Gophers Open -2.5 vs Cal Bears

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STPGopher said:
"The goal is to be 1-0 in the California Bears championship season..." _Someone. 😁
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It is one of those things in sports.....for fans the most important game is probably one later in the season against a rival. For the team the most important game has to be the next one on the schedule and if it isn't there is a good chance they will get beat.
 


GophEnEspaña said:
Have you ever played sports? Have you ever been a part of a locker room? Sports, and especially sports with short seasons like college football, are about momentum and group psychology. Let's unpack this for you Matty: If we have a bad loss at Cal, we then have Rutgers, at home, a chance for revenge, after a bye week. That Rutgers game is huge for many reasons. If you drop that game, you're then 2-2 heading into Ohio State. With that loss you're then sitting at 2-3.

Momentum is everything in life, and especially in sports. Moreover, bye weeks are always challenging for coaching staffs because, at the end of the day, they are still dealing with kids/young men. You have to keep an entire locker room focused with a two week break. If PJ gets an impressive win at Cal, we then head into the bye with more focus and enter that Rutgers game with more swagger and confidence, giving your self a better chance to enter the Horseshoe at 4-0.

I didn't say Cal was our most difficult opponent, but the timing and way our schedule unravels - yes, I think this is the most important game of the season because it can tee us up for a real run.
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Congrats on your ability to be both condescending and incorrect at the same time.
 



Cal fan here... Really looking forward to the game.

As far as what we think of our team.. on the positive side:
1) We're very excited about our freshman QB, though he was a bit inconsistent in week 2.. took him a while to get going.
2) Our defense seems pretty strong. Wilcox's usually are, this might be his best front 7 yet and so far the replacements for the 3 DBs who were drafted last year are coming along nicely
3) We had a RB emerge to some extent this past weekend. After having our entire RB room transfer back in April/May, its nice to have some stability
4) OL has only given up one sack this season after giving up... i think 50 something last year.
5) We have a pretty dynamic PR guy for the first time in a long, long time. Already has more PR yards than all of our guys last year.

Concerns:
1) Our WRs have struggled with both drops as well as getting any separation in the first two games. JKS' #s in game 1 were even more impressive as he was dropping dimes in very tight windows. Still, this is going to limit our season if they don't improve quick
2) Our best LB will miss the first half (cade uluave) due to a dumb targeting penalty, though the depth behind him is pretty solid
3) Pass pro may be better but run blocking is still a weakness
4) We don't really have anyone at RB or WR who can really break a game open. Cal historically - at least as long as i've been watching - historically has one or two (or a lot) of these guys. Its the result of a huge skill position exodus combined with a conscious decision by the coaches to emphasize getting first downs / falling forward, after we've spent a few years struggling mightily in short yardage and in the red zone.

My guess is that it'll be a close game, and possibly a bit of a rockfight as both offenses struggle. I could see it going either way. Cal has done quite well OOC since I've been a fan, but its a new year and Minnesota is one of the best two or three teams on our schedule, so who knows.

I greatly enjoyed our last little series back in the 00s. Before the '06 game, I was still at Cal and in a fraternity. Being an engineering student, I put that Cal education to use and made a 3 story beer bong. Early in the morning a few Minnesota fans come up the street... elderly ones, my guess is that they were 80+. One was particularly bemused by the contraption, and after a little coaxing, rips one. Cheers abound and everyone goes their merry way.

Not that big a deal, except... apparently the guy supposedly had a weekly radio show with John Madden. He spoke at length the following Monday about the "beer drinking contraption" he had experienced that morning. The fact that John Madden was talking about my beer bong to a national audience made 22 year old me very proud.

Is anyone making the trip? Let me know if you have any questions about Berkeley!
 

66stang408 said:
Cal fan here... Really looking forward to the game.

As far as what we think of our team.. on the positive side:
1) We're very excited about our freshman QB, though he was a bit inconsistent in week 2.. took him a while to get going.
2) Our defense seems pretty strong. Wilcox's usually are, this might be his best front 7 yet and so far the replacements for the 3 DBs who were drafted last year are coming along nicely
3) We had a RB emerge to some extent this past weekend. After having our entire RB room transfer back in April/May, its nice to have some stability
4) OL has only given up one sack this season after giving up... i think 50 something last year.
5) We have a pretty dynamic PR guy for the first time in a long, long time. Already has more PR yards than all of our guys last year.

Concerns:
1) Our WRs have struggled with both drops as well as getting any separation in the first two games. JKS' #s in game 1 were even more impressive as he was dropping dimes in very tight windows. Still, this is going to limit our season if they don't improve quick
2) Our best LB will miss the first half (cade uluave) due to a dumb targeting penalty, though the depth behind him is pretty solid
3) Pass pro may be better but run blocking is still a weakness
4) We don't really have anyone at RB or WR who can really break a game open. Cal historically - at least as long as i've been watching - historically has one or two (or a lot) of these guys. Its the result of a huge skill position exodus combined with a conscious decision by the coaches to emphasize getting first downs / falling forward, after we've spent a few years struggling mightily in short yardage and in the red zone.

My guess is that it'll be a close game, and possibly a bit of a rockfight as both offenses struggle. I could see it going either way. Cal has done quite well OOC since I've been a fan, but its a new year and Minnesota is one of the best two or three teams on our schedule, so who knows.

I greatly enjoyed our last little series back in the 00s. Before the '06 game, I was still at Cal and in a fraternity. Being an engineering student, I put that Cal education to use and made a 3 story beer bong. Early in the morning a few Minnesota fans come up the street... elderly ones, my guess is that they were 80+. One was particularly bemused by the contraption, and after a little coaxing, rips one. Cheers abound and everyone goes their merry way.

Not that big a deal, except... apparently the guy supposedly had a weekly radio show with John Madden. He spoke at length the following Monday about the "beer drinking contraption" he had experienced that morning. The fact that John Madden was talking about my beer bong to a national audience made 22 year old me very proud.

Is anyone making the trip? Let me know if you have any questions about Berkeley!
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Thanks for the insights. I'm also expecting a close game and it will probably come down to which teams young QB performs the best.

Didn't get to see your second game but watched the first one and was impressed by the QB (not as impressed as the announcers who were ridiculous, but still impressed). Key for us is going to be getting pressure on him and forcing him into freshman mistakes.

Best thing that happened for our QB was getting to sit last year behind a really experienced QB who found his way onto the Vikings roster. He learned a lot and has so far looked very good through 2 weeks. But this will be his first road test and power 4 defense so will be interesting to see how he holds up.

Would feel much better about this one if we were at home but Fleck does a good job getting the team ready to play on the road so I think he will have the guys ready.
 





Saw some plays from that little punt returner, he does look dynamic. Hopefully our punter can neutralize him.
 

66stang408 said:
Cal fan here... Really looking forward to the game.

As far as what we think of our team.. on the positive side:
1) We're very excited about our freshman QB, though he was a bit inconsistent in week 2.. took him a while to get going.
2) Our defense seems pretty strong. Wilcox's usually are, this might be his best front 7 yet and so far the replacements for the 3 DBs who were drafted last year are coming along nicely
3) We had a RB emerge to some extent this past weekend. After having our entire RB room transfer back in April/May, its nice to have some stability
4) OL has only given up one sack this season after giving up... i think 50 something last year.
5) We have a pretty dynamic PR guy for the first time in a long, long time. Already has more PR yards than all of our guys last year.

Concerns:
1) Our WRs have struggled with both drops as well as getting any separation in the first two games. JKS' #s in game 1 were even more impressive as he was dropping dimes in very tight windows. Still, this is going to limit our season if they don't improve quick
2) Our best LB will miss the first half (cade uluave) due to a dumb targeting penalty, though the depth behind him is pretty solid
3) Pass pro may be better but run blocking is still a weakness
4) We don't really have anyone at RB or WR who can really break a game open. Cal historically - at least as long as i've been watching - historically has one or two (or a lot) of these guys. Its the result of a huge skill position exodus combined with a conscious decision by the coaches to emphasize getting first downs / falling forward, after we've spent a few years struggling mightily in short yardage and in the red zone.

My guess is that it'll be a close game, and possibly a bit of a rockfight as both offenses struggle. I could see it going either way. Cal has done quite well OOC since I've been a fan, but its a new year and Minnesota is one of the best two or three teams on our schedule, so who knows.

I greatly enjoyed our last little series back in the 00s. Before the '06 game, I was still at Cal and in a fraternity. Being an engineering student, I put that Cal education to use and made a 3 story beer bong. Early in the morning a few Minnesota fans come up the street... elderly ones, my guess is that they were 80+. One was particularly bemused by the contraption, and after a little coaxing, rips one. Cheers abound and everyone goes their merry way.

Not that big a deal, except... apparently the guy supposedly had a weekly radio show with John Madden. He spoke at length the following Monday about the "beer drinking contraption" he had experienced that morning. The fact that John Madden was talking about my beer bong to a national audience made 22 year old me very proud.

Is anyone making the trip? Let me know if you have any questions about Berkeley!
Click to expand...
Thanks for chipping in. Great story on the beer contraption. I enjoy it when opposing fans contribute in the way you did. Especially for non-conference games where I don't have to automatically assume the person is a dickwad, as is the case if you were an Iowa fan.

We are too soon in the season and process to know exactly, but our team will either surprise us with a 10-2 or 6-6 season, or more likely fall somewhere in that 7-5 to 8-4 range. The game against Cal will go a long way toward clearing up the prognostications.
 

GophEnEspaña said:
Have you ever played sports? Have you ever been a part of a locker room? Sports, and especially sports with short seasons like college football, are about momentum and group psychology. Let's unpack this for you Matty: If we have a bad loss at Cal, we then have Rutgers, at home, a chance for revenge, after a bye week. That Rutgers game is huge for many reasons. If you drop that game, you're then 2-2 heading into Ohio State. With that loss you're then sitting at 2-3.

Momentum is everything in life, and especially in sports. Moreover, bye weeks are always challenging for coaching staffs because, at the end of the day, they are still dealing with kids/young men. You have to keep an entire locker room focused with a two week break. If PJ gets an impressive win at Cal, we then head into the bye with more focus and enter that Rutgers game with more swagger and confidence, giving your self a better chance to enter the Horseshoe at 4-0.

I didn't say Cal was our most difficult opponent, but the timing and way our schedule unravels - yes, I think this is the most important game of the season because it can tee us up for a real run.
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This is a very defensive and condescending way to answer a question.
 



GophEnEspaña said:
Momentum is everything in life, and especially in sports.
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PJ disagrees 😎.

Somehow I’m thinking he has had a more prolific career in sports in HS, college and professionally🤠. Feel free to educate myself and the rest of the board - we’re here to learn 🤓


GophEnEspaña said:
Moreover, bye weeks are always challenging for coaching staffs because, at the end of the day, they are still dealing with kids/young men. You have to keep an entire locker room focused with a two week break. If PJ gets an impressive win at Cal, we then head into the bye with more focus and enter that Rutgers game with more swagger and confidence, giving your self a better chance to enter the Horseshoe at 4-0.

I didn't say Cal was our most difficult opponent, but the timing and way our schedule unravels - yes, I think this is the most important game of the season because it can tee us up for a real run.
Click to expand...
 

Gopher_In_NYC said:
PJ disagrees 😎.

Somehow I’m thinking he has had a more prolific career in sports in HS, college and professionally🤠. Feel free to educate myself and the rest of the board - we’re here to learn 🤓
Click to expand...
This is not an inter squad scrimmage. This is Cal Bears week! Now focus and give me twenty! ((Hoping he gets confused and gives me an actual $20)).
 


66stang408 said:
Cal fan here... Really looking forward to the game.

As far as what we think of our team.. on the positive side:
1) We're very excited about our freshman QB, though he was a bit inconsistent in week 2.. took him a while to get going.
2) Our defense seems pretty strong. Wilcox's usually are, this might be his best front 7 yet and so far the replacements for the 3 DBs who were drafted last year are coming along nicely
3) We had a RB emerge to some extent this past weekend. After having our entire RB room transfer back in April/May, its nice to have some stability
4) OL has only given up one sack this season after giving up... i think 50 something last year.
5) We have a pretty dynamic PR guy for the first time in a long, long time. Already has more PR yards than all of our guys last year.

Concerns:
1) Our WRs have struggled with both drops as well as getting any separation in the first two games. JKS' #s in game 1 were even more impressive as he was dropping dimes in very tight windows. Still, this is going to limit our season if they don't improve quick
2) Our best LB will miss the first half (cade uluave) due to a dumb targeting penalty, though the depth behind him is pretty solid
3) Pass pro may be better but run blocking is still a weakness
4) We don't really have anyone at RB or WR who can really break a game open. Cal historically - at least as long as i've been watching - historically has one or two (or a lot) of these guys. Its the result of a huge skill position exodus combined with a conscious decision by the coaches to emphasize getting first downs / falling forward, after we've spent a few years struggling mightily in short yardage and in the red zone.

My guess is that it'll be a close game, and possibly a bit of a rockfight as both offenses struggle. I could see it going either way. Cal has done quite well OOC since I've been a fan, but its a new year and Minnesota is one of the best two or three teams on our schedule, so who knows.

I greatly enjoyed our last little series back in the 00s. Before the '06 game, I was still at Cal and in a fraternity. Being an engineering student, I put that Cal education to use and made a 3 story beer bong. Early in the morning a few Minnesota fans come up the street... elderly ones, my guess is that they were 80+. One was particularly bemused by the contraption, and after a little coaxing, rips one. Cheers abound and everyone goes their merry way.

Not that big a deal, except... apparently the guy supposedly had a weekly radio show with John Madden. He spoke at length the following Monday about the "beer drinking contraption" he had experienced that morning. The fact that John Madden was talking about my beer bong to a national audience made 22 year old me very proud.

Is anyone making the trip? Let me know if you have any questions about Berkeley!
Click to expand...
Outside of Punt returns, how are your special teams? I'd say ours are pretty strong. Perhaps not so strong on punt and kick returns, but solid in all phases.
 

Gopher_In_NYC said:
At least no Orcas are involved

20 pennies on their way - they may soon be collector’s items 🤔
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All copper? Deal!

Regarding Orcas, there might be some. They tend to follow seals? Pier 39?
Sealions_on_Pier_39%2C_SF%2C_CA%2C_jjron_26.03.2012.jpg
 



STPGopher said:
Outside of Punt returns, how are your special teams? I'd say ours are pretty strong. Perhaps not so strong on punt and kick returns, but solid in all phases.
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we haven't missed a FG yet - knock on wood. as i think someone mentioned earlier, missed FGs cost us dearly last year, directly leading to ~4 losses (the whole 4 game losing streak where the total margin of defeat was 9 points involved at least 6 or 7 missed field goals... one in every game except the miami loss)

kickoffs have been a bit disappointing. we have a short FG guy and a long FG + KO guy... which has worked ok on FGs so far, but kickoffs have been short consistently.

KO returns... can't remember one of note. My guess is we're bad at it.

Punter has been pretty solid. He was a highlight during an what was otherwise a snoozefest of a 1st half this past weekend.

pre-emptive edit: Well i actually looked the units up and it seems some of my observations weren't exactly factual

Kick return yardage is 27th nationally
Opp kick return yardage is 67th. I think we've had a bunch of short kicks that OSU and Texas Southern couldn't do a ton with
Punt returns are 28th so yeah we're at least reasonably good at that
Opp PRs 51st
Punting is 90th (oops, turns out we're bad at that)
 

Schnauzer said:
Thanks for chipping in. Great story on the beer contraption. I enjoy it when opposing fans contribute in the way you did. Especially for non-conference games where I don't have to automatically assume the person is a dickwad, as is the case if you were an Iowa fan.

We are too soon in the season and process to know exactly, but our team will either surprise us with a 10-2 or 6-6 season, or more likely fall somewhere in that 7-5 to 8-4 range. The game against Cal will go a long way toward clearing up the prognostications
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Completely agree!

While I (like most Cal fans) hope we eventually end up in the B1G for stability, the ACC has been awesome because its a bunch of teams we have no history with. No one hates us and there isn't a USC or Oregon in the mix (yet, Miami and FSU probably do a decent stand-in for USC) where you despise everything they stand for.

I've also always loved SEC roadtrips for the cultural 'exchange'. The week before said 06 Minnesota game I went solo to the Tennessee game. Saved southwest rewards points for 2 years, made the whole trip happen for about $50. Tennessee fan picked me up at the airport and drove me from Nashville to Knoxville. Had a funny conversation on the way where he asked "You know that stem-cell research? I think we oughta do that!!" in the thickest southern drawal you could imagine (sigh, never thought i'd miss 2000s politics)

Amazing atmosphere. The locals were not happy that a team from California was a 1-2 point favorite in their place. I didn't even mind the fact that Cal got boatraced.

We even traded Cal Rally Comm rugbies (the striped ones) for jars of raspberry moonshine! Highly recommended experience if you get the chance :)
 

66stang408 said:
Cal fan here... Really looking forward to the game.

As far as what we think of our team.. on the positive side:
1) We're very excited about our freshman QB, though he was a bit inconsistent in week 2.. took him a while to get going.
2) Our defense seems pretty strong. Wilcox's usually are, this might be his best front 7 yet and so far the replacements for the 3 DBs who were drafted last year are coming along nicely
3) We had a RB emerge to some extent this past weekend. After having our entire RB room transfer back in April/May, its nice to have some stability
4) OL has only given up one sack this season after giving up... i think 50 something last year.
5) We have a pretty dynamic PR guy for the first time in a long, long time. Already has more PR yards than all of our guys last year.

Concerns:
1) Our WRs have struggled with both drops as well as getting any separation in the first two games. JKS' #s in game 1 were even more impressive as he was dropping dimes in very tight windows. Still, this is going to limit our season if they don't improve quick
2) Our best LB will miss the first half (cade uluave) due to a dumb targeting penalty, though the depth behind him is pretty solid
3) Pass pro may be better but run blocking is still a weakness
4) We don't really have anyone at RB or WR who can really break a game open. Cal historically - at least as long as i've been watching - historically has one or two (or a lot) of these guys. Its the result of a huge skill position exodus combined with a conscious decision by the coaches to emphasize getting first downs / falling forward, after we've spent a few years struggling mightily in short yardage and in the red zone.

My guess is that it'll be a close game, and possibly a bit of a rockfight as both offenses struggle. I could see it going either way. Cal has done quite well OOC since I've been a fan, but its a new year and Minnesota is one of the best two or three teams on our schedule, so who knows.

I greatly enjoyed our last little series back in the 00s. Before the '06 game, I was still at Cal and in a fraternity. Being an engineering student, I put that Cal education to use and made a 3 story beer bong. Early in the morning a few Minnesota fans come up the street... elderly ones, my guess is that they were 80+. One was particularly bemused by the contraption, and after a little coaxing, rips one. Cheers abound and everyone goes their merry way.

Not that big a deal, except... apparently the guy supposedly had a weekly radio show with John Madden. He spoke at length the following Monday about the "beer drinking contraption" he had experienced that morning. The fact that John Madden was talking about my beer bong to a national audience made 22 year old me very proud.

Is anyone making the trip? Let me know if you have any questions about Berkeley!
Click to expand...
What are your thoughts on coach Wilcox? I have to imagine his seat is warming up after getting a pretty long leash for a P4 coach especially after a fairly short leash with Dykes who followed the legendary run by Tedford. Obviously Cal has gone through an interesting time with moving to the ACC. Curious what the vibe is with the fan base and you personally.
 

66stang408 said:
we haven't missed a FG yet - knock on wood. as i think someone mentioned earlier, missed FGs cost us dearly last year, directly leading to ~4 losses (the whole 4 game losing streak where the total margin of defeat was 9 points involved at least 6 or 7 missed field goals... one in every game except the miami loss)

kickoffs have been a bit disappointing. we have a short FG guy and a long FG + KO guy... which has worked ok on FGs so far, but kickoffs have been short consistently.

KO returns... can't remember one of note. My guess is we're bad at it.

Punter has been pretty solid. He was a highlight during an what was otherwise a snoozefest of a 1st half this past weekend.

pre-emptive edit: Well i actually looked the units up and it seems some of my observations weren't exactly factual

Kick return yardage is 27th nationally
Opp kick return yardage is 67th. I think we've had a bunch of short kicks that OSU and Texas Southern couldn't do a ton with
Punt returns are 28th so yeah we're at least reasonably good at that
Opp PRs 51st
Punting is 90th (oops, turns out we're bad at that)
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Personal observations:

I wasn't able to attend last Saturdays game against FCS Northwestern (Louisiana). With that said, the special teams seemed solid the first game. Most of the kick-offs were touchbacks. The punter was/ is solid. Will punt mostly rugby style. Coverage teams are also solid. Not many return opportunities, so I can't really say much there.

U of Minnesota Golden Gopher Football Stats 2025
 

btowngopher said:
What are your thoughts on coach Wilcox? I have to imagine his seat is warming up after getting a pretty long leash for a P4 coach especially after a fairly short leash with Dykes who followed the legendary run by Tedford. Obviously Cal has gone through an interesting time with moving to the ACC. Curious what the vibe is with the fan base and you personally.
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He's a great guy, and Cal isn't the easiest job.

Positives:
1 - he immediately fixed a defense that under Dykes was historically bad. As in, giving up over 10 yards/play bad.
2 - he beat USC a couple times, which for a team that hadn't beaten them in 14 years actually brought tears to my eyes
3 - we more or less never get blown out. one of the early signs Tedford was on his way out was when we'd just get lockered in games where we were favored. 40-6 type things despite lots of NFl talent. haven't seen any of that.
4 - he's done an outstanding job fostering team chemistry and recruiting high character guys
5 - related to #4, he's generally handled the portal quite well. even when we lost our entire RB room (plus a TE to Texas, plus our QB, plus our two best WRs) this spring, he managed to scrape together a pretty good class
6 - he, like Dykes and Tedford before him, have been pretty good out of conference

Cons:
1 - He's had some very strange personnel decisions over the years. A mix of leaning too hard on seniors, making bad decisions about scholarships (particularly to kickers). It was very refreshing when he actually picked JKS with a week and change to go before the year, as the prior 3 years or so we'd have a 2- or 3- way QB race that went into the season.
2 - He has a strange fascination with random 2 point conversions which usually backfire. Must be a genetic defect he acquired while at Oregon
3 - His offenses have just been... well, bad. There are issues over how much control he seems willing to give the OC. He is incredibly anti-certain plays which he deems as high risk for turnovers (HB toss plays where art thou?). To some extent it just isn't clear if he knows what it takes to run a top 20 college football offense.
4 - He, like Dykes and (later) Tedford before him, really struggles in conference play. Something abysmal like a 21-44 record IIRC. Some of htat was Berkeley/covid weirdness, some of it stemmed from rosters relatively devoid of talent early in his time. But a lot if it is the team just falling flat in games they should win.

Last year he almost got it but the OL was historically terrible. The amount of skill position talent we lost (from an offense that was middling as it was) is insane... with a decent OL last years' team is a borderline playoff team

Some of the early moves this year are encouraging. Naming JKS starter over an experienced senior (Ohio State transfer Brown) is a good step. Most Cal fans are very happy with the offensive coach hires (Harsin seems pretty good as OC, everyone loves Rolovich even though we're not exactly sure what his job is, and Famika Anae is a straight up beast as an OL coach/recruiter).

I really want him to succeed, but the writing is on the wall that if he doesn't this year its probably over. He might even be okay with that... coaching in berkeley for a decade can take a lot out of a man
 

66stang408 said:
Completely agree!

While I (like most Cal fans) hope we eventually end up in the B1G for stability, the ACC has been awesome because its a bunch of teams we have no history with. No one hates us and there isn't a USC or Oregon in the mix (yet, Miami and FSU probably do a decent stand-in for USC) where you despise everything they stand for.

I've also always loved SEC roadtrips for the cultural 'exchange'. The week before said 06 Minnesota game I went solo to the Tennessee game. Saved southwest rewards points for 2 years, made the whole trip happen for about $50. Tennessee fan picked me up at the airport and drove me from Nashville to Knoxville. Had a funny conversation on the way where he asked "You know that stem-cell research? I think we oughta do that!!" in the thickest southern drawal you could imagine (sigh, never thought i'd miss 2000s politics)

Amazing atmosphere. The locals were not happy that a team from California was a 1-2 point favorite in their place. I didn't even mind the fact that Cal got boatraced.

We even traded Cal Rally Comm rugbies (the striped ones) for jars of raspberry moonshine! Highly recommended experience if you get the chance :)
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It's kind of silly that you and Stanford are not part of the BigTen yet. Academically, it would be a slam dunk.
 

STPGopher said:
It's kind of silly that you and Stanford are not part of the BigTen yet. Academically, it would be a slam dunk.
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tell us about it :(

had realignment happened 20 years ago (when we were really good) or 10 years ago (when stanford was), we almost would have certainly made it, and likely would have been ahead of the Oregon/UW combo.

we picked a really bad time to be mediocre. but, at least so far, I've enjoyed the ACC. and if we can get our s*** together, its certainly an easier conference to win and put ourselves in a good spot next time.

still it'd be nice to know cal football will exist in 20 years. there have been times in the last 2-3 years where that has seemed extremely unlikely (and we still need to win to have a chance)
 

66stang408 said:
tell us about it :(

had realignment happened 20 years ago (when we were really good) or 10 years ago (when stanford was), we almost would have certainly made it, and likely would have been ahead of the Oregon/UW combo.

we picked a really bad time to be mediocre. but, at least so far, I've enjoyed the ACC. and if we can get our s*** together, its certainly an easier conference to win and put ourselves in a good spot next time.

still it'd be nice to know cal football will exist in 20 years. there have been times in the last 2-3 years where that has seemed extremely unlikely (and we still need to win to have a chance)
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Part of me thinks that if UCLA is able to balance it's athletics budget, it would go a long way toward pulling the two of you in. IMHO "Northern" California football is too big for it to just fade away.
 

Gopher_In_NYC said:
PJ disagrees 😎.

Somehow I’m thinking he has had a more prolific career in sports in HS, college and professionally🤠. Feel free to educate myself and the rest of the board - we’re here to learn 🤓
Click to expand...
PJ has his own philosophy (one game championship seasons) that fits his coaching framework and approach with his team. That's fine, it works for him, but if many (or most) other coaches agree that momentum is important, are they wrong? I also don't think that PJ's "0-0 in the Cal season" contradicts or negates that momentum is important for teams and locker rooms. Across all sports, how many seasons have we seen fall apart, stagnate, flatline after a bad stretch of games? Also, you, like always, never even engaged with my argument as to why the Cal game is important. But we can meet up later if you still want to sell me your goalposts
 


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