Best of BN, 2007
I’m feeling terrible AGAIN. I’ve waken up the last five days and had no desire to write at all. So while I recover, I’ll be sporadic in posting habits until recovery comes, which might be tomorrow, two weeks, never. So for now, a la Golden Blogs, classic posts for you to read! (And by classic, I mean perpetually shitty). I really wish I could post more right now–I actually have a lot of things I want to post about, surprisingly–but my health comes first. Hopefully the hand of God touches me (Tedford?) and I will be healed soon enough, or He will strike me down for my blasphemous ravings like each one of us heathen bloggers truly deserves.
I started this on the fly, and didn’t fully commit to it until around 4-0 (because I suck like that). But this upcoming year is going to be good. I feel it…for the Bears of course. I might be a little bit better. Methinks.
Besides, Rod Benson is writing for Yahoo Sports now! I order all of my readers to click over and start perusing every beautiful word.
Be back soon!
The Big Issues
Bending to Heartbreak (Why Gregory’s System Failed Us)
Why Tedford Sticks With Longshore
Who Do You Hate More, USC or Stanford?
What all the upsets meant to Cal
Top Plays in September of 2007 for the Golden Bears (ugh)
Oh, Hey, Cal “Fans”
Calling All REAL Cal Fans…
The Rose Bowl complex
Ask the Readers: How Do You Cope With Defeat?
The BCS: Part I, Part II, and Playoffs
On Quitting
On Coaches
Solioquys (self-indulged ramblings)
Volunteer for the Cause…Tennessee * Back to Normal–I Hope…Colorado State * Time to Start Growling…Louisiana Tech * A Good Day For Revenge…Arizona * The More Things Change…Oregon * Coming Home Again…Oregon State * The Lights Go Out…USC * The Very Small Game…Stanfurd
Postgame recaps
Tennessee * Louisiana Tech * Bear Up…Arizona * Rolling into the Bye Week…Oregon * Oh, You Pesky Little Beaver…Oregon State * Well, That Wasn’t Fun…UCLA * The Big Game
Interviews with opposing fans
Tennessee (Vol Nation) * CSU (RamNation) * La Tech (Bulldogs Barks and Bytes) * Arizona (GOAZCATS) * Oregon (E-Duck) * Oregon State (Bleed Black and Orange) * ASU (Devil’s Digest) * Wazzu (CougFan)
Blog-love
Interview with Hydrotech * Tennesee previews * Tennessee reactions * Colorado State reactions * Louisiana Tech reactions * Arizona reactions * Oregon previews * Oregon reactions * Big Game reactions
Historical
Most Glorious Moments under Tedford
Most Painful Defeats of the Tedford era (Clearly this list will be overhauled in the offseason).
Report Cards (figures once I start handing out report cards the team folds; is this 12th grade spring semester or something?)
Perfectly Dorrellian–Cal-UCLA
Burned Alive –Cal-ASU)
Deflecting Away Defeat–Cal-Wazzu
Tears Fall From the Heavens–Cal-USC
The Floodgates Open– Cal-UW
A Fitting End–The Big Game
Liveblogs
Colorado State
Action Jackson Diaries–Part I (Fighting Manginos!), Part II (Vol rampage), Part III (USC-Stanford. I hyperventilated twice)
Washington
Recreational writing
Let’s See the SEC Pull This Awesomeness Off
Cal Athletics Everyone!
Let’s Hire the O–GIMMEAREDBULL!
Mike Stoops: Double Agent of the Big 12?
Oh Lord…No…Why Can’t He Go Away?
My Big Game Prediction
Oh, THIS is why USC Lost
This is NOT Better Than the Play
The Pac-10
Halftime Report, Part I; Part II
Pac-10, Up and Down.
Tree sitters
The War Has Already Begun. And Ended. * Breaking News: Goodbye Treesitters, We Hardly Knew Ye (EDIT: They’re still there. And laughing at us. What an irrelevant bunch of pricks.)
Bowl Opponents: Emerald * Sun and Elsewhere (failed at all of these predictions–go me)
The Line…ugh.
Watching games online
TVUPlayer for Versus * Sopcast for ESPN/ABC
Pac-10 Coaching Carousel: Epilogue
Well, so much for letting Gregory go the easy way.
Washington State University has selected Eastern Washington head coach Paul Wulff as WSU’s new head football coach, a source close to the selection process told The Associated Press late Monday.
The WSU source spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to make the announcement.
The Pacific-10 Conference school has scheduled a Tuesday news conference on its Pullman campus to announce its new coach.
The Cougars have been looking for a replacement for Bill Doba, who stepped down last month at age 67 after posting a 30-29 record in five seasons.
Washington State athletic department spokesmen did not immediately return phone calls for comment and Wulff did not immediately return a message left at his home Monday night.
Not a big surprise. Wulff had been popping up as a good candidate for the job espeically because of his Wazzu credentials and Gregory has never been that interested in taking a coaching position–seems like a booth guy, and I never could really see him roaming the sidelines. So one of three things will happen.
1) Tedford will retain Gregory. Cast this season off as an aberration.
This scenario is not out of the question and might be depressingly likely if January rolls by without a change. Gregory has been with him since the beginning of his tenure, so unlike Dunbar his attachment runs deep. Loyalty is a big sticking point with Coach, so I’m giving this a high probability of happening.
Likelihood: 35%
2) Tedford will let Gregory go.
That 1-6 slide is really a two-sided failure, and I expect casualties on both sides of the ball. But Cal’s defense peaked three years ago, and they’ve been sloping downwards ever since. Despite the loyalty, someone is taking the fall for the 1-6 slide. Gregory seems to be the guy that everyone is calling for to go, and Coach doesn’t really have another head to chop at too seriously.
Likelihood: 60%
3) Gregory will be offered another coaching job elsewhere…AND he will take it.
Unless it’s for Eastern Washington or some quiet school in the Northwest…no.
Likelihood: 5%
Pac-10 Coaching Carousel, Part II
So after covering the scenarios yesterday of those coaches who have passed on from the Pac-10 rites, I’ll continue looking through those coaches who will be under the eye for the next twelve months…and could very well be looking for new work in 2009.
(The following images were made by a Bruins fan. Hence why every coach looks uhh…well…kooky)
Emergency watch
8. 
That coaching door is starting to hang ajar after 4-8, despite playing the toughest schedule in the land. But his play-calling managed to let Jake Locker get pounded around like those tossed fish at the Pike Place market.
Next year is pretty much a verdict on Willingham. Nothing less than a bowl appearance will suffice.
7. 
I’m not sure why Arizona keeps this buffoon. I’m guessing next year is the end, unless his brother is also paying off the Wildcat AD. Inventing conspiracy theories is fun! Another subpar September could mean the end for Stoops, although he could drag himself out of the hole by going upset crazy in November again. What an asshat.
Rumorville.
6.
Okay, I KNOW people are going to bash me for putting Tedford this low, but it has nothing to do with his job security. I don’t think anyone in Cal has or ever will entertain the notion of firing him, despite the reactionary nonsense that goes on through the bitter Internet landscape. That being said…
Pac-10 Coaching Carousel, Part I
The coaching fluctuation has been pretty consistent in the Pac-10: Two coaches out last year, two coaches out this year. Bill Doba is out. The Karl Dorrell Kool-Aid is now fresh out, and Bruins Nation has now lost the inspiration for 80% of their posts. It’d be funny if the Bruins really did go ahead and hire someone like DeWayne Walker, and completely destroy their fanhood for the rest of the offseason. The derangement would be something to behold.
So let’s go over the two vacancies and see what effect it has on the Bears, specifically the Cougars job, which might allow Tedford a graceful way to send off one of his coordinators…
Speaking of Walker, Wazzu has already contacted him for the vacancy. Walker’s defensive acumen has been impressive at UCLA; his defenses are physical, hard-hitting, and have carried their inferior offensive counterparts the past year, including the Cal game. Add in that he recruits very well and the Bruins He only carries a little of the taint of Dorrell’s failings, most notably a 44-6 blowout in Utah, which might harm his final evaluation. I do think Walker would be a good choice, but I’m not sure if he really wants to coach. It’s also pretty entertaining for 1-11 Tom Holmoe to give you a vote of confidence.
Cal’s Bob Gregory is also up for consideration.
On the BCS, Part II
I’m sure you already know the story. Missouri got HOSED. HOSED I say! Chase Daniel is a Heisman finalist damnit! Sadly, in a month no one will remember their cries. The reward for the #1 team the next-to-last week of the season is to face Darren McFadden in what’s basically his NFL audition. This will probably not end well for the Tigers, who could end up in a Cal 2004 situation and completely get wiped off the map.
But that’s speculative. It’s time for reality. Something tangible. A physics lesson, if I may.
The Second Law of Thermodynamics: The entropy, or disorder of an isolated system which is not in equilibrium will tend to increase over time, approaching a maximum value at equilibrium.
Generally, the second law is great for existentialists and Creationists everywhere to build up pointless philosophical discussions about disorder and meaninglessness in the Universe and all such related garbage that is beyond the scope of this blog. But at least for our purposes, it can appropriately describe the madness of the BCS, which just produces more chaotic, more absurdist matchups than the year previous to this one. Every correction to the system just produces more disorder.
1999: The “Kansas State” rule (where #3 Kansas State was hosed out of a BCS spot), which necessitates the inclusion of the third seed (or the fourth seed if the third seed if necessary). This rule would later screw over Cal from inclusion in the BCS when it fell to #5 and provide the Bears with a good Holiday Bowl stomping.
2000: FSU, despite losing to Miami, passes both Miami and Washington (who BEAT the Hurricanes) to earn. This leads to quality wins and SOS tweaks, creating a system where the SEC (always the strongest conference) lies in a dominant position for getting to a title game with only one loss, opening the door for the LSU’s and Florida’s of the world. (Perplexingly when an undefeated team does emerge from the SEC, they do not play for the title).
2001: Nebraska gets beaten down in Boulder in their last regular season game but still makes it to the title game despite finishing 4th in the human polls and not even playing in their conference championship game–the BCS does not include time of loss in its scale, a clause that allowed LSU and Ohio State to slip back into #1 and #2 at the end of the season.
2003: The Oklahoma-USC-LSU fiasco spells the beginning of the end of the AP’s role in determining a national champion, putting it in the hands of coaches who are never ever biased, and the Harris Poll, a group of market research cyborgs who probably watch as much college football as they do rhythmic gymnastics.
2004: The aforementioned Texas-Cal nonsense comes to pass, something that I don’t want to talk about for fear of destroying my laptop.
2005: BCS #5 Notre Dame screws over BCS #4 Oregon, because the Irish are guaranteed a BCS spot if they’re in the top eight, and all you Pac-10 whiners forget that Notre Dame is the College of Football, goddamnit! Knute! Four Horseman! Drunk Catholics! RUDY! The Irish lose yet another bowl game, and the Ducks pull a Cal and fall meekly to Bob Stoops.
2006: SEC roulette. Auburn beats Florida and LSU, but loses to Georgia and Arkanasas. Arkansas loses to LSU in a classic Les Miles Pepto Bismol game, allowing LSU to go to the Rose Bowl. There were plenty of Big Ten/SEC teams in the top 12, but only four (Ohio State, Michigan, Florida, LSU) were allowed in because of the two team per conference limit, suggesting that the limit is a terrible constraint on who deserves what.
Additionally Boise State’s undefeated run suggested that Ohio State and Boise State should have been battling for the title. A similar suggestion could be made for Hawaii this year, who finished undefeated even though their only quality win was…Boise State. But the national powers want big schools, so Florida gets the nod, and, well, you know what happened.
This all leads to…
2007: Messy. Star Wars Turkey messy.
[youtube NbYczbBlatA]
Missouri beats Kansas, loses to Oklahoma and gets passed over for the Orange Bowl by…Kansas. But the Rose Bowl loves tradition and needs its hearty share of Big Ten football, so Illinois gets in. Arizona State then gets shafted from a bowl and gets sent off to the Holiday Bowl although the griping is minimal because ASU had two good chances to prove themselves and failed both of them pretty decisively.
(Just a sidenote: Missouri also beat Illinois.)
Oh, the BCS. It’s just bound to make your blood boil.
To be honest, my anger here in 2007 is minimal. The bowl matchups look fairly solid on paper–yes, even Georgia-Hawaii, which I’ll get to next week. But I still think there is something fundamentally flawed with a system that has to continually tweak itself each year to suit the needs of determining a faux national champion that only satisfies the fans of the school that is crowned.
Only one scenario ever satisfies me under the current BCS–#1 undefeated vs #2 undefeated, with no other undefeateds crowding the litter. All other scenarios have produced mainly either blowouts or turgid affairs without a shred of competitiveness.
The solution to this will have to be radical–not a playoff, not a reversion to the old ways, but something that satisfies everyone. I don’t have the answer right now because entertaining the possibility is beyond my scope. How would you improve it?
Next week in the series: Bowl previews, ending with the BCS matchups.
(Image: Trojan Wire)
On Coaches
On the bright side, for the first time in many an offseason, we probably won’t have to worry about Tedford leaving us.
It’s kind of ironic, because before the season started, 2008 seemed like the perfect time for him to jump to healthier pastures. His youngest son was graduating. The impending retirement of Lloyd Carr and the impatience of the Wolverines subjugation to the Sweater Vest seemed to beg for the hand of Tedford to bring fresh blood to the wounded Michigan fanbase. MgoBlog prominently lobbyied for him earlier this year, although it looks like he might have to settle for Kirk Ferentz (ick). But the collapse of the past six months has left him unappealing to the major programs lacking a coach (Arkansas, UCLA come to mind). Maybe next year. It can’t get much worse than this year. Can it?
I’m wondering if this season was all some grand gambit he was trying to pull to end the coaching rumors once and for all, to settle the fact. That these six losses were part of a great strategy to say that he is bound to Cal, and he doesn’t deserve spots anywhere. Then he proceeds to lead us to Rose Bowls unchecked for the next decade…
Heh. I can’t even say that with a straight face. What a year.
As for Bob Gregory? I can’t see him coming back. The defense clearly gave up under his watch–Longshore has little bearing on that side of the ball, so the only fingerpointing can be done at the pressbox. I feel a little bad for him, because judging from the way the team has played and scorned his strategy, I doubt Gregory could have done much to stop the downturn. I know “bend-don’t-break” isn’t exactly hard knocks football, but it’s a pretty sound strategy when your talent isn’t up to par.
Look at Tennessee, who employed the exact same scheme and got progressively better as the year went on, holding the LSU offense to one TD and a few field goals and knocking LSU’s fearsome playmakers on their backs for the majority of the game. In light of how the Vols reorientation to strong defensive playmaking, the regression of Cal is mystifying, and can only be explained by a lack of heart from players and preparation from coaching.
I will be sorely depressed if Gregory returns–he’s had a good run with more physical defenses. But someone has to be scapegoated for 1-6, and it sure as hell isn’t going to be Tedford. And the thought of the majority of this defense coming back to play for Gregory doesn’t sound appealing at all.
Brief shots on the remaining coaching staff.
Offensive Coordinator/O-Line: Jim Michalzik should worry a bit; Cal fans want blood, and Tedford probably will have to cut his coordinating duties, however perfunctory they maybe. On the flip side, the O-line was strong until the final games, and he was OC only in name–he will likely return to just handling the offensive line as Cal searches for a true coordinator. This quitting business worries me though.
Quarterback: Still early to see with Kevin Daft, although he might be a casualty of Longshore’s troubles. But the early development and promise of Kevin Riley has been a pleasant surprise.
Running backs: Ron Gould has been here forever, and there doesn’t seem to be any change forthcoming. I expected Forsett to come into his role well, but his amazing workhorse production has surprised even me. Kudos to Gould, but it doesn’t get any easier–Montgomery and Best both need a lot of polish this offseason.
Wide receivers: Dan Ferrigno has produced outstanding receiver production for the second straight year, this year in spite of Longshore’s ineffectiveness. His transformation of Lavelle Hawkins into a legit NFL prospect definitely deserves props, although I wish he’d teach him to catch with his hands.
Special Teams: Apparently Pac-10 teams play smarter than anyone else. After Colquitt’s errant decision to punt to DeSean, the power of special teams died. Coverage has never been sloppier, Kay was simply average, and DeSean barely touched the ball again. Larson and Hawkins were great again, but overall just an average year for the special teams. Pete Alamar should be back next year.
Defensive Line: Ken Delgado is in danger–the D-line was expected to be a weak link, but never this anemic (76th in sacks, 109th in tackles for loss)? If Gregory isn’t fired or let go, Delgado might be the one taking the long walk.
Linebackers: Actually…
Secondary: …no one on this defensive staff is safe.
Recruiting: This situation worries me. Cal has not had great defensive recruits in three years. The last of the old guard (Mebane, Bishop, Hughes) left us last year, and only Follett has shown signs of being a playmaker (the scheme has somewhat nuzzled him). As bad as Cal might’ve been this year, the next few years are even more troubling. A recruiting coordinator might be needed…someone like….
You know you want him here too. Do what it takes Coach. Let’s start erasing that bitter taste.
Your thoughts on the coaches this year? Anyone you want to see go?
On the BCS, Part I
Oh, I forgot about the actual BCS, didn’t I?
Despite all my gripes about a playoff system, it does nothing to alleviate the loathing I have for the BCS. This system is utter douchebaggery at its finest, an arrogant tool that tinkers and fixes itself on a yearly basis, only to create more substantial fuckups every year (this year’s recipient: Missouri). The BCS has done nothing but find more ways to make people laugh at its hideous attempt to crown a national champion, whatever that means.
There are only a few scenarios that can happen in this mythic #1 vs #2 matchup.
The two sole undefeated teams square off. The ultimate dream of the BCS. This has occurred a few times, and the resulting title game is usually fantastic because there are no gripes about who’s deservable. However, it’s likely that any such system would have that mechanism in place.
Example: Texas 41, USC 38 in 2005; Ohio State 31, Miami 24 in 2002; FSU 46, Virginia Tech 29 in 1999. Two great games and one fairly entertaining one. Always the scenario you root for if you want a compelling championship.
[youtube NpJLmG3qcFE]
More than two undefeated teams. Someone gets the shaft. This is where the Plus-One system makes the most sense for the odd man out, although it’d be difficult to figure out which two of the three would have to face off against one another in the original bowl. The one example is not promising of what the title game would provide.
Example: 2004, with Auburn, Oklahoma and USC (Utah too, but they beat arguably the worst BCS qualifier ever in Pitt). Mike Stoops already has past experience with groveling (see below), and despite getting soundly beaten in the previous title game, everyone’s riding the Jason White bandwagon. USC pummels Oklahoma into the ground and the Sooners just keep on losing bowl games. Auburn quietly takes down Virginia Tech 16-13, but sixteen is sixty in Tommy Tuberville football.
An undefeated team facing a one-loss opponent. The scenario that gets under everyone’s skin. Which one-loss team do you put in there? Either an undeserving team gets put in and gets smashed, or a team backdoors its way via the help of upsets.
Example: 1998–Tennessee wins a chippy matchup against the Seminoles. Tomahawk chop this, FSU. Good game.
2000–FSU gets the nod over a Miami team that beat them, AND a Washington team that beat them. In a title game that only rednecks and hicktards cared about, Oklahoma slumbers over FSU 13-2.
2001–Nebraska goes to Boulder and loses by 26. Nebraska gets into the BCS title game by a smidgen because heartland voters just keep on pouring the Big 12 corn bread and gravy. Oregon proceeds to rout Colorado in the Fiesta Bowl and Miami stomps over Nebraska. Big 12 does not look so good anymore.
2006–Ohio State and Michigan play in the regular season game of the decade and then take six weeks off; Florida backs into the title after Karl Dorrell decides to play coach. I’m sure the Gators love their title, but this was far from an ideal scenario for a national title.
One loss team versus one loss. Not enough samples to really judge the merit of this game, although again this seems like a good place to have Plus-One in place.
Example: 2003–Oklahoma, LSU. Thanks to more groveling from Mike Stoops, after getting bombed out of the Big 12 title game, Oklahoma gets back to the BCS title game only to get smacked around–Geaux Tigers! USC thumps Michigan. USC and LSU both get their shares and the SEC/Pac-10 homerism wars commence.
A multi-loss team in the title game. Utter fucking madness. Likely similar to one loss versus one loss, but this is our first test case.
Example: 2007–Ground zero. Mike Stoops does not quite grovel his way into the title mix after losing to Texas Tech and Colorado. Virginia Tech gets jumped by LSU after people seem to remember 48-7. West Virginia and Missouri, South Florida and Boston College, Cal and USC, Oregon and Kansas all get to at least #2 and then fold the cards.
There’s more. Hawaii manages to come back from 21 down against the last place team in the Pac-10 to ensure an undefeated season. Georgia looked like the most fearsome team coming home starting with their dog pounding of the Gators, but they got stomped early on by the Vols, who got stomped on by Alabama, who were knocked cold by…Louisiana Monroe. Finally, Ohio State and LSU choke away crucial games at home IN NOVEMBER–and they are playing for the title. Yeah, I don’t see a loser among them.
My point on the BCS? Sometimes the situation dictates whether there’s a legitimate national contender. This year you could argue as many as ten teams deserve that shot, but all ten teams screwed up at some point. Well, except for Hawaii and their last place strength of schedule. So no matter who wins January 8, they probably lose too, since they’ll be earning the dubious distinction of “Worst BCS Champion Ever.”
So who are the winners? You, the fans, of course. Just relish in the regular season and avoid the pratfalls and arguments that come with crowning a champ. Because unless it’s your team that gets hosed, there isn’t much indignation you can really bring to the table. Just hope for more USC-Texas’s and less Ohio State-Florida’s. Though this year it could very well be the latter.
Provide your thoughts on the title game in the comments.
Next: The Second Law of Thermodynamics.
On Quitting
I don’t really want to talk too much about the collapse yet–it’s too soon. Breaking it all down right now will force me into alcoholism. Let me dwell on it after our bowl game. But there are a few things I want to touch on, some of them involving the status of our head coach.
I’ve heard more than a few disturbing reports that players quit early on this season, starting soon after the Oregon State debacle (probably somewhere between UCLA and ASU). The reasoning was not made clear, but you’re probably guessing it might have something to do with a bleached up #9 taking snaps and looking gimpier as the game played on. The residual lack of confidence has somehow had a collective effect on the whole team’s psyche–add that into the catastrophic fall from the top and they apparently decided it was best to pull the plug. But Dank Down indicates that the problems run deeper, in fact crossing the line to outright insubordination of Tedford himself. (I have a few guesses about who the players might be, but I’ll keep them to myself. You’re free to speculate in the comments.)
I have heard the same type of information from different sources that I trust– people that have no contact with each other — that there are talks of a dysfunctional locker room. No surprise here. It is obvious that some of the team has quit on Tedford this season. But it seems to be much worse then what any fan could have imagined. There are rumors of selfish players leaving practice when they feel like it, not suiting up for team walk-through like the rest of the team, and even not showing up for practice — basically insubordination. Reading quotes from players only reinforce this thought. Brandon Hampton talks of it as well as Mike Gibson in CC Times Cal beat writer Okanes’ blog article. From what I’ve heard, this parasitic attitude has rubbed off on other players as weeks passed and losses accumulated to the point where Tedford had to set an example to the team.
So how come Tedford just doesn’t kick off the player if this is true? We’ll it could be more complicated then that. Recruiting is a factor. A coach should never throw a player under the bus. If something goes wrong, to the fans and media, the coach takes the blame as in any leadership role. As hard as it may be to get recruits to talk to our coaches after this season, it would only be harder if a high profile player was abandoned. The coach’s character would be tainted and that could be used against him in negative recruiting tactics by other coaches. Ultimately, Tedford’s responsibility is to prepare the kids for their future, be that in the NFL or in life in general, which is paramount to any of his personal statistics, despite what fans may think. So if a player is a high profile player, for example the face of Cal football and national figure, Tedford can’t just kick him off. He must find a way to bench the player for the season without hurting his future prospect for the NFL — without labeling him a cancer.From what I’ve heard there is more then one player. The severity of individual player’s derelictions is unknown but I assume all will eventually surface, especially if these rumors are true.
For the record, I don’t put the blame solely on Tedford. If the players are frustrated with the way things are going, you don’t fucking quit. This isn’t the time for The Dip. Do you just figure that if #1 and the Rose Bowl are out of our hands, it’s ok to tank? This isn’t the NBA. There are no rewards for going into the cellar. If you have no interest in playing for this team, go. Give the freshmen and the redshirts a chance to prove themselves. Your half-hearted efforts disgust us all.
Quitting is a disservice to the fans who come out to see your games, to the recruiters and athletic officials who found you paid your scholarships to come here, to your families who raised you and taught you to give it your all, and most importantly, to your teammates who still give it their all (Follett, Hawkins, Jordan, Forsett come to mind most prominently).
So I sincerely hope it’s not true. If it is, we spent 2007 rooting for a bunch of babies.
(Wow. I just channeled Jay Mariotti. Another thing I have to thank the Golden Bears for doing. I want to vomit.)
On the flip side, coaches have to be sensitive to team chemistry and the locker room mood. For Tedford to blame Longshore’s troubles on “pass rush” is at best misleading, and at worst a blind spot. I’ve already given a theory as to why Tedford sticks with Nate after the disgusting USC defeat, and I haven’t been dissuaded from it. There is way too much loyalty that hasn’t really been earned. Plus the nuzzle placed on Cal players in terms of media access has to be constricting. Put a few bad apples in the locker room and the desire to disobey authority can be compelling.
There’s nothing worse than an indecisive leader in your huddle in football. It’s destroyed many a football team in college and the pros–both Alabama and South Carolina can also attest with their hideous ends to terrible quarterback play. I think Longshore has tried to do what he can with a divided huddle behind him, but Coach has stood by him when the team appears to have given up on him. It’s a stubborn streak that cost the Bears in 2005 with Ayoob, and it has come back to haunt him in 2007.
But the product of the last few weeks does nothing to dispute the allegations of quitting. Porous run defense, inability to cover the simplest of receivers, the absence of pass rush, the erosion of the offensive line’s blocking–all of these point to a lack of trust and confidence in each other. While some of those internal mechanisms of quitting clearly couldn’t be controlled, the recalcitrance of our coaching staff to adapt to these failings dealt the final death blows to this 2007 season. And we still have another game to play. Whoopee!
What the future of these men in headsets will be remains to be seen.
Do you think the players quit?
EDIT: I missed Oski Talk’s great take on the whole issue.
Later this week: The future of Tedford.
On Playoffs. “PLAYOFFS?”
There is going to be a lot of debate about who deserves what after the way things ended this season about how to decide a national champion. That there should be a playoff because this season of chaos has not revealed a clear-cut two teams that stand from teh pack. More importantly for Golden Bear fans, Cal’s shortcomings in 2004 for a title would have been negated by a second chance they would have received through a playoff, although considering the outcome of that season, it might not have made a difference.
I used to be one of the big proponents. After this season though, I might be turning to the dark side.
If you really enjoyed this college football season, then you should realize that a playoff system dilutes the importance of the regular season. Pitt upsetting West Virginia and Oklahoma upending Missouri would have meant far less to those two teams; they could just say, “Oh, we’re still in it, we have a playoff!” LSU losing to Arkansas wouldn’t have looked so devastating. Could you imagine the mere possibility of crowning USC after losing to Stanford because they go on a two-three game run? The only thing a playoff creates is the possibility for more upset and discord over the crowning of the winner.
The bowls are for show and sponsors anyway–the season is six weeks apart from the championships; this situation doesn’t really exist in any other American sport. It’s an entirely different animal than the NFL.
There are a few methods I’ve heard, and none of them seem totally satisfying.
Plus-one. I’m okay with this one, just because adding one more game seems entirely manageable. The top four teams have generally had good separation (other than this insane year), and you would probably get a representative from four of the competitive big conferences (Ohio State, LSU/Georgia, USC, Oklahoma/Kansas). It’d be an ultimately satisfying scenario to have these four duke it out; you’re just going to have to ask Tom Hansen to kindly shut the hell up. Of course though, this would almost certainly exclude the mid-majors from a chance at the title. And in 2007, someone would be left out of the mix.
Cal to the Armed Forces Bowl
The BCS looks like it’s snubbed Arizona State, sending them to the Holiday Bowl to face Texas. East coast bias strikes again! Thanks again Tom Hansen, you worthless douchebag. Enjoy rubbing one out to your precious volleyball matches.
That leaves the following projections.
Holiday: ASU
Sun: Oregon
Emerald: Oregon State
Las Vegas: UCLA
Armed Forces: Cal
It’s seemingly the appropriate fate for our team. At least Forsett gets a homecoming. Feel bad for ASU though.
Who’s up for a trip to Dallas?
