2011 California Golden Bears Football Preview

The good news in Strawberry Canyon is that Cal football is better than it was before Jeff Tedford arrived. The bad news is that the program is lurching toward the substandard level of performance that led Tedford to be hired in the first place.

When Tedford came aboard to lead the Golden Bears after serving as Mike Bellotti’s offensive coordinator at Oregon, Cal went from being a moribund dead-end of a program to a major player in the Pac-10. Cal defeated USC in 2003, giving the Trojans their only conference loss over a three-season span (from 2003 through 2005). Cal battled those very same Trojans on even terms in 2004 before falling in the final seconds on the road in Los Angeles. In the 2006 season, Tedford’s troops fought USC tooth and nail into the fourth quarter but then ran out of gas. For a number of years, Cal couldn’t grab the brass ring but produced solid seasons that made football a strong part of the school’s athletic program.

Now, that level of quality is nowhere to be found. No one in college football has been more bipolar over the past few seasons than the Golden Bears. In 2007, after beginning the year 5-0, and needing just one win over unranked Oregon State to take hold of a number-one ranking, the Bears fell at home to the Beavers and lost six of their last seven regular-season games. The next season, the Bears lost each time (four) that they entered the top 25. In 2009, sixth-ranked Cal was blown out in back-to-back weeks by Oregon (42-3) and USC (30-3). Last year was every bit as symbolic: The Bears played Pac-10 champion and eventual BCS title game participant Oregon to the final possession while getting dominated by Stanford (48-14) a week later. Tedford, outcoached in big games during his jousts with USC, has not been able to continue what he started in the heady days of 2003 through 2006. The folks in Berkeley want some consistency.

Unfortunately, California is the only Pac-12 school not named UCLA which currently has questions at the quarterback position. Buffalo transfer Zach Maynard looks to be the guy. Maynard emerged from a three-way quarterback battle and will lead the Bears into action. California returns seven starters on offense and Tedford is back calling the plays. The defense has quite a bit of young talent and the Bears will ask more from them than what they are probably ready to give at this early stage. Just five starters return on defense, led by All-Pac 10 performer Mychal Kendricks.

The Bears will be playing their home games at Candlestick Park while their home ballyard, Memorial Stadium, is renovated. A non-league game with Fresno State to open the season will show us how close California is to a comeback. Games versus Oregon and USC in consecutive weeks in October will test the Bears’ mettle. Road contests at Stanford and Arizona State to close the season will be difficult as well.

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