SB Nation - Rulon Davis

Is Cal's Defense Underachieving?

Avinash — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 17:30:26 -0000

Cal's pass defense struggled again. Are we going to see this all year long?

DEFENSE, BEARS...DEFENSE???

Most of the postgame reaction has been focused on Cal's lamentable defensive effort, especially against the pass. It's been discussed everywhere, and I figured I'd throw myself into the fire. Literally, since I figure 80-85% of Cal fans will disagree with my next statement:

Outside of Autzen, Bob Gregory hasn't done that much wrong.

Now before all of you start hollering about Prince and Tuel lighting us up, I understand where you guys are coming from. Like many people, I assumed that the depletion of our linebacking corps would be offset by improvements in the defensive line and the secondary, with everyone having starting experience coming back.

Unfortunately, it doesn't work like that. Units don't just revamp at certain areas and expect to get by because the front and the back are supporting them. The linebackers are the core of the defense, especially in a 3-4; take them away and the middle is open to exploitation.

Think of an army with great tanks and experienced soldiers but no aircraft, anti-aircraft or flak. You might have the power and the wherewithal to take out your opponents, but a good enough air attack can blast all that heavy weaponry and veteran savvy out of the park. So it is with the passing defense this season, where the weakness of the linebackers has been felt by the rest of the lineup.

Cal is returning seven but we're missing those four BIG TIME. Let's rank the top players on our defense last year.

1) Zack Follett
2) Syd'Quan Thompson
3) Tyson Alualu
4) Anthony Felder
5) Worrell Williams
6) Mike Mohamed
7) Darian Hagan
8) Rulon Davis (when healthy)

So those four who are gone are in the top 8, and the three linebackers in the top five. Big big losses.

Rulon Davis might never have been as healthy as we'd have liked him to be, but when he was, he was ON. Cameron Jordan is a jolly guy from what I've seen, but at the moment he really hasn't stepped up to replace Davis's raw ability. Don't be deceived by those 6.5 sacks--3.5 came against really bad teams. He's on pace for 2008 numbers, and he's playing probably 50% more than last season after splitting time with Rulon in 2008.

Derrick Hill has performed well, but centers can still battle him one on one, leaving one side to double, triple team Alualu at will. So that means that extra one or two guys blitzing or moving in on the line of scrimmage has to step up, rush in, and hit the quarterback.

Unfortunately...

Cal does not have a pass rushing linebacker. When Cal put that linebacker at the LoS on passing downs last season (usually Follett), it collapsed the pocket, overwhelmed the edge and forced the quarterback into the errant throws, incompletions or sacks. Not this season. Young, Mohamed, Kendricks, Bishop, Holt, none of these guys have been able to fill that mantle. Jarred Price might be the guy to show it, but what he has in pass rush (2 sacks) he lacks in consistency (4 season tackles)

Follett had 10.5 sacks and 4 hurries on his own last season; through seven games, the ENTIRE Bears linebackers corps has combined for 7.5 sacks and 4 hurries.

Note: Interestingly enough (as you probably saw with some of the highlights), Gregory tinkered with a four down linemen set on passing downs to gain extra pass rush, although I'm not sure how much of it had an effect on slowing down Tuel. I'd been pondering a similar idea considering the weakness of our linebackers to add an extra defensive lineman (our strength) for more pass rush, and it seemed Gregory was thinking along the same lines. We'll see how it bears out when Cal plays formidable/weaker offensive lines down the road.

Cal's linebacking corps is still learning the pass defense ropes: Probably the biggest mistake I made in my predictions was asking this question: "is Mike Mohamed capable of becoming Cal's greatest linebacker of the Tedford era?" Whoops. Desmond Bishop, you keep the title.

Don't get me wrong, Mohamed's been good, still the best all-around linebacker for the Bears (he has picks, a forced fumble, a sack, and 61 tackles). Nevertheless, he seems to be suffering from the Rajon Rondo syndrome--he looked like the best linebacker last season because guys were always throwing in his direction to avoid Felder and Williams. Unlike Follett or Desmond, he lacks that game-changing ability. Maybe that'll change, but right now he's merely good when Cal needs great.

Devin Bishop and Eddie Young are okay, but as BWNQ noted, they probably lack proper football instincts, as they've been duped on several important occasions by doing bad things on the field. No matter how good the coaching is, it's REALLY hard to undo instinct.

As for Kendricks and Holt, they have promise, but as sophomores they're still not fully polished. We can probably expect better things from them...in 2010. Right now we can only hope they're given the time to grow and mature so they can come back and smash next season.

Finally, the secondary. This is probably the most mystifying of the three units, even to a guy like me. Last season these guys were ballhawks, and now they're getting pumpfaked, beat at the point of attack. What's going on??

Syd'Quan Thompson has done his job, but the other side, plainly, has not. Darian Hagan got pump-faked out of the starting lineup in Minnesota. Josh Hill got the Oregon start and got picked on, over and over and over. And then both have been taking their turn even though they've been playing more man coverage. Although both are improving, it does leave you a little frustrated, especially with Hagan, who looked so promising last season. The safeties have been competent--Ezeff and Johnson are good at delivering hits, and Cattouse has also shown great promise, but for whatever reason they've been beat a lot.

So why has the secondary regressed? A few possibilities:

1) With the linebackers having trouble defending their zones and tackling afterwards, the secondary has to edge toward the middle of the field to be prepared to support...which in turn opens up the flats and sideline throws. And it doesn't necessarily secure the middle either.

2) The secondary might be more experienced, but given the depth of gamefilm, there is plenty for opposing teams to scout on them. Cal's secondary is not like USC's, whose weaknesses are harder to pinpoint and exploit. Even Syd'Quan might be lockdown one-on-one, but he's still undersized--tall physical receivers can do damage against him if given the proper time. You can only imagine how many more double moves and pump fakes against Hagan and throws to the flats against Hill we'll see this year.

3) PAY ATTENTION. This is the big one...

There are a lot of good quarterbacks in the Pac-10 this season.

Four freshmen have shown great promise--Foles, Luck, Barkley, and, yes, even Tuel (don't forget he also went about 67% against USC too). Add in three guys who've been here before (Masoli, Locker, Canfield) and that's SEVEN Pac-10 quarterbacks who are at the very least competent. That's the most depth the conference has shown at the quarterback stable this decade.

Compare it to the Pac-10 QBs we saw last season: Sanchez was pretty good but still developing, Willie Tuitama had his ups and downs, Masoli was in his first year escaping the shadow of Dixon, Lyle Moevao had his moments although he was carried by the Rodgers brothers, Rudy Carpenter was digesting turf thanks to his awesome offensive line, the Kevin Craft Interception Show missed no stops, Tavita Pritchard was a placeholder, the Washington/Wazzu quarterbacks we faced were bad, bad, bad.

Masoli has quietly worked his way back to a solid 60% completion percentage. Canfield and Foles are horrifyingly good at finding their receivers, hovering at 70% and putting them in the top seven in the conference. Luck isn't as accurate, but he throws touchdowns and not many picks (kind of like Riley-lite). Locker is the most dangerous player in the Pac-10 if he faces a defense that gives him cushion. And Barkley is only going to get better.

They're so good that they're not just beating Cal's zones, they're beating Cal on man. Tuel's two touchdown throws came against man coverage, where he fit that ball in just the right place for the receiver to get it and the defender had no chance to play the ball. Kevin Prince had excellent throws that burned a few guys with excellent man coverage too. Surprisingly, they played pretty well against Barkley after spotting the Trojans ten points. Of course the big fail was Masoli where the Bears played mostly zone, but even when they played man they got beat.

Now the solution would be to be aggressive in the pass rush and send more guys. But who? Cal's linebackers haven't shown they're able to speed their way. Not many of these guys have the ability to stunt or delay the way our group did last year--maybe Alualu, but again he's facing constant double teams. Plus with the quarterbacks being better this season, sending more guys leaves the Bears vulnerable to a precise pass going for six.

So pick your poison. So pick your poison. Do you key in on stopping the run and not allowing big plays and risk giving up easier underneath throws, or gamble with a pass rush or man coverage and take the risk of quarterbacks connecting on long strikes? This is the quandary Gregory is in, and we’ll find out what he comes up with these next few weeks. (HT Hydro for the rephrase)

Is Cal's defense underachieving, overachieving, or performing as expected?

Reactions to defense.

More reactions: AERose has some interesting numbers on 1st/2nd half stats, Rocky63125 wants Gregory to go, royrules had thoughts about Cal's D against UCLA.

Gary Peterson, San Jose Mercury News:

Then came the part no one expected. When Tedford had finished dousing his defenders in lighter fluid, linebacker Steve Fanua set them on fire.

"He's a young buck, a redshirt freshman," Jordan said, smiling. "He has fire in his veins. He gave us a nice little talk."

And this was received how?

"That only amps you up more," Jordan said. "Here's a guy, barely 18 years old, letting us know what this means for him. He's a young kid. He's hungry."

So was Cal's defense when it returned to the field. Jordan recorded two of his two-and-a-half sacks, and three of his six tackles in the second half. One sack defused Washington State's first drive after the intermission. Another, coming on fourth-and-10, ended a Cougars drive at the Cal 18.

Jimmy Tran, Daily Cal:

One of the points emphasized was tackling.

Arguably the most noticeable player guilty of missed tackles was cornerback Darian Hagan. Despite coming off one of his best performances ever last week against UCLA, Hagan struggled to make several key tackles in the open field and gave up a couple big passing plays against WSU.

"He needs to be more consistent, no question about it," Gregory said. "Very poor game today, and we just got to keep working with these kids to grow and mature."

Cal 2009 Position Previews: Defensive Line

Avinash — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 10:00:14 -0000

via farm3.static.flickr.com

Read the previous position previews: Quarterback, running backs, offensive line, receivers and tight ends.

At first glance, this position looks like a surefire upgrade. All the starters are returning. We are facing a slew of teams this season replacing their offensive line depth or quarterbacks. All of these factors should amount to ripe pickings for the Bears.

Yet if you look closer, there are certain things that could make Cal fans a little uneasy. For one, the linebacking corps (more on them later) is likely to be taking a step down. Opposing O-lines are more likely to hone in on the front three without fearing the four or five capable of attack behind them. There are also issues of depth and fatigue, and who will be taking Rulon Davis's role, all of which should be worrisome and worth tracking.

That being said...assuming health stays constant, this unit should be going up, not down.

Will Cal's D-line be better, worse, or about the same as last year? Where does Tyson Alualu rank among Cal's greatest linemen? Discuss in the comments and vote in the poll!

Will fatigue be a factor? Behind the polished three starters will be a lot of fresh faces. The Bear Will Not Quit explains it best.

But more than any other position, defensive line needs depth behind it. And not just situational depth, like for third down or goal line. You need constant rotation to keep guys fresh. This is a big reason teams like SC are so strong in finishing games in the fourth quarter as compared with other teams. Their defensive line reserves are good enough to play significant minutes without much dropoff, keeping the whole d-line fresh all game. (And most of their opponents' d-lines are not as deep, so SC's offensive running game also tends to get rolling late in the game.)

With the pounding defensive linemen take, you also need interchangeable reserves who can play significant minutes if a starter can only play limited minutes because he's dinged up. And of course, if someone goes down for the season, you better have someone who is ready to come in full time. Think of the ripple effect of Mbakogu's injury, or even Davis' inability to stay healthy the last two years.

If Alualu or Jordan goes down, right now the first guy off the bench is probably sophomore Guyton. Other guys available include Browner, Owusu and Tipoti. All nice players, but none are proven, and none have had significant reps. And they're all second year players except Browner (who's not even listed on the post-spring depth chart).

The Bears only go three deep in terms of experience and will have to slowly integrate the others in. So not only does that mean the defensive line might have trouble adapting

Because the standard of our conference happens to be USC, our abilities to adapt to injury are severely limited. A healthy D-line is simply one ingredient needed to holding our own with the rest of the offensive lines in the conferences, inexperienced or experienced.

via imgs.sfgate.com

Should Cameron Jordan be looking over his shoulder? What could resolve many of these depth issues is the rise of Trevor Guyton this season, who directly challenged Cameron Jordan for his starting spot in camp. Jordan reasserted himself after a weak opening scrimmage though.

Tedford said he has been pleased with Cameron Jordan's reaction to being moved down to the second-team defense. Jordan wasn't playing with enough intensity before, Tedford said, but over the past few days "he got a fire lit under him."

Better to have it happen now than in the middle of the season.

"It's never a good thing, but it's a good thing that he realizes right now what it takes to stay on top of your game -- you never get in a comfort zone or a low performance level," Tedford said. "He got a little wake-up call and the thing about it is he didn't pout about it. He changed his attitude and he's playing much harder."

Trevor Guyton replaced Jordan at first-team defensive end after the team's first scrimmage. Jordan, though, appeared to be working with the ones toward the end of Saturday's evening session.

Trevor Guyton (via grfx.cstv.com)

In either case, the emergence of Guyton, a talented sophomore who should be ready to step into Alualu's shoes by next season, is something to be hopeful about. Right?

Stats, stats, stats....let's take a look at Cal's best D-linemen the past four seasons, and compare how good they were at bringing the ballcarriers down.

The top 4 defensive linemen in 2006
Sacks (26): Tafisi 5.5, Mebane 4, Ma'afala 1
Tackles (917): Mebane 52, Tafisi 32, Ma'afala 23, Alualu 16
TFL (70): Mebane 10, Tafisi 6, Ma'afala 3, Davis 0.5

The top 4 defensive linemen in 2007
Sacks (21): Alualu 2.5, Jones 2.0, Davis 1.5, Malele 1.5
Tackles (1040): Alualu 52, Kane 36, Hill 24, Jones 22
TFL (66): Jones 5, Alualu 3.5, Davis 3, Hill 2

The top 4 defensive linemen in 2008
Sacks (35): Alualu 6, Davis 4, Jordan 4, Hill 0.5
Tackles (970): Alualu 62, Jordan 47, Hill 29, Davis 19
TFL (90): Jordan 11, Alualu 11, Davis 5.5, Hill 2.5


Year	Sack %	Tackles %	TFL %
2006	40.4	13.4	27.9
2007	35.7	12.9	20.5
2008	41.4	16.2	33.3

Cal defensive line production, 2006-2008

You can see that with only three D-linemen on the field in every play, the 2008 team outperformed their 2006 and 2007 counterparts in all three big measures of defensive production . You could look at this as a combination of factors.

1) Fewer rotations or snaps=less fatigue at the line
2) 3-4 alignment puts more onus on linemen to pick up linebacker blitzes and rushes, allowing for defenders to penetrate and get into the backfield.
3) Better talent and better health.

It's probably a combination of all three. But you can see how valuable the defensive line was in the improved 2008 performance, as they picked up a greater amount of slack from the back eight.

Poll

Is Cal's defensive line better than last season?

Much better

41 votes

Somewhat better

132 votes

Same

29 votes

Somewhat worse

7 votes

Much worse

2 votes

211 votes | Poll has closed

What Excites You The Most About Cal Football? (2009 ed.)

Avinash — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 11:00:18 -0000

A few weeks ago, we focused on the Debbie Downer side of Cal football. Would the sky fall on our team's chances from the opening kickoff? Would quarterback, quarterback, quarterback continue to torment us? Would one of those doomsday scenarios that chowder was thinking of here unfold?

Yeah, enough of that. Let's move toward the brighter side of life. Let's figure out what we'll all be looking forward to the most in 2009. I'll talk about three particular units that have me excited this season, and the first one has something to do with some mystical trophy that everyone obsesses over for whatever reason.

via fc03.deviantart.com

(Click here for the image wallpaper of Jahvid Best above!)

Running backs: I'm pretty sure that this has been at the top of every Cal fans's list since 2004. Going into every season since 2004, the run game behind Ron Gould has blossomed into one of the most effiicent in college football. They have placed near or at the top of the Pac-10 every season, often surpassing USC in terms of pure production. Take a look at two of the most common metrics of success in the run game.

Yards/game for Cal run offense
Year	Yards per game	Division I rank
2004	256.75	6th
2005	235.25	9th
2006	162.38	35th
2007	166.77	44th
2008	186.23	28th

Yards/carry for Cal run offense
Year	Yards per carry	Division I rank
2004	6.05	1st
2005	5.84	3rd
2006	4.94	13th
2007	4.92	14th
2008	5.57	5th

It appears with Best entering his junior campaign, the Cal run game is back on the upswing after two good but not great running campaigns. Assuming he gets at least adequate backup from Shane Vereen or Covaughn Deboskie, he should . Anything more would set the Bears offense right on track for 2009, hopefully opening up the passing attack to exploit Pac-10 defenses looking to box in Cal's power run game.

Defensive Line: During the first year of the 3-4 (click for danzig's brief rundown of it), there were indeed significant improvements from 2007 to 2008. Four particular improvements stand out that highlight how important our D-line has been to our rebirth as a defensive stalwart in the Pac-10. First numbers are from 2007, second numbers from 2008.

Rushing yards per carry allowed: 4.02 (59th) to 3.21 (15th)

Rushing yards per game allowed: 164.46 (68th) to 122.23 (26th)

Tackles for loss/game: 5.08 (109th) to 6.92 (18th)

Sacks/game: 1.62 (94th) to 2.69 (14th)

Rulon Davis is gone, but filling in his shoes should be the very capable Cameron Jordan, who showed very promising signs going into next season that he is ready to step into Davis's giant shoes. Rounding out the line with the capable senior Alualu and the developing Derrick Hill at nose tackle, this should be a very strong unit in 2009, and should make up for the losses of the linebackers with additional experience running the 3-4 set.

Secondary: My favorite position. The Bears pass D allowed only 5.8 yards per attempt (10th in the country), completed 51.6% of their passes (4th in the country), and picked off 24 passes (3rd in the country). And guess what? Those stats could possibly be better (or at least the same) this year. EVERYONE is back.

Syd'Quan Thompson and Darian Hagan combined for 36 individual pass in 2009, tying them with Verner/Norris of UCLA as one of the best lockdown corner units in the country. Brett Johnson and Marcus Ezeff aren't quite on their level, but they can certainly tackle well enough. Add in capable reserves in Sean Cattouse, Chris Conte, and Bryant Nnabuife, and it's hard to see Cal's secondary not being second to none in the Pac-10.

What makes you optimistic about 2009 Cal football? Voice your thoughts in the comments!

Poll

Which part of the 2009 Cal football team excites you the most?

Running back

158 votes

Defensive Line

24 votes

Secondary

40 votes

Quarterback

13 votes

Receivers

4 votes

Offensive line

2 votes

LInebackers

10 votes

Special teams

6 votes

Coaching

11 votes

268 votes | Poll has closed

Mack to Cleveland, Follett to Detroit, Morrah to Seattle, Ta'ufo'ou to Chicago, Rulon to Denver, Nick to Carolina, Nate to Miami, Felder to SD

Avinash — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 05:57:43 -0000

via blog.cleveland.com

UPDATE (11:35 AM): Anthony Felder to San Diego!

Scout.com has been told that rookie free agent Anthony Felder has agreed to terms with the San Diego Chargers.

UPDATE (10:35 AM): Nate Longshore has been given an invite to try out with Miami. Hat-tip to Ohio Bear!

Updating a previous report, California QB Nate Longshore will be going to a tryout with the Miami Dolphins instead of the Cincinnati Bengals.

UPDATE (10 AM): I have reports from some website that Nick Sundberg has been signed by the Panthers. Update 12:45 PM--Okanes confirms it.

Danzig has passed this news along after following the wires closely.

Brad Biggs, of the Chicago Sun-Times, reports the Chicago Bears have agreed to terms on a free-agent contract with FB Will Taufoou (California).

Danzig has also gone over to the SBN Chicago Bears blog, Windy City Gridiron to post Will's highlights. Feel free to join him in talking up Ta'ufo'ou!

Thoroughbred also has good news about Rulon. UPDATE (8 AM): Confirmed by Okanes.

Rulon Davis signs with the Broncos. Exactly the right fit for him at SSDE. Very great shot to make the team, given the depth issues the Broncos have…

For Cal fans though, it was perhaps a disappointing draft, considering that we had such high expectations going in as to having several Golden Bears drafted. Rollonubears addressed a concern about having so few prospects getting drafted, and it's worth discussing a little bit in the comments.

This has been a really bad day for Cal. I predict we lose at least 1 potential recruit because of today. A big selling point is the ability to get guys into the NFL. Look at our 3 biggest in conference rivals. They all were in the top 4 for number of players picked. They will use that as a selling point against us. USC obviously has a great reputation in the NFL and their borderline guys will always get drafted. Draft picks mean a lot to recruits. And we only had 3, 2 of those coming in the late 7th round. This day is a setback for the program. A relatively minor one, but still a setback.

I disagreed with this, but maybe other Cal fans think otherwise. So feel free to discuss this in the comments.

Vote in the poll: Do you feel Cal gained or lost anything from the lack of drafted prospects?

After the jump, you'll hear some of the thoughts from the three SBN team blogs that drafted Golden Bears.

via blog.cleveland.com

As the most high profile pick, obviously Alex Mack got the lion's share of the attention. Here's Dawgs by Nature's settled thoughts.

Finally, after all of that ruckus, the Browns settled on selecting C Alex Mack. I love the idea of having Mack, as I stated a couple of days ago in my draft primer. I'm not excited about having to pick him a little earlier than I would've liked, but I'm not going to curse out Kokinis and Mangini for the pick. Hank Fraley was a liability on the line, and now I feel a lot more secure about the development of Brady Quinn heading into this season. We also are in line to have a better line for RB Jamal Lewis to be in front of.

Their simplified dossier on Mack's skills.

A little background on Mack:

2004: Cal red-shirts Mack. 2005: Appears in a back-up role, seeing reps mostly in a mop up duty. 2006-07: Mack starts all 26 games. 2008: He once again starts all 13 games. He wins the Morris Trophy as the best offensive lineman in the Pac-10 (as voted by league's defensive linemen) for the second year in a row, just the third player to receive the award twice.

Simplified scouting report:

6'3 7/8", 311lbs.

Strong with a mean streak

Decent but not elite agility

Over-aggressive if anything in his technique

Personally, I am alright with this pick. I have wanted Mack on the Browns for a while. I love that he didn't drop to the Steelers. I do wonder why we passed on LBs like Rey Maualuga and Clay Matthews III, but at the rate many of them are falling, someone good has got to be there for the 36th pick.

A nice interview of Mack at Cleveland.com (and if you check out the link and read the whole thing you'll find out why he ends up on the ground so much, which it turns out isn't so bad!)

"They put me through a lot," he said. "[Offensive line] coach George Warhop had an offensive line test for me after he tried to teach me stuff. They explained plays to me, distracted me with another interview and then had me come back and see how much I remembered. It was pretty fun."

The test involved filling in Xs and Os to prove he knew the blocking schemes, defensive formations and everyone's assignments.

"I think I missed two [out of about 30 questions]," he said. "I forgot the terminology they use for certain blocks. But I pride myself on being a smart guy."

During his first meeting with the Browns, Mack was put in the pressure cooker by Warhop and other coaches, according to yahoo.com.

"I was on the hot seat," Mack said. "I thought I was going in for a nice chat, and I was completely unprepared. [Warhop] put a play on the screen and started shouting questions, with other people chiming in and murmuring in the background: 'What are you doing on this play? What does the tight end do?' I said, 'I think he's out.' He said, 'You think he's out? Or he is out? Which is it?' It was intense."

But Mack, who earned his degree in legal studies, is working towards his Master's in Education and often brought novels into post-practice ice baths, was up for the mental gymnastics.

via image.examiner.com

Pride of Detroit on the Pain Train.

One position they haven't forgotten about is outside linebacker, as the Lions just drafted another one with the 235th pick. His name is Zack Follett and he played for Cal. It appears that he is a great special teams player based on this scouting reportfrom NFL.com:

Compares To: LARRY IZZO, New York Jets -- Like Izzo, Follett plays like a UFC champion - packs a wallop, but boy can he get out of control. He will at least buy himself time in the NFL based on his stellar special teams play and also as a situational player to disrupt the backfield, but there are a lot of holes in his game, especially in pass coverage. He will likely be on the draft board much longer than most experts predict.

If nothing else it was a fine example of neopolitick, keeping one of the top talents in the draft away from a huge rival.

via cache.gettyimages.com

Finally, Field Gulls on Morrah to Seattle.

Athletic tight end out of Cal. Caught eight touchdowns in just 27 receptions. Might be destined to play wide receiver in the pros. 4.66 forty, 24 reps on the bench, 32.5" vert, 6.99 three cone drill.

Finally, Seattle wrapped it up with three project picks. Nick Reed is a pass rush specialist that needs to get up to NFL speed and NFL size. Courtney Greene is a big upside strong safety that will need time on the practice squad to learn how not be made foolish my NFL offensive coordinators and NFL quarterbacks. Cameron Morrah is an athletic tight end that might play something closer to a wide receiver role in Seattle.

If you have any parting thoughts about the draft, this is the place to voice them!

Poll

How do you feel about only three Golden Bears being drafted?

A major setback in recruiting; young guys are going to say we don't produce talent

21 votes

A minor setback in recruiting; it sucks not having high profile guys up there, but that's just me

121 votes

Not much of an issue; high schoolers don't get influenced by this stuff

24 votes

Who cares? This is about pro teams getting better, not Cal.

16 votes

182 votes | Poll has closed

NFL Draft II Open Thread

Avinash — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 08:39:12 -0000

NFL Draft, Day 2: 10 AM EST, 7 AM PST.

Worrell Williams Highlights from david cutcliff on Vimeo.

Round 1 is up and Alex Mack is on his way to Cleveland, where he will get a chance to duel with old enemies in Rey Maulauga and Keith Rivers at Cincy. It seems around football circles, he was valued more than the highly versatile Duck center Max Unger; Unger wasn't picked until late in the 2nd round to Seattle.

Now we're onto the meat and potatoes. Although the big guns have been hired, the 3rd through 7th rounds can offer so many opportunities at rebuilding a team from the bottom up. Follett and Morrah are the likeliest Bears to be drafted. Worrell, Rulon and Anthony all have shots too. Nate and Will are dark horses. We'll see what happens.

Before clicking through to the comment sections, ponder this question: Which Golden Bear moving on will have the best pro career? Answer this poll and elucidate on your answer in the comments.

After the jump are all the links from yesterday, along with danzig highlight reels for most of the players up for grabs.

Rulon Davis Highlights from bob gregory on Vimeo.

Rulon Davis (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

Interviews: Yahoo Sports, Cal Bears Examiner, The Football Expert, Daily Cal

Profile from Draft Countdown

Strengths: Decent athlete...Great height and bulk...Extremely long arms and big hands...Strong...Powerful tackler...Stout at the point of attack..Does a nice job in pursuit...Has a non-stop motor...Very tough...Hard worker.

Weaknesses: Below average speed and quickness...Is not very explosive and lacks a burst...Raw technician...Not a top pass rusher and repertoire of moves is limited...Durability is a concern...Is older than the average prospect.

Fanbases/teams interested in Rulon: New England, Oakland, Indy, Buffalo (maybe it's just that one fan, fami1y_first who keeps on posting Bears players. Not that I don't mind the coverage...wooo! MORE GOLDEN BEARS IN BUFFALO!)

Wrecking Crew 2008 - Cal's Linebackers from jack bauer on Vimeo.

Zack Follett (click for Remembering the Seniors profile)

Interviews: Daily Cal, Scout, Examiner

Draft Countdown Profile

Strengths:
Very physical with good strength...Reliable tackler...Excellent in pursuit...Does a nice job versus the run...Can take on and shed blockers...Good pass rusher and blitzer...Has a burst to close...Very intense and competitive...A big hitter...Has a non-stop motor...Superb instincts...Hard worker...Tough and durable...Has a lot of special teams potential... Productive and really had a terrific senior campaign.

Weaknesses:
Just average size and bulk...Stiff and not a great athlete...Doesn't play real fast...Has some health and durability concerns...Sub par change of direction skills...Too aggressive at times...Lacks fluid hips...A liability in coverage...Marginal ball skills...Struggles in space ... Limited upside.

Fanbases/teams interested in Follett: San Francisco, Buffalo, Houston, Arizona, Oakland, New Orleans, Indianapolis

Worrell Williams (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

Draft Countdown Profile:

Strengths: Good athleticism...Is quick and agile with a burst...Decent bulk and a solid frame...A reliable tackler...Able to deliver the big hit...Good strength...Works through traffic well...Has a great motor...Intense and competitive...Versatile...Durable and experienced...Good bloodlines.

Weaknesses: Shorter than you'd prefer...Does not have great timed speed...Lacks fluid hips...Average, at best, in coverage...Questionable instincts and awareness...Is too aggressive at times...Has trouble getting off blocks.

Fanbases/teams interested in Worrell: Denver, St. Louis, Cincinnati

Anthony Felder (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

Draft Countdown profile:

Strengths:
Very athletic...Above average speed, agility and quickness...Excellent strength...Reliable tackler...Outstanding range...Intelligent with great instincts and awareness...Smooth in coverage...Offers some positional versatility...Fantastic work ethic...Lots of experience...Still has upside.

Weaknesses:
Does not have the size that you look for...Has trouble taking on and shedding blockers...Marginal pass rush ability...Isn't a big hitter...Does not make many impact plays in coverage...Durability may be an issue.

Fanbases/teams interested in Anthony: Cincinnati

Will Ta'ufo'ou Career Highlights from danzig on Vimeo.

Will Ta'ufo'ou (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

Sports Illustrated Draft Profile:

POSITIVES: Explosive lead blocker who flashes skill handling the ball. Quick off the snap, accelerates into blocks and fundamentally sound. Displays good footwork in pass protection, picks up blitzes and squares into defenders. Gets out front and creates space for running backs. Works hard to finish blocks.

NEGATIVES: Average strength and really does not get much movement run blocking. Looks small for 250 pounds. Rarely asked to handle the ball.

ANALYSIS: Ta'ufo'ou is a hard-working fullback who's also been very effective on special teams in college. He has the skill set to find a home as a number two fullback on a roster, and Ta'ufo'ou presents himself as a special teams demon.

Fanbases/teams interested in Will: Cincinnati

Cameron Morrah (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

Draft Countdown Profile

Strengths:
Very athletic...Good speed and quickness...Soft, reliable hands...Great body control and ball skills...Decent leaper...Runs good routes...Able to separate..Strong...Is not afraid to work the middle...Still has upside.

Weaknesses:
Just average size and bulk...Isn't very elusive and won't do much after the catch...Questionable instincts and awareness...Isn't much of a blocker...Not real tough or physical...Durability...Limited experience.

Fanbases/teams interested in Morrah: Atlanta, Denver, Philadelphia, Detroit, Buffalo (there's a crazy number of Cal fans who are Bills fans too, weird)

Nate Longshore (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

Stories on Longshore: CC Times, Examiner

Tom Schneider (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile): Plus our interview with him! And my old interview with him!

Jordan Kay (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

Poll

Which Golden Bear moving on will have the best pro career?

Nate Longshore

9 votes

Will Ta'ufo'ou

12 votes

Alex Mack

151 votes

Anthony Felder

0 votes

Zack Follett

18 votes

Cameron Morrah

4 votes

Worrell Williams

2 votes

Rulon Davis

1 votes

Another Cal senior

4 votes

201 votes | Poll has closed

NFL Draft Open Thread

Avinash — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 07:30:09 -0000

This post is for discussing this weekend's NFL Draft. If the thread gets huge on Day 1 we can probably split it into two threads for each day. Any NFL fans wandering by after Cal players get drafted are welcome to comment too!

For Cal fans with NFL allegiances, you're free to speculate about which players your team is interested in, who you believe they should pick, how happy or disgusted you are with your team's picks, and how Mel Kiper's hair could be used as a biological weapon.

For those not terribly interested in where everyone ends up but just that they get drafted, this is one last chance to reminicise about seniors. Which senior will you miss the most? Which senior do you think the Bears will miss the most, based on their importance to the team? And is there anything wrong with the draft profiles on our players?

Here are some brief predictions of where some of our players can go by people (i.e. SBNation NFL blogs) who follow this stuff way more closely than me.

After Alex Mack, the jump takes us to the rest of the players who are in the draft mix and see which fanbases have expressed interest in them (the description is more detailed for Mack since he's the only one going on Day 1; after that it becomes essentially a crapshoot).

Alex Mack (click for Remembering the Seniors profile)

via www.calbearsonline.com

Interviews: Scout, Yahoo Sports

Draft Countdown Profile

Strengths:
Ideal size and bulk...Extremely smart...Decent athlete with good agility and quickness...Physical and aggressive...Nasty with a killer instinct and always finishes plays...Great technician who understands angles and leverage...Outstanding awareness...Very strong and powerful and is a monster in the weight room...Above average mobility...Hard worker...Tough and durable... Has a lot of experience.

Weaknesses:
Does not have great balance and spends too much time on the ground...A little stiff in the hips...Not real light on his feet...Shorter arms than you'd prefer...Can be too aggressive at times...Will get out of control ... Susceptible to being overwhelmed by massive defenders

Bruce Feldman

Alex Mack, Cal, C: I know some teams prefer Oregon's Max Unger to Mack in part because the Bear spends too much time on the ground. Some of the Pac-10 defensive tackles I've spoken to in the past say Mack was the better player. My hunch is that Mack will start in the NFL for close to a decade. He is a former standout wrestler with great flexibility and more than enough bulk to anchor the middle.

Fanbases really interested in Mack: Buffalo (don't forget we did an interview with them about Mack), Arizona, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Miami

Fanbases not interested: Seattle, Detroit, Kansas City

Most mock drafts have him going to...Pittsburgh with the 32nd pick (Big Blue View (Giants), Canal Street Chronicles (Saints), Don Banks of SI, Sports Agents Blog, Mocking the Draft, Music City Miracles (Titans), Stampede Blue (Colts), Mile High Report (Broncos), Niners Nation (49ers), Walter Football). Quite pleasing if this happens.

Dark horses: Peter King has him going to Minnesota, which means he's not. Mel Kiper has him in Cincy in the 2nd round, I think. Michael Abromowitz of the Football Expert believes he's the second surest prospect in the draft. Nevertheless, Mike Maycock believes Max Unger is a better pick because of his versatility, or whatever.

Zack Follett (click for Remembering the Seniors profile)

via cdn2.sbnation.com

Interviews: Daily Cal, Scout, Examiner

Draft Countdown Profile

Strengths:
Very physical with good strength...Reliable tackler...Excellent in pursuit...Does a nice job versus the run...Can take on and shed blockers...Good pass rusher and blitzer...Has a burst to close...Very intense and competitive...A big hitter...Has a non-stop motor...Superb instincts...Hard worker...Tough and durable...Has a lot of special teams potential... Productive and really had a terrific senior campaign.

Weaknesses:
Just average size and bulk...Stiff and not a great athlete...Doesn't play real fast...Has some health and durability concerns...Sub par change of direction skills...Too aggressive at times...Lacks fluid hips...A liability in coverage...Marginal ball skills...Struggles in space ... Limited upside.

Fanbases/teams interested in Follett: San Francisco, Buffalo, Houston, Arizona, Oakland, New Orleans, Indianapolis

Cameron Morrah (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

via cache.daylife.com

Draft Countdown Profile

Strengths:
Very athletic...Good speed and quickness...Soft, reliable hands...Great body control and ball skills...Decent leaper...Runs good routes...Able to separate..Strong...Is not afraid to work the middle...Still has upside.

Weaknesses:
Just average size and bulk...Isn't very elusive and won't do much after the catch...Questionable instincts and awareness...Isn't much of a blocker...Not real tough or physical...Durability...Limited experience.

Fanbases/teams interested in Morrah: Atlanta, Denver, Philadelphia, Detroit, Buffalo (there's a crazy number of Cal fans who are Bills fans too, weird)

Rulon Davis (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

via cdn1.sbnation.com

Interviews: Yahoo Sports, Cal Bears Examiner, The Football Expert, Daily Cal

Profile from Draft Countdown

Strengths: Decent athlete...Great height and bulk...Extremely long arms and big hands...Strong...Powerful tackler...Stout at the point of attack..Does a nice job in pursuit...Has a non-stop motor...Very tough...Hard worker.

Weaknesses: Below average speed and quickness...Is not very explosive and lacks a burst...Raw technician...Not a top pass rusher and repertoire of moves is limited...Durability is a concern...Is older than the average prospect.

Worrell Williams (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

via cache.daylife.com

Draft Countdown Profile:

Strengths: Good athleticism...Is quick and agile with a burst...Decent bulk and a solid frame...A reliable tackler...Able to deliver the big hit...Good strength...Works through traffic well...Has a great motor...Intense and competitive...Versatile...Durable and experienced...Good bloodlines.

Weaknesses: Shorter than you'd prefer...Does not have great timed speed...Lacks fluid hips...Average, at best, in coverage...Questionable instincts and awareness...Is too aggressive at times...Has trouble getting off blocks.

Fanbases/teams interested in Worrell: Denver, St. Louis, Cincinnati

Will Ta'ufo'ou (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

via www.dailycal.org

Sports Illustrated Draft Profile:

POSITIVES: Explosive lead blocker who flashes skill handling the ball. Quick off the snap, accelerates into blocks and fundamentally sound. Displays good footwork in pass protection, picks up blitzes and squares into defenders. Gets out front and creates space for running backs. Works hard to finish blocks.

NEGATIVES: Average strength and really does not get much movement run blocking. Looks small for 250 pounds. Rarely asked to handle the ball.

ANALYSIS: Ta'ufo'ou is a hard-working fullback who's also been very effective on special teams in college. He has the skill set to find a home as a number two fullback on a roster, and Ta'ufo'ou presents himself as a special teams demon.

Fanbases/teams interested in Will: Cincinnati

Anthony Felder (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

via blog.oregonlive.com

Draft Countdown profile:

Strengths:
Very athletic...Above average speed, agility and quickness...Excellent strength...Reliable tackler...Outstanding range...Intelligent with great instincts and awareness...Smooth in coverage...Offers some positional versatility...Fantastic work ethic...Lots of experience...Still has upside.

Weaknesses:
Does not have the size that you look for...Has trouble taking on and shedding blockers...Marginal pass rush ability...Isn't a big hitter...Does not make many impact plays in coverage...Durability may be an issue.

Fanbases/teams interested in Anthony: Cincinnati

Nate Longshore (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

Stories on Longshore: CC Times, Examiner

Tom Schneider (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile): Plus our interview with him! And my old interview with him!

Jordan Kay (Click for Remembering the Seniors Profile)

Poll

Which departing Cal player will you miss the most?

Nate Longshore

17 votes

Alex Mack

48 votes

Zack Follett

96 votes

Cameron Morrah

1 votes

Rulon Davis

2 votes

Worrell Williams

2 votes

Will Ta'ufo'ou

20 votes

Anthony Felder

4 votes

Jordan Kay

1 votes

Tom Schneider

2 votes

Another senior (Sean Young, Norris Malele, Nick Sundberg, etc.)

2 votes

195 votes | Poll has closed

Remembering the Seniors: Rulon Davis

HydroTech — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 11:30:10 -0000

via www.thefootballexpert.com

We thought we should go senior by senior and take a gander at their Cal career. Some photos. Some videos. Some stats. And if HydroTech has any personal stories of his time with the team, he'd share them. We did Nate Longshore months ago, because Twist screwed up the scheduling. Also, he's so dreamy! And we just did Alex Mack. And, then, Will Ta'ufo'ou. And then Jordan Kay. And then Anthony Felder.

Today, we do Rulon Davis.

TwistnHook: Well, ultimately, many people's memories of Rulon might be little more than him writhing in pain on the ground. But I'll tell you, my #1 memory of him is looking across the field at FanFest 2007 and seeing him stand next to the absurdly diminutive HydroTech. THE GUY IS HUGE! Maybe that's why he always injured himself. No human being could be that size without something going wrong! Epic(k) beast!

But alas, although he could probably eat HydroTech, he couldn't outrun the injury bug and his Cal career will be more "What If?" than "What amazement!"

YellowFever: I think my most vivid memory of Rulon, as it were, is not knowing that he was black until this past season. I read all the injury reports last year about how he was out for this game or that game, and what a force he would be if he were healthy, but he never was.

As for why I thought Rulon Davis would be a white name, well, that Rulon Gardner guy is the only other Rulon I'd ever heard of. Come to think of it, it is strange to think of a white guy with the name Rulon.

Avinash: For the most explosive and talented of athletes, college football is all about learning to turn pro. It's about recognizing not only whether you have the all-around skills to suceed, but the will, the desire to get up every morning and work out to the fullest. For guys like Follett and

Not Rulon. He was a man before he even suited up in blue and gold, a Marine who'd seen the places most of us only hear about us through the news. While others were learning to grow up under Tedford, Davis had already seen more than most of us on this blog will probably witness in our lifetime. Rulon was a pro already, someone who inspired by presence alone. You weren't going to have to worry about him suffering from growing pains.

In the same way, that ability to be a pro should have towered him over the competition; like Hydrotech stated, he could dominate his own teammates. But unfortunately his physical gifts never could reach their peak because the power could only be harnessed in practice. Danzig's video provides more moments rather than narrative. Davis's video shows the type of pro athlete he can be, if only he could have stayed healthy as a Bear. But we can only capture the flashes.

The following is a small collection of HydroTech's memories of Rulon Davis:

It was a hot summer day at Memorial Stadium. The sun was still high overhead in the mid afternoon and it was scorching. On a hot day in Berkeley, 80s is warm and nice. But on a hot day in Berkeley, 80s isn't so warm and nice when you're a football player and out in the sun for an hour running drills. The players were sweating. I was sweating. Everyone looked glistened with sweat and smelled like roses.

In Memorial Stadium, only the defensive linemen practiced. It was summer and thus the coaches weren't around. The players practiced alone under the guidance of the seniors and upper-classmen. It seemed like the D-line was always practicing. Sometimes the DL was joined by the OL, but for the most part, it seemed like that summer I was always out burning to crisp in the sun with the DL. I picked up a very nice dark tan that summer - on my arms, face and legs. The rest of me was still whiter than Nicole Kidman. My friends call it a "farmer tan."

That day was like most summer days. I watched the DL guys practice their hand techniques. I watched the DL weave in and out of big overturned plastic trash cans. I watched them defend themselves from imaginary cut-blocks. I watched them practice their "get-offs." I watched them practice their alignments and shifts. There was a lot of repitition. I figured it must get a little boring with so much repition against nobody.

While that day was a usual day in the respect that the DL was doing their usual thing, that day something pecular also happened.

A figure emerged from the tunnels and began slowly stalking down the steps to the field.

While most football players strike the normal, or average person as big, this figure was even bigger. He was tall, large, and very muscular.

Of course, being a part of the Cal Football staff, I immediately knew who he was even though we had never met and this was the first time I had seen him in person. I wasn't sure if the players knew who he was though.

He came down to the field by the north tunnel where the DL was practicing and walked up to the D-Line. For a brief moment, everyone appeared to size each other up. The DL gave him a quick glance and he quickly gave them a brief size-up. Then he struck a wide friendly smile, stuck out his right hand to the nearest D-Lineman and greeted them.

via imgs.sfgate.com

His name was Rulon Davis. He said, "Hi, I'm Rulon," in a big deep voice. He shook hands with every single one of the players. He made sure to smile and look them in the eye. He started with the players furthest away from and worked his way to me.

As he got to the last player in front of me, he gave me a glance. It was somewhat awkward. He didn't know what to do. He didn't know if he should greet me or not. Clearly, he was there to meet the players - his new teammates. I clearly didn't look to bet a player since I wasn't 6'2" 290 lbs (I guess I need some HGH). But he had just greeted and introduced himself to everyone else there, and so it would seem a little rude to leave me out. In that fleeting moment of uncertainty, Rulon decided not to greet me. He sure did think about it though. Our eyes met. You could see the indecision in his eyes. He still gave me a big friendly smile of acknowledgment and I gave him a smile back too.

I wasn't offended by Rulon not introducing himself to me. He didn't need to. I already knew who he was. As I would get to know Rulon later on, I would find out he's an extremely friendly and nice guy, and that his abstinance from greeting me was out of uncertainty rather than intentional rudeness.

That was the day the D-Line and I met Rulon Davis. Unfortunately, that wouldn't be the day he actually joined the team.

Later that day, when the team (or what players were there for summer conditioning drills) was doing some conditioning, Rulon again slowly came down the steps of Memorial Stadium from the interior tunnels. The team was already in the middle of their conditioning drills with Coach K (strength and conditioning coach). Being the polite and well-mannered guy that Rulon is, he asked if he could join the drills.

Coach K was uncertain of who he was, so there was a brief moment of introducing and explanation. Rulon saying he was a junior college transfer, and Coach K saying he was the conditioning coach and such. But there are NCAA rules to be followed and Coach K wasn't sure if Rulon was truly eligible yet to join the team in team drills so Coach K told him he should probably couldn't do conditioning until everything was positively squared away.

So Coach K turned Rulon away. You could see the frustration in Rulon's eyes. He only wanted to be a part of the team. He wanted to merely spend time with the players and his future teammates. He wanted to get to know the players and be "one of the guys." He was itching to just do something football related to get in shape for the upcoming season. With a quick mind, Rulon asked if he could do the same drills by himself away from the team on the other side of the field. This sounded like a reasonable compromise to me. Rulon certainly wouldn't exactly be "with the team" and he could easily follow the conditioning drills by watching the players from afar. Yet Coach K, being cautious, said No.

Thus, Rulon was turned away for good until Coach K was given the green light by the administration that Rulon could truly join the team and participate in their summer conditioning. As Rulon walked away, he turned his head briefly with a furrowed brow and glared at Coach K. Rulon took a seat on the gold aluminum benches on the west sideline. His face was full of frustration and anger. He seemed genuinely mad at Coach K for turning him away.

Like I said, and it was very obvious, Rulon just wanted to join his team. He just wanted to start being with the guys, meeting the guys, practicing with them, and being "one of the guys." And to be there with them, to see them, and to be told that he couldn't be one of them yet was heartbreaking and maddening. Rulon's anger and frustration stems from his seriousness and intensity. He's a very serious and intense guy on the football field. This would become very apparent on the practice field.

Rulon was easily the most noticeable new guy that year. Not only because of his height and size, but because of his vocal battle-cries. During the first few practices of that season, those vocal battle-cries really stood out and became the center of the team's attention. When Rulon faced off against the offense in full on 11 on 11s, the entire team would be watching him.

via www.dailycal.org

There was something unique about his style which made him intimidating beyond merely his size. Perhaps it was the way he crouched in his 3 point stance. It was somewhat of an odd visual paradox to see a man that big get that low and small just prior to the snap. His off-hand would flutter a bit. His feet would re-position themselves into the turf to find the most secure spot to push off. And his eyes, the way his eyes got big prior to the snap as he eyed the QB behind the OL; eyes full of concentration and screaming the thoughts in his mind - GET THE QUARTERBACK.

When the ball would snap, he'd burst out of his stance and let off a huge muscular battle-cry slash exertion man-grunt.

The players laughed. It was rather funny. Nobody else on the team yelled out exertion grunts that loud. Nobody else on the team had exertion grunts which also were quasi battle-cries. But soon, those laughs at Rulon's oddities turned into laughs of amazement and fear. It soon became apparent that Rulon was extremely strong.

One day early on in the season, Rulon lined up against left tackle Andrew Cameron. The entire team took notice - especially the OL. If anyone could stand up to Rulon's sheer size and strength it was the starting left tackle, team leader, and veteran senior. Cameron showed no fear, only concentration. This was the battle of the day. It was as if the two best players were about to face off and everyone wanted to know who would prevail. Could Cameron be the one to stop the massive new defensive beast? The quarterback snapped the ball. Rulon burst out of his stance letting out his usual attention-getting grunt/battle-cry. And in what seemed to be a slow yet fast second, Rulon had powered his way inside and through of Cameron to get early pressure on the QB. In the resulting few seconds, what just happened settled into the minds of the players.

I'm sure it was something along the lines of "wow," or perhaps "oh sh!t."

The OL had just seen their fearless leader and most respected player get beat quickly and fairly easily. The realization of their collective fate for the next three years seemed to sink into their minds. Yes, they were the ones who would have to face off against Rulon in practices from now on.

Facing off against Rulon began to be somewhat of a spectacle. When the OL and DL would join together during in-season practices for 1 on 1s, everyone stopped to watch Rulon face off against his man.

Veterans were getting beat and overpowered. They were left shaking their heads in disbelief and muttering small excuses like "he's just too strong." On one hilarious occasion, Rulon beat one backup offensive lineman with a quick sideways shove after the snap. That player returned to his fellow offensive linemen stunned and in disbelief. "Did you just see what happened?" He asked in amazement. "He literally just picked me up with one hand and threw me aside!" And yes, it did pretty much just happen like that. Rulon moved a 300 pound man with pretty much one arm. It was insane. It was amazing. It was funny. It was scary.

When it become apparent that even the seniors, veterans, and starters couldn't always stop Rulon, it made watching Rulon face off against the freshman hilarious. If you could ever cut fear with a knife, it was when Rulon faced off against the freshmen in 1 on 1s. Fear filled the air. Defeat filled the eyes of one of the freshman tackles. Fellow offensive linemen would root on the young guys to give them support after sensing the fear and realization of defeat. The young offensive linemen would almost always get beat badly, and when they didn't get beat badly, they'd only get beat. It was a massacre. It was like that one episode of Myth Busters when they used a minigun to shoot a fish in a barrel. It was ugly. It was uglier than Amy Winehouse. It was crazy. It was crazier than the 49ers drafting Alex Smith over Aaron Rodgers. It made practices fun and enjoyable. It made me laugh and smile; the same way I laugh and smile when baby seals get clubbed.

While Rulon did have a serious side, he also had playful side. It rarely showed around the football field because he was always so serious, but I do remember one day in practice the D-Linemen were showing off to each other their favorite moves (like swim moves, rips, etc.). Rulon watched as Malele showed his favorite move, and Mebane showed off his. Rulon, in a moment of bragging, then told the guys that he had to show them his favorite move in community college that netted him so many sacks. So Rulon lined up as a defensive end and (Matt) Malele lined up as an offensive tackle. One of the other DL guys lined up where the QB was to simulate a drop and step-up-into-the-pocket. Upon the snap, Rulon burst out of his stance. Malele dropped back to pass block and put up his arms in preparation to push Rulon back. Rulon then brought both of his hands up above his head, and brought them down on the top of Malele's arms in a massive downward hammer to chop them down. Somehow, Malele saw this coming and thwarted the effort, managed to get Rulon's hands off of him, and stymie Rulon with a shove. All the DL guys burst out laughing with Rulon's failure after he had talked himself up only a few moments before. Rulon had a sheepish look on his face and broke a smile himself at the irony of the situation. It was a good laugh and great to see Rulon was befriending his teammates.

Reveling in Victory

CBKWit — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 01:48:43 -0000

Or, perhaps more appropriately, Shivering in Victory. The associated press calls this game "Berkeley's worst game-day rainstorm in a decade." I'm not sure if it was any worse than last year's USC game, which was definitely colder, but it was close. Regardless, I feel a lot better now than I did after USC last year, and I doubt any Cal fans are complaining about the win. And besides, RemorsefulBruinBabe reports that the ESPN crew gave a nice shout out to those of us who toughed it out in the rain: "If you are still in the stands right now [~45 seconds left in the game], you are a great fan."

There were 8 turnovers in the game, not including a snap out of the endzone for our long coveted safety (finally! it seemed impossible that the refs could call anything else, but I was holding my breath and looking for a flag). It was a pretty volatile game with a number of rapid, intense swings, especially in the second quarter as the teams tried to out-turnover each other. Yet the biggest play of the game wasn't one of our four (!) lost fumbles, or even Worrell's huge interception at the end of the second half. In a game full of huge plays, the biggest was a 5 yard false start.

via www.dkimages.com

He's no Ed Hochuli

Oregon had cut the deficit to 3 on an embarrassingly easy touchdown drive (3 plays, all of them runs of more than 15 yards) in the third quarter. After a Cal 3 & out, Oregon marched right down the field and was poised to take their first lead since the opening touchdown. But on 3rd and 1 from the Cal 10, an Oregon player jumped early, one of only four duck penalties for 36 yards on the day. The 5 yard penalty made it 3rd and 6 instead of 3rd and 1, and their third down QB draw netted only 3 yards. On the next play, kicker Matt Eversen missed a 29 yard field goal.

Cal would manage only one first down on the next drive, but Oregon fumbled the punt return and resident Duck assassin Marcus Ezeff recovered at the Oregon 6.

via imgs.sfgate.com

Sorry duck fans, he's only a junior.

Cal scored 2 plays later to make it 26-16. What looked like a duck touchdown drive and a 23-19 Oregon lead became a Cal touchdown less than five minutes later. The false start, and the fourteen point swing which ensued, determined the game.

Of course, recovering fumbles (and intercepting passes) is only part of the story. Teams need to be able to capitalize on opposing turnovers, and Cal, despite losing the turnover battle by two, was the victor in this area. Of the three Oregon turnovers, two (the Williams interception immediately before halftime and the Ezeff fumble recovery) led to quick Cal touchdowns. The Oregon very-long snapper gave Cal 2 more points on the long awaited safety. The only turnover that Cal did not convert into a score was a second quarter interception by Sean Cattouse deep in Cal territory, immediately following one of Jahvid Best's two fumbles. Oregon, on the other hand, capitalized on the early Riley INT for a touchdown, but failed to score after any of Cal's 4 (!) lost fumbles, including the aforementioned Best fumble at the Cal 17. That's a 16-6 Cal advantage (Oregon missed the extra point following their touchdown) and, not surprisingly, the Cal margin of victory.

This was a nice victory over a decent conference opponent, which puts Cal back into the conference race for exactly 1 week. Win at USC next Saturday and Cal is in great shape to win the Pac and go to the Rose Bowl. Do I expect this to happen? No, considering the injuries and ineffectiveness of our offense (when Best was on the bench, presumably due to his 2 fumbles, we were down 6 of our 11 offensive starters - Riley, Best, Calvin, Guarnero, Malele, & Tepper, and 7 if you count Teofilo instead of Schwartz) and our less than stellar road appearances. If we get some of our offensive players back (namely Riley and some modicum of depth on the o-line), we'll have a shot against a USC sqaud that has seemed vulnerable at times (not today, though: 49-0 USC after three. Then again, it is the Huskies).

Regardless of the outcome next week, there were plenty of encouraging signs today. Nasty Nate did not throw ANY interceptions (not even a back-breaking fourth quarter INT just for fun) and our receivers did a much better job of catching the ball, all the more surprising since they were playing in a bit of a rainstorm. Our defense continues to look very, very strong (at home), creating turnovers and for the most part (excepting two drives in the 3rd quarter) making life tough for the duck running game. Our three senior linebackers all made huge plays (as they do pretty much every week) and Syd was generally Syd. Perhaps most encouraging to me, defensively, is the continued strong play from Cameron Jordan and Darian Hagan. Jordan has looked good for a while, but he's been great since taking over for Rulon Davis. I think we're getting more production from his defensive end position than we did before Rulon's injury. At cornerback, Hagan keeps breaking up passes and making strong tackles in run support. Both of these guys are rock solid right now and look like potential stars: Hagan looks better than Syd did at the beginning of last year (GULP I STILL LOVE YOU SYD) and Jordan is our most explosive defensive end since Ryan Riddle in 2004. And they're both sophomores.

via graphics.fansonly.com & grfx.cstv.com

That said, the biggest surprise to me was our offensive line. I was not confident in our chances today, and much of that hinged on our banged up o-line: we were missing our 1st, 3rd, and 4th offensive tackles and our top 2 guards, which would be damaging in any game but especially so against the top pass rush in the conference. Aside from one play when all-conference DE Nick Reed destroyed LT Mitchell Schwartz and blind-sided Nasty Nate, the offensive line gave our QBs enough time to throw and opened up some holes for our running backs. Our O line hasn't been consistently great this year, but they stepped up to the challenge and then some today.

GO BEARS! All aboard the Pain Train!

via d.yimg.com

Poll

USC Week! How do you think Cal will do against USC?

Blowout victory over USC!

35 votes

Close victory over USC

141 votes

Close loss by Cal

151 votes

Blowout loss by Cal

85 votes

USC forfeit

50 votes

462 votes | Poll has closed

Cal vs MSU: A second look

CBKWit — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 11:34:18 -0000

Watching a game live, drunk, and having only a sun-soaked video monitor with fewer pixels than an iphone to watch replays, you tend to miss a few things. I decided to re-watch the game in hopes of answering a few lingering questions (Did Sundberg blow that snap? No, it went right through Anger's hands. Were Nasty Nate's interceptions as bad as they seemed? No, they were worse.). Beer helped my write some truly insightful insights in my notebook, like "SYD'BONER" after this play:

Syd's hit wasn't the only thing hard.

Thanks to zoonews, I also discovered the beauty of Tivo's 8 second rewind button and slow motion replay, but a word of caution to you slowmoers out there: before watching the same screen shots 7 times in an effort to grab a player's number, see if another replay from a better angle immediately follows. It will save you several minutes and some dignity.

Here's what I saw upon closer inspection:

1) Cal's pass rush was a lot better than it seemed.

No, Cal didn't record a sack. Zero sacks won't cut it for much of the season, and after hyping the Cal D-Line for the last 6 months I was pretty disappointed that they didn't make me look good. But even though they never dropped Hoyer for a loss, the Cal pass rush applied consistent pressure from the first drive (Rulon Davis @ 11:07 left in the first quarter) to the last (both Defensive Ends @ 0:27 left in the fourth quarter).

In general, blitzing (especially up the middle) wasn't as effective as I would have hoped, though a Worrell Williams inside blitz at 0:15 in the second quarter caused Hoyer's ill-advised interception to Syd'Boner Thompson. On the other hand, Cal was often able to pressure Hoyer rushing only three down linemen, such as the pass with 0:27 left in the fourth. Hoyer spent much of the game fading away and throwing off his back foot due to the pass rush, which led to a few completions, many incompletions, and the aforementioned interception. Against less experienced quarterbacks that hold the ball longer (Hoyer is a 5th year senior), this pressure will cause sacks.

This probably won't come as a revelation, but the D-Line and outside linebackers also did a great job playing the run. Rulon Davis and Tyson Alualu repeatedly beat MSU tackles, penetrating upfield to snuff out run plays (for those of you with the torrent, look at 5:45 in the 1st & 5:15 in the 3rd). Eddie Young in particular did a fantastic job stringing run plays to the outside; watch him take out two blockers at the 4 minute mark in the 1st quarter. Both outside linebackers played very close to the line of scrimmage for much of the game, effectively playing a 3-4/5-2 hybrid and making it difficult for Ringer to turn the corner.

2) Keith Browner is a beast

After watching Cameron Jordan and Ernest Owusu at defensive end during spring practice, I was sure they would make an immediate impact. But Jordan was suspended for a DUI two weeks ago and Owusu was largely invisible. Instead, redshirt sophomore Keith Browner, not even listed in the two deep, was everywhere in limited minutes. He played well on MSU's two minute drive before halftime aside from jumping offsides at around 1:10. He penetrated the MSU O-Line to stuff a run with 50 seconds left in the third, and snuffed out a screen at 14:44 to go in the fourth. I'm excited to see what Jordan can do against WSU this weekend, but Browner may be the biggest surprise so far.

3) Nate looked worse on TV

The first throw to Morrah was right on the money, but his mechanics were bad. Instead of stepping up into the pocket (as Riley did all night), he was nearly parallel to the line of scrimmage as he flung the ball across his body. It showed good arm strength, but you want to use your body to throw the ball, not fight against it.

The first interception didn't look terrible in person, as Wiley hid behind another defender before Nate released the ball. What I didn't notice in person was a second defender coming across the field behind Wiley; if Wiley hadn't picked it, I think the other defender would have at least batted it down, and if you probably shouldn't throw into double coverage in the red zone. For the second interception, I wrote "Abysmal pass 5 yards behind. Horrible." I should have included "into quadruple coverage."

The one silver lining, especially to someone sitting on the east side of the stadium and probably to pussies like HydroTech and BearsNecessity (kidding!), was that the boos were much less noticeable on TV than they were in person. After a few seconds of grumbling, the mic men started a stadium wide "Go Bears" chant that was very clear and much louder than the boos. Thanks, mic men, for preventing us from looking like the douchebags that we are.

4) Conservative offensive gameplan

More than half of the passes thrown by Riley were swings, screens, or quick drops with only one read. The third down pass on our first series (9:05 in the 1st) was a 4 yard clear out for Best when we needed 8 yards. The coaches obviously wanted to keep things simple for Riley in his first start; his job was to take care of the ball and not lose the game. I expect the coaches to open things up very gradually over the next three games in order to keep building Riley's confidence and comfort leading the offense; we probably won't need Riley to be a hero to win the next three games, but we will need the entire playbook to beat ASU.

Interestingly, Nate's first interception came on a more complicated pattern, as Nate attempted to look off defenders to the left and throw back across the middle. Nate has more experience, and the coaches seemed more comfortable opening up the playbook for him. I doubt they're as comfortable with him now.

5) We miss Craig Stevens

I've been worried about our blocking from the tight end position all year, and we've got a ways to go until it's ironed out. Tad Smith whiffed on a block at the 1:40 mark of the second quarter, but Best somehow made something out of nothing and got to the corner for a touchdown. With 1:40 remaining in the fourth quarter, Cal had a 2nd and 6 around midfield and needed a first down to run out the clock. Cameron Morrah was destroyed by Greg Jones (the Spartans top linebacker, it bears mentioning) and Best was tackled for a 5 yard loss. If Morrah gets a good block at this point, we might be looking at a 3rd and 3 instead of a 3rd and 11 and may not have to give the ball back to the Spartans.

6) We don't miss Brian De La Puente

This isn't to denigrate De La Puente, our graduated left guard, in any way. He was all Pac-10 honorable mention last year and made the Chiefs roster as a free agent. But watching Chris Guarnero in his first start, it's clear why the Cal coaches moved him from backup center into a starting position with Mack returning for his senior year. He had a nice weakside block with 7 seconds left in the first quarter and a couple other strong blocks early in the second (14:15 & 11:48) before being beaten at 10:30 to force a punt.

At 3:05 left in the second, we saw our present and future centers open a HUGE hole for Best, who might have gone for a touchdown if he had not run into Sean Young. And at 3:00 in the 4th, Guarnero cleared out the strong side for Best's Marshawn bodyslam run.

Twist sleeps with this photo under his pillow

via www.goldenbearsports.com

Along with Mitchell Schwartz, who also had a strong game and helped spring Shane Vereen on his 80 yard TD run, the future of our offensive line looks bright.

7) Those misdirection goal-line plays were awesome

Yeah, they looked awesome in person but they were even better on replay. The first TD pass to Cameron Morrah at the 6 minute mark in the third quarter completely froze stud OLB Greg Jones. Jones looked in every direction as Morrah released into the endzone for an easy score. Of course, Jones got his revenge later on the aforementioned 5 yard loss, but Morrah (and really Cignetti) won this round.

The second TD pass built on the first one. Morrah ran a similar route but this time brought the outside man (in this case a safety) with him...allowing Ta'ufo'ou to release from the backfield untouched into the vacated area. Although Forsett up the middle for no gain was a favorite of mine, I think I'll get used to Cignetti's goal-line offense.

8) Terrible play that was worse on TV

With 3:15 left in the 4th, MSU had the ball in Cal territory down 14. Hoyer threw to Dell in the middle of the field between three Cal defenders. Syd went for the pick and missed, and Hicks gave a half hearted shoulder shove which Dell easily bounced shook off. He went in for the touchdown to make it a one possession game. In this situation, all you're really concerned about is tackling the guy in bounds and not giving up a big play. Thompson and Hicks, our two most experienced defensive backs, barely attempted a tackle between the two of them and let MSU back into the game.

9) Terrible play that wasn't as bad on TV

True freshman linebacker Mychal Kendricks kept a 97 yard MSU scoring drive alive with a roughing the punter penalty at 12:00 in the fourth. From the stands, it looked like Kendricks hesitated before deciding to shove the MSU punter to the ground, but on closer inspection it appears his momentum carried him into the punter. Still a terrible play, but not as blatant as I first thought.

10) Great play that wasn't as good on TV

Darian Hagan's spectacular interception simultaneous catch at 5:35 in the fourth would have been a pick if he had used his hands to grab the ball, instead of trying to cradle it with his body. Still a great break on the ball, but an interception beats a 50 yard completion.

11) Great play that was better on TV

TIE. Riley's pass to Morrah while being dragged down on 3rd and 13 (7:15 in the 4th) was phenomenal, but what I didn't see at the time was how nice of a spiral and how strong of a throw it was. It may have looked like a desperation pass (and it was), but it was thrown with a clear plan and purpose, and with a surprising amount of arm strength.

The inside wide receiver screen to Sean Young on 3rd & long with 9:15 in the 4th was beautifully executed. Sean Young did a great job weaving in and out of traffic, but it was the downfield blocking, particularly by Noris Malele, that made it possible.

Go Bears!