Mailbag 10.21.08

Hey everyone. So I’ve decided to start a mailbag feature. I don’t get too much mail, but it appears that Saturday’s game struck a nerve with a few folks. Giving up 42 points will do that to you. So I’ve posted just a few of the emails I’ve received, and my responses to them.

Keep the emails coming! Blogging can be a lonely sport, and I’m interested in hearing what YOU the Bears fans are thinking these days. And here we go.

“Is our defense really that good, when we give up 40+ pts to Arizona?”
-Kevin in San Jose

The short answer is “No.” Elite defenses usually don’t surrender 40+ points.

But solid defenses do have their off days. LSU gave up 51 points to a motivated Florida team, and even the vaunted Georgia defense choked up 41 to Alabama. Let’s not ignore also, that Oklahoma has surrendered 80 points the last two weeks to Texas and Kansas.

One can obviously argue about the quality offenses these teams were facing, but I can just as easily argue that when “on,” the Arizona offense has the ability to be one of the more dangerous offenses in the country as well.

Do I think our defense is really that good? No. I think we had been a bit prematurely excited about this year’s squad. I will say however, that Saturday night’s game was such an off night for this defense, and not the best indication of what we’re capable of when we’re motivated.

So “No,” we’re not really that good, but we do have the chance to be pretty solid.

“I'm on the train right now and thinking about the Bears...

When will we have another 2004-2005 season? I want to freakin go to a BCS bowl game or at least the Rose Bowl!! Losing to Arizona really pisses me off... we really have to improve our away game performance/record. We cannot just win home games!!

Honestly, we are just an average Pac-10 team, and it pains me to admit that, let alone write that in this email. I really want Tedford and the players to think over what our season motto is all about... "Every Game Counts!!" Longshore needs to know that every freakin play/pass counts!! We cannot play with carelessness at all, nor can we assume we have the game at any point. We really need to step up to the plate in the next game and kick UCLA ass. I honestly hope that we do end the season with an 8-4 record... Anything less is just unacceptable!!

P.S. With an 8-4 record, can we go to the LV bowl?"

Angry Bear fan,
Jess in Mountain View

It’s pretty evident that Jess is feeling pretty emotional about the Bears.

I could have edited her email, but I thought it was more dramatic to present her email in its full scathing glory. Although there are numerous comments and questions in there, I'll try and address a few points in there Jess.

1) Will 8-4 get us to the Las Vegas Bowl?
No way to know for sure, it depends on how the other conference teams do, since bowls go by invitation rather than strict regulation to conference standings. But back in 2005, we went to the Las Vegas bowl with a 7-4 record. So signs point to "yes." Why do you want to go to Vegas so much anyway? Other than its debaucher-ous splendor, that is.

2) When will we have another 2004-2005 season?
It might be next year (though our away schedule looks tough), or it might be the year after. We've got a really young team, and it may depend on whether any of our players leave early. The biggest missing pieces have been a lights-out defense (our 2004 squad was best in Tedford years) and a Heisman-level QB like we had in Aaron Rodgers. Who knows if we'll get there in the next two years with a senior Riley and Jahvid Best.

3) Average Pac-10 Team?
We certainly looked average on Saturday, but I wouldn't be surprised if we ended up in the top half of the Pac-10 to close the season. Case in point -- just win our remaining home games, and we're looking at an 8-4 season, going (6-3) in the conference. Not bad for a rebuilding year.

4) Kick UCLA’s ass?
If we don't beat UCLA, then it's a whole different story. I would be very, very depressed at that point. I actually semi-expected a loss to Arizona. Signs didn't look good. But a loss to Rick New-weasel and the offensively challenged Bruins...at home? Then you can begin dismissing a season.

Anything less than a win on Saturday would be near unacceptable. But cheer up, there's still a lot of football left to be played. Both this year and next.


“It's sad how weak the Pac-10 is this year. I actually hope USC makes it all the way to the BCS national championship and whups on whoever it plays. It’ll give the conference a little more legitimacy.

How can we be so bad!? It just seems like the SEC and Big 12 are so much better than everyone else. But then again, who knows. There should be more non-conference games between elite teams like what we saw with OSU and USC.”
-Josh, Boston

Hi Josh. I’d be a full to argue that the Pac-10 is strong this year. It’s pretty obvious that the SEC and Big 12 are the cream of the crop, conference wise, and everyone else is fighting just to get noticed.

However, it’s important to note that the conference’s out-of-conference record is a bit distorted by some of these matchups. Some of the conference’s weaker teams have had to play other conferences’ strongest teams. (UCLA facing BYU, Washington facing Oklahoma, WSU & Oklahoma State, ASU vs. Georgia, heck even Oregon St. having to face Penn St.)

Ted Miller actually talked about this in one of his recent postings, arguing that the conference needs to knock it off with their scheduling of ridiculously strong teams facing our mediocre or weak ones.

In essence, the conference is having a down year. But having our weaker teams march onto the field against BCS powerhouses early on in the season make us look a lot worse than we really are.


Okay, that about wraps it up for now, but again, I look forward to hearing what you guys have. Go Bears.