Personnel updates, QB controversy?

WR Robert Jordan practiced yesterday and “he will play as long as he doesn’t suffer any ill effects on his shoulder.” He appeared to re-injure his hurt shoulder while laying out for a catch last week at Arizona State. FB Will Ta’ufo’ou is also practicing “without limitation” after missing last week due to recurring knee problems.

Sadly, DE Rulon Davis may be out for awhile with a sprained MCL. He returned from a foot injury and immediately made an impact on the pass rush in the Arizona State game. He’ll be sorely missed for the next few weeks.

What about the quarterback situation? Earlier, the CC Times’ J. Okanes observed:

After Nate Longshore took every first team rep at practice Tuesday, Kevin Riley took every first team rep on Wednesday. Longshore still got in some work, but coach Jeff Tedford said that Longshore needed a day of rest.

After Thursday’s practice, Okanes now thinks that QB Nate Longshore is clearly the starter. However, things might be a little murky:

Coach Jeff Tedford once again said it will be a gametime decision. …

Based on what I saw Thursday, it seemed fairly clear that Longshore is the starter. But based on Tedford’s comments, I’m not so sure… saying simply that he is going to continue to monitor Longshore’s condition until Saturday makes me think there might be a better chance of Riley playing than you might expect. …

For the record, Longshore seemed to be moving pretty well. The fact that he was able to practice fully on Tuesday after aggravating his ankle sprain Saturday made me think that he was in pretty good condition.

Yikes, this sounds familiar. Longshore may look normal now, but his ankle has a habit of breaking down as games go on. TBIOOF makes a good point here:

[T]he issue has not been Longshore’s ability to practice or play, but rather his ability to play an entire game. In both the UCLA and Arizona State games, he has started incredibly well, with the passing game leading the Bears. But he has faded to mediocrity in the third quarter, and has been outright awful in the fourth quarter – two interceptions against UCLA, two more against ASU, and the horrible final series against the Sun Devils.

Despite Tedford’s insistence to the contrary, Longshore’s mechanics have melted down as the game’s have gone on. He clearly has both been dropping to side-armed throws (a good indication of a bad leg) and throwing without using his legs at all.

So, the question is…if Longshore is still hampered, why would he be the starter?

We’ll probably see Longshore in the starting lineup tomorrow, but I hope that Tedford is willing to make a change if things fall apart — otherwise, we might be watching in pain as recent history repeats itself.

Marshawn: Beast Mode

Marshawn Lynch is making a big impact in the pros after his jump to the NFL’s Buffalo Bills. This week, he’s had some time in the spotlight.

He’s been nominated for the award a couple times this season — this time, Marshawn won the Rookie of the Week honor after his performance contributing to the Bills’ win over the Baltimore Ravens.

Meanwhile, fans, players, and sports radio in Buffalo (“Entering “Beast Mode” With Marshawn Lynch”) have a lot of praise for Marshawn’s overall efforts:

Anyone who’s watched Lynch run in his six games as a Bill has seen it. The 5-foot-11, 21-year old back out of Oakland has amassed 457 yards and four touchdowns behind a line that’s still trying to find its proverbial identity. Lynch has also hauled in 10 passes for 82 yards in addition to running the ball with a style both elusive and imposing, pumping his legs with a Roger Craig-like ferocity until the one, two, three or more would-be tacklers drag him down. . . .

It’s hard not to bristle when Bills fans do what they do, comparing their new hero to the beloved legends of old, but there’s a bit of No. 34 in No. 23. In a certain sense, Lynch typifies the back Bills fans would draw up, and not just as a hard-running, stubborn back with both flash and grit, but as a humble, quiet young man who speaks when he’s spoken to.

There’s talk that Marshawn is about to “bust out” as the Bills hit the softer section of their schedule:

Buffalo has faced four of the league’s top 10 run defenses thus far including the second-ranked Ravens and third-ranked Steelers. But all of that stiff competition looks to be serving the Bills run game well. Lynch had his second highest rushing output of the season last Sunday against the highest ranked run front they’ve faced this year (Baltimore) with 84 yards and a touchdown.

That’s why it stands to reason that the Bills ground attack has a good chance of breaking out with some big games in the weeks to come. Buffalo faces the 28th, 27th and 31st ranked run defenses over the next three weeks in the Jets, Bengals and Dolphins respectively.

The national media (here, Sports Illustrated) is taking notice as well:

The stats won’t show it, but Marshawn Lynch (27 carries, 84 yards) was a man against Baltimore.

Finally, he’s still hilarious as ever — check out this segment on “The Mayne Event” featuring Marshawn’s embrace of the city of Buffalo.

Personnel news: Mack, Schneider, QB

C Alex Mack has been named a semifinalist for the Rotary Lombardi Award.

PK Tom Schneider is out for the season with a torn leg muscle, and he will petition for a sixth year of eligibility. He was injured during warm-ups before the Tennessee game. While backup Jordan Kay has done well in Schneider’s absence, this is a big loss on special teams.

Photo: Daily Californian

QB Nate Longshore is still not 100% and is still a “gametime decision” for Saturday. CC Times’ Jon Okanes thinks it’s only a 50-50 chance that he’ll start at UCLA. Backup Kevin Riley has been splitting snaps with him in practice this week and should be ready to go if needed after performing last Saturday.

Additional injury updates:

• WR Robert Jordan, TE Cameron Morrah are expected to play despite shoulder injuries last Saturday.
• DB Marcus Ezeff (quad) is still doubtful for Saturday unless Coach Bob Gregory thinks “he has to play.”
• DE Rulon Davis is still out for a few more games with a foot injury.

Players in the news

DeSean Jackson dropped out of the Heisman Watch completely this week, after catching 4 passes for only 5 yards against Oregon State. Lavelle “The Hawk” Hawkins, after his outstanding performance Saturday and his consistency since the beginning of the season, is being highlighted on ESPN’s spotlight by Mel Kiper as a first day NFL pick. It’s good to see him get some more positive press, as he’s been our most reliable receiver, and he’s also been doing a good job of kick returns.

QB news, injury update, links

QB Nate Longshore‘s availability (sprained left ankle) for the Oregon State match-up will be a gametime decision, according to Coach Jeff Tedford. Apparently, backup QB Kevin Riley has been taking about 75 percent of the first team snaps in practice and is looking pretty confident.

Regarding the other injuries: LB Zach Follett should be back in action on Saturday, FB Will Ta’ufo’ou (knee) is questionable, DB Marcus Ezeff (quad) who made the winning tackle of the Oregon game is a gametime decision, and DE Rulon Davis (foot) and PK Tom Schneider are still out.

Also, here are a few miscellaneous links of interest:

• ESPN has a midseason review of the Pac-10, naming Cal the “biggest surprise” as a national title contender, RB Justin Forsett as the conference MVP, and Coach Tedford the conference’s coach of the year.
• ESPN’s NFL draft guru Mel Kiper thinks Longshore is the #1 junior quarterback, WR/PR DeSean Jackson is an “obvious” first-round pick, and WR Lavelle Hawkins should be a third-rounder.
• The Sacramento Bee has a feature on CB Syd’Quan Thompson and LB Worrell Williams — apparently, Marshawn isn’t the only mama’s boy.
• The sports center lawsuit is finally wrapping up, and the lawyers made closing arguments earlier today.
• DeSean was interviewed by KRON 4’s Gary Radnich yesterday — he is a confident, charismatic guy who seems to have really won Radnich over.

Chat with Nate, vote for DeSean, Cal #1

QB Nate Longshore will be featured on an ESPN live chat today at 10:30am (in about 30 minutes). Follow the link to ask him a question or see what he has to say.

Also, WR/PR DeSean Jackson was nominated for the AT&T All-America Player of the Week award, and we can help him win by voting before 9pm tonight:

He is one of four nominees this week and in order for him to win the honor, fans must text message VOTE to 87654 by 11:59pm ET this Wednesday. Jackson was selected by ESPN based on his performance against the University of Oregon.

This also gives DeSean Jackson the opportunity to potentially be nominated for the AT&T All-America Player of the Year in December.

Finally, it’s been pointed out that Cal is currently #1 in the ESPNU Allstate Standings (determined by fan vote). Over 100,000 votes have been cast and Cal takes the top spot, above USC and LSU [/dco]. While it’s likely that this was caused by the LSU fans leaving USC off the ballot and the LSU fans leaving USC off the ballot, it shows that Cal is a consensus contender for the national championship among fans around the country.

Cal in the news

In his weekly Forde-Yard Dash, ESPN analyst Pat Forde mentions Cal and Jeff Tedford as three of his points, expecting the team to enter the November 10th match up against USC ranked at least 3rd in the nation:

California (4). Ranking: third in all major polls. Dash ranking: third. Highest ranking since: 1952. Cal’s leading passer that season was Bill Mais, who completed 30 passes on the year. That’s just two more than current QB Nate Longshore (5) completed in the Saturday triumph at Oregon.

Why the Golden Bears are there: They’ve come through when the nation is watching, beating Tennessee handily in the biggest game of the opening weekend and then winning at Oregon in the biggest game last Saturday. They’ve also scored a minimum of 31 points in every game and rank third nationally in turnover margin. And in case you ever doubted the importance of turnovers, know this: four of the top five teams in that department, and seven of the top 17, are undefeated.

Also, in Mark Schlabach’s On (and off) the Mark, he gives positive marks to Cal, in particular LB Anthony Felder, DeSean Jackson, and Marcus Ezeff.

Jackson to #3 in the Heisman Watch

In this week’s Heisman Watch released this morning, WR DeSean Jackson moved up into third place behind Arkansas’ Darren McFadden and Kentucky’s Andre Woodson. Todd McShay writes:

DeSean Jackson, WR/RS, Cal
Cal’s thrilling victory at Oregon propels the team to a No. 3 ranking and Jackson right back in the Heisman mix. The junior receiver hauled in 11 passes for 161 yards and two touchdowns. Jackson was limited — partially due to a sprained thumb — to only 67 receiving yards in the previous two games (Louisiana Tech and Arizona) combined, making his performance Saturday that much more dramatic. Is there any doubt that Jackson is the nation’s most electrifying playmaker? Not from where I stand, at least.

While it is still early in the season and the door is still open for any and all candidates to make it to the final few, more publicity and airtime right now will only help his campaign.

EDIT by ERIC: Meanwhile, well-respected blogger Heisman Pundit just placed Jackson at #6 in his predictive Heisman rankings – I think Jackson will need more big games to become a real contender to win.

Cal #3, Jackson Pac-10 PotW

The Bears have reached their highest ranking since 1952: #3 in the AP, USA Today/Coaches, and Harris polls. As discussed in the post-Oregon post, Cal’s victory and the losses of last week’s #3, #4, and #5 propelled the Bears to the third spot, immediately behind LSU and USC (with USC now #2 in the AP).

Meanwhile, DeSean Jackson has received the honors for the Pac-10 Player of the Week (offense) for his amazing performance on Saturday (see video highlights, GameDay interview):

Jackson, a senior from Long Beach, Calif., provided the big plays on offense in California’s 31-24 road win at Oregon. Jackson pulled in 11 receptions for 161 yards (14.6), both career highs, including two touchdown passes covering 25 and 31 yards. In addition to Pac-10 player of the week honors, he was named national Offensive Player of the Week by the Walter Camp Foundation. It marked the second Pac-10 player of the week honors for Jackson this year, having previously been named for special teams work in California’s win against Tennessee.

LB Anthony Felder and P Andrew Larson were also nominated for the award.

EDIT 10/2: Jackson has also received the USA TODAY Player of the Week honor:

California wide receiver DeSean Jackson had 11 catches for 161 yards in a defeat of No. 12 Oregon to earn this week’s USA TODAY’s Player of the Week honor. Jackson scored twice on receptions of 25 and 31 yards as the No. 6 Bears stayed unbeaten with a 31-24 victory. Jackson won the award with the support of college football editor Erick Smith and Gannett News Service columnist Mike Lopresti. Fan voting sided with Illinois wide receiver Arrelious Benn.

Malele, Davis’ foot injuries not serious

Great news: the foot injuries sustained by DT Matt Malele and DE Rulon Davis are far less serious than originally suggested.

It was feared after the Louisiana Tech game that Davis had a stress fracture in his foot and Malele tore his plantar fascia tendon. Yesterday’s MRIs must have been negative, as Jon Okanes reports: “Malele has a strained muscle in his foot while Davis has a sprained foot.”

Losing these two for the season would have been devastating to the Bears’ defensive line unit. Instead, they are now day-to-day but it is not certain whether they will be playing on Saturday against Arizona. Hopefully they will recover speedily and be ready at least by the time Cal visits Oregon on the 29th.

Also, LB Zach Follett remains day-to-day with a neck stinger and WR/PR DeSean Jackson is still struggling with his sprained thumb. According to Coach Jeff Tedford, Jackson “probably won’t catch a pass in practice this week to preserve” it.