BeastMode's posts tagged Stanford Cardinal

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• 2012 Cal Football Schedule Released: Oh Boy!

  January 04, 2012

  

  Now that 2011 is officially over we can focus on what matters...2012! The Golden Bears will open the fully renovated Memorial Stadium with a great schedule, starting off with the Nevada Wolfpack on 9/1. Here is the full schedule:

  Nevada - Berkeley, CA - 9/1

  Southern Utah - Berkeley, CA - 9/8

  Ohio State - Columbus, OH - 9/15

  USC - Los Angeles, CA - 9/22

  Arizona State - Berkeley, CA - 9/29

  UCLA - Berkeley, CA - 10/6

  Washington State - Pullman, WA - 10/13

  Stanfurd - Berkeley, CA - 10/20

  Utah - Salt Lake City, UT - 10/27

  Washington - Berkeley, CA - 11/2

  Oregon - Berkeley, CA - 11/10

  Oregon State - Corvallis, OR - 11/17

   

  For all of you observant readers out there, yes, the Bears are playing a full season without a single week off! In addition to not having a bye, the 115th Big Game will not be played at the end of November as it has been scheduled every other year. I'm not happy about either of these caveats, but other than that it's a solid schedule 

  This is one of the most challenging schedules we've had recently, as our 3 non-conference games will be against a good Nevada program and on the road against the Urban Meyer led Ohio State Buckeyes. I'll be going to Columbus for sure, but with an opening of Nevada, Southern Utah, Ohio State, and USC the Bears will have their hands full. 

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• Cal wipes floor with Stanfurd, 92-66

  January 04, 2010

  

  Cal basketball is now in full-swing as the Pac-10 season opened up at Haas Pavilion Saturday against rival Stanfurd. The Cardinal are a struggling team this season, as second year head coach Johnny Dawkins really only has one player, Landry Fields, and a bunch of role players. Saturday, it was clear that if Fields isn't hitting his shots, the Cardinal are going to be in trouble. The Bears wiped the floor with the Cardinal, defeating them 92-66 behind Jerome Randle's 24 points and 7 assists. What might be the most important thing to take away from this game however, is the continued development of sophomore center Max Zhang. The 7"3' Zhang had a career high 13 points to go along with four rebounds and 3 blocks (and countless other shot alterations). What Cal seriously lacks to take it to the next level is a consistent inside force; after the three guards (Randle, Christopher, Robertson) and forward Jamal Boykin, the Bears are pretty much comprised of role players. If Zhang can become a consistent performer on the front line, the Bears will be much more difficult to defeat and their Pac-10 Championship chances will grow. Getting off to a strong Pac-10 start is key if this team wants to contend with Washington for the Pac-10 title, next up are UCLA and USC at home.

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• 112th Big Game: We've got the Axe!!

  November 23, 2009

  

  We've got the Axe, we've got the Axe, we've got the Axe! The Big Game lived up to they hype on Saturday, as the Golden Bears hung on to defeat the Cardinal 34-28 behind another awesome day from Shane Vereen. Starting for the second straight week in Jahvid Best's absence, he rushed for 193 yards and 3 TD's after carrying the ball 42 times. That is a clear indication that Tedford has realized Kevin Riley is not a good enough QB to lead us to victory, but I'm glad that Vereen was up to the task. Toby Gerhart led the Cardinal with 130 yards adn 4 TD's, but the game was decided when freshman QB Andrew Luck missed badly on an end zone throw and LB Mike Mohammed picked it off. After 3 knees from Riley, the Bears rushed the field as they kept the coveted Axe in Berkeley for the second year in a row and for the 7th time in Jeff Tedford's 8 seasons.
  
  This game included several story lines and a few questionable coaching decisions on both sides. The Bears entered the season with Rose Bowl hopes but after 2 crushing losses to Oregon and USC and a third to Oregon State, Cal was regulated to playing spoiler on Saturday. After resounding wins over Oregon and USC, Stanfurd was in contention for their first Rose Bowl berth since 2000, but needed an Oregon loss and a win in the Big Game to realize those dreams. The coaches each made some bold calls, as Jeff Tedford opted for a QB knee to spot the ball for their final field goal, while Cardinal coach Harbaugh passed the ball 4 consecutive times in the red zone rather than handing it off to Heisman contender Toby Gerhart. With the win, the Bears continue to prove their resiliency after early season losses tried to pull the team apart, and leave the Cardinal wondering "what if". Great win for the Bears, and I'm glad that the Axe is staying in Berkeley where it belongs. Go Bears!

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• 112th Big Game: The Battle for the Axe

  November 17, 2009

  

  That's right folks, Big Game week is upon us! The California Golden Bears and Stanfurd Cardinal face off on Saturday for the 112th battle for the Axe, which currently resides in Berkeley. This will be the first time in at least 6 years that the Cardinal are favored to win, and rightly so. After dominating routs of Oregon and USC, the Cardinal are a serious contender for their first Rose Bowl bid since 2000 behind the punishing rushing of Toby Gerhart.
  
  Gerhart leads the Pac-10 in rushing with a 139 ypg average, and has bullied his way into the Heisman Trophy discussion. His combination of speed and bruising power make tackling Gerhart very difficult once he breaks into the second layer of the defense. While Gerhart is not punishing opposing defenses, the Cardinal have been efficient in the passing game behind redshirt freshman QB Andrew Luck, who has thrown for 13 TD's and only 3 INT's. While Luck has not yet proven he can win a game with his arm, he's been masterful at managing the game and not turning the ball over while providing just enough support to Gerhart to keep defenses honest.
  
  The Bears will be without former Heisman candidate Jahvid Best, but last week in his absence Shane Vereen rushed for 150 yards and 2 TD's in an upset win over #17 Arizona. The Bears will need a similar performance from Vereen to take pressure off of struggling QB Kevin Riley, who threw two costly INT's last week against the Wildcats and continues to have an up-and-down year. With Stanfurd's offense putting up 51 and 55 points in the past two games, the Cal defense will have its hands full stopping what might be the hottest offense in the nation right now.
  
  It's been awhile since the Big Game meant anything, so I'm really excited to see the Bears spoil Stanfurd's 2009 Rose Bowl bid!

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• Bears upset #17 Arizona Wildcats behind Shane Vereen's career day

  November 16, 2009

  

  Despite having RB Jahvid Best on the sideline rather than running circles around people, Cal managed to pull off their first upset of the season by defeating #17 Arizona 24-16. The Bears were led by RB Shane Vereen, who rushed for 159 yards and 1 TD, and a staunch defense that kept the Pac-10's leading offense out of sync all night. QB Kevin Riley had another shaky game, as he threw two horrible INT's in the redzone and failed to put together a consistent passing attack all night. But thanks to K Gergio Tavecchio's 4 field goals and a weird penalty at the end of the game on Arizona QB Nick Foles, the Wildcats were defeated at Memorial Stadium on Senior Night.
  
  In a season of up and downs, this win feels very satisfying. The Bears are notorious for losing close games and have rarely beaten a team ranked higher than them, but on Saturday night the seniors decided that they needed to salvage the season and stay in the mix for a top 4 finish in the Pac-10. Keeping the Arizona offense bottled up was impressive, as our defensive unit finally put together a dominating performance for the first time all season. Seniors Syd'Quan Thompson, Tyson Alualu, Eddie Young, Devin Bishop, Marcus Ezeff, and Brett Johnson led the defense it it's last stand at Memorial Stadium. Nothing much really to play for down the stretch in terms of big picture goals, but pride, the Axe, and a decent bowl bid are still on the line.
  
  Big Game week is here, and after Stanfurd's most recent upset of USC, these guys are for real. After trouncing Pac-10 powers Oregon and USC in consecutive weeks, the Cardinal have their best team in years led by QB Andrew Luck and darkhorse Heisman candidate RB Toby Gerhart. I'm really excited for this game, as recently there hasn't been much on the line in this matchup. This year though, we can rip the dreams of Stanfurd apart in their own stadium. Go Bears!

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