ESPN: Cal/Tennessee #1 intriguing matchup

ESPN writer Bruce Feldman has named the Cal/Tennessee game the #1 intriguing matchup for September. He writes:

1. Cal at Tennessee, Sept. 2: I know this one pits a team that played in the Vegas Bowl against one that didn’t even go bowling, but I’m fascinated by how the Vols come out. Will there be any hangover from that wreck last season? And what will the Cal Bears get from their QB spot? Are they back to being a top 10 program or have they peaked? I have a feeling the loser of this one, especially if it’s the guys in orange, will be sent reeling. I guess this one is kinda like the Kirstie Alley of games — two programs that had been riding high a few years ago before sliding into some sort of embarrassing downturn. Both are reportedly on their way back into the spotlight again, but we’re not sure just how far back they truly are, and we’re not quite ready to take them too seriously just yet.

I was a little surprised to see that Feldman considered Cal’s last season “embarassing” like Tennessee’s and his statement that he was not ready to take either team seriously. While Feldman has consistently been skeptical of Cal’s legitimacy this season (especially in light of the quarterback situation), these words are a bit stronger than usual. However, I’m glad that he recognizes the stakes of this game for both programs and the article still adds to the building hype to September for Cal.

EDIT 7/28: I’m happy to see that Feldman more or less retracted his “embarassing” statement in response to feedback from a Cal fan:

Jerris in San Carlos, Calif.: I love your blog and think you are spot on with most of your observations, but I do take issue with you characterizing Cal’s last season as “sliding into some sort of embarrassing downturn.” It was an obvious rebuilding year with unproven QBs, WRs and most of the defense. I think you would be hard-pressed to find many Cal fans who thought last year was embarrassing. I think the parallel with Tennessee is strained on that point. But I am psyched you are looking forward to the game as much as I!

Feldman: Yeah, Jerris. You caught me. I kinda cheated a little to make the Kirstie Alley line fit. That really wasn’t that embarrassing of a downturn for Cal especially in light of the nightmarish lengths the Vols sunk to.

Rivals: Tedford/Dunbar working on “magical mix”

Rivals.com has put together an article describing the new offense. It also talks about Mike Dunbar‘s history, how he was hired as the offensive coordinator, and his thoughts on the quarterback situation.

Dunbar offers a few glimpses into his potential playbook, including shotgun formations with 4+ wide receivers, possibly including tailbacks Marshawn Lynch and Justin Forsett in addition to star wideout DeSean Jackson. In the end, the plan is to have what he described as a “magical mix” of head coach Jeff Tedford‘s pro-set offense and Dunbar’s spread.

Take a look at the article here.

Cal launches Marshawn website (for Heisman)

Cal has launched www.Marshawn10.com, a website designed to promote Marshawn Lynch, a Heisman Trophy contender.

The site looks great, and it offers a wealth of highlight videos and other information about our great running back. Hopefully the site will contribute to Lynch’s national recognition and his run for the Heisman. Take a look!

EDIT 7/22: The San Jose Mercury News put up a news article discussing Marshawn’s site on the front page of today’s Sports section. Read the article here.

EDIT 7/24: The Daily Californian also has a nicely written opinion column about the site. Take a look here.

New banners at Memorial Stadium

New banners have replaced the old outside Memorial Stadium. Previous banners featured Marshawn Lynch and Brandon Mebane. These current banners include LB Desmond Bishop, CB Daymeion Hughes, OL Erik Robertson, and TE Craig Stevens. Here are photos:

Photo credit: pepman54

Recruiting update

Last week, safety Chris Conte out of Loyola High School in Los Angeles committed to Cal’s 2007 recruiting class. He’s a 6’3″ defensive back with solid numbers. Here’s his profile.

Joe Robles, a kicker recruited to walk-on (unofficial) out of Tesoro High School in southern California, was injured in the Orange County North-South Prep All-Star Football Game. Apparently, a fight broke out near the end of the game and he ended up on a stretcher with a knee injury. It’s too bad… hopefully it was not too serious and he’ll have a speedy recovery.

Hughes and more recognized in Steele’s 2006 Preview

Similar to other publications, Phil Steele‘s 2006 College Football Preview has named three Cal players on its preseason all-star teams. The breakdown:

First-team: Daymeion Hughes (CB)
Second-team: Marshawn Lynch (RB)
Fourth-team: Brandon Mebane (DT)

The publication also has several of our players ranked nationally:

Hughes (#1 cornerback)
Lynch (#3 running back)
Mebane (#7 defensive tackle)
Desmond Bishop (#9 inside linebacker)
Tim Mixon (#14 punt returner)
Anthony Felder (#19 outside linebacker)
DeSean Jackson (#33 wide receiver)
Nu’u Tafisi (#34 defensive end)
Phillip Mbakogu (#38 defensive end)

Here’s the listing of Cal’s preseason All-Americans and rankings. Kudos to Hughes for getting so much preseason respect. As an aside, he’s also tied for the #1 cornerback rating in the NCAA Football 2007 video game.

Cal picks Oregon’s associate AD for development

Cal has hired Jim Bartko, a former Oregon administrator and liason to Nike as the new Senior Associate Athletic Director for Development. This is a great hire considering the upcoming stadium renovation project and its need for funds. Over at Oregon, Bartko oversaw the fundraising for their stadium, basketball arena, and other facilities, so he’s a very experienced addition to the staff. Here’s Cal’s official press release.

Athlon ranks Cal’s RBs #2 and D-line #1

Athlon Sports has given Cal the honor of the number 2 running backs in the nation and also the number 1 defensive line in the nation for the upcoming season. These are in their 6th Annual Athlon Awards for the best units in college football. They write:

2. California (Running Backs)

California returns players who accounted for 98 percent of its rushing yards last fall, most of it in the persons of Marshawn Lynch and Justin Forsett. The 5’11”, 223-pound Lynch rumbled for 1,246 yards and 10 touchdowns despite missing two games and most of another with a hand injury. Forsett, at 5’8″, 183, darted for 999 yards at 7.6 per carry with six scores. They enter their junior year with a combined 2,922 career yards and averaging over seven yards per carry. Lynch, in fact, averaged 8.8 yards on 71 carries with eight touchdowns as a 2004 freshman backing up J.J. Arrington. Marcus O’Keith also returns after averaging 11 yards on 22 carries in ’05, including a 71-yard touchdown run against Washington.

1. California (Defensive Line)
Tackle Brandon Mebane is an Athlon preseason first-team All-American. Mebane broke through the line in ’05 for 9.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks. Matt Malele and Mika Kane both bring in excess of 300 pounds and extensive experience to the tackle rotation. Nu’u Tafisi, a second-team all-conference honoree, and Phillip Mbakogu combined for 20 tackles for losses and nine sacks and return at the ends. Abu Ma’afala started four games after sitting out 2004 following his transfer from Hawaii. He is as ornery against the run as he is rushing the passer and is available at both tackle and end.

Georgia is the one RB unit that placed ahead of ours. I can’t see how any group (especially Georgia?) could be considered better than the combination of Lynch, Forsett, and O’Keith.

QB commit Mansion selected in the Elite 11

Brock Mansion, the quarterback out of Texas who verbally committed to Cal’s 2007 recruiting class, has been invited to the Elite 11 camp. This is the fourth straight year for Cal to land an Elite 11 quarterback, with Nate Longshore (2004), Kyle Reed (2005), and Kevin Riley (2006) on the roster already.

If you are unfamiliar with what the Elite 11 camp is, this site gives a brief description of it. Also, this article reports on Mansion’s selection (Rivals subscription required).

The team will be stacked with four Elite 11 quarterbacks in the near future. That’s a lot of talent, and a great showing of the regard for Tedford‘s coaching.

UPDATE: QB Steve Levy arrested in SF, suspended

Unfortunately, there’s some bad news amidst all the pre-season hype. Quarterback Steve Levy, who started the last two games of the season (at Stanford, Las Vegas Bowl vs. BYU) in place of Joe Ayoob, was arrested and jailed last night under alleged charges of felony assault. For details, see this SF Chronicle article.

Hopefully the charges are reduced and Levy gets cleared. However, Coach Jeff Tedford acted immediately and suspended Levy until the facts get sorted out.

Levy is projected as a backup quarterback for the upcoming 2007 season.

Update: it appears that the argument was over a girl, and a bouncer splashed water on Levy. According to Levy, he meant to splash water back but the glass slipped out of his hand. See a followup article here.