USC Recap

Yeh, we know. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

Let me start by saying that at no point during Cal's 30-9 loss to USC yesterday did I experience the typical sadness that follows our annual game with the Trojans.

No, this time it wasn't sadness, but pure frustration and anger.

I love my Bears. And to be completely honest with you, I find myself liking this team a lot more than previous years' squads than probably warranted. Even in these losses I've never really felt like the team has quit or given up.

But yesterday, the Bears looked awful. Atrocious. Well, other than the defense. In fact, other than a few mistakes here or there, the defense played about as well as they could have.

The offense and special teams however were a completely different story. How could anyone watch the game objectively and not think the Bears looked like a mess on those sides of the ball?

This was not the result of teams giving up like many felt they did in previous losses. No, this was pure sloppiness to the nth degree. It seemed like every positive play was followed up by some boneheaded penalty, turnover, or miscue.

It's incredibly frustrating to watch because I really do think the Bears are a mediocre team right now, but they're playing like a terrible one. I can't think of a Pac-12 team we would have beaten last night. That's how bad it was.

Perhaps I'm making more of it than necessary, because there were a lot of good things in the game as well. But perhaps I haven't been making enough of it for a while now either.

Let's get to the highs and lows of each unit.


Sink or Swim with Maynard
First off, there were so many issues with the Bears' offense and special teams on Thursday, that no one in that their right mind could pin the loss entirely on Maynard.

With that said, Maynard was a huge part of the Bears' offensive failures against USC. Maynard was 25 for 43 for 294 yards, but was held without a TD for the first time, and more crucially, threw 3 interceptions in key moments during the game.

What's been so maddening about Maynard has been his propensity to do some great things, and then follow it up a play that will make anyone just throw their hands up in the air. His scramble to evade defenders and hit CJ Anderson while rolling to his right was just brilliant. His interception in the end zone in which he locked onto his intended receiver and threw in double coverage with a linebacker underneath was not. It's incredibly frustrating to watch.

There is no secret to Maynard right now. He's an athlete that has an ability to do good things, and can throw some nice balls when he steps forward in the pocket and sets his feet. He also throws a nice ball on the run or when he moves out of the pocket.

However, he's not an accurate passer right now, and I'm not sure he'll ever be. His mechanics break down quickly when he gets flustered in the pocket when he's weakest, as does his ability to read defenses and look off his receiver deconstruct. Simply put, the game is moving too quickly for him right now.

It looks like Tedford is going to stick with Maynard right now, knowing that the team is about to go through the softest stretch of the season. Over the next few games, Tedford will know whether Maynard will progress and get up to speed or if what we all see right now is what we're going to get.

Either way, Tedford is going to sink or swim with Maynard. If Maynard can settle down, go through his progressions and learn not to get rattled in the pocket, all signs looking positive for the following season. If Maynard continues to struggles however, the season is done and the Bears continue to have QB issues and the same disappointing story with Tedford's so-called legend as a QB guru reduced to nothing but a myth.

We're halfway through the season, and while one can see flashes of why Tedford went with Maynard so early, but at this point, it's also strongly possible that Maynard's downfall could very well to Tedford's as well.

Offensive Offense
Here's the good. Keenan Allen showcased why just might be one of the best wide receivers in the nation. The sky was the limit for this guy, but he's just flat out beast level right now.

Marvin Jones also shows flashes of good things, but his two drops are disheartening. He may have a hand injury though that most aren't aware of. Not sure.

I still continue to be increasingly content with Isi Sofele, though his numbers on Thursday weren't good. The Bears had to get away from the run again fairly early on, and the run blocking during the second half of the game simply wasn't there.

But the number of other mental mistakes for this team is brutal. Simply brutal. Drops, penalties, poor decisions...the list goes on. On one play late in the game, USC sacked the Bears with a two man rush. TWO. Against five. Matt Summers-Gavin was beat by his men while Cheadle and Galas stared off heroically in the distance.

On Cal's last possession, Michael Calvin had the first down on a 17 yard strike, only to run backwards and get tackled to end the Bears drive.

Galas continues to struggle with shotgun snaps and now he's getting penalized for them.

Oh, and the tight ends have become non-existent in the passing game.

While the biggest issues with the offense start with Maynard, it's disheartening to see so many mental errors in a game that appeared about as winnable as one has been in a while.

On that note...

USC = Mediocre
This is not an issue of sour grapes. Trust me, I've seen the Bears lose to some truly great USC teams. But after having watched this game, I'm convinced that USC is really mediocre. They're one dimensional on offense, and that defense is going to continue to get shredded by decent offenses this year.

This was just an issue of Cal looking awful on offense and special teams on Thursday.

Speaking of special teams...

Special Teams...Jeebus
The Bears have Giorgio Tavecchio and Bryan Anger going for them, and that's about it. Tavecchio continues to have a solid senior season, and Bryan is as well when he's not asked to rugby punt.

The continual decision to rugby punt is an indictment of the Bears' terrible protection in both kicking and punting games.

Speaking of protection, kick and punt protection is inexcusably bad. There's no reason a team should have four extra points and a field goal blocked in six games. Inexcusable.

Also, the Bears have no strengths right now in the return game, which mind boggling considering the athletes the Bears have on the team. Brendon Bigelow continues his struggles on kick returns, and Marvin Jones may not be the answer in punt returns. He had his longest return of the season on his 33 yarder, but again fair-caught a ball inside his own ten-yard line. Moreover, one could see him brush off Tedford's scolding on the sideline for his error.

Finally, I haven't read any explanations on the fake punt attempt yet, but it appeared like Coach Genyk allowed Anger to audible based on what he saw from USC, but that should never have been an option. I'm a fan of taking an occasional fake punt attempt, but not when you have to gain seven and you're that deep in your own territory. What an absolute blunder.

At this point, I'm hardpressed to come up with many reasons that Coach Genyk should be retained as special teams coach at the end of the season. I feel like I'm fighting every impulse in my body to give up on special teams at this point.

The One Bright Spot
I thought the defense played pretty well on Thursday. It wasn't perfect by any means, with the biggest issues being the missed tackles that could have been some big plays.

However, by and large the Bears defense had to battle some dynamic USC playmakers, terrible field position, and also had to deal with being on the field much longer than necessary due to the offense's deficiencies.

The played good coverage down the field, were sound in their assignments, and also did a nice number on the Trojan running game before their being on the field for so long just caught up to them.

Most specifically, I was pleased with the job the Bears did on USC playmaker Robert Woods. Holding Woods to 36 receiving yards is pretty remarkable. I don't think this would have been the case had Barkley had a better game, but the Bears applied enough pressure in the pocket to rattle Barkley just a bit and force him to be a bit off with his throws.

McClure's Starting Debut
All in all I think true freshman Stefan McClure did an outstanding job in his first start. He had a tough task against both Marqise Lee and Robert Woods. An unfairly tough task in fact. And sure he got beat a few times, but in those one-one battles, the offense usually wins out. I do wonder where the safety help was on a few instances as well. But again, McClure was usually in position to make plays, and appears to be a pretty sound tackler for his age as well.

He's got some more tough battles ahead, but the future looks bright for the talented frosh. McClure has all the makings for a very talented cover corner.

Looking Forward
Coming into the season, I looked at our first six games and thought that a 4-2 record over that stretch would be ideal, a 2-4 start would be disastrous, and a 3-3 record would be about in line with preseason expectations of a young team breaking in new starters at key positions during the toughest stretch of the year.

The Bears have fallen in line with those expectations by dropping their last three, but what has been so concerning has been the ways in which we've lost the last two games. Washington was very much winnable had the Bears been able to execute in the red zone, and while Oregon was still a stretch, that could have been much more close had the Bears offense not stalled in key stretches of the game. As for USC, we've just discussed that.

The Bears enter a very, very winnable stretch in their schedule that will define their season. Few expected the Bears to be in the upper tier of the conference this year, but the hope was that the Bears would rise above the mediocre teams this year. Taking the next four games, or at the very least, 3 of 4 will help the Bears achieve just that.

However, Thursday's game was a step in the wrong direction. Because again, another performance like Thursdays, and it will be hard for the Bears to be considered even mediocre.