On the last Saturday in September, I was in Eugene, Oregon to watch Cal take on the Oregon Ducks.  The game was tight see-saw battle between two immensely talented and well-coached teams.  However, despite the tough opponent and the intimidating home crowd, the Bears never got down, never buckled under pressure.  It wasn’t just blind optimism; there was real confidence backing it.  So every time the Bears fell behind, they went out and marched right back down the field.  The offense put up just enough points and the defense made just enough plays, and they were rewarded with a hard-earned victory.  That day in Eugene, I swear that Cal team could’ve beaten anyone in the country.

Fast-forward a month later, and the Bears, once national title front-runners, have gone oh-for-the month of October, falling out of the national title race, the conference race, and the top 25.  It’s been a soul-trying journey, and during Saturday’s loss, you could visibly see the changes that had overcome this team.  Where the Bears were once confident even while coming from behind, they now looked shaky and uncertain with the lead.  Even as the Bears took a 20-7 lead late in the 2nd quarter, even as I cheered at DeSean Jackson’s latest spectacular touchdown grab, I remember thinking, "That’s not nearly enough, not by a longshot."  Every play was just a struggle to hold on, a fight to not give in to what began to seem inevitable.  As I watched Cal drive in the third quarter, I began to expect a fumble every time a Sun Devil made a hard tackle on a Bear.  It didn’t used to be this way, but this team looked beaten long before the final seconds ticked off the clock.

There are lots of reasons for this.  Two consecutive heartbreaking losses will shake the confidence of any man, as two consecutive fourth-quarter comebacks came tantalizingly close only to fall improbably, even cruelly, short.  Physically, these men were tired and beaten.  Injuries have continued to take their toll this season, and when the offense couldn’t hold onto the ball in the 2nd half against ASU, the defense, gassed as they were, had to trot back onto the field.  Our quarterback just doesn’t look right throwing the ball, and our offensive line doesn’t seem to hold the line like they used to.  Players get sloppy, missing easy tackles and committing stupid penalties.  This team has had its goals and aspirations shattered, and they need to regroup in the worst way.

So with the Rose Bowl out of the picture, what do you play for?  Well, despite the losses, there’s still the possibility of a 10-win season.  It can still be a bowl season.  There’s still the matter of retaining the axe, and there’s still a dangerous, though similarly wounded USC looming ahead in two weeks.  There’s lots left to play.  But it starts this Saturday against Washington State, a team that just drilled UCLA at home.  These guys need a win badly, and they need their home crowd cheering them on.  They need to rediscover what it takes to win, what it takes to make the 4th quarter ‘ours’.  This is where the Bears have to take a stand to save their season, because if they don’t, it’s going to very quickly sink into oblivion.

I wasn’t feeling up writing anything last night but I think I’m up to writing a small something today.  Be sure to check back in a day or so because Ragnarok is going to have a more complete post-game thoughts analysis.

*Coaching.  A quick peruse around the internet and seems people are complaining that the next few years with Tedford are going to be just as bad as the Holmoe years.  Okay, that was a big of an exaggeration but I think more and more Cal fans (although still a minority) have lost faith in Tedford.  That’s understandable.  But I don’t think these three losses mean he’s lost his mojo or anything.  Oregon State was a play away from a possible win.  UCLA was demoralizing and by far the most dis-heartening.  The ASU loss was frustrating but the things that went wrong during this game are fixable.   

*Longshore.  He was 18/36 for 263 yards, 1 TD and 2 INTs.  Obviously, the stats suggest he had a poor game.  Indeed it was a sub-par performance.  He missed a few open WRs throughout the game.  He threw two picks.  BUT I don’t think he was quite at fault for ALL of his mistakes.  The offensive line had trouble pass blocking.  Longshore was getting hit a lot.  He might have been a bit rattled and tentative to step up into the pocket.  On the INT pass that was intended to THA1 but was underthrown, he had defensive pressure in his face the instant after the snap.  Similarly, on his other INT he had some defensive pressure within the pocket.  I will elaborate on this later in another post but my point here is that while Longshore definitely wasn’t in the zone for this game, the offensive line is partly to blame.

*Run blocking.  Shady.  Forsett’s longest run was 11 yards and he only averaged a 3.6 yard average.  Once again, this week I feel like our big uglies in the trenches got outplayed.  

*The defense.  Well, upon first glance it seems like they didn’t do so well since they gave up 30 points.  But I think part of the problem was that they were on the field so much.  Did you happen to notice the time of possession for this game?  Cal had the ball for 22:30 and ASU had the ball for 37:30.  That’s a HUGE difference.  Usually things are bad enough when the TOP is something like 25/35 but that much?  Wow.  I know the defense wasn’t great but I’m willing to give them a pass just because they were out there for so long.  Oh, and they did get pressure on Carpenter via blitzes sporadically.  It wasn’t consistent but there were a few occasions when our defense was getting in their licks.  I don’t think there can be much complaining about how Gregory didn’t blitz.  He did but Carpenter was getting the ball out faster than we could get to him.  And also, one of ASU’s passing touchdowns as well as a few other deep passes came against a blitz.  Prime examples of the disadvantages of blitzing.  Blitz = less men down field to defend the ball and tackle the receiver thus big gains if the pass is completed. 

*Penalties.  Lots of ‘em.  One of ASU’s scoring drives seemed like they got 50% of the yardage from our penalties. 

Final thoughts: This game was winnable.  ASU deserves some credit because they out-played us in some aspects but we also folded and gave them other parts of the game.  While this loss hurts because it’s three in a row, I feel like there is still hope because the problems can be fixed.  We’re not ourselves.  The team has played better before.  We are better than we played the last two games.  The team knows it and the fans know it.  It’s one thing to lose because you just are just plain inferior and it’s another to lose because you’re not performing to potential.  Anyways, I know these are trying times but let’s try and keep up the hope.  Remember, we’re not the south.  There is life after football.  These are just 18-22 year old kids out there.  Let’s be rational, and reasonable with our criticisms before we start throwing players under the bus. 

Anyways, this is about as much as I feel like writing about.  Check back later for Ragnarok’s more substantial post-game thoughts. 

Except for the chiseled Dutch look and perfectly tousled hair, this is pretty much how I look right now.  I’m trying to cry.  Oh, how I’m trying to cry, but I just can’t.  Now, in my case, it’s not because I’m a substandard actor.  No, it’s because my tear ducts have been empty for weeks now.   

The pain we felt 2 weeks ago was falling from the National Championship game to the Rose Bowl.  The pain last week was falling from the Rose Bowl to the (maybe) Holiday Bowl.  The pain last night was falling to the Poulon Weed Eater Bowl (does that even still exist?).  I feel a lot more calm in the wake of last night’s debacle than the last few weeks’ debacles.

So, instead of throwing a temper tantrum about how this coach needs to be fired or that player needs to be benched, we are going to go position by position and take a look at how things are going.  Are the players meeting the expectations from the start of the year?  If not, why?  Hopefully, we’ll try to stay reasonable and analytical. 

Personally, I think there is a clear and easy way to fix ALL of Cal’s current problems.  Move the team to Boston!  This is a plan that can’t fail.  Except in relation to the Cal Hockey Team, where it most assuredly will fail.

How does this sound?  University of California at Boston Golden Bears!  It’s got a nice ring to it.  Here’s a quick .jpeg that I drew up.  It took all my MS Paint skills to do this.  Clearly, I need to stick to lawyering and leave the MS Paint to HydroTech.

Anyway, I think these days a lot of Cal fans are having their Cal puberty moment as Will noted below.  The new fans who weren’t around for the Holmoecaust are finally remembering that being a Cal fan is like being Rocky.  Apollo Creed just punches us over and over and over and over.  And then we lose.  After that, we become fools who get pitied by Mr. T.

"Go Bears?" 

But don’t get down yet.  There is a lot of football left to be played and a lot of fun left.  We still have 2 more home games (including USC) and the Big Game.  If we beat USC, beat Stanford, and then win whatever bowl game Cal makes it to, it’ll certainly salve the pain.  So, don’t forget to get out there the next two weeks and cheer on the team.  No, we might not make the National Championship game.  No, we aren’t even going to make the Holiday Bowl. But that doesn’t mean we just give up and go home.   

So, keep it tuned here for mid-season review on the team.  And, no matter what, GO BEARS!