and shoot and run.  Who knew it could happen?  Braun DOES know defense however, and holding K-State to 48 points on 34% shooting ain’t too shabby.  I would offer more in depth analysis, but I was only able to catch the final 10 minutes of the game (since the first hour and a half was pre-empted by the NBA), and by that time we were up by 20.  However, I did manage to see K-State’s Luis Polon get ejected following a major cheap shot to the back of the head of Cal center Taylor Harrison. Polon threw a punch when Harrison’s back was turned after some roughhousing under the basket, prompting a quick technical and ejection from the ref.  Throw it down big man!  Cal freshmen Jerome Randle, Ryan Anderson and Patrick Christopher all are playing well, and they are gaining much needed experience prior to the start of what figures to be a tough Pac-10 season.

Cal plays Nevada on Sunday in the Pete Newell challenge.  Details to come.

Did you know Daymeion Hughes can intercept a North Korean nuclear missile???

………..Except of course when a Pac-10 Ref calls him for a non existent pass interference call

Hello!  Welcome to The California Golden Blogs!  Yes, I realize that it is merely 1 blog.  However, the blog pluralization was necessary for several reasons.  One, we are the California Golden Bears, not the California Golden Bear.  AND!  There are like 4 of us (at least).  All former Cal students, passionate about Cal sports.  All in complete love with noted God-man Marshawn Lynch.  Hopefully, this will turn into a strong discussion of Cal sports and if it works out, it might expand to include the As or Warriors. 

 As means of introduction, while all the other authors are on level 9, I’m apparently on level 10.  Does this mean that I am superior to them in every conceivable fashion? 

Yes, yes it does.  

That said,  I graduated from Cal in 2003 after 4 years in the marching band (3 of which spent in the fetal position).  At Cal, I majored in Igberology with a minor in Dealtha Sciences.  My post-graduate work has mostly been in the field of Marshawn.  I personally hate guys named Pete, like Pete Alamar (UCLA 2005), Pete Carroll (self-explanatory), and Mack "Pete" Brown.  Also, Osama.  I heard he roots for USC.     And I can’t wait until 2012.  GO BEARS!  BEAT THE BUCKEYES!

But barely locally.  The game is being carried by FSN, but here it is pre-empted by the Dubs-Pacers game.  And believe me, I love noted Shantay-killer Matt Barnes as much as the next guy, but still.  You can watch it if you have digital cable on channel 410.  I technically have that channel, but Comcast hates me and my cable won’t work. I have to wonder how many people have Digital Cable.  Luckily, this is apparently the only Cal game on FSNPlus this year.  So, that’s good news. 

 Cal Men’s Basketball Schedule

Looking at the schedule going forward, Cal has pretty good TV coverage.  Most games are good to go.  The only problem is that Oregon game in February.  That could be a good game.  Oregon was a not bad team last year and gave Cal fits in the Pac10 Tourney.  Remember that game?  Ubaka really saved us with free throws at the end there.  We could miss another classic like that.

Bleh, I hate Comcast Customer service SO much right now.   Just spent like 45 minutes on the phone.  Not gonna get to watch the Cal game.  The technician cant get out here till Monday at the earliest.  Blech.

I hope we win.  We are up 23-37 at half, so it looks good.  Go Bears! 

I almost feel like this post isn’t even worth writing, but because of lack of material (and of creativity), I feel compelled to express my feelings that the Big Game just isn’t that Big.

There are multiple reasons for this, and yes I’ve been spoiled by the success the team has had under the Tedford era.  But the biggest reason is that Stanford has sucked since my sophomore year of 2002.  Actually, I’m not even sure they sucked then, but it was so long ago and I know we beat them so I don’t want to bother checking the score - and it’s not looking good for them anytime soon.  The only player that I’ve ever heard of on their team is Trent Edwards, and I figure he’s already suffered his typical year-ending injury by now, since I always hear about how great he is at the beginning of the college football season, and by the middle of the year, that tune changes to talking about how great he is when healthy.  Which I’m sure means he’s not.  This year I haven’t heard anything about him at all.  Is he dead?  Who knows?  Who cares?

So basically,  I’m just writing an evil mirror bizarro version of this article right here, five years later.  But can you see any reason in the near future that this is going to change?  Tedford seems entrenched, DeSean will be back next year, the (not so) Immortal Trent Edwards will be on IR, and Stanford is Stanford.  A rivalry isn’t born out of proximity, it’s born out of playing meaningful games that inspire hatred.  I haven’t hated Stanford since I puked all over their fieldhouse of a stadium in 2001 during my first and only hangover.  They’ll be lucky to be within 20 points of us this Saturday.

Of course, I’m sure my saying this all just means they’re going to beat us into the ground this Saturday and inspire Marshawn to pack up for the NFL.  (Double reverse jinx!)

Although it is true that Marshawn injured himself on this play, you shoulda seen the other guy.  He got stiff armed for like 10 yards and was down for a while.  Marshawn somersaulted off the field.  This is example numoro uno why Marshawn is some sort of God-like creature sent from on high and is arguably the best RB in the nation.

I view him the same way ancient Egyptians viewed their Pharoahs.  Two-dimensionally! 

TWISTNHOOK4LIFE! 

(Call me Dan, Class of ‘02 - Political Science Major - suffered 4 years of a Holmoeian rash, which mysteriously cleared up after graduation).

Steve Levy.  Yes it’s been a year since that short, somewhat rotund ex-fullback took the reins of the high powered Cal offense and lead the Bears to their 4th straight Big Game victory (see above celebrating). 

I would like to point out to the young, spoiled (and USC-embittered) Cal fans out there that pre-Tedford WE LOST 7 STRAIGHT BIG GAMES!!!!!  People now take it for granted, but at one time my high school could’ve given the Cal team a good game.  That is beside the point however.  I have read that Tedford should consider starting Levy this weekend against Stanfurd, as a "tribute" to him and his senior year and that Longshore has struggled the past month or so.  I disagree.  The same people who have soured on Nate are the ones calling for Tedford’s head (amazingly enough, these people DO exist - perhaps they are the same people who think protecting a few oaks is more important than a new athletic center which would  replace the earthquake death trap that currently exists). 

We NEED Longshore to regain his confidence.  Word was just confirmed that it will be Cal-Texas A&M in the beloved Holiday Bowl.  A&M aren’t slouches: most of their losses have been close and they did knock off Texas, meaning they will be AMPED UP to play Cal and hate on West Coast football.  Anyway, I have one last sentence to write in this, my FIRST post on CGB’s: Start Longshore and also, TWIST AND HOOK!!!!!!! (see below for the twisting and the hooking)