Fall Camp News and Notes (8.19)

A couple of quick hits on some of the most recent happenings from fall camp this week:

Injury Updates
-TE Tad Smith is out for the season after tearing his ACL in his right knee. The RS senior might be done for his career at Cal, as Smith will petition the NCAA for sixth year of eligibility. Tough, tough break for Smith, who missed most of spring ball after fracturing his collar bone, and was expected to strongly challenge for the starting TE spot this season. I wish Smith a speedy recovery and am crossing my fingers that he’ll have a chance to compete again next year.

-WR Michael Calvin will also miss a few weeks after having surgery on his right knee to clear out some of fluid that was causing some swelling. This is the same knee that caused him to miss most of last season after tearing his ACL. You’ve got to really feel for Calvin whose skills have praised time and time again, but has been set back by a myriad of injuries. Calvin could be able to begin practicing again next week, but will hopefully be back in full action by the second or third game of the season.


-Center Chris Guarnero had a minor surgery to repair a ligament in his left thumb, but should be back in a few days. How much time he’s out should depend on how soon the pain goes away. He should still be safe to play in the opener, where he’s project to start.

Depth Chart and Position Changes
-Jonathan Okanes reported an interesting bit about DE Cameron Jordan looking at a possible demotion, after sophomore Trevor Guyton took snaps with the first team. Defensive Coordinator Bob Gregory has cited Jordan’s lack of intensity in practice, and wants to see Jordan take practice a bit more seriously, while citing Guyton’s continued improvement.

Honestly, while I’m not doubting that Guyton will be ready to contribute more this season, I’m thinking this is more of a situation where Jordan is being called out and pushed like a number of notable defensive players have been in the past (Hill, Hagan, etc). That’s not to say Jordan should dismiss the demotion—far from that. But I think if Jordan breaks his complacency, he’s got a good chance to be something special for the Bears.


-LB Mike Mohamed was reportedly taking snaps at weakside OLB, with Mychal Kendricks, DJ Holt, and Devin Bishop taking first team snaps on the inside. I’m not sure what to make of this. Mohamed is Cal’s most versatile LB, and I don’t doubt he could succeed at the position. In fact, I think it could potentially be better for him. But this also might say how well Holt and Bishop have been playing on the inside, as well as the reality that it will take JC transfers Ryan Davis and Jarred Price some time before they’re ready to start at the OLB position.

Honestly, I’m guessing it actually is what it is: a chance for the coaching staff to evaluate which four best linebackers will start for the Bears. When you consider it that way, it’s actually quite simple.

-Not too much of a surprise: Tedford has admitted that the QB battle is realistically between Kevin Riley and Brock Mansion. While praising Beau Sweeney’s abilities, he articulated what had been pretty clear at this point—Riley and Mansion’s experience give them an obvious leg up in the battle. I am still encouraged to hear about how far along Sweeney is in his progress as a RS frosh, and look to see what he can do in a few spots this year.

While the starters should be announced a week before the opener, I’ve got a feeling that the starting QB could be named any day now. I would guess by the end of this week or early next. That’s just a complete guess at this point.