USC Helmet Stickers and Play of the Game

Offensive Player of the Game: Nyan Boateng
Blech. Finding an offensive player of the game in a matchup where Cal amassed its lowest yardage and point total in the Jeff Tedford era is not really an easy feat. Especially when considering not a single player was responsible for more than 100 yards, including either quarterback.

The game ball on offense goes to Nyan Boateng however, who he established himself as one of the Bears’ top receivers, and led the team in receiving yards with 43 yards on 4 catches. He also managed to hold on to the ball on a great catch despite getting absolutely crushed by a pair of USC defenders in which his helmet flew off.

Boateng has struggled with inconsistency throughout the year, but it’s good to see his undeniable talent beginning to emerge to some consistent productivity on the field.

I could have given the sticker to Verran Tucker, especially for that spectacular catch in the 3rd quarter, but his lining up off the line of scrimmage negated a touchdown, so you have to consider that against him a bit when making the final selection.

Honorable mentions:
Verran Tucker: 3 catches, 40 yards.
Nate Longshore: 11-15, 79 yards.
Will Ta’ufo’ou: 1 rush 21 yards (longest of the day), 1 catch for 4 yards


Defensive Player of the Game: Anthony Felder
This one is also a bit difficult, but fortunately, for different reasons. While this week’s performance may not have been quite as impressive as the one against the Oregon Ducks a few weeks ago, it still serves to show the number of playmakers on this Cal defense.

Darian Hagan has somehow outshined Syd’Quan Thompson at the cornerback position the past few week, Cameron Jordan has been an absolute revelation at defensive end, recording 4 sacks in the past 5 weeks since becoming a starter, and Mike Mohammed is very close to relieving any doubts about whether we’ll have much of a dropoff at the linebacker position, as he currently leads the team in tackles.

But, it’s about time to give Tony his due. The Beast from Washington is second on the team in total tackles (60), and 13th in the conference. Felder was all over the field on Saturday and proved to be the most consistent tackler in helping the Cal defense control the USC offense from putting the game out of reach for the Bears, particularly in Bear territory. Felder led the team in tackles with 10, including 8 solo.

Honorable Mentions:
Mike Mohammed: 7 tackles, 1.5 TFL, 1 sack
Zack Follett: 5 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 Forced fumble
Cameron Jordan: 6 tackles, 1 sack

Play of the Game: Verran Tucker’s One-Handed Catch
While I was tempted to give it to any one of Bryan Anger’s punts, which might have been our best defensive/offensive weapons (depending on how you look at it) on Saturday, Tucker’s catch in the third quarter was absolutely out of control.

After Kevin Riley launched a deep ball down the field, Tucker out positioned the Trojan defender and made an absolutely spectacular one-handed grab to pull down the ball. Wow. Probably one of the most impressive catches in the Tedford era. A few have been a bit more clutch (MacArthur’s catch vs. Oregon ’04), and a few others have been as physically impressive (Desean Jackson’s vs. Air Force ’07), but this one was mighty money.