Kansas State v. California articles

[BobbyBlueChip]

Golden Bears head to Kansas City for appearance in BCA Classic.


Aug. 15, 2003


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This Week's Game
In one of the country's premier early season games, the California Golden Bears travel to Kansas City's Arrowhead Stadium to play the nationally No. 5 ranked (ESPN/USA Today) Kansas State Wildcats in the 7th annual Black Coaches Association Classic this Saturday, Aug. 23. Proceeds from the game provide college scholarships for minority students throughout the United States.

This year's debut represents the earliest start for a season opener in Cal history. Prior to this season, California had opened its campaign on Aug. 31 on two occasions-1985 vs. San Jose State (a 48-21 Cal win) and last year vs. Baylor (a 70-22 Bear blowout victory).

Buoyed by one of its finest recruiting years in history, Cal looks to replenish a roster that lost 23 seniors and 15 starters from last year's 7-5 club, which finished tied for fourth place (4-4) in the Pac-10 standings. With first-year head coach Jeff Tedford earning Pac-10 Coach of the Year honors, the Bears posted their first winning season in nine years, upending such national programs as UCLA, Washington, Arizona State and Michigan State in 2002.

Tedford, who preaches excellence and precision in offense, defense and special teams, will direct his 2003 forces into one of the toughest schedules in NCAA football this year. With Kansas State leading the way, no less than nine opponents on Cal's slate were 2002 bowl teams. On offense, Tedford will rely heavily on the senior leadership of tackle Mark Wilson (2002 All-Pac-10 honorable mention selection) and wide receiver Jonathan Makonnen (team-leading 54 rec., 682 yds., 7 TDs). On defense, where nine starters have departed, the Bears' cornerstones will be junior tackle Lorenzo Alexander ('02 All-Pac-10 honorable mention) and sophomore rover Donnie McCleskey (top returning tackler with 45 stops). Junior Mike McGrath, an erstwhile walk-on who nabbed All-Pac-10 second team honors with 21 special team tackles, will once again ignite Cal's coverage teams.

Cal-Kansas State Series
This marks the first time Cal and Kansas State have met.

A Quick Look at Kansas State
With Bill Snyder at the helm, Kansas State has won 116 games in the past 14 years. In contrast, the Wildcats won only 119 games in the 49 seasons prior to Snyder's arrival in Manhattan, Kan. Last year was no different, as Snyder engineered an 11-2 season that culminated with a 34-27 victory over Arizona State in the Pacific Life Holiday Bowl. Quarterback Eli Roberson and running back Darren Sproles, both returning 1,000-yard rushers and Heisman candidates, are back to lead a KSU offense that ranked No. 2 in scoring (44.8 ppg.) and No. 5 in rushing (264.1 ypg) among NCAA Division 1-A schools last year. Roberson jetted for 1,032 yards and 16 TDs on 202 carries-also passing for 1,580 yards and seven TDs-while Sproles uncorked the best rushing season in school history with 1,465 yards and 17 TDs. Roberson erupted for 228 yards on 29 carries-including a 91-yard TD run-in leading KSU to a 49-13 win over Nebraska last year. The Wildcats return five starters from a 2002 defensive unit that ranked first in points allowed (11.8 ppg) and second in both total defense (249.0) and rush defense (69.5) in the nation. Linebacker Andrew Shull, who posted the second- most sacks (9) and forced fumbles (4) in the Big 12 last fall, anchors the attack.

KSFO to Carry 2003 Opener
Due to a scheduling conflict involving the San Francisco 49ers, KGO Radio will not carry the Bears' season opener. Instead, sister station KSFO (560 AM, San Francisco), will serve as the flagship station for the Cal-Kansas State contest. Roxy Bernstein, voice of Cal basketball, will also replace Joe Starkey as play-by-play announcer for Saturday's game.

Cal Radio on the Internet
Cal football radio broadcasts can be heard live on the Internet for a nominal subscription charge. To listen, go to www.CalBears.com, click on the audio broadcast link and hear Joe Starkey and Lee Grosscup call the action.

Cal Sports TV Show
Cal Sports Magazine, a weekly TV show that showcases Cal football highlights and features on other Golden Bear sports, will once again air on FOX Sports Bay Area. Hosted by Mike Pawlawski, the half-hour program kicks off on Thursday, Aug. 28 at 4 p.m., airing again on Saturday, Aug. 30 at 8:30 p.m. Check your local listings for air times each week.

The Coaches
Jeff Tedford, California (Fresno State '83), the man who directed Cal to its first winning football season (7-5) in nine years and the nation's biggest one-year turnaround in the regular season in 2002, is in his second season as head coach of the Golden Bears. After taking over as the program's 32nd head coach in December 2001, he transformed Cal from a 1-10 team in 2001 to a 7-5 club last year. A vote of his fellow conference coaches awarded him the 2002 Pac-10 Coach of the Year award. Tedford arrived at Cal after four highly successful seasons at Oregon, where he served as offensive coordinator and helped the Ducks to a combined 38-10 record, including an 11-1 mark last fall when Oregon won the Pac-10 championship and earned a No. 2 national ranking. Tedford began his coaching career in 1989 as an offensive assistant with the CFL's Calgary Stampeders. In 1992, he returned to his alma mater, Fresno State, as quarterback coach. A year later, he was elevated to offensive coordinator, a position he held through 1997. A native of Downey, Calif., Tedford was a record-setting quarterback as a player at Fresno State, graduating with a degree in physical education in 1983.

Bill Snyder, Kansas State (William Jewell '63) enters his 15th season as head coach of the Wildcats with a 116-51-1 career record. Voted the 2002 Big 12 Coach of the Year, Snyder has led K-State to 10 straight bowl appearances and 11-win seasons in five of the past six years. He has been named National Coach of the Year on three occasions (1991, 1994 and 1998). During the past 10 years, he has guided the Wildcats to a 98-26-1 record. Snyder is a four-time Bear Bryant National Coach of the Year finalist, a three-time Big Eight Coach of the Year (1990-91-93) and two-time Big 12 Coach of the Year (1998, 2002).

Gameday Promotions (Next Week)
Cal Football and ANG Newspapers are hosting Youth Day for the Cal vs. Southern Mississippi game on Saturday, August 30 at 1 p.m. All fans 17 and under are invited to purchase reserved seats in advance for only $5 (regularly $27 & no coupon required). Before the game, fans are invited to attend FunZone, Cal's free tailgate experience at Maxwell Family Field, starting at 10:30 a.m. FunZone features great food and beverage options from local vendors, live music, interactive games, and the Kids' Zone area with fun-filled activities for youth fans.

IKON Office Solutions Play of the Week
Each week throughout the 2003 football season, IKON Office Solutions salutes the Golden Bear Play of the Week.

Rebuilding or Reloading? Cal's Recruiting Class Must Help '03 Club
That Returns Only 9 Starters
It's not Jeff Tedford's style to lay awake at night worrying about his team's potential, but any way you slice it, the Bears suffered heavy losses from last season's 7-5 club. Tedford and his club were forced to say farewell to the school's No. 2 career passer (Kyle Boller), No. 2 all-time rusher (Joe Igber), No. 3 career sack leader (Tully Banta-Cain) and No. 5 career kickoff returner (LaShaun Ward), plus a cornerback in Nnamdi Asomugha who joined Boller as NFL first-round picks last spring. Yet, perhaps more importantly, Cal lost 23 seniors from last year's team, and returns only nine starters-a figure that ranks dead last (tied with Florida and South Carolina) among 117 NCAA Division 1-A schools. While those facts and figures may sound gloomy for the '03 Bears, there may be reason to believe another winning season may be in the cards. Why? Because Tedford and his Cal coaching staff enjoyed one of the finest recruiting years in school history. The Bears signed 28 players in February, including 11 who received All-American accolades. Virtually every recruiting publication and web site ranked Cal's incoming class among the nation's Top 20. In Rival.com's ranking of the state's Top 100 prep players, the Bears landed 14 from the list (only USC had more among NCAA schools). Cal also boasted six of the country's Top 125 junior college players, according to PrepStar magazine.

 

[BobbyBlueChip]

Biggest stat to me in this game is Snyder/KSU's stat of 33-7 ATS as 20+ point favs. He's great against the patsies, soft against the biggies

 

[BobbyBlueChip]

It will be tough for Wildcats to replace Newman
By HOWARD RICHMAN
The Kansas City Star

MANHATTAN, Kan. - Messages left on a cell phone might be the first hint that Kansas State will miss Terence Newman.

The caller: K-State junior-college transfer cornerback Cedrick Williams.

The voice-mail recipient: Newman.

"He's called me at camp a couple of times. I was at practice," Newman said this week by phone from Texas, where as a first-round draft choice he is trying to make a name for himself with the Dallas Cowboys. "He asks questions. He wants to be the best cornerback ever to come out of K-State. I wouldn't sell him short."

Newman, arguably, is the greatest cornerback in Wildcats history. He wasn't too shabby as a punt returner, either. And, on occasion, he could haul in a pass. No wonder he was a first-team All-America.

And, the Thorpe Award winner, given annually to the nation's top defensive back.

How do you replace such a spectacular and versatile performer like the speedy Newman? It might be simpler pinpointing who'll be the next governor of California.

Speaking of California, the No. 5 Wildcats have eight days left to complete the difficult task of plugging the huge gap left by Newman. K-State faces unranked California at 6:45 p.m. Aug. 23 in the Black Coaches Association Classic at Arrowhead Stadium.

"We'll miss him," K-State senior quarterback Ell Roberson said. "He taught us a lot. I learned from him. But we have to move on."

Junior cornerback David Rose's take: "Obviously, we have some big shoes to fill. But we are hungry, and we're going to play our hearts out. Without Terence, we all need to step up."

Coach Bill Snyder understands the implications of life without Newman.

"On defense, we're going to have to make some strides," Snyder said. "Without Terence Newman, our middle linebacker (Terry Pierce, with the Denver Broncos) and some interior defensive linemen ... I think we've made a lot of headway. Does that mean we're over the hump? No."

The two most noticeable areas where Newman will be missed are on defense and punt returns.

Newman handled 26 of the 50 punts for K-State, averaging 14.9 yards. He scored two touchdowns, including a 71-yarder.

The heir apparent: Standout junior running back Darren Sproles, second in number of punts received (15). He averaged 10.3 yards. Newman also touched the ball more than anybody else on kick returns (13 for a 28.5 average, including a 95-yard touchdown return). Sproles and sophomore Carlos Alsup are expected to start on kickoff returns in 2003. Sproles totaled four returns for a 20.5 average. Alsup didn't return a kickoff.

The most pressing issue regarding the replacement of Newman comes in the secondary, where K-State had some crucial breakdowns (see the meltdown at Colorado for details).

Newman was the strongest link in pass coverage, which overall was fairly solid. The Wildcats were ranked 20th in the country in pass defense, allowing 179.5 yards a game.

But Newman's absence at one of the starting cornerback spots leaves a void that might be the most important issue the Wildcats need to address. The best part about the secondary should be the stability provided by returning senior strong safety Rashad Washington.

"In our (K-State's) schemes on defense, if you can't cover, you can't play. It's as simple as that," Newman said. "At Kansas State, stopping the run was first and foremost. That leaves you out on the edge (in the secondary) by yourself. You've got to have the confidence and swagger that you're not going to get beat."

According to the most recent depth chart made available to reporters, senior and returning starter Randy Jordan (6 feet 2, 175 pounds) has his old job back as one of the starting corners. That leaves Newman's spot to be filled. The candidates are junior Louis Lavender (6 feet, 185) and Rose (5 feet 10, 180).

Lavender might be best-equipped for the job, said Newman, who worked out at K-State this summer.

"He's one of the most complete guys they've got. He's just got to work on some technique things," Newman said. "He's got long arms, and he likes to jam the receiver. Sometimes, you'll get beat doing that. But I still think he's one of the most disciplined guys they've got playing back there."

K-State defensive coordinator and secondary coach Bob Elliott also is a Lavender fan.

"He continues to improve, but I'm not surprised by it anymore," Elliott said.

Williams would like to think he can be a factor. Currently, Williams (5-9, 165) and juco transfer Corey Reddick (5-9, 170) are in a tossup to be second string behind Jordan.

In fact, Williams shadowed Newman at all possible times in the spring. He can't imagine a better tutor. Hopefully, some of it rubbed off because Newman's presence surely will be missed. Whether his void means the difference in wins and losses remains to be seen.

"I always listened to Terence for advice. He said to stay humble and pay attention," Williams said. "We all could learn from Terence. Now, we just have to go out and do it. It will be tough without him here. But we have to."

Newman feels certain K-State can move forward without his presence. K-Staters are crossing their fingers that he's right.

"We were pretty good last year," Newman said. "I'm confident our guys will be able to handle things."

 

[BobbyBlueChip]

Cal looks well-armed
Any of three QBs could be starting for Bears

Bruce Adams, Chronicle Staff Writer The battle for starting quarterback in Cal's opener against Kansas State on Saturday is going down to the wire, with coach Jeff Tedford not expected to name a starter until Monday at the earliest.

Junior Reggie Robertson, who backed up Kyle Boller last year, appears to have an early edge because of his experience with the Golden Bears' offense. But Tedford says he may go with more than one quarterback against the Wildcats,

a consensus preseason Top 10 pick (No. 7 in the Associated Press poll).

"We'll go in thinking that we would like to get a couple guys to play," Tedford said. "If somebody gets a real hot hand, though, then we won't."

The choice has come down to Robertson and sophomore Aaron Rodgers, a transfer from Butte College. Sophomore Richard Schwartz has been getting equal practice time but is probably out of the running for the No. 1 spot because of his lack of playing experience.

"No one has really separated themselves as being the clear guy," Tedford said. "They've all done very well. But you can only play with one."

All three candidates, he said, have their strong points.

"Reggie is very, very smart, and he puts us in the right situations," Tedford said. "And he's throwing the ball well. He's really improved throwing the ball since last spring."

Rodgers has the strongest arm and led his junior college team to a No. 2 national ranking last year.

"He's very intelligent, but the only thing is he really hasn't been in at this level to see how it goes," Tedford said.

Schwartz is familiar with the offense and has the best size

(6-foot-4, 215 pounds) and plenty of raw talent.

"Richard is still pretty young but has tremendous tools as far as throwing the football, and he has done a really nice job of absorbing the offense," Tedford said.

The final decision will have little impact on how the Bears approach Kansas State.

"More than anything, we're going to put a game plan together that attacks the defense," Tedford said.

All of the quarterbacks, he added, fit well with his offensive scheme.

"It's really diverse to where there are a lot of things that would complement the strengths of the quarterback," he said. "They all can throw any ball on the field."

The game against Kansas State could help determine which player gets the job for good.

"I think you could look for all three of them to play in the game," Tedford said, dismissing any comparison to NFL preseason games, in which player evaluations can take precedence over the outcome.

"It's very important to win," he said. "We would like to have the guys have an opportunity to play. If may present itself, it may not."

Other players say the competition has been spirited, with little separating the quarterbacks.

"Just when one guy has a good day, and it's, 'OK, he's going to be the guy, ' somebody else steps up and starts making plays," wide receiver Vincent Strang said. "It's great for the team."

Strang said all three are easier to catch than the strong-armed Boller, who was taken by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round of the NFL Draft.

"These guys are a little easier on the fingers," he said. "It used to sting. "

Center Nolan Bluntzer said that after all the practice time, the starting unit is comfortable with any of the candidates.

"They've been doing a good job of trying to give all three of them reps, rotating them in and out with the (starting offense)," he said. "I think everybody is getting better."

The quarterbacks, who have been spending hours together at practice and in meetings, have grown close.

"We're all pulling for each other," Schwartz said.

"I think we can win with all three of us," Rodgers added.

Still, it's been a trying time.

"I try not to think about it too much," Robertson said. "But it's hard not to."