Aug. 30, 2010
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2010 Cal Football
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This Week In Cal Football
Press Conference Quotes (Aug. 31)
Football Meets and Greets Fans at Annual Events (Aug. 29)
Cal Coaches Corner Radio Show Debuts Monday, Aug. 30 on KNEW 910 AM (Aug. 26)
Tedford Speaks at March to Victory Luncheon (Aug. 25)
Mohamed Candidate for Lowe's Senior Class Award (Aug. 25)
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2010 UC Davis Football
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UC Davis Game Notes
2010 CALIFORNIA FOOTBALL
Saturday, Sept. 4, 1:07 p.m. (PT)
California (0-0, 0-0 Pac-10) vs.UC Davis (0-0, 0-0 Great West)
Memorial Stadium, Berkeley, CA Live Coverage
TV:
CSN California - Jim Kozimor (Play-By-Play), Mike Pawlawski (Analyst), Dan Dibley (Sideline)
Cal Commercial Radio: KGO 810 AM (San Francisco) - Joe Starkey (Play-By-Play), Troy Taylor (Analyst), Todd McKim (Sideline). Each broadcast begins with a 60-minute pregame show, with Todd McKim hosting the first 30 minutes live from Maxwell Family Field adjacent to Memorial Stadium for home games. The postgame show includes reaction from the Bears' locker room and the "Postgame at the Paragon" program from the Paragon Bar & Cafe at the Claremont Resort & Spa hosted by Lee Grosscup and Kate Scott. ISP Sports/Cal Radio Network Affiliates: KCBQ 1170 AM (San Diego)*, KESP 970 AM (Modesto), KGIL 1260 AM (Los Angeles), KPRZ 1210 AM (San Diego), KTKZ 1380 AM (Sacramento) [*Sept. 17 game at Nevada to air on KCBQ]. Cal Student Radio: KALX 90.7 FM (Berkeley) - Danny Freisinger, Elliott Schwimmer. Sirius XM Satellite Radio: Cal fans can listen to the ISP Sports Cal Radio Network broadcast feed on Sirius XM Satellite Radio on XM channel 195.
CalBears.com: Visit CalBears.com for complete coverage of Cal football, including a live play-by-play update via Gametracker.
GOLDEN BEAR FACTS
Head Coach: Jeff Tedford
Alma Mater/Year: Fresno State/`83
Record at Cal/Years: 67-35/9th
Career Record/Years: Same
Football SID: Kyle McRae
Phone: 510-219-9340
Email: mcrae@berkeley.edu
Secondary Contact: Anton Malko
Phone: 510-501-9555
Email: amalko@berkeley.edu
Credentials: Herb Benenson
Phone: 510-642-0515
Email: benenson@berkeley.edu
Ticket Info: 800-GO-BEARS
SERIES FACTS
Games Played: 8
Series Record: Cal leads series, 8-0-0
First Meeting: 9/17/32, 20-6 Cal
Last Meeting: 9/30/39, 32-14 Cal
Current Streak: Cal win eight
Tedford vs. UC Davis: 0-0
Kickoff - UC Davis at California (Saturday, Sept. 4, 1:00 p.m.)
California (0-0, 0-0 Pac-10) will kick off the 2010 football season by hosting UC Davis (0-0, 0-0 Great West) at Memorial Stadium in the season opener for both teams on Saturday, Sept. 4 (1:00 p.m. PT).
For Openers
Cal has an all-time record of 71-39-4 in season openers and has won five of its last six. Cal is a perfect 5-0 when opening the season at home since head coach Jeff Tedford's arrival, with home victories over Baylor (2002), Sacramento State (2005), Tennessee (2007), Michigan State (2008) and Maryland (2009). The Bears are 6-2 overall in season openers under Tedford, also with a victory at Air Force (2004), and losses at Kansas State (2003) and Tennessee (2006).
2010 Quick Preview
When Cal takes the field in 2010, the Golden Bears will do so as one of the most accomplished Pac-10 teams over the last eight years, having averaged 8.4 wins per season under head coach Jeff Tedford. With his next victory, Tedford will record his 68th career win, passing the legendary Pappy Waldorf on Cal's all-time list. The Bears return 19 players who started at least five games a year ago with four of them - punter Brian Anger, tight end Anthony Miller, linebacker Mike Mohamed and quarterback Kevin Riley - earning preseason All-America recognition. The final season in Memorial Stadium before construction begins in earnest in December features seven home games, including the 113th Big Game vs. Stanford.
Cal-UC Davis Series Notes
Cal has won all eight games in the all-time series with UC Davis, with the last meeting between the teams 71 years ago in 1939. Each of the meetings came in the eight consecutive seasons from 1932-39 and were played at Memorial Stadium, with the Golden Bears outscoring the Aggies by a cumulative score of 299-20. Included in the eight wins were six shutouts, with the biggest margin of victory a 54-0 Cal win in 1934. The closest games between the teams were a pair of contests decided by 14 points in 1932 (20-6) and 1937 (14-0). The last meeting on Sept. 30, 1939, was a 38-14 victory for the Bears.
Cal Unranked Nationally
Cal heads into the 2010 campaign unranked for only the third time since Jeff Tedford took over as head coach in 2002. The Bears' highest ranking during that time came in 2006, when Cal was listed at No. 9 by AP. The Bears have started the season No. 12 on four occasions: 2004, 2007 and 2009, while they were 19th in 2005.
Cal Picked Seventh in Pac-10 Preseason Media Poll
After being picked to finish second in the Pac-10 preseason poll of media members who regularly cover the league five of the previous six years, Cal was chosen seventh in 2010. Defending Pac-10 champion Oregon narrowly edged USC as the choice to win the 2010 Pac-10 title. The Ducks received 15 of the 25 first-place votes, snapping USC's eight-year run at the top, and were chosen to win the conference for only the second time (also in 2001) in the second-closest voting since the poll began in 1961. USC was tabbed to finish second in the poll and was followed by Oregon State, Stanford, Arizona, Washington, Cal, UCLA, Arizona State and Washington State. A record seven teams received at least one first-place vote in the balloting.
Several Milestones in Reach for Tedford
Cal head coach Jeff Tedford begins his ninth season at the helm of the Golden Bears in 2010 with several milestones in reach. He is tied for Cal's modern-era wins record with a mark of 67-35 (.657), recording his 67th career victory in his 100th game during a win at Stanford in the Big Game last season. Now in his ninth season at the helm, Tedford will pass the legendary Pappy Waldorf (67-32-4, 1947-56) for the most wins at Cal in the modern era with his next triumph. Tedford and Waldorf currently rank tied for third on the school's all-time win list behind Andy Smith (74, 1916-25) and James Schaeffer (73, 1909-15). Tedford is also only two games shy of coaching the most contests ever at Cal, with Waldorf (103) and Stub Allison (102, 1935-44) the only others to have coached at least 100 games. Tedford is 7-1 in Big Games to equal Waldorf's seven victories over Stanford, has led his teams to school records of seven straight bowl games (2003-09) and four consecutive postseason victories (2005-08), as well as a school-record-tying eight consecutive winning campaigns. He is one of only eight current FBS coaches to have an active string of at least eight straight winning seasons. His wins totals for conference games (41) and road contests (23) are already the most ever by a Cal coach.
Most Wins in Cal History
Coach Record Seasons
Andy Smith 74-16-7 1916-25
*James Schaeffer 73-16-8 1909-15
Jeff Tedford 67-35-0 2002-Current
Pappy Waldorf 67-32-4 1947-56
*Note: Cal played rugby instead of football from 1882-85 and 1906-14
Coaching Changes
Cal has two new coaches on board in 2010 with the addition of defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast and special teams coordinator/tight ends coach Jeff Genyk. Pendergast is in his 20th season of coaching at either the professional or collegiate level in 2010, including the last six campaigns as an NFL defensive coordinator with Kansas City (2009) and Arizona (2004-08). Pendergast served as the defensive coordinator for the 2008 Arizona team that reached Super Bowl XLIII after capturing the NFC title. Genyk is in his 19th season of collegiate coaching in 2010, most recently having served as a head coach at Eastern Michigan from 2004-08. He previously had a 12-year stint as an assistant at Northwestern from 1992-2003.
Leading Rusher, Receiver, Passer and Tackler All Returning
Cal has its leading rusher, receiver, passer and tackler all returning in 2010 in tailback Shane Vereen, wide receiver Marvin Jones, quarterback Kevin Riley and linebacker Mike Mohamed. Vereen became the team's primary ball carrier over the final four games last season after Jahvid Best suffered a season-ending injury and rushed for 566 yards and six touchdowns on 108 carries during that stretch, averaging 141.5 yards per game and 5.2 yards per carry. Vereen earned honorable mention All-Pac-10 honors and finished the 2009 campaign as Cal's leading rusher with 952 yards on 183 carries, and also tied the 12 rushing scores posted by Best. Among the Pac-10's per-game leaders, Vereen finished sixth in rushing yards (73.23), tied for sixth in all-purpose running (135.15), tied for 10th in scoring (6.46) and 15th in total offense. He also was sixth in the league in kick return average (23.0 ypr), leading Cal in that category as well as with 1,757 total all-purpose yards (952 rush, 244 receive, 10 punt return, 551 kick return). Jones paced the club in receptions (43), receiving yards (651) and receiving touchdowns (6). He had at least one reception in all 13 games and ended the campaign with four receptions or more in each of the final four contests, including career highs of six receptions and 107 receiving yards in the Bears' regular-season finale at Washington. Riley completed 209-of-382 passes (54.7%) for a career-high 2,850 yards, which ranks as the fourth-best single season in school history. Riley finished fourth in the Pac-10 in passing average (219.2 ypg) and passing touchdowns (18), as well as sixth in pass efficiency (128.7) and total offense (223.2 ypg). Mohamed was a first-team All-Pac-10 and postseason Phil Steele All-Pac-10 first-team selection after leading the conference with 112 tackles, 16 more than the 96 posted by USC's Taylor Mays, who ranked second. Mohamed also had a big year in the classroom, earning District 8 All-Academic first-team honors from CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine for the first time and Pac-10 All-Academic first-team honors for the second year in a row. The quartet is part of a total of 19 players that started at least five games last season and 54 letterwinners that return in 2010.
Anger, Miller, Mohamed and Riley Preseason All-Americans
Punter Bryan Anger, tight end Anthony Miller, linebacker Mike Mohamed and quarterback Kevin Riley have been named preseason All-Americans by at least one media outlet prior to the start of the 2010 season to lead Cal's preseason honors. A full listing of all preseason honors and rankings for Cal players can be found on sidebars of pages two and three of game notes. Mohamed is the most decorated Cal player in the preseason, having been selected to the prestigious Playboy All-America team, while also earning a second-team nod by The Kickoff, third-team honors from NationalChamps.net, Phil Steele and Rivals, and honorable mention from the College Football Insiders and Consensus Draft Services. He is also on 2010 preseason watch lists for the Chuck Bednarik Award, Bronko Nagurski Trophy, The Lott Trophy and the Rotary Lombardi Award, in addition to being listed as a preseason favorite for the College Football Performance Awards Linebacker Trophy. Anger has also earned several preseason All-America honors, including a third-team selection from Phil Steele and honorable mention recognition by the College Football Insiders and NationalChamps.net. Miller was an honorable mention choice of the College Football Insiders, while Riley was picked as an honorable mention selection of Consensus Draft Services. The preseason All-America nods were the first for both players.
Offensive Output Was Key to Winning in 2009
Cal's fate in 2009 largely rested on the performance of its offense. Cal averaged 40.1 points per outing in the team's eight wins, while scoring only 11.4 points per contest in its five losses. Cal scored at least 30 points six times in 2009 and won each time, running its string of victories when the team scores at least 30 points to 28 in a row. The Bears' 392.2 yards per game of total offense was just shy of the 400.0-yard-per-game average the Bears have reached five times in the past seven seasons. Cal posted over 400 yards of total offensive in a game seven times in 2009 and was over 500 on three occasions.
Comparing Cal's 2009 Offensive Stats in Wins, Losses
Category Wins Losses
Points Per Game 40.1 11.4
Rushing Yards Per Game 228.2 75.8
Passing Yards Per Game 242.1 191.6
Total Offense Per Game 470.4 267.4
One Rushing Streak Ends, Another Trend Continues
Cal's string of seven straight seasons in which a running back gained over 1,000 yards ended in 2009, but the Bears did have two players rush for 600 or more yards for the sixth time in the last seven seasons in a testament to the program's two-tailback philosophy. Shane Vereen led the team with a career-high 952 yards on the ground, while Jahvid Best added 867 despite missing the final four games due to injury.
14 Pick up Preseason All-Pac-10 Honors
Preseason All-America honorees Bryan Anger, Anthony Miller, Mike Mohamed and Kevin Riley are joined by 10 teammates that have also notched preseason All-Pac-10 honors, including Sean Cattouse (Jr., DB), OL Chris Guarnero (Sr., OL), Derrick Hill (Sr., DL), Marvin Jones (Jr., WR), Cameron Jordan (Sr., DL), Mychal Kendricks (Jr., LB), Jeremy Ross (Sr., WR/RET), Mitchell Schwartz (Jr., OL), Matt Summers-Gavin (So., OL) and Shane Vereen (Jr., TB).
Two Single-Season Records Broken in 2009
Cal established a pair of single-season school records during the 2009 campaign by committing only 17 turnovers (eight interceptions, nine fumbles) and allowing only 1,440 kick return yards.
Bears Coming Off Best Road Record Since 2004
Cal posted a 4-2 road record during the 2009 regular season to register its best mark away from home since 2004. The Bears won road contests at Minnesota (Sept. 19), UCLA (Oct. 17), Arizona State (Oct. 31) and Stanford (Nov. 21), with the two losses coming at Oregon (Sept. 26) and Washington (Dec. 5). The 2004 squad was 5-1 in true road contests. Prior to 2009, Cal hadn't posted a winning road record since 2005, when the Bears were 3-2 in true road games.
Success in Even-Numbered Years
Cal has had big seasons in each of the previous three even years, posting records of 10-2 (2004), 10-3 (2006) and 9-4 (2008) for a combined mark of 29-9. Even more impressive, the Bears are a perfect 19-0 at home during the period with a 5-0 record at Memorial Stadium in 2004, followed by 7-0 marks in both 2006 and 2008.
Big-Play Bears
The Cal offense was known for the big play in 2009, with the Golden Bears posting 72 plays from the line of scrimmage of at least 20 yards. Cal had 48 different passing plays go at least 20 yards to 11 different receivers (Marvin Jones - 11, Anthony Miller - 8, Jeremy Ross - 6, Verran Tucker - 5, Nyan Boateng - 5, Jahvid Best - 3, Skylar Curran - 3, Shane Vereen - 3, Brian Holley - 2, Jarrett Sparks - 1, Alex Lagemann - 1). On the ground, Best accounted for 12 of the 24 runs for 20 or more yards, while Vereen had eight, Covaughn DeBoskie-Johnson two and Isi Sofele and Ross one apiece. The longest run was a 93-yard jaunt by Best vs. UCLA, which also ranks as the third-longest in school history and longest since John Wilson sprinted 96 yards against San Jose State in 1994. Kevin Riley hooked up with Ross on the longest pass play of the season - 61 yards vs. Washington State. The Bears biggest-yardage plays in each category not from the line of scrimmage included a 76-yard punt return by Ross, a 68-yard interception return from Mychal Kendricks, a 65-yard kick return by Sofele and a 45-yard fumble return also by Kendricks.
On the Tube
Cal has appeared on live television 44 times in its last 45 contests with the lone exception the Bears' home contest vs. Washington State on Oct. 24, 2009, snapping a string of 38 straight games on television. A total of 86 games have been televised over the last eight seasons during the Jeff Tedford era. Cal has had every game during a season televised only twice in school history, in 2007 and again in '08.
Home Field Advantage
Cal has posted an overall record of 33-6 (.846) at Memorial Stadium dating back to the final two home contests of 2003. In fact, Cal is a perfect 33-0 at home over this period against teams other than Oregon State (0-4) and USC (0-3), who have combined to go 7-0 at Memorial Stadium since the Bears knocked off the Trojans at home in 2003. Cal has been unbeaten at home in a season three times (2004, '06, '08) under head coach Jeff Tedford. The Golden Bears' appeal is shown by a current streak of 37 games with at least 50,000-plus fans in attendance at Memorial Stadium (every contest over the last six seasons). Cal just missed averaging a home crowd of 60,000 or more fans per game for the fifth time in six years in 2009 with its average crowd of 59,472 over six dates. The Bears did attract a sellout of 71,799 vs. USC on Oct. 3, 2009. The team's best attendance numbers during the Tedford era came in 2006, when the Bears drew 450,223 fans and averaged a record 64,318 spectators per contest.
Bears Tie School Record with Eight Straight Winning Seasons
Cal has recorded eight consecutive winning seasons from 2002-09 to tie the school mark that was established from 1918-25 under head coach Andy Smith. The Bears did record 10 straight winning seasons from 1907-16 but those were split between rugby (8, 1907-14) and football (2, 1915-16).
Bowling Bears
Cal's school-record seven straight bowl appearances are listed below.
2003 - Insight Bowl (Cal 52, Virginia Tech 49)
2004 - Holiday Bowl (Texas Tech 45, Cal 31)
2005 - Las Vegas Bowl (Cal 35, BYU 28)
2006 - Holiday Bowl (Cal 45, Texas A&M 10)
2007 - Armed Forces Bowl (Cal 42, Air Force 36)
2008 - Emerald Bowl (Cal 24, Miami 17)
2009 - Poinsettia Bowl (Utah 37, Cal 27)
Being the Best, Beating the Best
The Bears are 15-8 when playing as a top-10 team and 36-20 when the club is ranked in the top 25 of at least one set of rankings since head coach Jeff Tedford took over in 2002. Cal has played 27 nationally ranked teams during the Tedford era and posted a 13-14 record in those contests. In 2009, the Bears recorded back-to-back wins in consecutive weeks over nationally ranked teams - defeating then-No. 18 Arizona (Nov. 14) and then winning at then-No. 14 Stanford (Nov. 28) - for the first time since 1950.
Turnover Margin a Key
Winning the turnover battle has been emphasized since Jeff Tedford's arrival in 2002 and the Golden Bears had another excellent season in 2009 with a +.31 per-game margin (21 takeaways, 17 turnovers). The Bears are 38-4 when committing fewer turnovers than opponents during the Tedford era, compared to 15-9 when tied and 14-22 when opponents win the battle. In Pac-10 games, the stats are even more decisive as Cal is 23-2 with a positive margin in turnovers, 10-6 when the turnover table is tied and 8-19 with a deficit.
Cal's 2009 Fourth-Quarter Dominance
Cal outscored its opponents in the fourth quarter of 2009 games by a margin of 94-54. The Bears did not allow a point in the final period until USC managed a touchdown in the fifth game of the campaign. Cal also came from behind twice in the fourth quarter for victories at Arizona State and vs. Arizona. In the Arizona State game, Giorgio Tavecchio kicked a 24-yard field goal with 21 seconds remaining to lift the Golden Bears to a 23-21 victory. After Arizona took a 16-15 lead early in the fourth quarter, the Bears responded with a 22-yard Tavecchio field goal and a 61-yard touchdown run by Shane Vereen to prevail, 24-16. Cal also outscored Minnesota in the fourth quarter, 14-0, on two of Jahvid Best's school-record-tying five touchdown runs as the Bears broke open a 21-21 game to win, 35-21.
Start Me Up
Based on Cal's depth chart as of Aug. 30, five players are slated to make their first collegiate start against UC Davis on Sept. 4, including true freshman wide receiver Keenan Allen. The others are sophomore cornerback Marc Anthony, junior defensive end Ernest Owusu, sophomore left guard Brian Schwenke and sophomore fullback Eric Stevens.
Academic Prowess Continues
Cal players have earned Pac-10 All-Academic honors 83 times in the past eight years under head coach Jeff Tedford, second-most in the conference during that span. Nine Cal players were recognized on the 2009 Pac-10 All-Academic team. Mark Boskovich, Alex Lagemann and Michael Mohamed were first-team selections. Ernest Owusu and Matt Summers-Gavin and Giorgio Tavecchio were named to the second team, while Skylar Curran, Chris Guarnero and Mitchell Schwartz received honorable mention recognition. Boskovich and Mohamed also earned CoSIDA/ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District 8 first-team honors, while Syd'Quan Thompson was named one of 22 national winners of the Academic Momentum Award as part of the Scholar-Baller Program, in conjunction with the National Consortium for Academics and Sports (NCAS). After a period on academic probation following his first year at Cal, Thompson's GPA improved to 2.995 during the spring of 2009. In 2008, Alex Mack earned the Draddy Trophy (later renamed the Campbell Trophy) honoring college football's top scholar-athlete. Of the 163 seniors who have played for Tedford, 144 (88%) have earned their degrees and/or gone on NFL careers. The Cal football team was second in the Pac-10 in the most recent Academic Progress Rates (APR) released in June 2009.
Cal's UC Davis/Sacramento Area Connections
• Wide receivers Jeremy Ross (Laguna Creek HS) and Spencer Hagan (Capital Christian HS) both list Sacramento as their hometown.
• Wide receivers coach Kevin Daft was inducted into the UC Davis Athletic Hall of Fame in June 2005 after a standout career as a two-time All-America quarterback for the Aggies from 1995-98, setting five NCAA Division II records and still ranking among the Aggies' all-time leaders in touchdown passes (68) and passing yards (7,601). He also started his coaching career at UC Davis as a volunteer assistant working with the quarterbacks in 2003.
2010 NFL Draft
Former Cal players Tyson Alualu (DL), Jahvid Best (TB) and Syd'Quan Thompson (DB) were selected in the 2010 NFL Draft. Alualu (Jacksonville Jaguars, 10th overall) and Best (Detroit Lions, 30th overall) were both chosen in the first round to mark the first time Cal had a pair of players selected in the first round since 2003 and only the fourth time in school history. Alualu and Best are the 24th and 25th players in Cal history to be selected in the first round, while six Bears have been taken in the first round and 32 selected overall since Jeff Tedford became the team's head coach in 2002. Cal was the only Pac-10 team with a player drafted in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft. The Bears had never had two first-round selections while no other Pac-10 team had a single one. The last time any Pac-10 team had two players selected in the first round without another conference player being chosen was in 1970, when USC defensive end Al Cowlings (Buffalo, 5th overall) and offensive tackle Sid Smith (Kansas City, 26th overall) were both picked in the first round.
Alualu's selection was the highest a Cal player has gone in the draft since Andre Carter was taken seventh overall by San Francisco in 2001. He was also the Bears' ninth-highest pick ever.
Thompson was also selected in the seventh round of the draft (225th overall) by the Denver Broncos.
