Judgment day

Judge Barbara Miller of Alameda County has exhausted her 90 days to make her ruling — the decision’s deadline is today.  If UC wins, the injunction preventing the construction of the new facilities needed desperately by Cal Athletics should be lifted.  If UC loses, the student-athlete high performance center and stadium renovation projects will be again delayed.

There are reports from the “front lines:” protesters camping out, news vans swarming, and UC lining up equipment trucks to finish removing the tree-sitters and begin construction immediately after the ruling. As a side note, Cal has had the authority to remove the tree-sitters for some time but has waited until yesterday to begin the removal process.

Updates will follow throughout the day.

9:30am: Confirmed sightings so far: cherry picker (a big crane).   Possible sightings: excavators (!)

9:45am: If you’re interested, you can access the court documents here (case number RG06301644).

3:25pm: No word from the judge yet — most speculation is pointing to a 5pm (court closing time) decision.  Meanwhile, the UC crews are reportedly cutting down the support lines between the trees, as the protesters scream threats and obscenities.  Here is a short YouTube clip of the scene.

5:15pm: “There are no judgments.”  No word yet.  Apparently, Cal may have a press conference at 7pm.  The suspense is killer.

NFL Draft wrap-up

This weekend, the Bears had six players taken in the NFL draft. Here is a tabulated summary of the action:

WR DeSean Jackson	Round 2	18th pick (49th overall)	Philadelphia Eagles
TE Craig Stevens	Round 3	22nd pick (85th overall)	Tennessee Titans
S Thomas DeCoud	Round 3	35th pick (98th overall)	Atlanta Falcons
WR Lavelle Hawkins	Round 4	27th pick (126th overall)	Tennessee Titans
OG Mike Gibson	Round 6	18th pick (184th overall)	Philadelphia Eagles
RB Justin Forsett	Round 7	26th pick (233th overall)	Seattle Seahawks
WR Robert Jordan	Undrafted	Signed Free-Agent	San Francisco 49ers

With respect to the number of players taken in the draft by school, Cal was exceeded by only USC (10), Virginia Tech (8), and LSU (7) — all teams who were in the BCS this past post-season. Arkansas and Michigan also had six players drafted. Overall, a great showing in the draft — it will be great to see more Bears representing Cal in the NFL.

Regarding free agent signings: WR Robert Jordan was picked up immediately after the draft by the local 49ers. OL Brian De La Puente was signed by the 49ers as well.

CONFIRMED 5/1: K Tom Schneider, who completed his degree, will play one more season at Division II North Alabama to prove himself to the NFL.

Media Links

• DeSean Jackson: Conference Call, Locker Room Visit, Pat’s Steaks Visit, Press Conference
• Craig Stevens: Conference Call, Quotes
• Thomas DeCoud: Interview, Press release
• Lavelle Hawkins: Conference Call, Quotes, ESPN draft coverage (Cris Carter negative, Mel Kiper positive)
• Mike Gibson: Conference Call
• Justin Forsett: Press release

Stevens, DeCoud picked in 3rd round

TE Craig Stevens was selected by the Tennessee Titans with the 22nd pick of the 3rd round (85th). Later in the round, S Thomas DeCoud was selected 35th (98th overall) by the Atlanta Falcons.

Congratulations to these two seniors, as they were picked at the higher end of draft predictions.

EDIT: WR Lavelle Hawkins will join Stevens at Tennessee — he was selected in the 4th round (126th overall) by the Titans, the first receiver among the Titans’ picks.

EDIT: RB Justin Forsett has been picked in the 7th round (233rd overall) by the Seattle Seahawks.

NFL draft today: projections

Today at noon, the NFL draft begins. Cal has an unprecedented number (7) of potential draftees: S Thomas DeCoud, RB Justin Forsett, OL Mike Gibson, WR Lavelle Hawkins, WR DeSean Jackson, WR Robert Jordan and TE Craig Stevens.

OL Brian De La Puente and P Andrew Larson have a good chance in free agency as well.

My projections:

1st round: Jackson
2nd-3rd round: Hawkins
3rd-5th round: DeCoud, Stevens
6th-7th round: Gibson, Forsett
7th round/FA: Jordan, Larson, De La Puente

Good luck to our guys — updates will come as the draft goes on. Meanwhile, here’s a draft video from the NFL about Jackson.

Spring open practice report

Yesterday, Cal fans turned out a sizeable crowd for the Bears’ open practice/scrimmage. Here is a report, courtesy of GFang:

Quarterback

[Kevin] Riley- did not get to show off his arm too much . . . but when he threw, was very crisp and accurate with zip. He would’ve been perfect if Calvin didn’t drop 2 of his passes (that may be Calvin’s weakness). He had great protection, but he did run for 6 yards when under pressure once. Riley’s best pass was a 20 yard TD strike to Calvin deep in the endzone towards the end of practice. That got the biggest pop from the crowd today. Basically, he looked very accurate and was not afraid to thread the needle.

[Brock] Mansion– struggled, even in warm-ups. Misthrew about half of his passes. Does not have the mechanics that Riley does. I think he needs another year to work out the kinks.

Running Back

[Tracy] Slocum got into endzone twice, including a 15 yarder down the right sideline. He is workmanlike. In general he picked up at least 4-5 yards per carry against the 1st team defense. [Covaughn DeBoskie] is slender but tough. Runs very fluidly. He did fumble once after a nice gain, which was recovered by CB [Syd’Quan Thompson].

Defense

DE [Ernest] Owusu– played 2nd team; registered 3 sacks, including 2 in a row on QB Cory Smits. He will contribute this season!

LB [Zach] Follett, LB Charles Johnson, and DL [Jon] Karacozoff got their names called often, also.

Special Teams

[Thompson] is a natural at returning punts. WR Nyan Boateng also returned punts; his chances to return were limited. I’d definitely pick Squid to return punts, even if he’s our no. 1 CB.

P [Bryan] Anger is the real deal. Got big pops from the crowd. Thunderous leg! The 2nd chance he got, he launched it 10 yards over [Thompson]’s head and the offense recovered it. The 3rd time he punted, the returner stood way back lol. Anger will be able to consistently kick 50-55 yard punts with great hangtime. Right now he’s at about 70% consistency. I predict he starts for the next 4 years.

Feel free to chime in with any additional observations or thoughts about the scrimmage.

Open practice today

Today is the open practice (scrimmage), which begins at noon but has burritos starting at 11. The equipment sale is also going on right now — it was scheduled to begin at 9:00. Also, there’s free parking on campus.

This week, the biggest news is QB Nate Longshore has not taken any reps — he pulled his pectoral muscle and may be out the rest of spring practice. However, Kevin Riley has failed to really shine on the first team in Longshore’s absence. Brock Mansion has struggled, as well. Watch for Riley to step it up in today’s scrimmage.

The defensive line is consistently getting good marks from observers, which is a really good sign. With DE Cameron Jordan bulked up, Rulon Davis healthy and Tyson Alualu experienced, it could be a good year for the unit. Meanwhile, DT Mika Kane has been the primary first team nose tackle in the 3-4, not highly recruited Derrick Hill. Watch for Hill to step it up in the fall in that position.

TE Tad Smith, converted from the defense, continues to make plays and impress. TE Cameron Morrah has finally appeared in a few reports as well, making some nice catches. However, TCGB reports that their blocking “left me wanting Stevens.”

LB Devin Bishop looked pretty good, delivering some solid hits. The linebacking corps is deep.

P Bryan Anger stood out on special teams, making booming punts that should make us feel comfortable after losing Andrew Larson to graduation.

Look for a report on today’s scrimmage later this evening.

Sources and links:

• BearTalk: Monday, Wednesday, Friday reports
• TCBG: An Evening with Cal Football (Wednesday)
• TCBG: Best Birthday Party Ever (Friday)

Gameday shirt, open practice and sale

Cal has released the 2008 Game Day shirt, available online for pre-order. It features a “Every Game Counts” tagline, which I think is a little goofy, and lists the home schedule on the back. The shirt will also be available for sale during the Open Practice on April 12 at noon (Cal Day).

In addition, Cal will hold a surplus sale that morning, beginning at 9 a.m. Last year, I picked up a bunch of Cal football shirts, shorts, and shoes at bargain prices. It is definitely worth a look if you are in the area.

Defense steps up in spring ball

On Friday, the offense had trouble moving the ball in the off-season’s first practice in helmets and shoulder pads. As J.Okanes reported, “neither Nate Longshore or Kevin Riley separated himself” on a day when the defense stepped up.

* Secondary

Apparently, Syd’Quan Thompson took only “minimal reps,” with cornerbacks Charles Amadi and Jesse Brooks getting in the rotation on the first team. However, this might just be an effect of Thompson’s suspension earlier this week. When asked about the front-runner to start at cornerback on the other side (see video interview), Thompson said:

I don’t even know, everybody’s out here competing. I mean, I’m even competing to keep my job. Like I said, we’re just out here trying to work to get better as a unit.

The “open competition” mindset seems to be paying off. When pressed about competing to keep his spot:

If I felt comfortable, that would mean I could take days off. I can’t afford to take days off.

Thompson also talked about taking some reps at punt returner — apparently, he was very good at it in high school.

* Defensive Line

On the ends, Rulon Davis and Cameron Jordan are looking very good. J.Okanes mentioned that Davis “stood out” and had this to say about Jordan:

[He] looks like he could be a real force next season. Already blessed with rare athleticism, Jordan looks as though he’s put on a great deal of muscle since the end of the season. He no longer looks like an undersized defensive end, and the extra weight doesn’t seem to have affected his athleticism. When lineman run sprints at the end of practice, he still blows the competition away.

Jordan already made an impact as a true freshman last year, so it will be exciting to see how he will fare with a year of experience and added bulk.

Meanwhile, DL Tyson Alualu shined in one-on-one drills against the OL, “consistently beating his man and getting kudos.”

This is all good news, as the defensive line unit was one of the weaknesses of last season that needed improvement.

* Other notes

(Continue reading “Defense steps up in spring ball”…)

Thompson returns, and more spring updates

* Thompson returns to practice

CB Syd’Quan Thompson returned to practice today (Wednesday), following a one-practice suspension for violating team rules. Coach Jeff Tedford gave Cal fans a scare on Monday when he suggested that the suspension might be indefinite. While the reason for the suspension has not been revealed, Thompson said:

“I’m just glad to be back out here and have a chance to make up for what I missed Monday.”

Thompson didn’t waste any time getting up to speed, as he and CB Chris Conte intercepted QB Kevin Riley on consecutive plays.

* Best takes limited reps

While Tedford indicated that RB Jahvid Best would not be participating in any team practice drills for the spring on Monday, Best already took a few reps with the first team offense today. Of course, he was still wearing a red non-contact jersey, and he is not expected to take any hits for all of spring ball. Tedford said:

“Actually, I think he did sneak in on a couple of plays . . . He’s going to do some ball-handling and he’s going to run some, but we’re not going to bang him.”

* OL Mike Tepper moves to LT

Mike Tepper has been moved back to left tackle, where he played two years ago. There was some speculation that center Alex Mack might be moved to LT following his decision to stay his senior year, but it looks like Tepper will be the guy protecting the QB’s blind side. In general, left tackles are chosen higher in the NFL draft than centers.

* WR Glover, WR/PR? Boateng emerging

(Continue reading “Thompson returns, and more spring updates”…)

Spring practice opens

Today, Cal’s spring practice began with a few news items of note.

#1: RB Jahvid Best is already well enough to be out doing individual drills in a red noncontact jersey.

Best, who suffered a major hip injury last season, is not expected to participate in the team drills this spring. After practice, Best said:

“I was just told to come out here and go as hard as I can and see how my hip responds. After today, I feel pretty good. The only thing I felt is that I’m a little bit out of shape from not doing too much in a long time. But I felt fine . . . they basically just wanted to see how it responds if I act normal, and then go from there to see how it plays out.”

J. Okanes says that Best “looked like the blur he usually is during individual drills” as his “speed was there.” He even saw Best “cut definitively a few times and it looked like the Best of last season.”

“I’m past the point of being scared to cut or scared to run fast,” Best said. “I’m just trying to go out there and act normal.”

#2: CB Syd’Quan Thompson has been suspended indefinitely for violating team rules.

This development is a big surprise — Thompson is a returning starter, largely expected to be a leader of the team this season. Coach Jeff Tedford said “he’ll be out until I deem he can come back,” which does not sound too good.

#3: QB Nate Longshore is still taking reps with the first team.

As Tedford mentioned after last season, Longshore has begun spring practice with the first team offense, while Kevin Riley has been taking second team reps. Redshirt freshman Brock Mansion got a few snaps as well. Tedford has stated that he may not name a starter until the end of fall practice.

#4: RB James Montgomery was in the “doghouse” and hopes to transfer to Florida.

(Continue reading “Spring practice opens”…)