USC'S SOPHOMORE SENSATION JUJU SMITH-SCHUSTER IS THE LEADING RECEIVER IN THE PAC-12. (PHOTO BY RALF CHEUNG)
Football Insider J Torchio tip-toes back into the podcenter to discuss Cal's loss to UCLA, preview Cal/USC, and whether anything is predictable in the wild 2015 PAC-12.
Photo | Ben Margot
By Josh Hunsucker | @jphunsucker
Let the games begin. Last season, I got to see the first Warriors title of my life. I’m still thankful and have to keep pinching myself to make sure it's still real. One thing I didn’t anticipate as fan of the WORLD CHAMPION GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS was, for how great it was to win the title, no one in the media or on a team that has never won anything, let alone was even good enough to face us (yes us) in last year’s playoffs, can’t wait to discredit our (yes our) title as less than a true World Championship. Let’s make it clear, WE ARE CHAMPIONSHIP. Does it take a certain amount of luck to win any title? YUP. Can a title be won on luck alone? NOPE. Did WE earn that title? YUP. Are we Championship? YUP.
After the Golden State Warriors won the 2015 NBA Championship, "Brazilian Blur" Leandro Barbosa (who famously predicted the Warriors would win it all) was very happy.
The best part of all of the Warriors title undercutting is that it has given the Dubs plenty of motivation not to be complacent with just winning the 2014–15 title. Last year the Warriors couldn’t win by going small. Now, they are the de facto faux-champions in an alternate universe where LeBron won the series but somehow lost the title, or vice versa?
No way. Now, the title defense maybe means a little more to the Warriors as a collective group. Klay and Bogut are clearly pissed. Even the generally middle of the road MVP, Steph Curry gave a great “apology” for winning the title. I can’t wait for these guys to defend the title.
And I can’t think of a better way for me to do my part to defend the title than to pump out an unnecessarily long retro-diary of opening night! WE GON’ BE CHAMPIONSHIP 2.0 starts tonight. STANCE!
Photo | Scott Strazzante
Pregame
Pump-up Video: I am a sucker for pump-up videos. If you remember the 2008 Celtics Finals pre-game video, that is the gold standard with a maniacal Kevin Garnett inexplicably yelling at everyone in the Garden. It’s hard to do a championship pre-game video, so much to fit in but you have to keep it tight. I give this one a B+ mostly because I have no other one to compare it to but because the great “Strength in Numbers” motto was shadowed by some Joe Lacob “look at me, this lonely banner, look at what I did, I said I would bring a title to Golden State and I did” self-aggrandizing opening shots. And in his defense, he did do all of that and I am very thankful for him but just leave it out of the pump-up video. Other than that nice overview of the season, it was fairly accurate showing the Dubs only making threes and dunks (one Curry reverse lay-up), and a solid recap. EVERYBODY GET GOLDEN!!
Ring Ceremony: Does anyone find it weird that we include the Philly Championships? Golden State has two titles if you ask me. When you have to immediately question the “4x Champs” post-title t-shirts there is something wrong.
Adam Silver is awesome. Short sweet speech and the reason the NBA is on the way up and the NFL is on the way down.
God I am excited for the abbreviated Luke Walton era! The crowd is already on his side. Bill is a phone call away for sage advice and I’m sure Bob Weir is too.
Bogut with the middle finger fitting! He wasn’t lying!
Wait, how was Curry not given his ring last? Alphabetical order? Come on Warriors, I know that you haven’t won the title in 40 years but let’s not burry the lead. AANNNND to wrap it up BRRRRAAAAAANDON RUSH and KLLLLAY THOMPSON!
Photo | Ezra Shaw
Banner Raising: Steph for president 2016! The guy gets it. I thought his parade speech was great but he just killed it again! Freddie Mercury blasting…goose bumps. That banner is beautiful.
[TNT cuts to commercial] In my mind, smash cut to Coach Luke “OK guys lets get out there and have a day!!” and the team just looks glazed over from the pregame hoopla. I want to know the record of NBA champs in their title defense home opener after all of the pre-game (earned and justified) self-agrandizing? It can’t be good. Remember the Steph MVP playoff game? They played in a post-coital daze. Can’t wait. Actually, who cares were are the champs!
RIP FLIP/Anthem: Nice touch to honor Flip Saunders. As a KG lover you have to tip your cap to Flip. Naya with the PIPES. USA! Let’s go! God, Alvin Gentry wants to kick our ass tonight.
Photo | Noah Graham
1st Quarter
12:00: Dear God, C-Webb is the color guy are they trying to do some weird Don Nelson curse? What’s happening? Very happy to see the Dubs didn’t get crazy with the championship opening night unis. Simple Larry O’Brien trophy and gold number outline, classy.
11:34: No, no, no…Draymond! How many Draymond “I got this” opening three point misses did we have last year? Need stats on the percentage that landed and our win/loss record.
10:55: Bogut with a prayer pass that landed, awful defense by Nate Robinson. Steph is so damn smooth. The crowd is officially hyped the DEFENSE chant is palpable on my TV with the volume only at 10 because everyone is asleep.
9:14: Steph 3-pointer no.1.
8:55–8:39: C-Webb (and America) astonished the Kendrick Perkins looked competent on offense. No hyperbole that was the best Perk move of all time. Maybe the Pelicans won’t have to go to Anthony Davis 99.99% of the time tonight to get buckets. “Here we see Hakeem, I mean Perkins.” C-Webb playing loose tonight.
6:50: Steph 3-Pointer no. 2.
6:19: So much for not coming out fired up. These guys came out guns blazed. “You talking rings?”
5:45: Loving the Steph v. Perk scoring battle. This is what the NBA wants.
5:02–4:38: Steph 3-Pointer no. 3. Shouldn’t Coach Gentry know that you have to pick up Steph at half court? Uncontested 3’s will be wet. SPLASH. Steph looking determined to eviscerate the Pelicans and the NBA. I’m sure the Clippers think the Dubs are lucky for not drawing them on opening night. Cant’ wait.
3:56: Steph 3-Pointer no. 4. Heat check time. Ish Smith ankle check time. Am I in basketball heaven?
3:15–2:45: I AM in basketball heaven! This possession is the epitome of why we won the title. Teamwork, hustle, unselfishness, a little luck, great ball movement, give up good shots to get great shots [thank you Jalen], and Steph Curry with the shot. The roof is coming off and we have 40 more games at home.
37.7: I know Harrison Barnes was working on his post game this offseason but Jesus, please pass the ball when the defense rotates. How is a person name Ish doing this to us? Good timeout by Coach Luke. Running out of steam and then Steph gets and easy bucket.
16.2: The bench is call James Michael.
0:00: Steph goes for 24 in the first. Poor closeout. I hope we didn’t blow our wad.
Photo | Ezra Shaw
2nd Quarter
10:51: Jesus the second squad looks rough. What the hell is going on out here?
10:10: Spare me with the 3D Silicon Valley game viewer glasses. Just stop it.
8:42–7:31: Anthony Davis is pressing. Forcing shots. This is good. Mo Buckets taking charges, blocking shots, and missing bunnies. Mo Buckets doing Mo Bucket things in his first action back since missing that dunk in the Finals. This second quarter has been the crème de la crap. This is looking more like the uninspired and limp post-championship celebration performance I expected. Finally we see Steph Curry and Draymond Green in the second quarter.
5:53: Anthony Davis looks awful. Can’t make free throws, traveling. He has to be pressing. Too much ownership given by Coach Gentry?
5:30: Is Coach Luke the NBA version of Tom Blackwood with these mad genius inbound plays?
3:50: Wonderful pass by Steph on the flex cut to a trailing Bogut. Svelte Bogut looks quick and springy.
3:30: Draymond goes temporarily insane. T, well deserved.
46.8: Somehow we are up 8. Getting good looks and just not knocking them down.
11.0: That was a clean swipe by the Brazillian Blur. On a side note, how much is Anthony Davis’ unibrow really worth in terms of branding? I’m sure there is some unaffiliated t-shirt company in NOLA has made some dollars off of his brow’s likeness but has Davis? I don’t know but wouldn’t you rather look good? It’s not like the unibrow is getting a national following. It’s not the new beard or even ironic mustache. Who is his PR team?
0.8–0:00: Steph just unstoppable. 29 after 24 minutes. Sick. 59-49 Dubs.
Photo | Ezra Shaw
3rd Quarter
11:11–10:48: Curry to Bogut is going off. The Pelicans are terrified of Steph. Putting Nate Robinson and Perk in the pick and roll will always be successful. Crowd ready to collectively wait or Perk at the buses after he tried to decapitate Steph.
10:18: Is there anyone more disliked by other teams’ fans than Draymond? Think about it, who would be public enemy number one for Dubs fans? Chris Paul? Blake Griffin? I mean across the NBA I feel like the general fan base of each team probably dislikes Draymond and boos him whenever he gets the ball. God I love that guy. He plays so damn hard and antagonizes the other team. I think Anthony Davis just gave him a “don’t you know who I am” look after Draymond took that offensive foul and Draymond just bounced up and smiled. What an asshole, he is my asshole.
Yay more tech stuff. The Bay Area is soooooo techy.
8:29: Pelicans looking like they are barely hanging on and the Dubs looking like they are back-to-back 3s away from making this a 20+ point blowout.
7:30: Interesting early takeaway from the season. Teams are going to try and deny Steph the three point line, in addition to the ball. Dubs look like they are countering with running a four high set and having Steph back cut with the rim protectors sucked put by our bigs. Coach Luke!!
7:12: Bogut just got smacked in the face. Reverse headbutt. Stitched, right?
6:55–6:24: FESTUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Anthony Davis tell me how my ass tastes. JESUS. Davis goes right back at Festus and forces a bad contested shot. Jesus, Festus on the back cut for the dunk. [Coach Luke’s cell phone “DAD: Throw it Down FESTUS! I haven’t seen a force of nature like that in Oakland since July 24, 1987 when the original Dream Team, Dylan and the Dead, played a show at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum like this world had not yet seen. “And the saviors who are fast asleep, they wait for you. And I wait for them to interrupt me drinkin’ from my broken cup, and ask me to open up the gate for you” FESTUS. I love this game. I am your father].
5:00: Alonzo Gee could probably start at outside linebacker for the Niners. That dude is an athlete.
3:23: Steph Curry 3-Pointer no. 5. 40-points. Time out NOLA. They are lucky he hasn’t hit at least 8 by now.
1:59–1:25: There’s Barnes. Big 3. Let’s close this quarter out! Let’s not give Ryan Anderson a fade away 3-point play.
34.2–0:00: C-Webb is bored. He hasn’t spoken in about 3 minutes. Marv doing everything he can milk something out of him. Yeoman’s work in this 19-point blowout.
Photo | Ezra Shaw
4th Quarter
12:00: Obligatory Craig Sager-Coach Luke interview (welcome back Craig!). Clearly he did not go to the Coach Pop school of interview. A bit rambly and over gracious. The NBA moves fast Coach Luke!
10:28: If it looks like leather, smells like leather, feels like leather, it’s going up. That has to be a tattoo that Mo Buckets has. Two awful shots in a row. 1-for-2 and Coach Luke yelling at him. C-Webb even woke up to make a comment.
9:25–8:40: Anthony Davis 1-for-20. The guy just looks awful tonight. Barkley was right, he looks like Michael Jackson playing with a bunch of Titos. Aaaand Draymond picks Davis’ pocket, followed by a gloriously awful slow break.
8:39–5:10: Ho hum. Ho hum. We just witnessed the dictionary definition of crap basketball by both teams. Warriors 0-for-11, Pelicans 2-for-something high.
5:02: FESTUS with the double clutch hammer! [Coach Luke’s cell phone: DAD: As I take in the Alpine breeze, high atop the Sierra Nevadas, I think of the great warrior-poet Ernest Hemmingway. “Courage is grace under pressure.” From the outermost cosmos of the universe to the deepest seas, here, on our mother Earth. As Hemingway penned those inimitable words he must have imagined a young Festus Ezeli, running jumping, dunking. Free like Neil Young’s heart of gold, free like a Bird, Larry Bird, flying. When music hits you, you feel no pain and I am the luckiest man in the world to have seen that grace from Festus Ezeli. Throw it down! Luke, it is…and I am…YOUR FATHER.]
4:36–51.7: Basketball operations have effectively stopped for both teams. The game is effectively a Summer League/Pre-season game.
0:00: Dubs win 111-95. It looks like there is a chip firmly on the Dubs’ collective shoulder. No ugly ring night tonight. No getting lucky. Coach Luke 1-0. Steph rolled to an easy 40-point night. Let the title defense begin. As the MVP said, “we’re off and running.”
Golden State Warriors 2014-15 Opening Night Introductions
Photo | Mike Zarrilli
Baseball Insider Jon Zuber joins Tripper inside the outdoor pod center to review the MLB playoffs, including his take on the Utley slide, and preview the World Series (spoiler alert--he is picking the Royals).
IT'S BEEN THAT KIND OF YEAR IN ATHENS. (PHOTO BY SCOTT CUNNINGHAM)
By Peter Horn | @PeterCHorn
What if I were to tell you there was an organization whose CEO had been in place for 15 years, made more than $3.0 million per year and for the last half of his tenure, delivered a disappointing and deteriorating product while funding continued to pour in unabated? No, this isn’t a Ben Carson-endorsed miracle vitamin pyramid-scheme; this is the University of Georgia football program.
Mark Richt is a polarizing figure, but not in the traditional sense of the word. Fans are divided into one of two camps: those who seek to hold the coach accountable for his on-field results (or lack thereof), and those who view Richt’s success shaping high-character young men and his pearly white reputation as performance mitigants. The time has come to separate the coach from the man, and to reassess the program’s aspirations and how best to achieve them.
True, not everyone in the former camp is ready to see the coach ride off into the sunset (although it seems more and more of the Richt loyalists are shown the light with each passing Saturday afternoon), but they at least support their stance with logic. And as much as a growing portion of our fanbase does not want to hear it, there is a case to be made for another year or two under Richt. The much-discussed Indoor Practice Facility (IPF) is a surface manifestation of a deeper fundamental issue: under the previous administration, the UGA football program did not have the same level of support as its SEC rivals. Many would argue it still does not.
Despite a season in which Georgia lost to arguably its top three current rivals, the administration pushed chips forward on the table after 2014 in an effort to remove the program’s self-imposed limitations. The purse strings were loosened as coordinators received raises, Richt received a contract extension and Athletic Director Greg McGarity stated that he looked forward to helping Richt “move our program forward in all areas,” including the IPF which Defensive Coordinator Jeremy Pruitt had publicly, if not brashly, stated was a necessity.
With the governor removed from the engine, the question remains: is the right man behind the wheel?
At first glance, Richt’s tenure at UGA has been a model of stability and success. Averaging 9.7 wins per season without a trace of scandal—save for Richt’s self-reported violation for supplementing his underpaid assistants with his own money—rarely leaves a coach standing in the soup kitchen line. But as always, the devil is in the details.
In Richt’s first seven seasons, UGA boasted an 80% overall winning percentage, 65% winning percentage against top-25 teams and 63% winning percentage against top-15 teams on its way to collecting four SEC East championships and two SEC league crowns. In the last seven seasons it’s won the SEC East twice with no league championships while registering an overall winning percentage of 72%. During this time, its winning percentage against top-25 teams fell to 49%, and against top-15 teams, to 33%, nearly half its previous mark.
And the full story isn’t told on a spreadsheet. Sprinkled throughout the “L” column are monumental, program-deflating, national stage embarrassments that have become seemingly annual occurrences. The 2008 Alabama blackout debacle, the 2012 South Carolina bloodletting at Williams-Brice, last year’s inexplicable curb-stomping by the Gators in Jacksonville. The list goes on.
Football is a zero-sum game and the SEC is an admittedly tough place to conduct business. That being said, there are certain characteristics that have become associated with Georgia football teams that can only be explained by the common denominator standing at the helm of the ship: lack of attention to detail, costly mental lapses, lack of grittiness and killer’s instinct, poor clock management, an inability to outsmart opposing teams and a tendency to fold under pressure. In layman’s terms, they’re sloppy, they’re vanilla and they’re soft, and they’ve been that way for quite some time.
The SEC East has been historically weak for the last five years, during which time Georgia, with the aid of its division rivals, managed to pinball its way into two SEC East championships, ceding the last two to newcomer Missouri despite being the preseason favorite both years. As Tennessee and Florida both return from their respective down periods, it will become clear just how low of a ceiling this program has under Richt. And it seems to be getting lower.
Perennially the “sleeping giant,” Georgia sits on a hotbed of recruiting talent; the state of Georgia trails only California, Texas and Florida in terms of D-1 prospects produced. And while UGA recruitniks will forever claim the coaches should do a better job locking down the state’s borders from surrounding SEC and ACC poachers, they get their share of top recruits. At the start of the 2015 NFL season, UGA had the fourth most alums on NFL rosters of all universities. During Richt’s tenure, the top seven NFL player-producing programs accounted for 11 of the 14 national championships. I’ll let you guess which program on the list is the outlier without a national title.
Though it’s becoming more and more populated by tumbleweeds and the distorted shadows of the Bulldog nation’s broken dreams, those still in Richt’s corner are quick to point to the cautionary tale of Tennessee in the post-Fulmer years as an anecdotal “Be careful what you wish for” warning. Shouldn’t UGA be happy with 9-win seasons and an occasional Outback Bowl appearance? Haven’t you ever had a Bloomin’ Onion in January with the Tampa sun on your face?
And this is exactly the kind of defeatist attitude Georgia must purge from its program if it wants to become elite. It’s time to throw out all the participation trophies at Butts-Mehre Hall and ask the tough questions. What are you playing for? A no-scandal nine-win season that keeps donors just enough appeased so the checks keep rolling in, or a legitimate shot at a national championship? And if it’s the latter, does Richt at this point in his career offer the best chance to get there? Does he offer any chance to get there?
When Georgia trotted Faton Bauta out onto the field against the 11th ranked Florida Gators, I couldn’t help but wonder if this was a harbinger of things to come. Call it an act of desperation, but when you know the incumbent cannot get the job done, the upside of the unknown renders the incremental risk moot. Would making a head coaching change risk a handful of blue-chip recruits and a couple losses in the near term? Sure, but if your aspirations are higher than the occasional SEC East title when your divisional rivals are in the gutter, the upside should be well worth the risk.
Georgia knows what it has in Richt. The question is, are they satisfied with the ceiling? If the answer is no, then a change must be made, because maintaining the status quo is the equivalent of a pooch kick up three points with 18 seconds left: playing it just safe enough to guarantee a loss.
35-year-old Luke Walton will be at the helm for the Dubs when they kick off the NBA season on Tuesday night vs. NOLA. (photo by Lenny Ignelzi)
Bay Area writer Adrian Spinelli (@Spinelli37) checks in for a Section925 Small Batch Podcast. Spinelli and Connor rehash Game 6 of the ALCS, preview the NBA season, and dish on the Oakland Raiders chances vs. San Diego.
(Via our friends at the "California Gridiron Collection")
40 Year Anniversary Celebration - Week 5
California vs. Oregon
October 11, 1975
Autzen Stadium – attendance: 18,500
Following a stunning, come-from-behind victory over San Jose State in Week 4, the Golden Bears traveled to Eugene to take on the Ducks. With Joe Roth ailing, Fred Besana was given the start in front of 18,500 fans inside cold and rainy Autzen Stadium.
Oregon entered the game with the fifth best pass defense in the country but surely the Ducks secondary would be no challenge for the Bear's high-powered passing game. Well, that would not be the case on this day. The Bears offense sputtered in the first half and with the halftime score only 10-7 in the Bear's favor, Joe Roth came off the bench to spark the offense – the running game offense. Both Besana and Roth struggled with the passing game as they combined to only complete 7 out of 17 passes for 107 yards.
Yet, while the Ducks figured out a way to slow down the Bear's passing attack, they had no answer for All-American candidate Chuck Muncie (and the rest of Cal's running game). Muncie ran 26 times for 207 yards (8 yards a carry) and three TDs. Muncie's big day combined with the defense's eight takeaways allowed the Bears to soundly beat the Ducks 34-7.
(Via our friends at the "California Gridiron Collection")
40 Year Anniversary Celebration - Week 4
California vs. San Jose State
October 4, 1975
California Memorial Stadium – attendance: 32,788
Returning home after a thrilling 33-21 victory over WSU in the Palouse, the Golden Bears faced a strong non-conference opponent in the Spartans from San Jose State. The Spartans had already beaten Oregon and Stanford on the road and were looking for their third victory over a Pac-8 school. Entering the fourth quarter, the Bears had a comfortable 20-10 lead. But in true Golden Bear fashion (as evidenced the past two weeks of the 2015 season), Cal squandered a double-digit lead by allowing San Jose to score two touchdowns in the fourth period.
Ahead 24-20 late in the final period, Spartan fans could almost taste victory in Memorial. But Spartan fans, and Cal fans for that matter, had no clue that they were about to witness the emergence of an elite, big play quarterback. Starting his first game for the Golden Bears, Joe Roth jogged onto the field with 3:10 remaining and did what all great clutch quarterbacks do – calmly hit their playmakers.
Facing a third and 23 situation deep in Cal territory, Roth hit Chuck Muncie over the middle for a gain of 25 yards. Next, Roth targeted dependable wide receiver Steve Rivera for a 23 yard gain down to the San Jose 42-yard line. After running back Tom Newton lost four yards, the Bears had a third and 14 situation when Roth decided to air it out. Roth hit speedster Wesley Walker, who beat Gerald Small on the play, for a 46 yard touchdown with 1:06 left on the clock.
With a 27-24 victory in week four of the 1975 season, Cal evened its record at 2-2 and the mystic of Joe Roth, the big play quarterback, began.
(Via our friends at the "California Gridiron Collection")
40 Year Anniversary Celebration - Week 3
California vs. Washington State
September 27, 1975
Martin Stadium – attendance: 24,500
Rarely do you get a chance to look back 40 years and see one photograph that captures a seminal moment. The California Gridiron is pleased to bring Cal football fans one such chance.
The first picture below shows Cal trailing Washington State 21-20 with 14:31 left in the 4th quarter. Walking to the line of scrimmage with a confident stride to take the ball from center Duane Williams is Cal's reserve quarterback, Joe Roth. Roth is seconds from taking the snap and plunging 1-yard on a QB sneak for the go ahead and decisive touchdown giving the Bears their first victory of the 1975 season.
In the Cal media guide, the September 27 contest between the Bears and the Cougars is simply listed as a 33-21 victory in Pullman. What’s not mentioned and what every Cal football fan should know is the backstory to this game and why a reserve quarterback was able to come off the bench and lead his team to victory. The events of that Saturday afternoon were a major turning point for the Bears and the history of Cal football.
In the first quarter, the Bears were beating the Cougars 7-0 and Cal's starter, Fred Besana, was having a great day as he hit on 6 out of 7 passes for 98 yards. However, staying true to their game plan, head coach Mike White and offensive coordinator Paul Hackett turned to their backup quarterback from Grossmont College to start the second quarter.
From Cal's sideline jogged a lanky 6’4”, 205-pound quarterback who loved wearing white cleats and the #12 jersey like his idol Joe Namath. The backup shined in the second quarter and as the Bears ran to the locker room for halftime White and Hackett are seen discussing the quarterback situation. Both coaches agreed that "it was time to make a change" and that Joe Roth should be promoted to the #1 spot.
Joe Roth would be the Bears #1 quarterback for the rest of the 1975 season. Cal had their first win but more importantly there was a feeling that something different was in the air surrounding the Bears. The football team returned to Berkeley with a 1-2 record, a new starting quarterback, and a challenging San Jose State opponent waiting for them in the fourth week of the season.
(Via our friends at the "California Gridiron Collection")
40 Year Anniversary Celebration - Week 2
California vs. West Virginia
September 20, 1975
Memorial Stadium - attendance: 23,875
Following the road loss to Colorado in week one of the 1975 season, the Golden Bears returned home as heavy favorites to take on the Mountaineers of West Virginia. Led by legendary coach (ok, he wasn’t a legend quite yet) Bobby Bowden, West Virginia beat California 28-10 playing smash mouth football. The Mountaineers rushing attack went for 337 yards behind their two running backs Heywood Smith (146 yards on 24 carries) and Arthur Owens (123 yards on 16 carries).
The Bears' offense sputtered all day due to penalties, dropped balls, and a turnover but there was one bright spot. Cal's backup quarterback, Joe Roth, made his first appearance at quarterback in the second quarter and led the Bears 67 yards in 13 plays for their only touchdown of the day.
The Bears were now 0-2 and headed to Spokane (not Pullman) in week 3 to take on Washington State in their Pac-8 opener. It was still early in the season but the winless Bears needed to figure out things quickly or the season might get away from them. Would they regroup and right the ship against the Cougars or would the Bears get beat again? Find out next week here on the California Gridiron.
40 Year Anniversary Celebration - Week 1
California vs. Colorado
September 13, 1975
Folsom Field - attendance: 46,211
Opening their 1975 season against a powerful Colorado team, the Bears found themselves heavy underdogs entering the game.
However, Cal showed signs of what was to be a great offensive machine in 1975 as they matched the Buffalos point for point through the first three and one-half quarters. Colorado scored on a 61 yard punt return early in the first quarter and that miscue by the Bears proved to be the determining factor in the game's outcome.
Quarterback Fred Besana got Cal on the scoreboard with a one yard plunge that was set up by Chuck Muncie's 62 yard romp in the first quarter. Muncie and teammate Tom Newton each gained over 100 yards for the Bears. Muncie gained 112 yards while Newton picked up 106. Muncie scored two second quarter TDs which kept Cal's hopes alive and on both accounts the scores were set up thanks to Newton: first on a 58 yard run and then on a 39 yard screen pass.
Colorado mounted an awesome display of offense gaining 545 yards to the Bears' 408. However, the Buffs lived up to their name as they ran like their mascot. Under the guidance of quarterback Dave Williams, Colorado picked up 437 yards rushing. Despite the ball control, the Buffs could only penetrate the Bears goal line twice via the run. Williams once found wide receiver Emery Moorehead for a surprise 45 yard touchdown pass and twice the Buffs had to rely on the accurate foot of Tom McKenzie for field goals of 20 and 45 yards.
A 53 yard touchdown pass from Besana to Wesley Walker tied the game in the third quarter only to see Dave Williams give the Buffs the lead with a 12 yard scoring run. Besana then got the Bears rolling again by penetrating the Colorado territory with less than a minute remaining only to have one of his passes picked off and insure Colorado the win by the final score of 34-27.
#40 Year Throwback
Here's a glimpse of how the season ticket booklets have changed in 40 years...
As the CAL Bears settle into their 133rd season of football in Berkeley, the "California Gridiron" is providing us with a look back to the magical season that took place in 1975. The #40 holds historical significance this season as it was in '75 (40 years ago) that the Bears were co-champions of the Pac-8 Conference.
During the course of this season, the California Gridiron will take you back to the mid-70s as we chronicle one of CAL's most special seasons on a weekly basis. Fans of the California Gridiron will get to relive each game of the 1975 season as we share with you programs, ticket stubs, game recaps, and newspaper clippings.
Jared Goff fell 37-10 to the Bruins during his freshman trip to the Rose Bowl in 2013. (photo by Stephen Dunn)
Tripper and J Torchio welcome a live studio audience into the Section925 Outdoor Podcenter as the two discuss Thursday's CAL vs. UCLA matchup. Torchio gives his take on Josh Rosen of UCLA, Jared Goff's potential to bounce back in Pasadena, and the PAC-12 race at the halfway mark.
The slide heard 'round the world. (photo by Sean M. Haffey)
By The Section925 Staff
In Game 3 of the NLDS between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Mets, Chase Utley broke up a double play attempt that led to a run for the Dodgers. The collision at second base ended up breaking the leg of Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada.
That evening, the Section925 text-line was abuzz with discussion regarding whether Utley's slide was dirty or just good playoff baseball. Here at Section925, we like to settle disputes by engaging in a friendly game of "Give Me Five Good Reasons" (#GM5GR). The rules are simple, give five concise arguments to weigh in on a controversial issue. Connor will kick things off and Josh will respond. Let us know where you stand in the comments section...
Connor - The Slide was a Dirty Cheap Shot:
Reason #1: Just ask the players
Was it fair that Chase Utley was handed a two game suspension (pending appeal) for his hit on Ruben Tejada? Well let's ask some respected ball players from around the game. How about Pedro Martinez. As cutthroat of a competitor you would ever meet. A guy that was known for his penchant for buzzing the tower. A guy who was never afraid to do anything to win said this: "If you tell Utley to teach kids to slide, would you teach them to slide like this? It bothered me to see Utley's slide and the way he went after Tejada."
Or how about Mark Mulder: "Utley plays hard and I would want him on my team, but I never said it wasn't a late/dirty slide."
Or how about former second baseman and current Baseball Tonight analyst Joey Cora. A guy who understands exactly what is dirty and what is not dirty when it comes to breaking up a double play: "When your back leg lands past the bag, it's dirty."
Or how about Jose Molina. A grider if there ever was one. The trusted backstop for the St. Louis Cardinals. As tough and experienced as they come in modern baseball had this to say: "Dirty play by Utley."
Reason #2: Benches Clear For Much Less
Check out this slide by Brett Lawrie against the Royals earlier this year. Granted, this was a much cleaner slide than Chase Utley's, one in which Lawrie actually slid. Even so, benches still cleared. As a general rule, benches only clear when a player crosses the line and does something dirty. Not when a player makes a "good-solid-hard-nosed-aggressive-play."
Reason # 3: Utley Could Have Broken Up the Play Without Breaking Tejada's Leg
For all intents and purposes, Ruben Tejada was defenseless. He was spun around and wasn't ready to be hit by Utley. Sure, that is Tejada's fault in part, but Utley could have just as effectively wiped out Tejada with a more traditional slide. Take this slide by Will Clark as a perfect example. Yes, it induced a brawl because of whatever he said after the play, but I have respect for Clark going in low on this play. Could he have barreled in 3 feet higher and potentially broken the second baseman's leg? Sure. But that was unnecessary. A strong and low slide straight over the bag was more than enough to break up the double play.
Reason # 4: Utley's Reaction Says it All
Notice in this video clip how Chase Utley reacts to breaking Ruben Tejada's leg. Does he step on the bag because he believed he was safe? No. Does he lend a hand to Tejada after the play was over? No. Instead, he simply flees the scene of the crime as fast as possible. Textbook form for an L.A. hit-and-run.
Reason # 5: Chase Utley Never Touched The Base
Chase Utley never touched second base. After getting up from breaking Ruben Tejada's fibula, he didn't even bother stepping on second base, because he knew he was out. If the MLB rule book states that you can take out a runner at second, fine, I get it. But you should also be required to touch the base you are running to to be called safe. Did Tejada touch second? No. But the "neighborhood rule" excuses this as Tony La Russa so eloquently points out.
In sum, Chase Utley's actions were inexcusable. The phrase "Bush League" comes to mind. Beat L.A.
Josh - The Slide was a Hard-nosed Legal Play:
Reason #1: The slide was legal and is a part of the game
Joe Torre pointed to MLB Rule 5.09 for the reason Tejada was suspended. It states, “A better is out when... A preceding runner shall, in the umpire’s judgment, intentionally interfere with a fielder who is attempting to catch a thrown ball or to throw a ball in an attempt to complete any play.” This rule is meant to prevent plays like Albert Belle killing Fernando Vina, not a runner breaking up a double play, which is a routine part of the game.
Just look at how the rule is meant to be enforced, the comment to the rule provides, “The objective of this rule is to penalize the offensive team for deliberate, unwarranted, unsportsmanlike action by the runner in leaving the baseline for the obvious purpose of crashing the pivot man on a double play, rather than trying to reach the base. Obviously this is an umpire’s judgment play.”
Players are taught from an early age to deliberately break up double plays by sliding hard into the pivot man turning a double play. Breaking up a double play by taking out the player turning the double play is a warranted and sportsmanlike play and has been enforced as such for years. Utley’s was no different. He stayed in the base path and in the umpires judgment it was not illegal.
Reason #2: If you don’t want players making that type of slide, legislate those types of plays out of the game
If Tejada isn't hurt, we don't have this conversation. In fact, even when players get hurt we don't have this conversation. Just in this season, Brett Lawrie and Chris Coghlan have slide into second in an attempt to break up a double play and have injured players (for play off teams) and it was a blip on the radar. Don’t hate the player, hate the game.
I get that health and safety of players is an important issue. When Buster Posey got nailed at home plate it wasn’t a dirty play, it was a legal hard-nosed play that is not safe. Just as David Halberstram and Bill Walton said, those are the breaks of the game. Just like the Buster Posey rule or targeting in the NFL, if the league wants to make the game safer they can change the rules or they way they are enforced.
Reason #3: Why Did Tejada Reverse Pivot?
Everyone knows that Chase Utley plays the game hard and is no stranger to breaking up a double play. Just ask Ryan Theriot. Nearly every aspect of baseball is situational. You can’t tell me that Ruben Tejada, sitting at double play depth, didn’t know that Chase Utley, with a 90-foot head of steam, wasn’t going to come in to second hard if there was a double play scenario. Even with the poor toss from Dan Murphy, Tejada should have side stepped to avoid contact. When he decided to reverse pivot he planted his leg in a spot that there would inevitably be contact.
Reason #4: You can’t tell players not to slide hard
There is no way Utley can slide to intentionally injure or avoid injuring a player when breaking up a double play. If he plays hard the chances are greater that a player could be injured but that is the risk of playing the game. He is not a ninja or a trained assassin. Could the slide have been more eloquent? Yes. Would this slide happen in the regular season? Probably not. But this is the playoffs and these guys are paid to win. You don’t stay in professional sports until you are 37 unless you add value to your team. Utley’s value as a veteran is that he is a hard-nosed player with veteran leadership. You tell him he can’t play like that and you are telling him to give up his job.
Reason #5: Just ask the players
This argument has to be a wash, right? There was a smattering of views across the league. Even Cal Ripken on the broadcast thought the play was clean. The Flyin’ Hawaiian Shane Victorino, a longtime Utley teammate said, “Always called him one of my toughest teammates...Utley showing why I always called him a winner!!!” Let’s not rely on the players/former player’s opinion decide whether the play was clean or dirty.
Look, I don’t like the Dodgers just as much as any season ticket holder in The Section but you can’t tell me that a hard slide into second base to break up a double play in a playoff series where a player happens to get hurt is a dirty play. Go hard or go home.
Photo | goldengatesports.com
Section925 College Football Insider J Torchio comes into the outdoor Podcenter to provide a deep analysis of the upcoming battle of unbeatens between Cal and Utah and his take on the scene in the rest of the wild, wild PAC-12.
The bears escaped Pullman last season with a 60-59 victory. (photo by James Snook)
College Football Insider J Torchio reviews Cal's victory at UW, previews Saturday's Air Raid vs. Bear Raid in Berkeley, and breaks down the rest of the Pac-12 with Tripper in the Section925 Podcenter.
Yogi.
Section925 Baseball Insider Jon Zuber comes back into the Outdoor Podcenter to discuss Oakland's Big 3, the MLB Playoffs, why Big Papi is a Hall of Famer, and his experience with Yogi Berra.
Photo Courtesy of The Pittsburg Steelers
By Josh Hunsucker and Huss Al-Shibib | @jphunsucker and @halshibib
Advertising signs they con
You into thinking you’re the one
That can do what’s never been done
That can win what’s never been won
Meantime life outside goes on
All around you
The Faithful were in a deep dark place in Week 1. Yet, the fears and doubts about the turbulent off season began to fade when out of nowhere the 49ers pieced together a dominant performance to kick off the season. After last week’s fiasco in the Steel City, the Vikings game appears to be a mirage, an infomercial for the 49ers season.
Tired of watching a dysfunctional front office run the best coach you’ve had in a decade out of town? Looking for a teams that can win more games than it loses? Want a team that can just walk on the field and win? Well, try the 2015-16 Niners, brought to you buy JedCo. With brand new faces on defense and a patent pending new offensive scheme. Just run them out on the field and SET IT AND FORGET IT!
The performance in the Vikings game was so unexpectedly great that it was hard, even for the most doubtful, to not buy into this team as some sort of magical quick fix product. So, we bought it, took it home, and opened it up. Unfortunately, come Week 2 all of the hyperbole following Vikings win about the 49ers being the “NFL’s new sleeper team,” looked a lot more disappointing than the JedCo. version we though we saw on Monday Night Football. The Steelers provided a reality check to any inflated expectations that the Faithful may have had going into Week 2. Let’s face it, the 49ers aren't THAT bad, but they are not nearly as good as the Vikings made them look.
Heading into the Steelers game there were two big concerns: pass rush and pass defense. What did the 49ers fail at miserably in Week 2? You guessed it. Antonio Brown made our secondary look horrible. Roethlisberger was not pressured all day and had his way with a vulnerable secondary. Tramaine Brock and Kenneth Acker were exposed by Ben Roethlisberger, who had his way with both corners all day. Safeties Eric Reid and Antoine Bethea consistently took horrible angles on deep balls, which led to big play after big play. When Darrius Heyward-Bay catches a long touchdown, you know something is wrong.
Offensively, the 49ers didn’t look that bad. Kap played well in the tough position he was put in by the defense. Last season Kaepernick would have crumbled under the constant bombardment, sacks, and general lack of help from the offensive line. However, the only thing that matters is the scoreboard. Regardless of the 49ers offense mustering up some impressive 16–17 play drives and controlling the ball, you can't win games if you don't put points on the board. Three points out of three long drives just doesn’t cut the mustard.
I can’t believe I’m saying this but Carson Palmer will test the defense in the passing game again this week. Palmer has started the season hot, with a 7-1 TD:INT ratio. The defense will have its hands full with the Cardinals stable of playmakers. And let’s not forget the resurgence of Larry Fitzgerald (not that he every really dropped off).
Carson Palmer #3 Hooks up with Larry Fitzgerald #11 for a 75 yard Touchdown!
In order to find any success, the defense must pressure Palmer and Eric Mangini has to be more effective with his blitz packages. Palmer doesn’t force defenses to submit to his will like Big Ben but it will be interesting to see if the 49er defense can rally this week. Honestly, they can't do much worse than last week. Weirdly enough, the defense only needs to do is enough to give the offense a chance.
The offense needs to continue to sustain what they have done well, good play calling and play generally mistake free. They also need to minimize their main weakness, finishing. The Cardinals defense will be tough test, but the Niners have the ability to challenge them if they can spread the ball around and establish the run early. Torrey Smith flashed the deep threat potential the 49ers haven’t had since the offense featured a washed-up Randy Moss. They should feature him more and put Arizona’s aggressive defense on their heals.
This may be a tipping point game. A win sets a positive trajectory to compete in an open NFC West. Another demoralizing loss could start a downward spiral to 6-10’town.
Huss: 27-24 49ERS
Josh: 34-23 CARDINALS
"Darkness at the break of noon Shadows even the silver spoon The handmade blade, the child's balloon Eclipses both the sun and moon To understand you know too soon There is no sense in trying As pointed threats, they bluff with scorn Suicide remarks are torn From the fool's gold
Jake Browning will lead the Huskies against CAL on Saturday in Seattle. Browning, a true freshman, was known as one of the best quarterbacks in California history at Folsom High School outside of Sacramento. (photo by Ted S. Warren)
Section925 College Football Insider J Torchio sits down with Tripper to reflect on CAL's one point win at Texas, preview the Bears' road trip to Washington, and discuss the rest of the PAC-12 landscape heading into conference action.
By Ali Sperling | Alison.Sperling@gmail.com
This Saturday, the Oakland Athletics will send 37-year-old Barry Zito, appearing in his first start since 2013, to the hill. His opponent: the San Francisco Giants’ Tim Hudson, age 40, in his 17th and (reportedly) final season in the Majors.
If you squint, you can see one ballpark from the other, just fifteen-or-so miles apart, across the glimmering San Francisco Bay. Proximity alone demands a rivalry between the two clubs. But the baseball culture on each side also has its marked differences -- one boasting a gorgeous bay-front property, sushi bars, and an organic kale garden, while the other offers, one might say, more modest accommodations, suffering from low regular attendance in part due to a location a bit off the beaten path.
In the past five years, (this season notwithstanding), both teams have seen their share of success – though the Giants have more impressively brought three world championships to San Francisco, and the A’s, despite some wild runs to the playoffs, have yet to deliver a title to Oakland since the two teams met in the World Series in 1989. But in their meeting at the end of this 2015 season, what would typically be a rivalry charged with anticipation of the post-season, this year’s final Bay Bridge series was poised to fall a little flat. That is, until Monday’s welcome announcement that Zito and Hudson would face off in the series’ middle game.
Zito and Hudson were teammates once. As Oakland Athletics in the early 2000’s they made up two-thirds of the infamous “Big Three,” completed by left-hander Mark Mulder. The Big Three led the A’s to unparalleled success during those Moneyball years, resulting in four consecutive playoff bids and an AL Cy Young Award for Zito in 2002. Hudson wasn’t far behind, finishing as a top ten Cy Young Award contender three times: in 2000, 2001, and 2003. As a taste of the kind of absolute dominance I’m referencing here, imagine your top three pitchers in your starting rotation posting 23 (Zito), 19 (Mulder), and 16 (Hudson) wins, respectively, in one season. That was the 2002 Athletics.
Huddy has enjoyed swinging the lumber in the National League (Photo by Christian Petersen)
All magic comes to an end, however, especially in Major League Baseball (and always rather traumatically and unexpectedly for A’s fans). In 2004, Hudson was traded to the Atlanta Braves and Mulder dealt to the Cardinals; and in 2006, Zito trekked across the Bay in a legendary 126 million dollar deal inked by the rival San Francisco Giants. Admittedly, for any A’s fan, the breakup of the Big Three was heartbreaking. Even more so when Zito, a long-time Oakland favorite, donned the orange and black for the first time in 2007. While Mulder would go on to retire in 2010 (notwithstanding a comeback attempt in 2014), Hudson would sign with the Giants in 2013, where he plans to retire at the end of this season with a World Series championship ring on his finger.
For many baseball fans across the country, while this washed-up match-up might seem hardly worth the attention it has garnered, for a baseball-crazed Bay Area, Saturday will not only make history for many reasons, it is also rich with its own: a history of baseball’s grandeur when the right things all happen at the right time, a history of letting go of that grandeur, one of rivalry and even, for some, one of betrayal.
The media has been swift in capitalizing on Saturday’s event, emphasizing and honoring the past, reliving those first few years of the 2000’s, recalling memories of The Big Three’s accomplishments, and printing interview responses from each pitcher which seem to affectionately reminisce on their time together at the height of each of their respective careers.
“When you’re in the middle of something, you usually don’t know how special it is until you’re away from it to reflect,” Zito said. “It definitely was special. To have three homegrown guys, it’s pretty rare.”
Zeets slinging his patented curveball in his first game back with the A's versus Houston (Photo by Richard Carson)
The stage for Saturday's game is thus set: nostalgia named, reflection the act, the end of an era effectively marked. It’s true, A’s manager Bob Melvin has said that Zito will likely throw no more than 50 pitches, and it’s doubtful that anyone expects to see performances reminiscent 2002. According to the media, it isn’t about who gets the “W”, it’s about honoring and remembering a different time, a time that perhaps, according to Zito, we didn’t quite understand as it was happening to us.
So, yes, while I share in the absolute glee and excitement over seeing Zito take the mound against Hudson on Saturday at the Coliseum, an uncanny ghost of the past in green and gold, I have to say that what is most striking to me in this moment is a certain sadness that also accompanies their reuniting.
Because it’s also, like a recent Chronicle headline points out, a goodbye. It’s a goodbye to Hudson and Zito in their final year of their careers, a goodbye to them in A’s uniforms -- perhaps a goodbye we never really got ten years ago. But it also exposes yet another metaphor for life that baseball offers up, the difficulties with letting go of our earlier selves, our earlier successes. A moment here where we might take stock of the past and face up to the present.
For me, for all the reasons that the media, and the players, and my own over-wrought ruminations point to, Saturday’s matchup feels so totally emotionally palpable. It’s the scene of Zito warming up in the outfield, one I rarely missed throughout his career in Oakland, or even in San Francisco. It’s my Dad and me sitting in Pac Bell Park side-by-side for every Zito start in 2007, black Zito t-shirt next to my green and gold of the same name. It’s not only an attachment to certain players that steal your heart, but also to the way that baseball can connect you inextricably to specific moments – moments in a ballpark with your dad, periods of your life. The return of The Big Three: now, not-so-big, not even three, is a reminder of the mortality of the game and of its players, the transience of success, the glory of the past as almost always exceeding, in some way, that of the present.
Ali Sperling, a Bay Area native, is a PhD student in English and Cultural Theory at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee. You can reach her at Alison.Sperling@gmail.com, or on Twitter, @ali_sperling.
Photo by Cooper Neill
The Section925 Mobile Podcenter travels to Texas to chronicle the Bears' thrilling win over the Longhorns. The Section takes to the streets of Austin before kickoff to hear what fans of both teams have to say. We also hear what San Francisco Giants President and CEO Larry Baer has on his mind about the Bears. Finally, we head down on the field to catch up with former CAL quarterback J Torchio to get his thoughts on the Bears' huge one point road win.
Photo Courtesy | www.richeisenshow.com/
By Josh Hunsucker & Huss Al-Shibib | @jphunsucker @Halshibib
Don’t let me drift too far
Keep me where you are
Where I will always be renewed
And that which you’ve given me today
Is worth more than I could pay
And no matter what they say
I believe in you
There are always two ways to look at the same situation. Everything is the same, just seen from a different point of view. Take any inexplicable event and there are always two accounts of what occurred.
Remember in Pulp Fiction when Jules and Vincent are sitting in the diner, after getting cleaned up at Jimmy’s house, and they are discussing horrible aim of Marvin’s friend/divine intervention? Vincent chalks up the lack of extra holes in their bodies to a “freak occurrence” and Jules earnestly believes he witnessed a miracle. Same exact event, two different starkly different interpretations. Following last Monday’s win over the Vikings I was in more of the Jules “that was a f*%king miracle” camp.
All the doom, all the gloom leading into this season. A general feeling like everything was broken. Heading into Week 1 against the Vikings aka the NFL’s “sexy pick,” I figured the team would roll over like the 2014 team did in the second half of last season. Couple that with horrific BFBS unis and the stage was set for the Niners to wet the bed in Levis Stadium’s first Monday Night Football.
Regardless of how bad the first quarter was, one thing stood out, the 49ers offense not only looked productive, it looked like offensive coordinator Geep Cryst put some thought into the play calling. This trend would continue. Cryst called passing plays all night that put Colin Kaepernick in a position to highlight his strengths and minimize his weaknesses. They moved the pocket, gave him easy short range targets, and set up his drop standard NFL back passing with a strong run game.
Photo by Thearon W. Henderson
The new zone blocking scheme was also surprisingly effective and Carlos Hyde demonstrated that (a) he watched and learned closely from Saint Francis Gore last year and (b) he still remembered his Ohio State zone reads. Let's not forget the most important thing, the Niners got every play in on time (SQUAD GOALS) and only used one timeout when the play clock was running down!
On the defensive side of the ball, the team looked hungry and was flying around the field all night. Couple that with an effective blitz package by Eric Mangini and the Niners defense rolled all night. The special teams, on the other hand had a very rough start, see: Jarryd Hayne, a blocked field goal, a called back punt return for a TD but settled down in the second half.
All of this amounted to a relatively easy 20-3 win. Was this a miracle turn around after arguably the worst offseason in the history of the franchise or a standard example of parity in the NFL?
Photo by Kelley L Cox
After looking back on the game and discussing with other Faithful, I have come to a few conclusions:
1) The Vikings might be really really bad. Their offense was absolutely uninspired. They only gave the ball to Adrian Peterson three times in the first half and rarely used him in an effective manner. Their passing game lacked big play ability and their play calling appeared to be coming from Week 2 of the preseason. It was a perfect game for the defense to appear very strong. On the defensive side the Vikings looked inept at defending the Niners zone blocking scheme. Carlos Hyde was getting to the corner as if the 49ers were playing on Madden16’s amateur level.
2) Week 1's win might not have been a miracle but hardly looked like a “freak occurrence.” At a minimum, the Faithful should believe in the team. They might not have a football savant as a head coach, but they have a dip spitting, former no undershirt wearing, hard-nosed guy. They might not have Saint Patrick Willis and other familiar names on the defense but they still have some guys that can play. They might not have a top ten quarterback but it looks like they have a competent coordinator. They might not have Frank Gore but they have a guy who looks like he wants to be Frank Gore. This may be, dare I say, a likable team.
Looking ahead to next week, the Faithful’s belief will be tested. The Steelers' offense will be considerably better than the Vikings' and I would be willing to bet that the 49er secondary may get a little exposed this weekend. It will be interesting to see how well Mangini will attempt to tell Ben Roethlisberger that “no means no,” when it comes to putting the ball in the end zone.
Another significant factor is that the Niners will travel to the east coast for 10:00 a.m. PST kick-off. Will they be the road warriors of the first three years under Jim Harbaugh? Top all of that off with the Steelers coming off a Week 1 loss and having eleven days rest, and it looks like an up hill battle.
Regardless of the outcome, Week 1 renewed my Faith, we may still finish middle of the pack, but I would gladly be proven wrong. I believe.
Predictions
Huss: 24-17 STEELERS
Josh: 31-21 STEELERS
This is some video footage from Dylan's 1980 gospel tour in which he sings "I Believe In You" Enjoy!
Torchio at CAL in the early 80's
Back in 1980, J Torchio led the California Golden Bears to a Big Game victory over John Elway and the Stanford Cardinal. Today, he makes his first appearance inside the Section925 Podcenter to talk about the 2015 Bears. Torchio discusses CAL's hot start, Sonny Dykes' future in Strawberry Canyon, and his predictions for the PAC-12 football season.
CAL WILL PLAY IN FRONT 100,000 PEOPLE AT DARRELL K. ROYAL TEXAS MEMORIAL STADIUM ON SATURDAY EVENING AT 4:30 PST
Photo by Greg Fiume
Section925 Baseball Insider Jon Zuber comes back to the Outdoor Podcenter with Tripper to discuss MLB pennant races, the future of the Oakland A's, and the home brewing skills of KTVU Weatherman Bill Martin.
Black end zones? Everything is broken. Photo | Chris Creamer @sportslogosnet
By l Josh Hunsucker @jphunsucker and Huss Al-Shibib @Halshibib
Broken idols, broken heads
People sleeping in broken beds
Ain’t no use jiving
Ain’t no use joking
Everything is broken
It all began to unravel on Thanksgiving night last year. After a 19-3 embarrassing home loss to the Seahawks, 49ers CEO Jed York tweeted an apology to the fan base. Shots fired at Coach Jim Harbaugh and the writing was on the wall for Harbaugh and the Niners “mutual” parting at the end of the season.
Thank you #49ersfaithful for coming out strong tonight. This performance wasn't acceptable. I apologize for that
— Jed York (@JedYork) November 28, 2014
Fast forward to retirements from Pat Willis, Chris Borland, Justin Smith, and Anthony Davis (ok fine, Bubba Ventrone); exits from Frank Gore, Andy Lee, Michael Crabtree, Mike Iupati, Chris Culliver, Parrish Cox, Dan Skuta, et al. via free agency and trades; Aldon Smith’s habitual line stepping leading to his release; and Niners fans were feeling like pre-Aspen road trip Lloyd Christmas.
Dumb and Dumber
The offense is broken.
The offense’s main focus coming into the new season is on getting the plays in on time. WOW! Reach for the stars. The Niners picked up Torrey Smith, which gives them a legitimate down field threat. However, the questions on offense remain and they surround Colin Kaepernick. Defenses have figured out how to hit his fastball and its time for Kap to start playing with his head instead of relying solely on his athleticism. Working with (the despised) Kurt Warner is a good sign, on the surface, that Kap will improve his quarterbacking in terms of making reads. But when the whistle blows, how realistic is it that Kaepernick's mental grasp of reading coverages, going through progressions, and ability to audible is on the level with bankrupt/homeless man's Peyton Manning or even a poor man's Kurt Warner? Probably not very.
Their offensive line is depleted and has been porous at best this preseason. Couple that with a new zone blocking scheme, Carlos Hyde's prospects to continue the Niners’ Frank Gore era tradition of success on the ground is only shaky at best. Which is a shame because Hyde appears poised for a breakout season after bell cow St. Francis Gore was let go in free agency.
And what about Vernon Davis? What happened to VD last year? He was on the team last year, right? Will he show up in a contract year or will he show up in week one and fade into oblivion for the rest of the season?
Even the defense is broken.
Recent history allowed the Niners to rely on a top defense that can carry the slack for any volatile offensive performances week to week . . . but now that’s broken. You can barely even recognize the defense. Needless to say everyone was blindsided by St. Patty Willis stepping away from the game and equally dismayed by Borland’s early retirement, which coincidentally negates Navarro Bowman's return. Let's just skip over the thin defensive backfield and the inexperienced defensive line. Just buckle you seat belts and prepare to watch the Niners defense to get more exposed in passing situations then have in the past five years.
Everything is broken.
Even with all of the above I felt hopeful this offseason, despite all of the clear signs to the contrary. That ended when I saw this on the internet:
Photo | dailysnark.com
Black Uniforms? Last time I checked Black for Black's Sake (BFBS) uniforms were so 2001. Of all front office moves that were in error over the past year this one stung the worst on a personal level.
When the Niners were toiling in obscurity in the mid-oughts, I wrote to the 49ers at the end of every year, pleading with them to change their uniforms back to the classic 1980s look. After years of letters, they finally went 80% of the way back and finally dawned their current updated retro look. That is why BFBS uniforms are so insulting to the Faithful.
The #RGB uniforms only detract from the storied history of a great franchise and add nothing. Black has never been apart of the color scheme and not only looks bad, it is a microcosm of the Jed York led front office has been generally detached from all common sense, save three and one-half years of the Harbaugh era. I would honestly rather have an alternate uniform that featured a plaid jersey and denim bottoms that try but ultimately fail at looking like a gold rush era gold miner and in reality look more like a Silicon Valley tech hipster (I would honestly not rather have that but you get the idea). At least that would have been an exercise in forward thinking creativity. The BFBS uniforms just shows that everything is broken.
Mercifully, here are our week-by-week predictions...
Week 1 - Vikings: Huss (W) l Josh (L)
Week 2 - @Steelers: Huss (L) l Josh (L)
Week 3 - @Cardinals: Huss (L) l Josh (W)
Week 4 - Packers: Huss (L) l Josh (L)
Week 5 - @Giants: Huss (W) l Josh (L)
Week 6 - Ravens: Huss (W) l Josh (L)
Week 7 - Seahawks: Huss (L) l Josh (W)
Week 8 - @Rams: Huss (W) l Josh (L)
Week 9 - Falcons: Huss (L) l Josh (W)
Week 10 - BYE
Week 11 - @Seahawks: Huss (L) l Josh (L)
Week 12 - Cardinals: Huss (W) l Josh (L)
Week 13 - @Bears: Huss (W) l Josh (W)
Week 14 - @Browns: Huss (L) l Josh (W)
Week 15 - Bengals: Huss (W) l Josh (W)
Week 16 - @Lions: Huss (L) l Josh (L)
Week 17 - Rams: Huss (W) l Josh (W)
Totals: Huss 8-8 l Josh 7-9
8-8 and 7-9 may be a bit generous considering the team has arguably had the worst offseason in its history, between a dismantling of a top defense, firing a coach that took them to three NFC Championships in four years, having players retire like it was going out of style, and Aldon Smith’s general self-destruction. However, as a Faithful you have to give them benefit of the doubt, right?
Faith is the only thing that can get the Faithful from Sunday to Sunday. With everything broken, the 2015-16 campaign could easily finish 6-10 or worse but maybe the Niners will have a logic defying Scott Ostler-esque playoff run. Unless the 49ers pick up the pieces this year, it maybe the start of the second Jed York ice age and another decade long playoff drought.
At least we have Jarryd Hayne, that’s not broken…
The Complete Jarryd Hayne Super Hyped Preseason Highlights for 2015. Hayne finished with a game-high 58 rushing yards from 10 carries, also the highest average yardage, and made 17 yards from two punt returns. Yet what is truly extraordinary is Hayne's output over the whole four-game pre-season schedule - the first time he's ever played American football.
Provided to YouTube by Sony Music Entertainment Everything Is Broken · Bob Dylan / Bob Dylan Oh Mercy ℗ 1989 Columbia Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment Released on: 1989-09-22 Associated Performer, Composer, Guitar, Harmonica, Lyricist, Vocal: Bob Dylan / Bob Dylan Dobro, Producer: Daniel Lanois Guitar: Brian Stoltz Percussion: Daryl Johnson Drums: Willie Green Tambourine: Malcolm Burn Bass: Tony Hall Auto-generated by YouTube.
The world famous Grambling State University Marching Band performs at the Bayou Classic. Grambling will visit Berkeley this weekend. (photo by Chris Granger)
Former Grambling Tigers running back Charles Wood joins Connor in the Section925 Podcenter to discuss the kickoff of the 2015 College Football season. Wood shares his insight on his former team as they prepare to face off with Jared Goff and the CAL Bears this Saturday in Berkeley. He also shares stories about trying out for the legendary Doug Williams, spending time with Eddie G. Robinson, and suiting up for the Bayou Classic at the Superdome in New Orleans.
