BearTalk

A few notes and conclusions following Cal’s 35-28 loss to Ohio State

– Should Jeff Tedford gone for it on 4th-and-1 from the Buckeyes’ 25-yard line in a tie game with less than 4 1/2 minutes left? Well, you don’t want to send your placekicker the message that you’ve lost faith. But Vincenzo D’Amato already had missed twice from the exact same distance — 42 yards — and you’ve got an entire playbook of choices to get 1 yard. I’d go for it. You want to beat a good on the road, sometimes you’ve got to be bold.

– The guess here is D’Amato gets another shot this week, but if another kicker rises up in practice Tedford will have a tough call to make.

– Who has the motivational edge next Saturday at the L.A. Coliseum? Cal and USC are both coming off tough losses, and the Trojans could be mad as hell. On the other hand, as disappointed as the Bears, they must return home with some confidence. The Trojans’ big-picture dream (a national title) is essentially dead.

– Plus, Stanford showed two ways USC may be vulnerable: They pressured Matt Barkley right out of the top spot in the weekly Heisman ratings — hitting and sacking him – and they ran the ball effectively. Not convinced the Bears can accomplish the former, but seems they can do the latter.

– What to do with a suddenly full backfield? Brendan Bigelow has to get more opportunity, but at the expense of Isi Sofele and C.J. Anderson? It seemed clear Saturday that Bigelow’s ability to get to the edge against the Buckeyes was something the other two didn’t get done. Bigelow is much more of a home run threat. You wonder if the Bears will try to throw him the ball, get him some space in which to operate. One way or the other, got to believe he gets more touches.

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An embarrassing hiccup by Colorado and an expected thrashing of Washington at LSU . . . otherwise, a great day for the Pac-12, with three wins over top-20 teams:

 – Oregon State 10, No. 13 Wisconsin 7: The Beavers, playing a Big Ten team in Corvallis for the first time in 41 years, held Badgers star RB Montee Ball without a touchdown for the first time in 22 games. Pleasanton native Sean Mannion threw for 276 yards for the Beavers, playing their first game after their opener was canceled.

– UCLA 36, No. 16 Nebraska 30: A huge win for the Bruins (2-0) and new coach Jim Mora Jr. Running back Johnathan Franklin, who had 214 yards he week before vs. Rice, ran for 217 yards and freshman QB Brett Hundley threw for 305 yards and four TDs.

– Arizona State 45, Illinois 14: Taylor Kelly completed 18 of 23 passes for 249 yards and a TD and the Sun Devils (2-0) routed the Illini in Tempe. ASU is 8-0 all-time vs. the Big Ten at home. 

– Arizona 59, No. 18 Oklahoma State 38: One week after scoring 84 points against Savannah State, the visiting Cowboys (1-1) of the Big 12 couldn’t keep pace with new coach Rich Rodriguez’s Wildcats (2-0). Matt Scott passed for 320 yards and two TDs and ran for another score and Ka’Deem Carey scored four TDs as the Wildcats rallied from a 14-0 hole.

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A few tidbits, afterthoughts, quotes and ramblings off Cal’s 50-31 win over Southern Utah:

– Jeff Tedford said that LB Chris McCain (shoulder) and TE Richard Rodgers (ankle), both injured during the game, will under MRI exams. Their status going forward, obviously, is uncertain.

– Zach Maynard summed up the Bears’ first-half turnover and penalty issues by referring to  ”head-case situations where we backed ourselves up.”  Wideout Keenan Allen gave the team just a C-plus grade for the performance.

– Cal had beaten five previous FCS opponents by an average of more than 43 points — and led just 20-17 entering the fourth quarter.

– No one from Tedford through the half-dozen players who came to the interview room would be pinned down on how much the Bears must improve by next Saturday to contend with Ohio State. A lot of talk about “executing.” Suffice that if there isn’t substantial improvement, the Buckeyes will deliver the execution.

– This is ancient history, with little relevance to this season, but it’s interesting trivia that the Bears are 1-5 all-time vs. Ohio State, without a win since 1920.

– I thought Maynard actually played quite well for the most part, completing 17 of 23 passes. But . . . he was intercepted on the screen pass intended for Brendan Bigelow and badly overthrew Eric Stevens on the 3rd-and-goal play from the 1.

– The running game deliverd 289 yards, including 104 by Isi Sofele, who was hardly part of things a week ago. And they did it without top O-lineman Matt Summers-Gavin, out with a knee injury. Of course, they did it against Southern Utah, not Ohio State or USC.

– Same thing with all the big plays in the fourth quarter — Marc Anthony’s 61-yard INT return, Keenan Allen’s 69-yard punt return, Daniel Lasco’s 77-yard TD run. How many of those happen against Pac-12 level competition?

– That crowd count (57,745) — tickets sold, not warm bodies in the house.

– The freshmen WRs — Chris Harper and Bryce Treggs — have combined for 20 catches for 251 yards through two games. Not a bad start.

– Freshman OT Freddie Tagaloa played in the fourth quarter, meaning he will not redshirt.

Can we learn anything about the Cal football team Saturday against Southern Utah?

Coach Jeff Tedford said the Bears will look inward in evaluating their performance against the Thunderbirds, a Football Championship Subdivision foe.

“It’s about us, it’s about our execution, not making mental mistakes,” said Tedford, whose team fell 31-24 to Nevada in its opener last Saturday, the debut of renovated Memorial Stadium. “It’s not so much about who’s in the other uniform.”

The Southern Utah game triggers a stretch of three Saturdays where many fans may see little drama regarding the outcome of Cal’s games. The Bears are overwhelming favorites against the Thunderbirds, but will be significant underdogs at Ohio State and USC.

Is a 1-3 start inevitable? Are the Bears a sure bet this weekend, but absolutely doomed the next two?

Of course, they aren’t looking at it that way.

“After the loss last week, I don’t think that’s going to be a problem. I don’t think it matters who we’re going to play,” center Brian Schwenke said. “It really comes down to how we play as a team. I think we have the tools to beat any opponent.”

The next three weeks will tell.

Here is my game preview and facts and figures on Saturday’s matchup.

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Uncomfortable numbers and uneasy thoughts on Cal’s 31-24 opening loss to Nevada:

– The Bears ran the ball 27 times (not counting two sacks) and only six carries went for more than 5 yards. If coach Jeff Tedford believes this is one of his better stables of running backs, then the offensive line didn’t get it done.

– Awaiting word on the health status of OT Matt Summers-Gavin, who limped off the field in the 4th quarter. MSG is the Bears’ best O-lineman, and if he cannot return soon the Bears will feel it.

– Just a thought, but why would the Bears unveil a surprise no-huddle offense against a team that practices against it every day?  Probably wouldn’t have needed it vs. SoUtah, either, but might have been a good wrinkle to spring on Ohio State.

– Bears had more first downs via penalty (4) than rush (3). Not a formula to lean on.

– Nevada was 11 of 20 on third-down conversions; Cal just 3 for 14.

– The Wolf Pack was 4 for 5 in the red zone. Cal had just one red-zone opportunity and didn’t convert it.

– Zach Maynard will have better games, and taking his first snap with a minute-and-a-half left in the first quarter didn’t help him. But an unimpressive showing by backup Allan Bridgford, who was 1 for 8 passing for 8 yards.

– We’ve heard a lot during camp about tight end Richard Rodgers. He didn’t catch a ball vs. Nevada.

– The Cal defense forced Nevada QB Cody Fajardo into just seven incompletions on 32 attempts. The Bears cannot allow 78 percent and expect to win.

– Fajardo torched the Bears for 327 yards rushing and passing. Uh-oh . . . in two weeks, Cal faces Ohio State and QB Braxton Miller, who had 368 combined yards vs. Miami-Ohio.

I arrived at Memorial Stadium just past 9 a.m. and the place indeed appears to be “game ready.”

The clouds are nestled in trees at Strawberry Canyon to the east and fog shrouds the view west to San Francisco.

Still awaiting the arrival of the crowd. Will be fun.

Check out staff photographer Karl Mondon’s video on Cal marching band drum major Kevin Kraft, who shoulders the responsibility of catching his baton during pregame ceremonies.

Click here: http://bcove.me/2o081o0q

The atmosphere will be electric Saturday when Cal faces Nevada in the first game at Memorial Stadium in 21 months.

Here is my game preview and all the facts and figures you need about the 2012 opener.

CAL VS. NEVADA

2011 RECORDS: Cal 7-6, 4-5 in Pac-12; Nevada 7-6, 5-2 in WAC

KICKOFF: Noon, Memorial Stadium, Berkeley.

TV: Pac-12 Networks

RADIO: 810-AM

SERIES HISTORY: Cal leads 22-2-1. Nevada won 52-31 at Reno in 2010, but Cal has not lost to the Wolf Pack in Berkeley since a 6-2 defeat in 1903 — when Theodore Roosevelt was president, there were just 45 states in the U.S., and the Wright brothers were still a month away from flying for the first time.

STORYLINES: The Bears are eager to properly christen their newly renovated stadium and to avenge an embarrassing 21-point loss to the Wolf Pack two years ago. In order to beat Nevada, they will need to defend the pistol offense much more effectively than when they played in 2010 and vs. UCLA in 2011 … Cal must win this game to realistically expect a 2-2 start with ferocious road games vs. Ohio State and USC looming later this month … Worth watching: Cal’s offensive line and its freshman wide receivers.

INJURY UPDATE: Cal — ILB David Wilkerson (ankle), ILB Khairi Fortt (knee), OG Dominic Galas (shoulder), CB Stefan McClure (knee), OLB Cecil Whiteside (academics) are out. Nevada — SS Ty Thompson (shoulder) is doubtful.

MATCHUP TO WATCH: Cal’s defensive front seven vs. Nevada’s pistol offense and quarterback Cody Fajardo. Cal must be disciplined and creative on defense to disarm the Wolf Pack, which will use deception toset up option runs and passes out of the hybrid shotgun formation. When the teams met two years ago, Nevada QB Colin Kaepernick totaled 329 rushing and passing yards and accounted for five touchdowns.

STATS THAT MATTER: Saturday’s game is the 547th played by the Bears at Memorial Stadium, which originally opened in 1923. Cal is 317-213-16 all-time in the facility … The Bears are 61-5 under Jeff Tedford when they score at least 30 points, but one of those losses was two years ago at Nevada. … Cal has outscored Nevada 699-71 in games played at Berkeley, but only one of those 23 matchups was more recent than 1945 … Nevada features 18 starters from California, including defensive end Lenny Jones of San Leandro and linebacker Albert Rosette of Antioch.

Layshia Clarendon scored 15 points and the Cal women (22-7, 13-4) beat Colorado 64-43 at Haas Pavilion to clinch a second-place finish in the Pac-12.

Talia Caldwell and Brittany Boyd scored 11 points apiece for the Bears, who won their fourth straight game and sixth in seven outings.

The Bears close the regular season against regular-season champion Stanford a week from Sunday at Haas.

TIPOFF: Cal (21-7, 12-4 Pac-12) vs. Colorado (16-10, 5-10) at Haas Pavilion, Saturday, 2 p.m.

GAME THEME: The Bears have a 2 1/2-game lead over USC (9-6) in the race for second place and the No. 2 seed for the Pac-12 tournament. A Cal win or a USC loss will clinch the spot for the Bears . . . Two days after the Cal women beat Utah 60-46 — the same exact score the Cal men used to beat the Utes — the Bears try to complete a season sweep of Colorado. Layshia Clarendon scored 18 points in Cal’s 68-55 win at CU on Jan. 12.

NOTES: Two special promotions go with this game. It’s Cal’s Pink Game, and all fans wearing pink can purchase general admission tickets for $3. The game benefits the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, named for the late North Carolina State women’s coach. It’s also Cal’s Kids Day, with youth general admission tickets selling for $1

NEXT TIME: Stanford at Cal, Sunday, March 4, 6 p.m.