SB Nation - DeSean Jackson

Golden Bears in the Pros: DeCoud Shines, More Forsett, Natalie Eliminated

Avinash — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 19:00:33 -0000

Thomas Decoud, Atlanta Falcons

Decoud earns NFC defensive player of the week honors.

First-year starter Thomas DeCoud had the game of his short professional career at safety Sunday night for the Atlanta Falcons.

DeCoud's five tackles were fifth best on the team and he added two passes defensed, but his two interceptions helped change the game for Atlanta and won him the award.

The interceptions were the first two of his career and marked the first time a Falcons player had a multiple-interception game since DeAngelo Hall's two pick game against Tampa Bay on September 17, 2006.

More on the headlines above, plus news on one pro Bear who will be at the Wazzu game, and find out where some of your favorite Golden Bear hoopsters are now playing overseas after the jump. Also, two Golden Bears got signed to two NFL 53 man squads, find out who by checking out the rest of the post!

Justin Forsett, Seattle Seahawks

ESPN's Mike Sando reports that Forsett could be seeing more action, mainly because his pass blocking abilities might be the best of the three in the corps! Good job Coach Gould and Coach M!

Justin Forsett is earning -- and will get -- more touches in the regular offense. My take three weeks ago was that Forsett, primarily a third-down back to this point, had done enough to start getting touches on earlier downs. Seattle left Forsett alone in the backfield six times in the first quarter against the Jaguars, more than he had in the first quarters of the previous four games. Forsett is challenging to become the best pass-blocking back on the team even though Julius Jones and Edgerrin James are strong in that area. He lacks top-end speed, but he's quick and appears trustworthy in key situations. He did a nice job chipping on his way out of the backfield, helping the left tackle substantially on one play.

Tony Gonzalez, Atlanta Falcons

Lots of stuff here about the matchup between Gonzalez and Dallas's returning strong safety , who is returning with a cast on one hand due to a broken thumb. He's also expected to see lots of double coverage.

"My whole career I've always tried to look at when they played against maybe Kellen Winslow, and see what they did to him, because I know he's such a threat in the receiving game," Gonzalez said during a conference call Wednesday. "But even sometimes teams will switch it up. Earlier this year we played against New England and I didn't really anticipate getting bracket coverage as much as I was that game, and because of that I only had one catch."

The Cowboys held Winslow to four catches for 30 yards and one score in the season-opener. Gonzalez has had plenty of practice adapting to varied schemes over the years.

"It's always something," Gonzalez said of the different looks he gets. "That's something I've been used to my whole career and whatever they want to do hopefully we can adjust and move the ball down the field."

Tony G was also on Pardon the Interruption for Five Good Minutes on Wednesday--check out his interview starting at about 9:55.

Nnamdi Asomugha, Oakland Raiders

Asomugha was surprised at what happened on Sunday--in terms of Oakland's defense actually following through on what they run in practice.

On Sunday, the Raiders brought a different look to the Eagles game on defense. They blitzed and played zone -- a departure from the defensive scheme Davis prefers. It was something of a revolution, according to cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha. Asomugha said he lobbies every week for a more aggressive attack and less predictable coverage, but usually to no avail.

"We were shocked," Asomugha said, "because coaches say we're going to run it in practice, but we come to a game and that never happens."

Asomugha said defensive coordinator John Marshall finally agreed to make changes. "He said that he might get yelled at for it, but he'll keep going," Asomugha said.

When asked about Asomugha's claims, Cable evaded the issue.

"I think we'll do what we can, and what we think it takes to win every Sunday," Cable said.

Aaron Rodgers, QB, Green Bay Packers

Football Outsiders thinks they know why Aaron is struggling to develop a good rapport with one of his primary targets (HT Acme Packing Company):

Aaron Rodgers didn't pad his stats; after a third-quarter sack and fumble, he threw only one pass in the fourth quarter, an interception. A more important question: What's up with Greg Jennings? We thought the star wideout would have a big game against the Lions, but Jennings only ended up with 38 yards on six catches in eight attempts. Our theory: Rodgers is struggling to get the protection he needs to allow Jennings to run double moves and get open downfield.

Zack Follett, LB, Detroit Lions

At least one more time, Follett will be patrolling the California sidelines on his bye week.

Rookie linebacker Zack Follett is heading back to California. He grew up in Clovis and played college football at Cal. He said he's planning to go back to Berkeley to see Saturday's game against Washington State.

"We've got three days off. I'm going to fly home and go back to the Bay," Follett said. "Catch a Cal football game and kind of refresh the mind a little bit and get ready to get back to work.

"I've already been here three months. To stay another two, it would be a tough stretch, especially with this cold weather getting up on me. I'm getting my mind ready for these winters."

Other notes

Lorenzo Alexander recorded 3 tackles in a 14-6 loss to Kansas City. You can see him against the Eagles and Desean on Monday night.
Desean Jackson caught 6 passes for 94 yards (as you saw above), as well as having 4 punt returns for 43 yards.
Dante Hughes was signed by the Chargers! Hopefully now that he's right next to the Pacific coast, he'll be able to regain his "intercepting of North Korean nuclear missiles" abilities.
The Seahawks signed Mike Gibson off the Eagles practice squad...lots of Golden Bears piling up there in Seattle!
Marshawn Lynch carried the ball 19 times for 61 yards, and 2 receptions for 11 yards.
Alex Mack was sidelined by flu-like symptoms; it's not yet known if it was H1N1 that was ailing him.
Ryan Longwell kicked four field goals, including the game-winner against Baltimore.
Brandon Mebane recorded three tackles for the Seahawks in their loss to Arizona.
Tully Banta-Cain was let go by New England...and then immediately resigned for a multi-year deal, according to Adam Schefter. He recorded 3 tackles in the 59-0 dressing down of the Titans.
Apparently long snapper David Binn once dated Pamela Anderson. Wait, WHAT?
Desmond Bishop remains on the special teams with AJ Hawk still the starter, although he is in a good spot to replace him in the future if the team chooses. He recorded one tackle in that capacity against Detroit.
Kyle Boller isn't likely to compete for the starting spot with Marc Bulger in the near future; Bulger still is the de facto #1.
The Hogs, an independent Redskins site, did an interview with Andre Carter the week before Kansas City. Carter had 7 tackles and the pass deflection you saw in the video.
Scott Fujita did not practice Wednesday because of a strained right calf he suffered against the Giants. Still not sure if he will play against Miami.
Kansas City head coach Todd Haley has found his starting right tackle in Ryan O'Callaghan.
Nick Harris punted 5 times for a 39.2 yard average for Detroit.

NBA preseason

Jason Kidd is averaging 7 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals through five preseason games. Since the Spurs are the favorites to win the division, here's what Mavs Moneyball thinks Kidd should do to slow down Tony Parker (hint: he won't): "First Jason Kidd must force Parker into becoming a passer more than a scorer. This is not going to be easy for Kidd, in fact it may be impossible! If Kidd cannot at least slow down Parker's ability to get to the basket the Mavericks will be forced to try and win a shootout, and at this point I do not feel confident enough in their rotation defense to say they can win that type of game with these Spurs."
Ryan Anderson is averaging 14 points, 4 rebounds, and over 50 percent from downtown per game for the Magic in the preseason. According to Third Quarter Collapse, his offensive rating is an astounding 118.7 (translation: very very good) with a usage rate of 23.7%. If you haven't seen it, check out danzig's highlight reel of him against the Bulls, where he hit the go-ahead bucket in the fourth quarter. You can see Anderson in action in the final preseason game tonight on ESPN against the Hawks at 8 PM EST/5 PM PST; considering that starters usually are rested a lot in these games, this might be the most Anderson plays all year long.
Sean Marks? 2 points, 5 rebounds, 30% shooting, 4 fouls per game. We should expect a lot of updates like this; pray for a gamewinning dunk here and there.
Leon Powe met with his old Celtic battery mates during the last preseason game between the Cavs and Cs (he is of course still far away from playing). It was, in his own words, 'strange'.
Rod Benson was released by the Pacers. Sigh. He'll probably be back in the D-League soon enough. Interesting stuff about dissent between Benson and his agent from Ridiculous Upside.

Elsewhere

Week 3 - Natalie Coughlin - Dancing With The Stars (via ABCNetwork)

Natalie Coughlin was eliminated prematurely from Dancing with the Stars, because people who watch Dancing with the Stars obviously hate beautiful women and prefer C-list celebrities. For those who wanted to catch her dances (all in HD!): Week 1 with the salsa, Week 2 with the quickstep, Week 3 with the rumba (her best one) is the embedded video above, Week 4 with the bolero. Here's her post-elimination interview from Good Morning America, where they wake her up at 4 to 5 AM local time the night afterwards and drag her back to the studio for an interview to ask her how much it sucks to be eliminated. You stay classy ABC.
At least it led to this gem by one of the judges. You should spot what's wrong pretty quickly.

"Unfortunately for Natalie, I think that people didn’t know who she was," said the cheorographer, actress and dancer [Carrie Ann Inaba]. "Maybe the fan base of her sport isn’t watching our show or maybe it isn’t as big as someone like Michael Irvin’s fanbase, which is basketball."

Toronto FC's Stefan Frei is a dark horse candidate for MLS Rookie of the Year.
Finally, Joseph Cannon of the Daily Cal wrote up about several Golden Bear hoopsters playing overseas. Ayinde Ubaka's starring in Australia for the Gold Coast Blaze, DeVon Hardin's been hopping from Oklahoma to Greece to Turkey and now Greece again for EO Athens, and Eric Vierneisel's been everywhere (New Zealand, Syria, Jordan), before settling on Heidelberg, Germany.

Media Wednesday - Respecting the Power of the Juju

Addicted to Quack — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 18:17:48 -0000

Its Bear week, and Media Wednesday doesn't need to be reminded that we've lost three in a row and four of five against these guys. We can tell ourselves that this streak will be broken on Saturday but, lets be honest, we have no control over that. No, we must acknowledge the Juju and his power to control the fate of the football universe. Keth Allen's drop? FLUKE. Cameron Colvin's fumble? FLUKE. These excuses are no more. What the Juju wants is our attention and our respect. We respect you, Juju, and stand in awe of the power that you can unleash. In deference to your power, we relive the moments of mayhem that you have caused the last five years, acknowledge your power and implore you to make the Bears respect you the way we humbly do.

2004, the darkest days in decades for our Ducks. However, at the time, we're 5-3, and driving for the game winning field goal against a top ten team when the Juju, clearly visible in this video, turns Keith Allen's hands to butter:

In 2006, we start off 4-0, and head into Berkeley coming off a total blowout of Arizona State. We're ranked #11, and our offense is rolling. Pissed off at Brady Leaf for defying the Juju in OT the year before, the Juju really lets us have it with a primetime national TV meltdown. DeSean Jackson just toyed with us:

Not even Dennis Dixon could overcome the power of the Juju. In what was one of the biggest games in Oregon history. the Ducks all but have the game tying score, when the Juju makes a lifelong goat of poor Cameron Colvin just as he's crossing the goal line:

And, perhaps mercifully, there doesn't seem to be any video of the pain that the Juju caused us last year. Needing only a field goal to tie it in the fourth quarter, the Juju made Jairus Byrd forget to catch the punt, and gave Cal another TD to put the game away.

UPDATE: reader Oskigodummy has added this video for us. I'm not sure if we should thank him or pummel him:

We acknowledge this pain and the power of the Juju to inflict it. You may go elsewhere now Juju, your work will be remembered in Eugene for a long, long time.

2009-2010 Season Outlook and Some Magic Numbers

HydroTech — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 10:00:24 -0000

by Marcio Jose Sanchez - AP

View full size photo »

When people give their "keys to success," they'll often say something like "Team needs to not turn the ball over," or "Team needs to shut down the opposing runningback and make the offense one-dimensional." While these comments are somewhat insightful, I also find them sort of obvious too. In other words, it's sort of like "duh." Of course teams should not turn the ball over to win the game. Of course teams should try to limit the offense's offensive production.

To me, I don't really care how a team does it, so long as the goal (winning the game) is reached. Regardless of how a team reaches success, their success can often be seen in their statistics. I do admit, I've been a big critic of statistics because they can hide the true story (for example, and perhaps the biggest statistical myth of recent Cal Football fame is the whole Longshore 4th quarter touchdown to interception ratio - a lot less can be derived from that stat line than the typical lay fan will think). But when you look at statistics over the entire year, as opposed to a single game, the disparities are averaged out, and the team's overall success is fairly apparent. For example, teams who only average 50 rushing yards a game typically only have 3 wins a season. And teams who average 200 yards rushing a game typically have 10 wins a season.

So how many wins will Cal have in 2009? In most years, when I think about Cal's season outlook, I generally just made a prediction on how many games Cal will win because I can guesstimate the team's rushing abilities, passing abilities, and defensive abilities. But this year I am troubled because I cannot make that same prediction. I can't predict how many games Cal will win this year because frankly I just don't know how good Cal will be this year. The big question in my mind is "how will Cal's passing game develop?" I think that same question is the big question in 99% of Cal fans' minds. Without answering that question one can't really predict how the team will perform.

So I think the only way to really make any sort of prediction is to make the predictions couched in conditional phrases, such as "if Cal's passing game turns out to be great, then Cal will have a 10+ win season," or "if Cal's passing game turns out to be dreadful, then Cal will have a 6 win season." (Note, those aren't my real predictions, I'm just giving examples of conditional statements).

But how do you define "great" and "dreadful" and everything inbetween? Well, that's where I like to use stats and magic numbers.

In making my 2009 season outlook predictions, I'm going to use two assumptions. First of all, I'm going to assume that the Cal defense is going to stay just about as dominant as it was last year despite the loss of three starting linebackers. I'm thinking that our new linebackers are talented enough, and the eventual starters have gained enough experience from playing time last year to fill in adequately. Second, I'm going to assume that Cal's running game is going to stay at about the same level as it was last year. In other words, as crazy as it might seem to say this, but I still expect Jahvid Best to average approximately 7.5 to 8.0 yards per carry (which is a ridiculous number). Perhaps Jahvid Best's numbers will drop down towards the 7.5 yards per carry range since defenses will clearly be focusing on him rather than Cal's passing game, but for the most part I don't foresee it dropping any lower than 7.0 yards per carry.

Now, about that passing game. As I said earlier, I believe this is the biggest question to be resolved of the 2009 Cal Football team and its the performance of the passing game that will be determinative of Cal's season. It's because I am unsure as to how good (or bad) Cal's passing game will be that I must use conditional statements. But before I get to the conditional statmeents, let me briefly describe what constitutes good numbers and bad numbers for a QB.

When looking at a QB's statistics, the three most important numbers are his (1) completion percentage, (2) yards per attempt, and (3) interception percentage. Some hardcore statisticians believe that the yards per attempt is the king of the QB's statistics because it incorporates not only completion percentage, but yards gained per completion. Nevertheless, I still like looking at all three of the categories.

Completion Percentage

So what constitutes a good completion percentage? Par for the course is about 65%. If your QB throws a 65% completion percentage over the year, that's darn good! That's a good number. If he throws for 67%, that's great! If he's up in the 70%+ range, well he's like Tom Brady and that's freakin fantastic. On the down side, a completion percentage of 60% to 64% is okay. Anything less than 60% is unacceptable.

Just to throw some comparisons out there:

In 2002, Kyle Boller threw 53.6% (although perhaps a good 5% of those passes were drops by Ward).

In 2004, Aaron Rodgers threw for 66.1% (!!!).

In 2005, Joe Ayoob threw for 49.2%.

In 2006, Nate Longshore threw for 60.2%.

In 2007, from the start of the season through the Oregon game, Nate Longshore was throwing at 63.8%.

In 2008, Texas' Colt McCoy threw for 76.7% (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

(Note: I am not including Kevin Riley's stats from 2008 because due to the QB switching and substitution into must-pass situations such as the USC game, his stat line is not accurate)

Yards per Attempted Pass

What makes a good yards per attempted pass? A yards per attempt of about 7.0 is par for the course. Once you get into the 7.5 yards per attempt range, that's certainly above average and pretty good. Anything above 8.0 yards per attempt is ridiculous. On the flip side, 6.5 yards per attempt is sub-par, and anything less than 6.0 yards per attempt is fairly pitiful.

To throw some comparisons out there:

In 2002, Kyle Boller threw for 6.68 yards per attempt.

In 2004, Aaron Rodgers threw for 8.2 yards per attempt (!!!)

In 2005, Joe Ayoob threw for 6.72 yards per attempt.

In 2006, Nate Longshore threw for 8.01 yards per attempt (thank you Desean "deep threat" Jackson!)

In 2007, from the start of the season through the Oregon game, Nate Longshore was throwing at 6.98 yards per attempt.

In 2008, Oklahoma's Sam Bradford threw for 9.8 yards per attempt (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Interception Percentage

What makes a good interception percentage? A low one. As low as possible. But generally speaking, about 3% is acceptable. Anything more gets to be not good very quickly. When you're at about 2.5% interception percentage, that's great. Less than than 2% is ridiculous.

To throw some comparisons out there:

In 2002, Kyle Boller's interception percentage was 2.37%.

In 2004, Aaron Rodgers' interception percentage was 2.53%.

In 2005, Joe Ayoob's interception percentage was 5.51%.

In 2006, Nate Longshore's interception percentage was 3.45%

In 2007, from the start of the season through the Oregon game, Nate Longshore's interception percentage was 1.23% (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

In 2008, Oklahoma's Sam Bradford's interception percentage was 1.66% (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Summary Thoughts

As you can see, the stats (more or less) don't lie. When the Cal QBs had a good stats, such as in 2004, 2006, and through the Oregon game in 2007, the Cal teams did great. When the stat lines suffered, such as in 2002 and 2005, the teams didn't do so well.

2009 CAL FOOTBALL SEASON OUTLOOK

So now that we've had a look at some examples of ideal statistics, here is my personal 2009 Cal Football season outlook couched in conditional statements.

I'm only going to use completion percentage because, while it certainly doesn't include yards per completion like the yards per attempt stat, it also isn't subject to skew such as the yards per attempt stat by an offense that completes really long passes. In other words, a team can have a pretty good "yards per attempt" stat by completing a couple of really long passes more often than not and hiding a low completion percentage. A perfect example of this is Georgia's Mathew Stafford in 2008 (#1 overall draft pick in the 2009 NFL draft). He had a fantastic yards per attempt of 9.0 yards per attempt, but had a very mediocre 61.4% completion percentage. In plain English, his completion percentage wasn't that good, but his yards per attempt numbers were great because he had great down-field threat WRs, and completed more longer passes than most QBs. But what matters to me the most is the completion percentage stat because I want to know if the QB is completing passes. If he's completing passes, I'm going to assume he's also gaining at least the average amount of yardage per pass too.

So finally, here's my outlook on the 2009 Cal Football season:

If Cal's starting QB can complete greater than 65% of his passes, Cal will most likely have an 11+ win regular season.

If Cal's starting QB completes between 62%-65% of his passes, Cal will most likely have a 10 win regular season.

If Cal's starting QB completes between 60%-62% of his passes, Cal will most likely have a 9 win regular season.

If Cal's starting QB completes between 58%-60% of his passes, Cal will most likely have a 8 win regular season.

If Cal's starting QB completes between 55%-58% of his passes, Cal will most likely have a 7 win regular season.

If Cal's starting QB completes less than 55% of his passes, the 2nd string QB should probably be starting.

For the past few months, I've been saying in the DBDs that Cal's magic number is probably 60% completion percentage. By that, I mean that if Cal's QB can throw greater than 60% completion percentage, Cal has a great chance at a 10+ win season. But upon further thought, I think that magic number has to be increased from 60% to something a little higher, such as 62%. The following is my reasoning why.

Months ago, when I first was pondering Cal's 2009 outlook, I did a little stat comparison with previous Cal QBs. Most notably I looked at the 2006 team. During that year, Nate Longshore passed for 60.2% completion percentage and Cal almost went to the Rose Bowl. The 2006 team and the 2009 have a lot of similarities so I began thinking that 60% seemed to be the magic number, hence that is the number I've been reciting for months now.

But upon further thought, I began realizing that the reason why the 2006 Cal Football team's passing game was so successful was because of Desean Jackson. He provided a great deep threat for Nate Longshore, as well as being a superb special teams threat. Defenses truly couldn't really focus on Marshawn Lynch without giving up on pass defense and giving up scores to Desean Jackson. But this year, Cal doesn't really have a wide receiver to be Desean Jackson. Cal doesn't really have a really speedy deep threat that will command the attention of the defensive secondary. So to make up for the lack of deep gains and quick touchdowns that Desean Jackson was able to give the team in 2006, the Cal QB and WRs are going to have to complete more passes than normal. In other words, in 2006 Longshore could get away with a 60.2% completion percentage because Cal had a superb deep threat (evidenced in Longshore's 8.01 yards per attempt), but in 2009 since Cal has no deep threat, Cal's starting QB will h ave to complete more pass attempts to make up for the lack of yards per attempt.

Conclusion

By no means are these numbers a 100% indicator of things to come. Cal's QB might be able to throw a 60% completion percentage and Cal could still go 11-1 on the season with some luck and superb play from the other parts of the team. But for the most part, I do see Cal's season riding on the hand of the starting QB.

Some of you may be wondering what the heck the difference is between 60% and 62%? Well, in 2006 Nate Longshore threw 377 attempts on the year (I'm using 2006 because I think the 2009 team most resembles the 2006 team). Assuming Cal's starting QB this year throws for the same amount of passes, then 60% of 377 is about 226 passes completed. Alternatively, 62% of 377 is about 234 passes completed. That's only a difference of about 8 passes. So some of you may be thinking that isn't a significant difference? Well, perhaps it's not. But sometimes, football games come down to one play - one passing play. Perhaps it's a touchdown pass to seal the game, or a crucial first down which eventually leads to a go-ahead field goal to win, etc. But while it's just one pass, it's still a pass. Those eight passes may not seem like a lot, but perhaps three of those eight passes are against USC. Perhaps those three passes are passes that most QBs won't make, but somehow Cal's starting QB nails the throws and Cal gets two critical first downs to burn the clock and one touchdown. That's all Cal may need to win the game. So while a mere eight passes extra might not be a lot - I contend that it could be the difference between winning and losing (theoretically) up to eight football games. Every throw counts.

In sum, I believe that Cal's starting QB needs to have at least a 62% completion percentage for Cal to have a good chance at a 10+ win season.

Poll

What's the minimum completion percentage required by the QB and WRs this year in order for Cal to have a 10+ win regular season?

68% or higher

13 votes

66%-67%

13 votes

64%-65%

44 votes

62%-63%

35 votes

60%-61%

75 votes

58%-59%

14 votes

56%-57%

5 votes

as low as 55%

7 votes

206 votes | Poll has closed

CGB Hall Of Fame Wild Card

TwistNHook — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 20:00:10 -0000

Firstly, note that CalBandGreat will be in attendance at today's Open Practice. Or at least he will be, if he can sneak past the "Student Only" signs. He'll be tweeting back information and have a write up for tomorrow. Keep it locked at the CGB Twitter for more info.

Well, people, we are in the final stages of voting for the CGB Hall Of Fame. Our inaugural class has come together (unveiling to come later!), but there are still two more people to vote in.

We knew that due to the pairings there were some players who might have been deserving, but couldn't make it in. Whether it was facing off against Tedford too early or going up against the Detroit-led Follett juggernaut, there were some players who met early demises. We've heard you loud and clear and now is the opportunity to vote in 2 (2!) more players. Our inaugural class will be 11 people strong. Mark Bingham plus the original 8 plus the 2 wild cards. But starting next year, we'll probably just have the top 4 go into the CGB Hall Of Fame. So, it only gets tougher from hereon in! Who will make it in right now and not have to worry about next year? We've ranked the players by those who got the most votes. They are listed below:

Natalie Coughlin 327
Joe Roth 213
Sandy Barbour 156
Aaron Rodgers 132
Desean Jackson 131
Ashley Walker 130
JJ Arrington 124
The Play players 122

Read their biographies behind the jump and then vote! Top 2 vote getters will make it into the class. GO BEARS!

Natalie Coughlin

via cache.daylife.com

Beast Mode gives us the brief intro of Coughlin for those unfamiliar with her accolades:

11 Olympic Medals
3 Olympic Gold medals
Holds numerous US records and set numerous world records

I was planning on putting some of her sweet Olympic backstroke races, but NBC, being the total dicks they are about copyright, pulled them all off YouTube. Great job fellas. Way to promote your athletes. So I'm left with this article about the physics/fluid dynamics of dolphin kicks which Coughlin is famous for using off the turns, and an even cooler video of a female swimmer simulation (probably Coughlin?) of the fluid dynamics of the kick.

Twist once did a fine YouTube Thursday post on her (for the 4th of July!) which includes some interviews, highlights and training tips. He also showed Coughlin's pre-Beijing profile, which includes her NCAA accolades at Cal. Check it out below.

via www.nbcolympics.com

Natalie Coughlin
Country: USA
Event: Women's Swimming - Freestyle/Backstroke/IM
Hometown: Vallejo, Calif.
Years at Cal: 2001-04

Arguably the greatest female swimmer in Cal history, Coughlin won 12 NCAA titles with the Golden Bears (the second-most career titles for a women's swimmer in NCAA history). She was a three-time NCAA and Pac-10 Swimmer of the Year. Her success only grew more after her collegiate tenure. At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Coughlin became the third American woman to win five medals at one Olympics (the others are Mary Lou Retton and Shannon Miller). She took gold in the 100-meter backstroke and the 800 freestyle relay, breaking the world record in that event. Coughlin also won silver medals in the 400 free relay and the 400 medley relay, and a bronze in the 100 free. At the 2008 Olympic Trials, Coughlin lowered her world record in the 100 back to 58.97. In addition, she finished second in both the 100 free (53.83) and 200 individual medley (2:10.32).

I predict you already have a solid appreciation of who Natalie Coughlin is. Although it states her hometown is the Valley Jo. I always thought it was Concord.

Also, she's one of our many athletes on Twitter! Everyone who saw her Olympic profile knows she's grown huge on the cooking thing to keep her from going crazy during all the swimming training. Thus, posts like "Fava bean puree on garlic toast, dungeness crab/avoc/beet salad, saffron chick w/ parm pudding, & cheese tart w/ blueberry lemon cream" "Making dinner. Just when I thought I had nothing to eat...found frozen artichokes in freezer. Voilà: artichoke-lemon risotto!" are not the least bit surprising!

Joe Roth

via www.joeroth12.com

To learn more about Roth, let's listen to the impeccable Keith Jackson.

"Dying is not so tough. For the last three years I've lived with the realization that the next day might be my last. I'm lucky to be here as long as I was, so don't feel any pity. A lot of people younger than me and older than me have to face up to this sort of thing. I'm nothing special. I'm Joe Roth, a student and a football player."

– Joe Roth

You can find out more about Roth here.

On a lighter side, this gives us a chance to showcase that great 1975 season again! Check out this sweet retro footage and vintage Roth.

#5 Sandy Barbour

via imgs.sfgate.com

Although Sandy B gets a lot of credit for something she didn't do (the previous AD hired Tedford), she, nonetheless, has been one of the best ADs in Cal history. She was a historic hire as noted here:

BERKELEY – Saying she'd "spent 23 years preparing for this opportunity," Anne "Sandy" Barbour met the press, the public, and the UC Berkeley community Wednesday in her new role as UC Berkeley's athletic director.

The surprise pick makes Barbour, 44, the first woman ever to head Cal's sports program, and the first appointment by Robert J. Birgeneau, who doesn't assume his official duties as chancellor until next week. Wearing a blue-and-gold Cal necktie, Birgeneau noted that the announcement - a topic of intense speculation among Cal boosters and media wags alike -- came on his third day as a UC employee, and said he "couldn't have imagined how exciting it would be."

Cal has rocketed up the Director's Cup Standings since Sandy B came out here. Although she focuses strongly on the two revenue sports, she does not ignore the non-revenue sports, which can be just as important to school spirit. We have national champions in sports like women's swimming, discus, and crew. Not to mention elite teams, like women's volleyball.

I think she'll most known for her work to help shepherd the Memorial Stadium upgrade through. It was a long process and many other people, including many Cal fans, lost patience with the process. But she understood how things worked, kept unimportant problems unimportant and has Cal moving towards owning elite facilities. That's the job of an administrator, really. To provide leadership on important projects and make key decisions towards improving the metaphorical and literal playing field for our sports. And she has provided that in spades.

AND SHE TWEETS!

Aaron Rodgers

via www.greenbaypackersticket.net

norcalnick provides one more fantastic profile about one of Cal's greatest quarterbacks.

Because I am also a San Francisco 49er fan, I tuned into the 2005 NFL draft very much hoping that Aaron Rodgers would complete his destiny as a childhood Joe Montana fan and don the Red and Gold as our franchise quarterback. Four years later and I’m still not sure if I wished that had happened.

Rodgers only had about a season and a half to make an impression as a starter for the Golden Bears, and he wasted very little time. Taking over as starting QB midway through the ’03 season, Rodgers led a late season charge for a bowl berth in a year that was expected to be a rebuilding year. He then had perhaps the best performance ever by a Cal QB in a bowl game, sending expectations for 2004 sky-high in a thrilling, crazy 52-49 victory over Virginia Tech in the Insight Bowl. He threw for 394 yards and 2 TDs.

His 2005 season can almost be described as disappointing, although none of the fault would fall to Rodgers. How can a 10-2 season be disappointing? How about when hard-luck injuries gradually hamper the passing game as the team slowly puts the offensive burden on the legs of JJ Arrington? Or when those receiver injuries haunt Cal by essentially preventing any chance at a comeback in a painful loss to Texas Tech in the Holiday Bowl? And most of all, how about when your QB puts together one of the most impressive single game efforts in a losing effort to the eventual national champs? Never have I been surer of something football related in my life than when Cal had first and goal at the USC 9 with less than two minutes to go. Cal was going to score. Aaron Rodgers was 29-31. There is no way we don’t take the lead. I just sat numb in my chair when Jonathan Makonnen slipped on 4^th down, not comprehending that I was wrong.

via www.sfgate.com

Go to Hell, BCS! You go to Hell and you DIE!

Sadly, the peak of Rodger’s passing attack at Cal was probably reached in Corvallis in the game just before Cal’s loss to USC. In that game Rodgers, Chase Lyman, and Geoff MacArthur absolutely blitzed Oregon State in a 49-7 victory. Next week Lyman would go down with a knee injury that would essentially end is football career. Makonnen would miss most of the games that year with a variety of nagging ailments and MacArthur played through various problems that limited his abilities before going down with a freak injury in practice before the Holiday Bowl. It’s a testament to Rodger’s talent and Tedford’s coaching that Cal’s passing attack didn’t completely disappear.

via www.midwestsportsfans.com

Despite a rocky start, Rodgers came to embrace Green Bay fans, culture and moustaches.

Rodgers intelligently declared for the draft in a down year for quarterbacks. In one of the most unbelievable displays of NFL draft skullduggery he somehow slid to the end of the first round to the Green Bay Packers. Rodgers suffered through Brett Favre’s chronic indecisiveness and is now the unquestioned starter for a perennial playoff contender. Meanwhile, Alex Smith is for some reason still considered a viable starting quarterback contender for the 49ers. I said above that I don’t know if I’m still upset that the 49ers drafted Smith over Rodgers. That’s because I wouldn’t wish the 49er’s dysfunction on a Cal quarterback as clearly talented as Rodgers is, even if that means he has to play for a team that knocked out my 49ers every damned year in the late 90s. When everything is done many expect Rodgers to finish his NFL career as the most decorated quarterback ever to come out of Cal. I’ll remember him as the player that vaulted Cal from feel-good mid-conference team to perennial Pac-10 title contender.

#3 DeSean Jackson

Lingering thoughts from some fool blogger.

When you were on, you were spectacular. You provided some of the most raucous reactions in Memorial Stadium in recent memory with your big game plays. The fans called for your name in earnest as the 2007 season grew darker, just hoping for a spark to come from somewhere, hoping you’d provide it. It didn’t really happen. But it was a good ride, and I'll miss that excitement and energy that each catch and return presented.

Ashley Walker

Norcalnick has both profiles this time around, starting with an excellent post on Walker.

Ashley Walker came to Cal as the overlooked member of the class that revived women’s basketball in Berkeley. She wasn’t as heralded as Alexis Gray-Lawson or Devanei Hampton. She’s not flashy. She’s not particularly fast. Hampton and Rama N’diaye are both taller and bigger than Walker. And yet, after the most successful four year stretch in Cal women’s basketball history, it was Walker who emerged as the rock, the go-to player, the one who rewrote the record book with an amazing combination of constant growth and reliability.

Consider these numbers: Ashley Walker led Cal in the following statistical categories in her senior year: Minutes, points, rebounds, field goal percentage, free throw percentage, blocks and three point percentage. If she had two more steals she would have led the team in that category as well. And Cal was not a team of scrubs with one superstar – Cal was a consistent top 10 team with talent, depth and a good coach. Ashley Walker did everything.

via cache.daylife.com

Her profile from CalBears.com:
"ranked first in Cal history in rebounds (1117), free throws made (506) and attempted (675)... tied for first in games played (130)...second in career points (2142), blocked shots (174) and made field goals (810)...third in scoring average (16.5 ppg)...fourth in field goal percentage (52.7)... seventh in free throw percentage (75.3), and ninth in career steals (177)...ranks sixth on the Pac-10 career rebounding list and seventh in Pac-10 career scoring."

My favorite memory of Walker is somewhat bittersweet. Not surprisingly for a player who seemed to get better each game over four years, Walker played her best in her final NCAA tournament. First, she shot 9-12 for 21 points in an easy win over Fresno St. Then she destroyed Virginia, shooting 14-20 for 32 points along with 10 boards. And for the first 14 minutes against #1 UConn Walker kept it going, hitting threes, getting inside, grabbing boards and generally frustrating Geno Auriemma. UConn still cruised to victory, but Walker finished with 21 points. I firmly believe that Cal would have beaten just about any other team in the nation that day the way the team, and Walker, were peaking.

Walker was drafted 10^th by the Seattle Storm and will now show her talent in the WNBA, where I have little doubt that a player with her versatility and ability to improve will carve out a successful role for a long time to come. Meanwhile Cal will have to do without what I believe is the best female basketball player ever to wear the blue and gold. Vote Ashley for the Hall of Fame!

For those of you MTV people wondering what Walker's living conditions were like at Cal...let's just say they were pretty peachy (lots of cool images of her crib if you click!)

J.J. Arrington

via i.a.cnn.net

Tightwad Hill encapsulated Arrington's 2004 season perfectly.

Cal fans were understandably anxious to see what Arrington would do carrying the full workload in 2004. What he did was have the greatest season by any player in the history of Cal football. That’s right. The greatest season ever.

In each of his 12 games, Arrington hit for at least 100 yards – the only back in America to make that claim. Against Air Force in the opener, he scored three times including an 89-yard run that set a Cal record. 3 more scores against NMSU, and then a couple of off games – 108 yards and a TD v Oregon State and 112 in the heartbreak loss to SC. Then J.J. got serious.

The first 1:19 are the only Cal highlights I could find of JJ. The run at :49 is my favorite. Nice tackling Ducks.

The Play Players

Norcalnick talks about The Play.

Moen to Rodgers to Garner to Rodgers to Ford to Moen. Like pi to math majors, every Cal fan should know the sequence. But how exactly did a last second victory in a game with no real national significance become so legendary, so mythical?

via upload.wikimedia.org

I tried to find a different picture, but apparently this was the only photo taken in the entire stadium.

When I was 9 I went to my first Big Game and watched Cal win. Having been hooked on Cal football, I then saw Cal lose 7 straight times. My Mom, the consummate pessimistic yet loyal Cal fan, would hold up The Play as our desperate Cal fan trump card. Lose 7 in a row to the ‘furd? So what, we have The Play. Go a decade without a bowl? Whatevs, we have The Play. No Rose Bowl berths in either of our lifetimes? No worries, we have The Play.

For 20 years between The Play and Tedford, it was our one shining moment in a sea of football pain and misery. Whenever the Big Game was in Palo Alto my mom would play a tape that analyzed The Play, including an introduction, the CALX call of the game (which is significantly more confusing even than Starkey’s call) and player interviews. We played it to piss off the Stanford fans, because THEY LOST ON THE PLAY!

Every once in a while ESPN or Sports Illustrated will have some silly internet voting for the greatest play in college (or sports) history. Despite a biased voting public, The Play almost always wins. Nothing can match 6 laterals against your biggest rival with the most insane band in America on the field.

It is here that we must mention the unfortunate part of our story: Mariet Ford, he of the psychic blind lateral, is currently behind bars for the murder of his wife and 35 month old son. The Chronicle has a long profile on Ford, detailing the glory of The Play and his fall from grace.

Now, in 2009, with 6 straight bowl games and perennial conference title contention, maybe The Play isn’t as important as it used to be. We don’t need to hang our hat on one moment. Or, maybe The Play will remain as a moment that defines Cal athletes and fans alike with the attitude that the Bear will not quit, the Bear will not die.

And if you ever wondered if The Play was ‘the most amazing, sensational, dramatic, heart-rending... exciting, thrilling finish in the history of college football,’ I’ll leave you with this:

Via Wikipedia:

For many years, John Elway was bitter, on both a personal level and on behalf of his team, about the touchdown being allowed: "This was an insult to college football... They [the officials] ruined my last game as a college football player."

Poll

Who is moving on to the CGB Hall Of Fame?

Natalie Coughlin

79 votes

Joe Roth

39 votes

Sandy Barbour

7 votes

Aaron Rodgers

32 votes

DeSean Jackson

5 votes

Ashley Walker

2 votes

J.J Arrington

6 votes

The Play Players

23 votes

193 votes | Poll has closed

Cal 2009 Position Previews: Receivers and Tight Ends

Avinash — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 19:00:10 -0000

via www.nationalchamps.net

Read the previous position previews: Quarterback, running backs, offensive line.

Here was Hydrotech after spring practice.

Who are Cal's top 3 WRs? This is a fairly important question. Cal's top 3 WRs get the majority of the snaps on the field - perhaps upward of 90%.

So who is it going to be? Tucker, Ross, and Boateng have the most experience so you might think it'd be them. However, we all saw sophomore Alex Lagemann blow up in spring ball. Right now he's penciled in at the #1 slot position. When Cal goes to its 3 WR sets (11 personnel), if we assume the top players at each WR position see the field then the top three will be Boateng, Jones, and Lagemann. That leaves out experienced WRs Jeremy Ross, and Verran Tucker - and puts the more inexperienced Jones and Lagemann on the field. Do we want more inexperienced WRs on the field again another year?

Several months later, we are reaching a resolution. Whether it's one that puts us at ease is an unresolved answer.

Which wideouts will Cal depend on this season? If you were to rank our receivers in terms of their depth chart position, where would they go?

More about the receivers and tight ends after the jump.

The problem with Cal receivers is that last season their touches were too few and far between. You couldn't really get a feel to each player's individual game. Here's what we can discern:

1) Route running was inconsistent (could this be a symptom of the shifting between OCs?).
2) Receivers greased their gloves and dropped the ball hundreds of times.
3) No clear number one, two, or three was established.
4) Inconsistency at the quarterback position also kept receivers from getting into any sort of groove.

That last part is crucial, because the last time that happened for Cal was in 2005, which feels like the closest Tedford-equivalent to last season (phenomenal running game, haywire passing attack). The next two seasons would be some of the healthiest for the Cal passing game.

The similarity between those two seasons diverge from there. In 2005 the Bears had three clear rising stars who were the top three wide receivers (and they would go onto replicate those performances the next two seasons). 2008, by contrast, will not be as clear-cut. The top six receivers were separated by a total of 13 receptions, and not one Cal receiver exceeded 30 catches. So while the Bears's receivers might be deeper than in 2006, production on that level is not a certainty, as the competition is expected to be fierce for every spot. You could argue that reliance on too few bodies cost us games we could've won.

Depth will not be a problem this time. The issue will be consistency. Will there be a defined pecking order as to who the top receiver is, who will move into the slot, and who can come off the bench and provide capable catches? Who will go where?

via grfx.cstv.com

Tight ends: The Tad Smith injury means Anthony Miller will be starting this season. However, Tedford seems optimistic that the Bears can overcome Smith's absence.

Cal coach Jeff Tedford seemed optimistic that Cal still has enough depth at tight end to make up for the loss of Smith.

"It’s nice getting Spencer back," he said. "Skylar has really stepped up in this camp, thankfully. You have Anthony (Miller), you have Skylar, you have Spencer, you have (Jarrett) Sparks and you have (Garry) Graffort. All those guys are in the mix, and they’ve all done pretty well."

Nevertheless, there is a lack of playing time for each of these guys, no matter who ends up in the one spot long-term. We only know Miller because he caught a prayer throw from Longshore at the end of the Emerald Bowl, and everyone behind him has close to zero experience. In almost every case, this will be Cal's weakest position this season.

So at least here, we'll have to concede the advantage to the Furd.

via graphics.fansonly.com

Coach Daft stepping up? One weakness last season was coaching experience in that particular field, but Kevin Daft seems more comfortable leading Cal's wideouts.

"We know the game now," Cal receiver Jeremy Ross said. "Even Coach Daft is telling us to put a little style in our routes, a little flavor. We can now because we know the game. Out there running routes, we're able to put our twist on things. We're out there confident and ready to get after it."

And just what kind of flavor is Ross adding to his route-running this season?

"You know, a little salt over here, a little pepper over here, a little Cajun seasoning," he said. "You'll see all the ingredients on Sept. 5."

Not many of us have been comforted by Daft's first season, but it wasn't exactly favorable circumstances for him to thrive. Let's see how this season goes before passing judgment on his worth.

The battle of the weight room: Onto the receivers. Nyan Boateng and Jeremy Ross seem to be the two incumbents staying in place. Boateng certainly looked like the most talented receiver last season, in terms of making his cuts and finding his place (it's no surprise that he soon became the favorite target of the precise Nate Longshore). But, like seemingly every receiver for the Bears, he dropped the ball far too much. Ross, while performing pure athletic acrobatics (remember the leaps!), didn't have enough experience to be anything more than semi-reliable.

However, both have shown a great deal of extroverted confidence during practice, and their work ethic in the gym has been impeccable. Who can bench more, sadly, has yet to be resolved.

Charging from the back: Verran Tucker is going to have a tough time catching up with the rest of the flock. Although he performed well in relief for the injured Calvin and inconsistent Young and Cunningham, according to Okanes he was pacing behind his counterparts this spring.

The JC transfer was the Bears’ second-leading pass-catcher among wide receivers last season, but he didn’t practice in the spring to focus on academics. With Jones and Alex Lagemann coming on, and with Michael Calvin expected to be fully recovered from a knee injury by the fall, Tucker’s status as a starter could be in jeopardy.

Speaking of Calvin, there was definitely a lot of great stuff he showed during the early part of the season, as he established himself as one of Kevin Riley's favorite targets. However, he is coming back from a torn ACL, a traditionally difficult injury to overcome for a receiver. So we'd have to expect that like Tucker, he will be coming on the rebound going against the healthier competition. At the moment though, he seems to be progressing better than Tucker.

via grfx.cstv.com

The new faces: Marvin Jones and Alex Lagemann are expected to make huge splashes this season. Of all the receivers on this list, Jones is the most highly touted. Desean Jackson was a huge factor in Jones caming to Cal, and he appears to possess similar potential to the Eagles' rising star.

"Marvin Jones. The sophomore-to-be emerged as the Bears’ top receiver in the spring. This really doesn’t come as a surprise. The argument could be made that Jones was the most talented receiver on the roster last season, but a knee injury limited his true freshman season. Jones is healthy now and looked sharp in the spring. Despite the fact Cal has its top three receivers back from last year, Jones should enter fall camp as the team’s top pass-catching threat."

While both Jones and Lagemann have shown promise that could carry them far, Hydro does offer the warning of giving Jones and Lagemann too much of a prominent role while consigning the veterans to the sidelines:

When Cal goes to its 3 WR sets (11 personnel), if we assume the top players at each WR position see the field then the top three will be Boateng, Jones, and Lagemann. That leaves out experienced WRs Jeremy Ross, and Verran Tucker - and puts the more inexperienced Jones and Lagemann on the field. Do we want more inexperienced WRs on the field again another year? Is the talent that Jones and Lagemann bring to the field worth more than the experience that Ross and Tucker bring? Cal could have a Rose Bowl season next year if its passing game comes together (and assuming the running game stays dominant and the same goes for the defense). I'm not exactly sure that having more inexperienced players on the field is the greatest way to get that passing to improve.

Riley says...Ultimately though, the receiver's value is measured the best by the person throwing the balls to him We give our leading QB the last word:

Riley said Jones has just continued to do what he did during the spring while Calvin, who is coming back from a torn ACL, is getting more and more healthy. "Every week as the summer has progressed, he’s gotten a little more comfortable with his route running," Riley said. "Coming back from an injury like that, you’re going to be a little scared at first on your break. Every week, he’s running routes better. He’s always caught the ball well. Hopefully he can continue to get better. He can be a guy who can really makes plays for us." Riley said Lagemann, like Jones, also continues to build off his spring, although he has been slowed by a toe injury during the offseason."

Of all the analysis above, we can bet this endorsement means the most of all.

Poll

Who will be Cal's number one receiving option by season's end?

Nyan Boateng

82 votes

Michael Calvin

15 votes

Alex Lagemann

10 votes

Marvin Jones

230 votes

Jeremy Ross

9 votes

Verran Tucker

21 votes

Someone else

8 votes

375 votes | Poll has closed

CGB Hall Of Fame Round Of 32: DeSean Jackson v. Morgan Beck

TwistNHook — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 13:00:10 -0000

Tha1 vs the upstart. One specimen of speed, the other of grace. Desean. Morgan. Who will triumph?

For each athlete, you can vote in the poll; it closes a week from today at midnight. After the jump, you can read the athlete profiles written up by our commenters, and discuss in the comments your memories of each athlete and which one deserves to move on. (Check out the full bracket here. To check out the original nomination thread, click here. For those who want to track the CGB Hall of Fame posts exclusively, click here or right next to the timestamp above where it says "Hall of Fame".)

#3 DeSean Jackson

Lingering thoughts from some fool blogger.

When you were on, you were spectacular. You provided some of the most raucous reactions in Memorial Stadium in recent memory with your big game plays. The fans called for your name in earnest as the 2007 season grew darker, just hoping for a spark to come from somewhere, hoping you’d provide it. It didn’t really happen. But it was a good ride, and I'll miss that excitement and energy that each catch and return presented.

#11 Morgan Beck

This whole section is thanks to Danzig here.

MORGAN BECK

(Click to enlarge)

TEAM USA BIO
CAL BIO
FIVB BIO

Home: Coto De Caza, CA
Birthday: 3/30/1987
Position: Opposite/Outside Hitter
Height: 6-3/191 cm
College: California
Current Team: Women's US National Team

If an official vote were to be taken today, she wouldn't make the Cal HOF. No surprise, she only graduated this year. But why does she deserve to be inducted into our mock HOF? Because in the following years, we probably won't be able to keep her out.

She's an incredible volleyball player and a physical presence at the net. She still has the most impressive overhand jump-serve I've ever seen. She's got a big time arm and has the feet to play both indoor or go pro-beach. Her fluid movements remind me of another great player, Gabrielle Reece.

Forecast: MORGAN BECK WILL BE THE NEXT GABRIELLE REECE. She's got all the tools to attain the female-athlete career trifecta: sports, modeling and broadcasting. Plus, she's a Cal grad so we should probably expect a book or two. Morgan and Gabrielle play the same position, are the same height and are both from SoCal.

The evidence is starting to pile up:

1999-2000: Gabrielle Reece represented our country in international Volleyball competition.

2009: Morgan Beck will be representing our country in international competition, starting this year.

When you play for the USA, sometimes you have to wear red.

---- ---- ----

Gabrielle Reece started modeling during college (FSU).

...Morgan is just getting started.

---- ---- ----

Gabrielle's book was, um... I didn't read it.

Morgan's first book was a tour de force. Her elegant hybrid-asset pricing model started turning heads immediately among the savviest hedge fund traders. It was also clear that she had a guru's grasp of the fundamentals of value investing.

---- ---- ----

Do I detect a pattern here? Now Morgan just needs to get on TV.

(By the way: Reece was inducted into the Florida State Hall of Fame in 1997.)

Why does she deserve a spot in our mock HOF? Because one day she's going to make our school look cool. She's going to represent Cal and the USA on the world stage. And we're going to be so proud that she's a Golden Bear.

Poll

Who wins? DeSean Jackson or Morgan Beck?

DeSean Jackson

131 votes

Morgan Beck

150 votes

281 votes | Poll has closed

Daily Nugz for Tuesday, July 14, 2009

JG2112 — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 12:00:12 -0000

I hope you're hungry. Seriously. Skip breakfast - these Nugz are tasty and filling.

First up - I regularly read the website Smart Football, and for good reason. It focuses upon college football and tends to bring insight into the numerous different philsophical and strategic approaches to football that are played out on Saturdays every fall. One of their more recent posts delves into the reasons behind pro football's uniformity, and the difference between a NFL offense and those employed in college (and also shows Eagles Coach Andy Reid copping a feel on DeSean Jackson). My belief is that pro coaches do not want to innovate, because the risks of failure are greater than the embedded benefits of conformity. It's easier for pro coaches to protect themselves with millions of schemes which essentially end up at the same place (a pro-set style, or a West Coast offense), and blame the players when it doesn't work, rather than provide an unique scheme (say, the Wildcat). It's only after one coach innovates and is successful that the copycats then emerge. Why else do coaches punt in the fourth quarter, or kick a field goal, when they're down by 30 in the fourth quarter? In the meantime, a coach like Mike Leach is considered a maverick that can't coach in the NFL.

Other Nugz:

If EDIT: you are a Gophers season ticket holder and would like to travel to Syracuse, Happy Valley, Columbus, or Iowa City to see the Gophers play football this fall, here's your chance. Tickets went on sale yesterday at 9am. Don't blame us if they're already gone.

The Gophers' official site has started its non-conference previews (nothing like TDG, but we take content where content can be had). Start here with Syracuse.

Here's a recent story indicating that the U has started to offer rebates or cash vouchers to premium season ticket holders at the Vault as a result of the Legislature's myopic decision to require egalitarian boozing. Great - the Legislature enacts a bill which will directly end up costing the U's athletic department money, which could result in higher ticket prices or increased funding down the line from the state.

Finally, here's a listing of ESPN's Thursday night football matchups. The highlights in my opinion are the games involving Georgia Tech. If they display any progression from their performance against Georgia in 2008, they will be a top 5 team this year.

Hall of Fame Round of 64: Joe Kapp Bracket, Part III

Avinash — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 10:00:13 -0000

Check out the full bracket here.

To check out the original nomination thread, click here.

For those who love the Hall of Fame and want to track all these posts, click here or right next to the timestamp where it says "Hall of Fame".

This post's matchups: Desean Jackson vs Kyle Boller, Michelle Granger vs Morgan Beck

We move onto the bottom half of the Joe Kapp bracket! Top two matchups get posted this morning, bottom two this afternoon. Polls for these matchups close next Friday at midnight. The athlete matchups are above, the athlete descriptions and polls are after the jump. Please read, vote, and debate in the comments!

#3 Desean Jackson vs #14 Kyle Boller

Lingering thoughts from some fool blogger.

When you were on, you were spectacular. You provided some of the most raucous reactions in Memorial Stadium in recent memory with your big game plays. The fans called for your name in earnest as the 2007 season grew darker, just hoping for a spark to come from somewhere, hoping you’d provide it. It didn’t really happen. But it was a good ride, and I'll miss that excitement and energy that each catch and return presented.

via www.bestsportsphotos.com

Tony M: It took him years to head a winning team, but his impact on the future of the program is vastly underestimated. For one thing, his recruitment was a coup that’s probably unparalleled in in Cal football history. For another, he was a four-year starter who was always willing to sacrifice his body for the Blue and Gold.

...

The Holmoecaust featured such bad offensive production that Cal’s gameplans literally relied on the defense to handle scoring. With a decent coach, that same offensive personell managed to improve exponentially.

Didn't hurt that he was the winning QB of this particular game below (you can see him getting carried off at the end):

For those having trouble viewing the box above, click here to vote.

#6 Michelle Granger vs #11 Morgan Beck

via graphics.fansonly.com

Ohio Bear: Perhaps still the greatest Cal softball pitcher of all time. (Played for Cal 1989-92.) She was also a 1996 Olympic Gold Medalist.

Her Cal Bears bio states the following:

Granger was the winning pitcher when the USA Softball team that won the sports' first Olympic gold medal in 1996. At the 1996 games, Granger finished with a 2-0 record, a 0.87 ERA and 25 strikeouts. Granger, who now resides in Davis, Calif., compiled a 13-7 record in five U.S. Olympic Festivals, went 4-0 in two ISF World Championships and 9-0 in three Pan American Games. She holds record for most consecutive strikeouts in a Women's Major Fast Pitch National Championship (18).

Granger played for Cal from 1989-93. She is the Golden Bears' all-time career leader in wins (119), games played (183), games started (162), complete games (155), innings pitched (1,202.2), strikeouts (1,640), shutouts (94), no-hitters (25) and perfect games (5).

This whole section is thanks to Danzig here.

MORGAN BECK

(Click to enlarge)

TEAM USA BIO
CAL BIO
FIVB BIO

Home: Coto De Caza, CA
Birthday: 3/30/1987
Position: Opposite/Outside Hitter
Height: 6-3/191 cm
College: California
Current Team: Women's US National Team

If an official vote were to be taken today, she wouldn't make the Cal HOF. No surprise, she only graduated this year. But why does she deserve to be inducted into our mock HOF? Because in the following years, we probably won't be able to keep her out.

She's an incredible volleyball player and a physical presence at the net. She still has the most impressive overhand jump-serve I've ever seen. She's got a big time arm and has the feet to play both indoor or go pro-beach. Her fluid movements remind me of another great player, Gabrielle Reece.

Forecast: MORGAN BECK WILL BE THE NEXT GABRIELLE REECE. She's got all the tools to attain the female-athlete career trifecta: sports, modeling and broadcasting. Plus, she's a Cal grad so we should probably expect a book or two. Morgan and Gabrielle play the same position, are the same height and are both from SoCal.

The evidence is starting to pile up:

1999-2000: Gabrielle Reece represented our country in international Volleyball competition.

2009: Morgan Beck will be representing our country in international competition, starting this year.

When you play for the USA, sometimes you have to wear red.

---- ---- ----

Gabrielle Reece started modeling during college (FSU).

...Morgan is just getting started.

---- ---- ----

Gabrielle's book was, um... I didn't read it.

Morgan's first book was a tour de force. Her elegant hybrid-asset pricing model started turning heads immediately among the savviest hedge fund traders. It was also clear that she had a guru's grasp of the fundamentals of value investing.

---- ---- ----

Do I detect a pattern here? Now Morgan just needs to get on TV.

(By the way: Reece was inducted into the Florida State Hall of Fame in 1997.)

Why does she deserve a spot in our mock HOF? Because one day she's going to make our school look cool. She's going to represent Cal and the USA on the world stage. And we're going to be so proud that she's a Golden Bear.

via www.dailycal.org

For those having trouble viewing the box above, click here to vote.

CGB Hall of Fame Brackets And First Round Matchups

Avinash — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 19:30:15 -0000

Here are the bracket announcements. Top half first, bottom half after the jump. Discuss in the comments whether we screwed it up like Meme Madness, bracketology picks, whatever.

Also, if anyone wants to write anything about these guys I can include in the matchup previews (anecdotes, stats, tall tales about the athletes, etc.), put them in the comments and I'll include them.

Oh yes, people, you might notice Mark Bingham is not in the poll. That's because he's automatically in! Our first CGB Hall of Fame inductee! (For more on Bingham, check out his story here).

Note: Sorry Ken, you got in Vinnie Strang just a little too late (plus for whatever reason Twist hates his guts and vetoed him out)!

Quick hits on first round matchups. Times on the bracket are unofficial and are subject to change. Click on the bracket images to enlarge them.

Brick Muller Bracket

#1 Tony Gonzalez vs #16 Hardy Nickerson: One of the greatest football players in Cal & NFL history, versus one of the fiercest defenders in California history.

#8 Rod Benson vs #9 Ryan Anderson: Perhaps the best athlete blogger of his time versus a low post monster in his last year.

#5 Sean Lampley vs #12 Matt Biondi: Pac-10 POTY at hoops and led the Bears to a NIT title. The other one just replicated Mark Spitz in winning seven medals at Seoul--five golds, four world records.

#4 Joe Igber vs #13 Will Ta'ufo'ou: The first is an incredible student athlete with kick-ass photos on Life. The second liked knocking people to the ground.

#3 Geoff Macarthur vs #14 Shareef Abdur-Rahim: The primary weapon of Aaron Rodgers versus an NBA journeyman.

#6 Jack Clark vs #11 Lavelle Hawkins: A rugby legend versus a loveable receiver.

#7 Nnamdi Asomugha vs #10 Craig Stevens: One has risen from the ashes of the Holmoecaust to be a Pro Bowl talent. The other blocked, blocked, blocked, and blocked some more.

#2 Deltha O'Neal vs #15 Thomas Decoud: The favorite is a legend to Cal fans everywhere. The underdog blasted Korey Bosworth to other dimensions.

Joe Kapp Bracket

#1 Natalie Coughlin vs #16 Jon Zuber: One of the most decorated Olympians ever versus a well-loved baseball player.

#8 Kevin Johnson vs #9 Jocelyn Forest: A softball player with an amazing story versus a guy who posterized Hakeem The Dream and became mayor of Sac-town.

#5 Sandy Barbour vs #12 Bob Milano: Our current AD versus our greatest baseball coach.

#4 Zack Follett vs #13 Milica Vuckadinovic: Pain Train needs no introduction. Milica was a pioneer, the best women's hoopster until Ashley Walker came along.

#3 Desean Jackson vs #14 Kyle Boller: Perhaps the greatest receiver in California history versus a QB who got it together under Tedford's watch.

#6 Michelle Granger vs #11 Morgan Beck: The most good-looking of the first round matchups. A softball giant versus an offensive volleyball talent.

#7 Kirk Everist vs #10 Mary Meagher: Water battle! He was and is a water polo king as player and coach (national championships in both). She won gold medals at Los Angeles and set swimming records that lasted nearly two decades.

#2 Marshawn Lynch vs #15 Jeremy Newberry: The underdog is the original version of Alex Mack. I hear Twist really likes the favorite.

Onto the bottom half of the bracket!

Pappy Waldorf Bracket

#1 Jeff Tedford vs #16 Angie Pressey. Our head coach extraordinare goes up against one of our most competitive women's volleyball talents.

#8 Joe Roth vs #9 Robert Jordan. Learn about Roth here. Come back. Jordan was a secondary yet critical element on four straight Golden Bear teams.

#5 Vicky Galindo vs #12 The Play Players. I've fallen in love with our 5 seed. I don't know what to do about it. I've even forgotten what happened at the 1982 Big Game. Someone remind me?

#4 Ashley Walker vs #13 Ben Braun. The greatest women's bball player in Cal history, I'd say. The other guy was here a long time.

#3 JJ Arrington vs #14 Brian Hendrick. Arrington perhaps had the best running season in California history, perhaps Pac-10 history, perhaps college football history (I don't know, you could probably find others, but go back and look at that season again). Other was a solid bball player who came just before the rise of Kidd, so he's sort of fallen through the cracks.

#6 Dante Hughes vs #11 Lamond Murray. One was a great great ballhawk, our finest corner since Deltha. The other was a pure pure scorer who finished off much of Jason Kidd's handiwork.

#7 Mike Pawlawski vs #10 Sean Dawkins. You know how football announcers annoy you with intangibles talk and "how he does all the little things to win"? That's what Mike was about. Dawkins made tough tough catches during our time at Cal.

#2 Leon Powe vs #15 Lorenzo Alexander. Welcome to the Show. For those who've forgotten Alexander, he was one of the main forces that drove the early Tedford defenses of 2002 & 2003.

Pete Newell Brackett

#1 Jason Kidd vs #16 Jeff Kent. Both of these athletes have had long, great careers in the pro leagues. Surprising this is a first round matchup, even more suprising it's 1 vs 16.

#8 Joy Fawcett vs #9 Jerrott Willard. Joy is one of women's soccer's finest. Willard enjoyed destroying people.

#5 Desmond Bishop vs #12 Geno Carlisle. Bishop was the anchor of those 2006 defenses. Carlisle bragged that the only person better than him in Chicago was MJ.

#4 Russell White vs #13 Ed Gray. Perhaps the greatest RB in Cal history goes up against a former Pac-10 player of the year at hoops.

#3 Alex Mack vs #14 Suzi Babos. Mack is self-explanatory. Suzi Babos won Cal's only women's singles title.

#6 Chuck Muncie vs #11 Joe Shipp. Muncie nearly won the Heisman in 1975 if it weren't for that dastardly Archie Griffin. Shipp was a versatile talent on the earlier decade Cal bball teams.

#7 Justin Forsett vs #10 Brian Weathers. Forsett was a steady horse who gave great effort on the field.

#2 Aaron Rodgers vs #15 Camille Leffall: Battle of the hair. Rodgers has always enjoyed his unkempt look. Leffall just looks fabulous, with or without the blond highlights and braids.

There you have it guys. Discuss away!

Poll

Just the Elite 8 get in, or should it be wildcard picks?

Just the Elite 8

28 votes

Wildcard picks

17 votes

45 votes | Poll has closed

Meet The Bears: California Golden Blogs Preps Us On Cal

Cory Williams — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 20:32:43 -0000

Our friends over at California Golden Blogs asked us to exchange Q&A's in the buildup to Saturday. ASUBoyd answered their questions, and they will be posted on their blog later today are now up for your viewing pleasure here.

I penned these questions hoping to better understand our Pac-10 foes. The answers given may not surprise you, but this has turned out to be California Golden Bears 101. And you know we love college courses here at House Of Sparky (at least, we love the girls in our college courses).

A big thanks goes out to TwistNHook, Yellow Fever, and ragnarok for their great responses.

1. What do you chalk up the loss against Maryland to, the jet lag? Unfamiliarity with an ACC squad playing on their home turf? Maryland being a plain good football squad?

Well, the genuine answer to this question is that Maryland dominated the trenches. They continuously got pressure on Riley until they moved into a more preventative D (when our passing attack started to take off). Further, Jahvid Best and Co. had no holes to run through.

On the other side, they ran all over us and Chris Turner had a lot of time in the pocket. That's the simple answer. Win the trench battle and you win the game. Maryland was winning the trench battle for most of it and was dominant for most of it, plain and simple.

As to whether Cal's OLine and DLine under performed due to time changes or humidity, well, it's hard to say. The players themselves won't admit it, as I doubt they'd point to excuses like those, but I can tell you the humidity out there was brutal, and I was just standing around in the bleachers, not trying to play football. For whatever reason, our players sure did look more sluggish than I've seen them in a long time, and that probably contributed to losing the battle up front.

Of course, none of this is meant to take away from Maryland, who is actually a pretty good team and who played a great game. Cal could have won this matchup, but by no means should have won.

2. Losing Jahvid Best is a blow to your running game. How will his absence affect your game plan, and who will fill his shoes on Saturday?

Well, luckily for Cal, there is some depth at RB. Shane Vereen has definitely shown ability and even 3rd stringer Tracy Slocum has some of the skillz that are necessary to pay part of the billz. Certainly, having Best up in this bitch is better than not having Best up in this or really any other bitch. But Vereen can produce.

One problem to note is a key injury to OLineman Chris Guarnero. He had been playing very well from what we understand and is now out for the season. So, losing Best AND a solid OLineman? Could be rough.

3. Kevin Riley vs. Nate Longshore. Longshore was renowned early in his career, and he lit up ASU in 2006 in Berkeley. Now, he rides the pine as Riley tosses the rock. Who is the better quarterback, and did Longshore get treated badly this season?

The problem is that nobody really knows who the better QB is. Many people scream endlessly over this topic, but we don't watch the practices and rarely have advanced game film sessions. Both bring different skills to the table. Many people were excited by the prospect of Riley. He suffered from Backup QB-itis, wherein people love him a ton, because they haven't seen him a lot. Not to say anything negative about Riley, but now that more people have seen him, people are moderately less enamored with him. This is just natural, because no QB can be perfect.

At times this year, Longshore has appeared worse, and at times, he has appeared better. So, neither QB right now is out-playing the other. Honestly, though, I think either QB will play a good (though not great) game, and there's probably 4 or 5 other Pac-10 teams that wish they could have our QB leftovers right about now.

4. Tell us about one Cal defensive player we may not know.

Well, we don't know who you do and do not know on the Cal D. BUT, you might not know the name of Syd'Quan Thompson. He is having a great season as both a punt returner (named special teams player of the week last week) and as a DB. People don't throw his way. He's a shutdown corner out there.

Now, ASU is apparently having some problems running the ball and is relying on the passing game a lot. This means there should be a good showdown between the ASU O and the Cal defensive backfield. SydGOD will be prominent in this battle. And if ASU decides not to throw towards SydGOD at all, they will try the other corner Darian Hagan. He's young and has a lot less experience than SydQuan, but is still improving each week. This will be a good test for him.

5. Losing Lavelle Hawkins and DeSean Jackson to the NFL this year really put the hurt on your receiving corp. Who has picked up the slack in their stead?

Unfortunately, nobody.

But at least TE Cameron Morrah has shown some catch passing abilities. Unfortunately, he's not the blocker that Craig Stevens (now on the Titans) was last year. Other than kickoffs, our receiving corp is probably the weakest area of the team.

6. Speaking of DeSean, what do you think of his performance as an Eagle? Or the touchdown that wasn't in Dallas, where he threw it behind himself while he was still outside the end zone?

As an Eagles fan, I'm not terribly bothered by any of this. It's worth remembering that the only other highly drafted wideouts during the Reid era were Freddie Mitchell and Billy McMullen. Now while I can empathize with Freddie given that I love my hands as well, it would be a gross understatement to say that either of the two was lighting the world on fire.

So for him to start off with two 100-yard games, even if he hasn't kept that pace up, earns him more than a little bit of slack in my book. As specifically regarding the touchdown that wasn't, that honestly didn't bother me much. It would have bothered me more if they hadn't scored on the next play, but I was pretty sure they would. It's just an amusing footnote to me.

And hey, I did get a picture with Reuben Frank of SI.com with my new Eagles DeSean jersey at Eagles training camp this year, and he told me it was the first one he'd seen. That is, before reading the back of my jersey he thought my number 10 jersey was for Koy Detmer. Koy Detmer?!?!? As if!

7. Lastly, what is your prognostication on the direction of the Cal season? What will your record be, and what bowl (if any) will you end up in?

At this point, nobody knows anything about where Cal is. Our RB is hurt. We dont know who the QB is. Lets just throw our hands up in the air and say National Championship loss to Vanderbilt.

About as likely to happen as any other reality, it would seem.