Cal Football 2011 Schedule Thoughts

Cal's schedule was officially released a few weeks ago, but I'm just getting around to mentioning anything about it. Here's the schedule below.

Day, Date - Opponent (Time, TV)
Sat., Sept. 3 - Fresno State (TBA)
Sat., Sept. 10 - at Colorado (TBA)
Sat., Sept. 17 - Presbyterian (TBA)
Sat., Sept. 24 - at Washington (TBA)
Thu., Oct. 6 - at Oregon (6 p.m. PT, ESPN)
Thu., Oct. 13 - USC (6 p.m. PT, ESPN)
Sat., Oct. 22 - Utah (TBA)
Sat., Oct. 29 - at UCLA (TBA)
Sat., Nov. 5 - Washington State (TBA)
Sat., Nov. 12 - Oregon State (TBA)
Sat., Nov. 19 - at Stanford (TBA)
Sat., Nov. 26 - at Arizona State (TBA)

After the jump, some quick thoughts.


We all knew the Bears had a bit of a funky schedule this year, what with Memorial Stadium under renovation and all the games being played at ATT park and all. With that said, there's a little extra funkiness in store for this upcoming season.

Sat., Sept. 3 - Fresno State
The Bears open their season playing the Fresno State bulldogs at a "neutral" game site at Candlestick Park. This is a game that FSU and head coach Pat Hill have been pining for for quite some time now, and it appears they'll get their wish. Really, this game probably wouldn't have happened had the Bears not been in such a rush to try and get a full schedule together this year. The challenges with the stadium reconstruction had made it difficult for the Bears to be picky about their opponents this year, and the Bulldogs willingly jumped at the chance to play the Bears.

As for the venue, the game will be held at in one of the worst stadiums in the country in my opinion. Perhaps it's the stench of the Niners performance there the last ten years or so, but I really do not enjoy watching games there. Transportation getting to and from the stadium is a pain and the stadium offers nothing in terms of comfort, views, or amenities. And let's just hope whoever is QBing for the Bears that day doesn't have to deal with the strong winds that can swirl through the stadium.

The Bulldogs themselves should make for a suitable opponent. They're competitive enough to offer a stiff challenge, yet far from daunting. The game should provide a good sense of where the Bears are in their development.

Sat., Sept. 10 - at Colorado (TBA)
Another weird game in that the Bears face off against a new Pac-12 conference opponent in a non-conference game. The Buffaloes were reportedly trying to get out of this one after joining the Pac-12 in the offseason, but it made more sense for them financially to stick it out.

Now that there Buffaloes have shed themselves of Dan Hawkins, I expect them to be better. I thought they had shown some signs of competitive play last season, despite their uncompetitive showing in Memorial Stadium last year. Plus, going on the road to Boulder against a team seeking revenge is never an easy task.

Still, the Buffaloes are still a ways away from being a truly dangerous team, and the Bear should walk out with a win in this one.

Sat., Sept. 17 - Presbyterian (TBA)
Yes, the legendary and storied Presbyterian Blue Hose program will face the Bears in their first meeting at ATT park. Blue Hose's alumni include President Barack Obama, NFL greats Peyton Manning and Barry Sanders, as well as pop sensations Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga.

Sat., Sept. 24 - at Washington (TBA)
For the first time in a while, Washington won't be Cal's final opponents of the season. The Bears will pick up right where they left off, after their last meeting with Huskies ended with a heart-breaking loss on the last play that sent the Huskies to the Holiday Bowl and the Bears sitting home for the bowl season for the first time in Jeff Tedford's tenure.

The media will have an easy job selling this one, freely opting between the revenge/redemption angle, or going with the conference opener story.

Jake Locker is gone, as are some veteran defenders in Mason Foster, but the Huskies will still feature one of the better runningbacks in the conference in Chris Polk who should contend for all-conference honors next year. Plus, why does it seem like it's been an eternity since the Bears have had nice memories in Husky Stadium?

Thu., Oct. 6 - at Oregon (6 p.m. PT, ESPN)
The Bears will have a few extra days to prepare for this one, which is about the best possible situation in preparing to face the Ducks, other than coming out of a bye. The Ducks offense takes a bit of extra time to prepare for, in terms of both conditioning and gameplanning.

Cal faces the Ducks on national television, getting the Thursday night ESPN2 slot. Unfortunately for the Bears, when they play on ESPN, bad things happen.

To make matters worse, the Ducks are again the conference favorites next year, and as we all know, Autzen is historically one of the tougher venues to play at. Oh, and the Bears were walloped their 42-3, the last time they played there. Hurray!

Thu., Oct. 13 - USC (6 p.m. PT, ESPN)
The craziness continues, as the Bears continue their Thursday night ESPN tour with a game against the USC Trojans. Unfortunately, the Bears' last couple of meetings against the Trojans haven't ended well, to stay in the least.

Despite the Bears postseason and recruiting restrictions, the Trojans still feature the best athletes in the conference. It's hard to get excited for this one given the Bears' woes against USC, but hey, perhaps there will be a 8 year anniversary special of the last time the Bears beat the Trojans in Memorial stadium. Wait, they'll be playing at AT&T. Blast!

Sat., Oct. 22 - Utah (TBA)
The Bears come off their bye to square off against new Pac-12 foe Utah. The last time the Bears played the Utes, they were beaten in the Poinsettia Bowl. Notice a theme here? Revenge tour!

While I highly doubt the Utes will go through a Pac-12 schedule unscathed like they did so many years in the Mountain West, they're still a well-coached competitive team with a nice quarterback in Jordan Wynn. It should be a competitive game, and fun one to watch.

Sat., Oct. 29 - at UCLA (TBA)
Ahh the Bruins. Far be it from me to begin taking things for granted, but the Bears have absolutely owned the Bruins the past few years. And after breaking the Rose Bowl curse (not THAT one), I can't find myself getting too worried about this one.

Sat., Nov. 5 - Washington State (TBA)
What does it say when I find myself more scurred of Cougs than the Bruins? I really do believe this will be the year that Cougars win more than one conference game. They were fairly competitive in almost their games last year, nearly taking down the Bears in Pullman last year.

With that said, the Bears should still handle Wazzu.

Sat., Nov. 12 - Oregon State (TBA)
Jeebus, it's been a while since the Bears have beaten OSU. I keep saying, "This will be the year," every year as the Beavers usually look mediocre on paper each season, only to go on a conference ass kicking from the mid season on (with the exception of last year).

But you know what? I think this is the year.

Sat., Nov. 19 - at Stanford (TBA)
It's been a while since the Bears had their asses handed to them by the Furd like they did last year. I don't know how much added motivation that will be for a team facing their rivals. But here's hoping to the Bears showing up more than they did last year.

The Furd lose Jim Harbaugh and some veteran offensive lineman, but still have one of the best QBs in the land in Andrew Luck. I'm doubtful that the Furd will have the level of success they did this past season, but they should still be a very good team who will likely be favored in this matchup.

Sat., Nov. 26 - at Arizona State (TBA)
The media's sexy pick to contend for a conference championship, the Sun Devils finish their season against the Bears. The Sun Devils were 6-6 last year, but people are excited out in Tempe. You might ask, "Why? Isn't Dennis Erickson still the head coach?"

Well the optimistic fans will tell you they have a lot going for them. ASU was competitive in most of their losses, mere points away from knocking off Wisconsin, OSU, Stanford, and USC (their worst loss coming to the Bears actually). They also return one of the conference's more solid defenses and one of the nation's more fearsome defenders in Vontaze Burfict. Brock Osweiler looked promising after taking over for Steven Threet last season, and the schedule looks doable.

This blogger isn't sold however, and think the Bears may should have a solid shot if they decide to show up.

Well there you have it folks. It's a funky schedule for a funky season. Here's hoping the results aren't as funky.