Bear Bits: Riley Starter for now, Another Recruit, and Bears in the NFL

Man, I’m out of town for a few days and the whole Cal community bustles with news. Typically, I do my Helmet Stickers and Play of the game feature on Tuesdays, but with it being Big Game week, I’ve decided to hit up a few newsworthy items first. Look for the Helmet Stickers a little later.

Riley Is Your Starter…For Now
An interesting tidbit came out of yesterday’s media luncheon according to Jonathan Okanes. Coach Tedford had already announced after the Oregon State game that Kevin Riley would remain the starter against Stanford. However, Tedford announced that Brock Mansion will compete against Kevin Riley for the starting QB spot.

It’s not in the least surprising, but interesting that the news came at this point in the year. Mansion has become much more comfortable with the offense since Spring Ball, and Kevin Riley hasn’t done much to solidify his spot as the starting QB. Just something to chew on for now.

Cal Nabs Star Safety
Cal picked up their 5th commitment from safety Alex Logan over the weekend. Logan (6’3, 200) is a 3-star recruit by scout.com and is considered the 17th best safety in the nation according to ESPN, 33rd according to Scout.

Logan had fielded offers from 15 other schools including Texas Tech, Nebraska, Oregon, and mulled an offer from his hometown school of Colorado during his fifth and final visit there. But ultimately, Logan chose Cal, citing how he impressed he’s been with Cal’s secondary this year.

"I've been impressed with Syd'Quan Thompson and Darian Hagan. “They've got some good players and really develop guys well, plus they told me that I'd have a good opportunity to get some early playing time too.”

The Bear Insider also has a great article up Cal’s new commit.

While Cal has been a little slow behind other Pac-10 schools in terms of recruiting this season, this is still a big get for the Bears. Cal is also very much in the game for some other star recruits who are still taking their time. Please Devon Kennard, you’ll love Cal.

Speaking of our secondary, this season has been a breakout year not only for star junior CB Syd’Quan Thompson who notched his 4 interception of the season to tie him for first in the conference, but for redshirt sophomore Darian Hagan, who currently leads the nation in passes broken up with 15. Opposing offenses have tried to pick on Hagan all season with the emergence of Thompson on the other side of the ball, but Hagan has answered the call nearly each time. While Thompson is still the more polished and experienced of the two defensive backs, Hagan has shown more upside in his first year as a starter, and could potentially end up being the better of the two when it’s all said and done.

Both Thompson and Hagan, along with DB Chris Conte and safeties Sean Cattouse, Brett Johnson, and Marcus Ezeff should be back next year. Best secondary in the conference in 2009? Just maybe.


Initial Line for Stanford: +10.5
Eh. I think it seems about right. Dangerous, but fair. Stanford’s going to be pumped for this game. It’s their last shot at becoming bowl eligible. It’s more about pride for the Bears. Avinash has a guest post about this over at CGB.

Bears in the NFL
Anyone else follow some former Cal players go Beastmode over the weekend?

Marshawn Lynch had the most notable performance, carrying the rock 23 times for 119 yards, and also caught 10 passes for 58 yards and score in a 27-29 loss to Cleveland. While Beastmode’s yardage is down, he is on pace to blow past last year’s scoring total, already having 7 TDs versus last year’s 7.

Aaron Rodgers had another efficient performance for the Packers, going 23-30 for 227 yards, 2 TDs and one INT. Rodgers has a 94.5 QB Rating, completing 64.5% of his passes for 2351 yards, 15 TDs and 6 INTs. He also has 3 rushing TDs and 126 rushing yards, which is 3 more yards than…

…JJ Arrington, who only has 123 yards on the year on just 21 carries. He did however have his best day as a pro, carrying the ball 8 times for 40 yards and a TD, to go along with 3 catches for 21 yards and a score. Dayam JJ, where have YOU been?