Here is another one of Ragnarok’s Pac10 road trips that I am posting while he is on his honeymoon.  We have a LOT, and I mean a LOT, of content planned for the next week.  Finishing up the Roadtrips.  Finishing up all the Pac10 Roundtables.  An interview with a Tennessee blog and other posts relating to the upcoming season.  I doubt I am alone in being incredibly excited about the season starting next week, so check in all week for new content and much, much more.

Also, I was just at Champ Sports at the Sunvalley Mall in Concord and I saw they had Marshawn Lynch Buffalo Bills away jerseys for $75.  Now, I already bought the one from the Bills Pro Shop, so there was no need for me to get it.  But if you haven’t bought yours yet, check out Champ Sports.  They also had a ton of Longshores and nearby The Sports Authority had tons of DeSeans, too.  But none of that compares to Marshawn.  MARSHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWN! 

#8 - Washington State
#7 - Oregon State
#6 - USC
#5 - Arizona
#4 - Arizona State
#3 - UCLA

#2 - Oregon

I like Eugene, Oregon, the home of the University of Oregon.  I like it a lot more than Corvallis, and I can’t quite put my finger on why.  Call it a feeling.  It’s a bigger town than Corvallis, and there’s plenty more to do.  Wikipedia notes that Eugene is "noted for its natural beauty, activist political leanings, alternative lifestyles, recreation opportunities (especially bicycling, rafting, and kayaking), and arts focus."  While its greenery has given it the nickname "The Emerald City", its track & field success and popularity has led it to be dubbed "Track Town USA".

I think this is my favorite "road" trip in the Pac-10.  It’s pretty much the same drive as to Oregon State, but with about an hour cut off at the end.  Since I discussed that during the Oregon State writeup, I won’t bother to repeat myself.  Also, since Eugene is another hour south of Portland, I would further counsel against flying to this game.  If you don’t like this road trip, perhaps road trips are not for you.

Despite being larger that either Corvallis or Pullman, Eugene is still a college town, with all the passion from the local populace that that entails.  Eugene is pretty much it in these parts, so pretty much everyone’s a Duck fan.  That’s cool by me.  I like it when the local population gives a hoot.

I don’t have any specific food or drink recommendations while in Eugene, although during one visit I did stumble across an IHOP that had an awesome special — short stacks for $1.  My entire food budget for that visit:  $7.

Perhaps Autzen Stadium is what makes this trip really special.  First off, it’s freaking LOUD.  I’m not sure if it’s the acoustics, or the fact that the turf reflects sound, or what, but it gets pretty crazy there.  Of course, the Duck’s fan base has plenty to do with that.  Outside of perhaps USC, no other Pac-10 school has a more intense, vocal fanbase, and with a fraction of the jerks that USC features.  Also, I know their mascot is basically Donald Duck in green, but I like it anyway.  Finally, as long as Tedford is our coach, this rivalry ratchets up a notch.  He’s failed in his first two attempts, and you just know Teddy’s itching to finally beat Bellotti in Eugene.

If you want to fit in here, I would recommend bringing all the Oakland Athletics gear you can muster.  [Photo by Curtis Reed Photography.]

Reasons to visit the Emerald City:
- Great fans and a great atmosphere.
- The loudest stadium on the West Coast.
- Come see the land that Nike built.
- If you’re a track & field fan, this must be a sort a pilgrimage for you.  Heck, this is where, in the 60’s, the ‘jogging’ craze was born.

Reasons to watch on TV:
- You have issues with very loud noises.
- It’d be nice if those lights would stay on.
- Oregon’s uniforms hurt your eyes (although it’s not like we should be ones to talk).

If you’re staring at their ridiculous color combinations, you’re not trying hard enough to tackle them.

I like this trip.  A lot.  Perhaps I didn’t give you enough concrete reasons to make this trip, but take my word for it:  you’ll enjoy yourself immensely.

More Max Zhang!  Because too much is never enough.  And a few more previews to boot.

• Hear what all the kids are saying about Max Zhang!  (ESPN.com, Contra Costa Times, Insidehoops.com forum) It’s generally a good thing when you’re able to beat out USC for a recruit in any sport, but was Rhode Island really the only other option?  That’s not a good sign.  And maybe it’s just my nature to be skeptical, but I don’t trust a word mmmarvinsays.
• This is really quite old (over two weeks old, in fact - blame in on my well chronicled basketball apathy), but Cal’s nonconference basketball schedule isn’t terribly challenging.
• Article from SI.com about former Bears assistant coach Joe Pasternack taking over as head coach at the University of New Orleans in the aftermath of Katrina - I’ve said before that I’m not sure how anyone could think learning under Ben Braun would help someone’s coaching acumen, but that’s not exactly relevant here.  Well, not entirely.
• BOOM THO?  Yes!  Where?  New Jersey!  I can’t put into words how exciting this is.  You can bet your sweet ass I’ll be sitting up in section 201 with a Boom Tho? sign every game.
• Tedford names Kevin Riley the backup to Nate Longshore.  Potentially big news, of course, since it’s always important to have a competent backup in case your team’s starting quarterback gets injured - and we all know what happened the last time Longshore got injured.  Now the question becomes, will Kyle Reed be looking to transfer?  In the event Longshore takes off after this year, being named the backup this year has to give Riley a leg up for the starting job next year…and by then, Brock Mansion will have taken off his redshirt as well.  By the way, how awesome a name is Brock?  Maybe that’s because the name always makes me think of this guy.
• Postcard from Cal camp by Arash Markazi over at SI.com mostly focused on THA1, and rightfully so.  I’m not sure how to feel about Longshore and Forsett taking pilates together…there’s no way Marshawn would have stood for that.
• Bruce Feldman lists Matt Malele as one of college football’s mystery men for the upcoming season, saying he’s lost 30 pounds in an effort to become more of a playmaker in his senior season.
• Todd McShay ranks Cal’s receivers third in the nation, special teams second.  McShay ranks Oregon State’s special teams first in the country, but without KR/PR Sammie Stroughter, I’m pretty sure our Bears would move up to number 1.  And the only two receiving corps ranked ahead of Cal are those of Texas and Louisville - I don’t know enough about the two teams to say definitively whether or not their receivers are better than ours, but given the passing numbers the two teams have put up, I’m willing to accept that it’s possible their receivers are as good as or better than ours.
• Tomorrow is Cal Fan Appreciation Day, so show up and have yourself a Good Time Out!  Show up early and get a free burrito from Baja Fresh!  No joke, they’ll have 1,000 free burritos for the first 1,000 fans.
• Meanwhile, Pat Forde calls UCLA out.  Specifically, Karl Dorrell.  The guys over at Bruins Nation have been all over this, and well, yeah.  Karl Dorrell probably needs to do a hell of a job this year to quiet the critics.
• Ivan Maisel discusses the saga of USC’s overloaded depth chart at tailback.  Poor Trojans.  I’d recommend some of them transfer to Cal, but it’s not like our Bears are hurting for tailbacks either.
• Five predictions from Pat Forde on the Pac-10.  He didn’t exactly go out on a limb.
• And lastly, our Yahoo Pick’em league goes live next week, since next week is the first week of the college football season.  Read the info there and sign up if you’re so inclined, and we dearly hope that you are.