Pac-12 Roundup Week 8

(It's heating up for Coach Wulff.)

Sorry for the delay in getting this out. I’ll spend less time talking about what happened last week and more about what is to come with this weekend’s upcoming slate of games.

There were quite a few surprises in the Pac-12 last weekend, not so much in the winners, but by how much some teams rolled others en route to big wins. There wasn’t a single close victory in any conference game. You could call it “blowout weekend” if you will.

Arizona 48 UCLA 12
Lowdown: What a mess of a game. The Wildcats played their first game without Mike Stoops, the they came out firing on all cylinders. Nick Foles was his usual efficient self, but the biggest surprise was how poor UCLA’s defense looked against AZ’s rushing attack which had been considered at best, poor all season long. The larger story was the embarrassing scuffle that broke out between both squads. The fight occurred while referees were distracted by a streaker who had been disguised as an umpire. You can’t make this up. The result were suspensions and a seat that’s scorching for UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel.

Up Next:
The Wildcats see if they can continue their winning ways as they finally settle into the soft part of their schedule. However, Arizona can’t be favored in their matchup against Washington at Seattle. I anticipate the Wildcats dropping this one, before possibly winning three of their final four games after. It’s a lost season for Arizona, but finishing 5-7 would be a nice finish for a once desolate squad.

UCLA has to find answers as they host our sturdy Golden Bears this weekend. On top of Neuheisel’s hot seat, the Bruins have to battle six suspensions, the loss of senior safety Tony Dye, and what was easily their worst performance of the year. How the Bruins play against the Bears will say a lot about their fortitude, and perhaps more tellingly, their ability to rally behind their embattled coach.


Oregon 45 Colorado 2
Lowdown: Poor, poor Colorado. A brutal schedule that includes 13 regular season games in 13 weeks. The suspension of most players in their secondary. The loss of their top two offensive players. This is how your write the recipe for a disastrous season. Despite the absence of Darron Thomas and LaMichael James, the Ducks steamrolled Colorado. They could have started their second stringers, and elected not to pass a single down, and would still have pulled this one out.

Up Next:
Things get worse for Colorado. Much worse. They go to Tempe to face the Sun Devils, and then host USC the week after. Their only chance for hope next season, is to pull off two wins out of their final three games which include Arizona, UCLA and Utah. They should get receiver Paul Richardson back for that game, and even finishing with three wins would give fans in Colorado some hope that things will be better next year. I mean they have to, right?

Oregon will continue in their winning ways and improve to 7-1 when they host WSU this weekend. They will hopefully get both Thomas and James back for their critical three game stretch against Washington, Stanford, and USC. I think the Ducks are capable of winning all three, but without the aforementioned players at full strength, the Ducks are likely to drop at least one. Don’t be surprised if it’s to the Huskies next Saturday.

USC 31 Notre Dame 17
Lowdown: The Trojans shocked the nation in steamrolling the Domers for the bajillionth time. Most had thought Notre Dame had turned the season around and USC was showing signs of cracking at any moment. Most were wrong as USC made a statement game that they were still indeed capable of beating most teams. Notre Dame showed that BCS bowl talks were premature, and quite frankly, a bit ridiculous.

Up Next:
USC’s 6-1 on the season. And that win against Notre Dame was impressive. You have to give them that. But I still maintain that this is at best, a “good” team. This isn’t just sour grapes, and I think you’re going to see that over the next few weeks. The Trojans will still likely finish with 9 wins, but I think they get rolled by the Cardinal this weekend, and likely drop their matchup against Oregon as well.

Stanford 65 Washington 21
Lowdown: The biggest knock against the Cardinal was that they hadn’t played anybody of actual strength. Let’s be honest here, Stanford’s front schedule is incredibly soft. Then came along Washington, and the Cardinal rolled up 400+ yards on the ground and 65 points. It was Stanford’s most dominant performance of the season and reason to believe they are actual national contenders. WTF, Washington.

Up Next:
Here’s where Stanford proves their mettle. They face USC this weekend, and finish their season against Oregon, Cal (rivalry game), and Notre Dame. The Cardinal should be favored in all three. There’s a very real possibility Stanford plays for the national title this year. I think Stanford is quite good, and a top 10 team, but I don’t think they’re national title caliber. The Pac-12 isn’t that strong this season, and their biggest threat Oregon, is another dislocated elbow away from being Alamo Bowl bound. The stars appear aligned for Stanford, it’s just up to Andrew Luck, I mean Stanford to take advantage of the situation.

Washington has been one of the biggest surprises in the conference this season, but showed they’re still a season away from challenging for the conference elite. They’re still one of the better teams in the conference however, particularly on offense. They face a suddenly dangerous Arizona team, and you have to think Huskies fans are already wringing their hands at the idea of Nick Holt’s defense facing Arizona’s passing attack. I’m thinking the Huskies finish with 8 wins this year.

Oregon State 44 WSU 21
Lowdown: Both teams battled it out, but Oregon State answered every time WSU made some attempt at making it a game. The Beavers played filthy on defense, and knocked out quarterback Jeff Tuel early in the game. The Beavers just might be finding that mid-season magic again, as their offense has found a way to score behind freshman QB Sean Mannion. They’ve averaged over 36 points in their past three games.

Up Next:
Despite their improvements, OSU is still just 2-5 over the easiest portion of their schedule. Their remaining schedule includes Utah, Stanford, Cal, Washington and Oregon. I wouldn’t be shocked to see the Beavers slated to lose all of them. How they perform against Utah and Stanford will be critical. If their defense can continue to play aggressive, and if the offense continues to click under Mannion, this Bear fan will find himself weeping the week before and after the Cal game.

Washington State on the other hand is seeing a once-promising season swirl down the drain. The Cougars have lost three in a row in a critical three game stretch against UCLA, Stanford and Oregon State. Bowl Eligibility depended greatly on the Cougars winning two, but at the very least one of those games. They enter in the toughest stretch of their schedule, and to be honest, I can’t see WSU finding three wins with Oregon, Cal, ASU, Utah and Washington lined up. Coach Wulff’s job might the least secure after Neuheisel in the Pac-12.
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Utah Recap

(AP Photo/George Nikitin)

In a much needed win, the Bears snapped a three-game losing streak and rolled the Utah Utes on Saturday at ATT Park to a score of 34-10.

Both teams had come into the game winless in the conference, with their respective season trajectories on the line. The winner would maintain course for bowl eligibility, while the the loser would have an uphill battle at salvaging their season.

Thanks to an inspired defensive effort, and a mostly mistake-free performance from Zach Maynard and the offense, the Bears recorded their first conference win in a somewhat surprising dominant fashion, forcing turnovers and stifling any offense attack from the Utes.

Let’s look at some of the specifics.


Defensive Dominance
The Bears’ defensive performance on Saturday can’t be ignored any way you look at it. Many may point to the fact that Utah’s offense is pretty putrid right now having lost their starting quarterback Jordan Wynn, as well as their starting tight end and leading receiver headed into the game. Still, Utah featured a solid offensive line and one of the leading rushers in the conference in John White IV.

Yet, the Bears absolutely shut down any offensive output from the Utes, holding Utah to just 58 yards of total offense heading into the fourth quarter. To that point, John White IV had managed just two yards on seven rushing attempts, while quarterback John Hays had thrown for just 61 yards, been sacked three times and had thrown two interceptions.

By the time the final seconds had rolled off the clock, the Utes would manage to score 10 points mostly against Cal’s reserves, with just 178 total yards. White finished with 39 rushing yards on 15 carries while Hays managed 148 passing yards, but threw for 3 interceptions (one returned by Josh Hill for a score) and was sacked four times.

It was sheer defensive dominance.

Look, I know that right now, Utah probably has the worst offense in the conference. You have to feel for Kyle Wittingham and the Utes in that they couldn’t anticipate the rash of key injuries on offense. Still, it’s still pretty impressive when you hold any FBS team to less than 60 total yards and 0 points heading into the fourth quarter.

Cal’s defense has slowly been putting it together, and defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast appears to have finally settled on his group of starters and his go-to sub packages. The defensive unit as a whole appears to be playing with much more cohesion and communication, and the front seven is doing a solid job of maintaining gap integrity and plugging up interior rushing lanes.

Most knew that it might take some time for the defense to really getting into the swing of things, with freshmen starting OLBs and new starters at other positions. While the Bears still have a few issues, if they continue to play the way they did on Saturday, they are easily one of the best defensive teams in the conference.

Maynard Bounces Back
Many wondered whether QB Zach Maynard could bounce back from his two worst performances of the season against Oregon and USC, in a must-win game against one of the better defenses in the conference.

Well it turns out Maynard didn’t need to be spectacular to answer such questions, instead he needed to simply settle down and and play mistake-free football. And that’s exactly what he did.

With the Bears’ coaching staff doing a much better job of utilizing Maynard’s skill set, Maynard had one of his best games in his Cal career, going 19-29 for 255 yards for a TD and rushing for another score and 36 yards.

Maynard isn’t ever going to be one of the most accurate quarterbacks, but his play is undeniably more crisp when he’s on the move, rolling out of the pocket and allowing his receivers to separate from defenders in man coverage. I thought the coaches did a great job in calling for more rollouts, without overdoing it and keeping Maynard as a legitimate threat in the pocket as well. But there’s not doubt about it, Maynard is a different quarterback when he’s moving around, and the offense becomes far more dangerous.

I also liked that there were more designed runs for Maynard, and he had his best day running the ball since the season opener against Fresno State. That zone read is becoming increasingly effective, and even though you did see a few instances in which Maynard made the wrong decision to keep the ball, he was smart in not trying to do too much to get out of a bad spot and minimized the loss of yardage.

You also saw a few more option pitch plays that had varying levels of success, but I like the variety I’m seeing in utilizing Maynard as a runner, and Isi Sofele has done a good job of making something out nothing in some of those situations.

All I ask is that Maynard slides a bit more. He looks like he’s going to explode every time he gets hit.

With the Bears defense playing as well as it is, the coaching staff needs to reiterate that Maynard simply needs not to press and manage the game in order for the Bears to be competitive in every game this year. Saturday was a very solid start.

Keenan Allen, No Surprises Here
Keenan Allen had his lowest receiving yard total of the season, catching 8 balls for 78 yards and a score, but the way he racked up those stats were no less impressive than some of his gaudy performances this year.

Allen showed why he’s emerging as one of the most balanced receivers in Cal history, showing freakish athleticism on a pass in which he leapt into the air, adjusted and one-handed a pass that was thrown well behind him. It’s the type of play I saw Calvin Johnson make with Georgia Tech a few years ago that made me go, “wow.” He also carried a cornerback on his back on a bubble screen for a score.

Allen may not have the breakaway speed that may make him the biggest deep threat, but he’s so insanely athletic that his play in nearly every other phase of the game shows why he might be a once in a generation type of talent.

Receiving Balance
Though no receiver topped 100 yards on Saturday, I was a huge fan of what I saw in the passing game. I’m a firm believer that the more weapons the a team can develop in the passing game, the more of a threat any one receiver is likely to be in any given game.

While Keenan Allen is still the unquestioned #1 receiver, Marvin Jones was his usual solid self, catching 5 passes for 69 yards. Jones quietly continues to have a very solid season that’s been lost a bit in the hubbub over Allen’s gaudy numbers.

What was even more encouraging was the emergence of Michael Calvin, who caught a career high 4 catches for 49 yards. While they’re far from great numbers, Calvin did just enough to emerge as a legitimate receiving threat to take some pressure off of Jones and Allen on the outside.

I’d love to see a similar type of distribution in catches continue, with perhaps a few more thrown in the direction of Cal’s tight ends.

Speaking of which...

Tight End Thoughts
I had all but given up on tight end production in the passing game until Saturday. However, there were a few things to make me think twice.

First, Anthony Miller still showed he could be a threat in the passing game catching a nice deep ball on a rollout by Maynard in which Maynard threw across his body towards the other end of the field. Had Miller’s legs not been tangled up with the defenders, he would have easily scored.

But you saw the tight ends used quite a bit in the passing game, with Miller and Ladner getting a decent amount of separation from defenders on dig routes or rolling out with Maynard. Maynard just happened to aim for his receivers who deeper downfield instead, which ended up usually being the right decision. However, the fact that they weren’t being left in primarily to block shows there are indeed some plans there for the tight ends in the passing game. In fact, in some spread sets, you even saw Miller off the line and lined up in the slot.

Finally, it appears like Spencer Ladner might have overtaken Spencer Hagan for the second tight end spot. I’m not sure if it was because Hagan got dinged up in the game, but you saw Ladner in quite a bit and he looked pretty good in the blocking game for someone who is coming off such a long rest from injury. Good to see.

Individual Defensive Performances
I continue to watch Stefan McClure’s development with such a watchful eye because I continue to be impressed with his play. Not because he’s been so spectacular. In fact, he had a bit of an up and down performance against the Utes. But he shows such good signs for a corner that you continue to be impressed that he’s just a true freshman.

McClure was picked on quite a bit and did give up gains on at least two deep balls from my recollection, but it’s not that the coverage wasn’t there. He was draped on his defender quite well, they were just nice plays by Hays and the Utah receiver to come down with the ball. And that’s what you like to see from a young corner. An understanding on passing downs, and the athleticism and skills to be in position to make the play, even if it’s not always made. His ability to jump routes and make plays on the ball will continue to develop, but I’m liking what I’m seeing from McClure.

It’s also worth noting that McClure had his first pick of his career after Dave Wilkerson absolutely crushed Hays for a shot put pass.

Speaking of Wilkerson, he had the best game of his young career, recording five tackles , 3 TFLs and 1.5 sacks. Wilkerson has been hobbled for much of the season, but like the rest of the defense, appears to be playing up to the potential that had coaches calling him unblockable off the edges in camp. I like the way the kid hits, and here’s hoping he develops into the type of pass rusher the Bears haven’t had since Zack Follett.

Finally, I think it’s worth noting Aaron Tipoti’s emergence at the nose tackle position. He’s really turned it on since the Oregon game, and in fact, I thought he was one of the best defensive players in the game. He doesn’t demand as many double teams in run defense as other gigantic nose tackles just yet, but he does a fine job in creating pressure in passing situations. He just causes nice disruption at the line of scrimmage.

Offensive Line Improving
While Cal’s offensive line is far from dominant (they still struggle a bit too much in short yardage situations for my tastes), I’m really liking the job that Coach Michalczik is doing with this o-line. The stats aren’t going to wow you, as they still give up the occasional sack and the rushing attack is still just decent at best, the Bears o-line just looks so much more consistent in most phases of the game.

While Utah’s offense was noticeably poor, this was a solid Utah defensive front seven. One of the best in the conference in my opinion. Still, the Bears managed a decent 129 yards on the ground and gave Maynard some pretty good time in the pocket. While some may be distracted by the two sack stat, watching the game, you never really got the sense that Maynard was under too much duress.

The line is still improving, but it’s still in much better shape than it was a year ago.

Special Teams
Special Teams continued to be a mixed bag, but had one of its better days on the season.

Giorgio Tavecchio had a nice day kicking the ball, averaging 62.7 yards on 7 kickoffs. In fact, one touchback went over the left field post for what would have been a homerun...if homeruns were kicked with footballs.

He was also 2 for 3 on the day on field goal attempts, though he was wide left on a 29 yard attempt. I’m not quite sure what happened there, as I thought it was blocked, but it might have just been poor contact with the ball from the get go.

All in all, Tavecchio still is one of the brighter spots on special teams along with Bryan Anger who averaged 46.2 yards per punt. The staff went to the rugby style punts later in the game, to...less productive results. Me no likey rugby punts.

Punt coverage was solid, and kickoff coverage was about the same until a few poor angles led to some big returns in the second half.

One point I haven’t touched too much on this year has been the poor blocking on punt and kickoff returns. It’s really been quite bad.

It seems that nearly every punt has the opposing team’s gunner running unimpeded towards Marvin Jones. On kickoff returns, Colemon Edmond and Brendon Bigelow literally have no shot, and are usually nailed inside the fifteen yard line. Not good.

Special Teams did some good things, but there are some areas that may simply not change this year. The Bears are going to have battle poor field position all year on opening kickoffs.

Looking Ahead
Overall, it was a solid performance for the Bears. There are still some concerns, and I didn’t even touch upon the penalty problem that plagues the Bears on Saturday.

But the Bears showed very well the type of team they could be this year: a defensively disruptive team that makes enough plays on offense when they minimize mistakes to win games.

The Bears passed their first test in a critical and very much winnable four game stretch that will define their season. Cal has found the formula for the Bears to be successful this year. They just need to play with the same level of focus to match their performance for the rest of this season.
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Cal vs. Utah Highlights

These highlights come to you courtesy TouchedtheAxein82. Usual solid work.

I'll have the writeup for the game sometime this evening or tomorrow, but just know this Golden Bear fan was encouraged by a lot of things yesterday.

Go Bears.

[Edit: Here is Cal Athletics' highlight reel of the game with Starky's commentary. What a bonanza!"]


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Keys to the Game: Utah

(The man is strong AND he can coach!)

In Saturday's matchup between the Utah Utes (wtf is a Ute?) and the Cal Bears, both teams face a must win scenario. Both are 3-3 on the season, and both are looking for their first conference win.

The Utes have had a tougher non-conference slate, though the Bears have faced off against three of the top conference teams, with two games having been on the road.

The Bears look to get back to their winning ways to cut down on their mistakes that sunk them in their last loss to USC, and they hope to look for more efficiency out of their quarterback Zach Maynard, who threw for a season-high three interceptions in last week's mistake-filled contest.

Utah brings a very tough defense, and QB issues of their own, and the season might change drastically for the victor in Saturday's game. Let's get to the specifics.


Get Back to Basics on Offense
Utah's defense has quietly been very solid this season.

They're second in the conference in total and scoring defense, giving up on average, 326.3 yards and 20.5 points per game.

The Utes are very stout in the trenches, and their rush defense is also second in the conference, giving up 94.5 yards per game. They held the nation's leading rusher, Pittsburgh's Ray Graham to just 46 total rushing yards, though Pittsburgh's usually terrible offense became even more one dimensional last Saturday at Heinz Field.

The Utes are very disciplined in all that they do, and are particularly adept in forcing turnovers as evidenced by the 16 they've forced this year.

Cal's toughest test will be to find consistency on offense against Utah's defense.

I do think the Bears have the weapons to take down the Utes. It will boil down to whether they have the consistency to do it however. The Bears need to find some type of identity on offense. If they choose to spread out Utah's defense, they need to get Maynard out of the pocket and find ways to get their receivers into space. If they want to go the ground and pound route, it's fine as long as they commit to it.

The Bears are very multiple in what they do, but they've had inconsistent results in nearly every offensive set. I'm not opposed to the Bears testing the waters early on with multiple looks, but they need to use the first quarter to find out what's working and ditch what isn't.

Personally I think the spread look might look better against the Utes, but if the Bears go this route, just remember to move the pocket for Maynard. He doesn't always have to roll out, but he's not at a point where he can just sit back and pick defenses apart just yet. He's going to get his hand stuck in the cookie jar, so just allow him to buy time in a moving pocket.

Make Hayes Beat You
Since Utah QB Jordan Wynn has gone down, Utah has had to rely on Jon Hayes (from Nebraska Omaha) to lead the offense. However, the real driving force behind this offense is Jon White IV who is currently third in the conference in rushing yards with 671.

However, I will say that in the short action I've seen Jon Hayes play in, he hasn't looked completely wide-eyed and has done a decent job managing the game.

In short, expect the Utes to try and wear down the Cal defense with long drives consisting of a consistent ground game and high completion throws to their wideouts and tight ends.

The Utes know they can't rely on White to run 40 times a game, and are going to have to get something going through the air. I expect the defense to turn it up a notch and dial in the pressure in attempts to stack the box and rattle Hayes. Give Hayes multiple looks to force some indecision in the passer. Utah's leading receiver Devonte Christopher might be out for the game, and the Utes have no other proven playmakers at the wideout position, so the Bears can afford to leave some of their defenders on an island in order to stop the run. If the Bears can turn the Utah offense into being one dimensional by stuffing the rushing attack and making Hayes try and beat the Bears through the air, I like our chances.

However, please, please be wary of the screen. Please?

Solid Special Teams
In a game that's likely to be a defensive slugfest, special teams and field position are going to be absolutely critical. What's been for the Utes is their kicker/punter Jordan Peterson, who pretty much does it all, handling both punting and kicking duties. He's done a fair job on both, and nailed 4 field goals in last week's win over Pittsburgh.

Unfortunately for the Utes, Utah has also given up five touchdowns on special teams, with Pittsburgh scoring their only two touchdowns on a kickoff return, and a block punt returned for a score.

The Bears have had their own problems on special teams, and although they've yet to give up any scores on the unit, have seen inconsistency on their rugby style punts, and have had a ridiculous 5 kicks (4 PATs and 1 FG) blocked on the season.

Overall however, Utah has typically had strong special teams, and is a well-coached unit. The Bears are going to have to be incredibly cautious in all phases, especially on kickoffs, with Utah's Reggie Dunn averaging about 25 yards per kickoff return.

The Bears can't afford to make too many chances on special teams, and just need to execute on basic assignments. If Cal's offense struggles, solid special teams might be the difference between decent field position, and terrible field position.

Outlook
Early on in the season, I pegged this game as a loss. I thought Utah was coached too well and their knack for taking down AQ foes (including the Bears) led me to believe that the game was going to be a loss.

However, the Utes have shown a propensity to beat themselves, and their offense has become far more one-dimensional without QB Jordan Wynn, who wasn't exactly lighting it up when he was healthy either. I then began to believe. Beat a floundering Utes team at home? Hells yes.

With that said, Utah is still well coached (probably better than ours), and their stout defense has me scared.

It'll depend on which Cal team shows up. If the 5 turnover mess of a team shows up, I still maintain that that squad doesn't beat a single conference team all season. But if Cal can cut down their mistakes, I still think we have one of the more dangerous teams out there.

I think the Bears rebound and play a hard fought game.

Prediction
Cal 23 Utah 17
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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.
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