USC Recap: (Part 2) Effects

I continue my USC recap by looking at the potential effects of Cal's second conference loss, and some thoughts to consider as we enter into the first bye week of the season.

What does it mean?
The effects of Cal’s loss to USC are potentially long lasting. It’s not anything any player, coach, or fan wants to hear, but this loss really hurts on a number of levels.

First of all, for all intents and purposes, the Bears’ Rose Bowl dreams are all but lost for this year. That much is obvious. By no means would I expect or hope the Bears fold it up and call it a season. But the Bears aren’t even close to controlling anyone’s destiny at this point, let alone their own, and that can be deflating enough with more than half the season to play.

Also, Cal’s fanbase and national perception may have been irreparably damaged. I honestly get the sense that Cal may have really lost the benefit of the doubt in too many people’s mind. Yes, the loss was that bad. Getting drubbed 72-6 in back to back weeks with so much on the line on a national scale will do that to you.

Then again, if the 2007 season has taught us anything, then we know that most Cal fans have a ridiculous pain tolerance. Hell, just look back at the last 51 years.


And usually I would consider this a minor issue, but given the game was host to arguably the biggest and critical recruiting weekend in the program’s history, a 30-3 loss makes the Bears look like a less attractive contender for their football services for just about…anyone. Both for potential recruits and those who have already committed. It will be very interesting to see the potential fallout and aftermath of such a weekend.

The Bad News Bears
The bottom line is that the Bears find themselves in one heck of a hole. Back to back embarrassing losses that have knocked the Bears out of the conference title picture may have also set the program back a few years.

And while Cal could dig themselves out and finish with a respectable record (a ten win season is still feasible), nothing about the team in recent weeks has shown that they’re anywhere near being able to accomplish such a feat. The Bears have more issues than they can count, and I’m not sure if just hard work is going to fix it.

I would like to believe that Cal simply had freak performances in back to back weeks and that execution is all that is necessary to right the ship. And while the Bears have certainly fallen off the wagon in that category, I really don’t think the Bears’ issues have to do with effort. Their talent may have been grossly overvalued and that Cal’s gameplanning hasn’t even been close to what’s necessary to make their last few games competitive.

The Golden Good News?
The first piece of good news is that Bears have made it through the most difficult part of the schedule. Make no mistake about it, I can see the Bears easily losing five more games based on their recent performances. Yet, none appear to be as tough on paper (yet) as what the Bears faced in the past few weeks.

The Bears also escaped the game without any major injuries. Given where the Bears were last year in this category, we should be pretty fortunate that we’re just out two tight ends, a receiver, and an OG at this point.

The biggest piece of good news though is that the bye weekend couldn’t have come soon enough. The Bears are going to have to take a good hard look at their team in nearly every facet and evaluate where they need to shake things up. I am not calling for any one player or coach’s head. I am hoping though that this staff looks at their team and themselves honestly to evaluate what clearly has and has not been working and try something—anything different.