Nick, again, great write up and thanks for taking the time to do all the research on our team. ST's seem to always be a concern at CAL. A shame when we have had guys like Mick Luckhurst and Jimmy Breech play for us in the past.
I find Connelly's forecast interesting. I guess you have to start somewhere, but the beauty of college football is that you never know when teams take the field how the emotional swings will move the game. We know there will be new stars this year on CAL's team, we just don't know who they are, yet. Same for the teams we play. I think a very large part of the equation for our success will be based on two things that Connelly hasn't taken into account: 1. Harsin's play calling and our execution of his offense, 2. how well our O-Line plays. Then there is the QB play which is a big unknown.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: games are played on Saturday's just to fuck up sportswriters predictions. Looking forward to another fun year.
We are all waiting for the game in Corvallis to see what talent this year's GB team actually fields. Until then, the 5.5 schedule seems pretty reasonable. 9-3 would be awesome, but that is some pretty big sunshine pumping imho... GO BEARS
Hi Nick, yes, Jacob de Jesus can create big plays on punt and kickoff returns, he is an exciting player, our new jet. I don't know about the kickers or punters, I never do, just have to wait and see come August 30th, from section 232. Would hate to think we didn't learn anything from those loses last year. As for how we do with the season schedule, I have no freaking idea. Except that, we will see better OL play over last year; it just has to be, right? Most everything else will improve because of that. On defense, the line and linebackers will be better, but the secondary won't gel until maybe Minnesota. And, we will continue to play aggressive offense through out the entire darn game, no matter what the score. Go Bears.
Excellent....I have to admit, my stomach turns when reminded of our three losses last year due to missed kicks. Hope springs eternal, and I chose to find some hope in your overview, not least with improvements on punt returns and some consistency in the kick game. Is there a reason you didn't mention kick offs? Go Bears Forever!
I actually really think that this year, we will finally be a complete team in all three phases of the game, with ST not being a liability - which would be good enough for me.
So’oto is no longer listed as ST coordinator. I seem to remember sometime in the spring Wilcox saying that special teams would essentially be run by committee. I guess we’ll see how that works out.
"...every single player who returned a kick or a punt last year is no longer on Cal’s roster..." and "... Isiah Crosby (3 punt returns) is the only player still on the roster who was involved in returns last year. Crosby did have Cal’s longest punt return of the year, of 24 yards."
are confusing/contradictory statements. Not that confusion and contradiction are uncommon when discussing and documenting Cal special teams, which does tend to highlight the bigger problem. But a little clarification would help.
Nick, again, great write up and thanks for taking the time to do all the research on our team. ST's seem to always be a concern at CAL. A shame when we have had guys like Mick Luckhurst and Jimmy Breech play for us in the past.
I find Connelly's forecast interesting. I guess you have to start somewhere, but the beauty of college football is that you never know when teams take the field how the emotional swings will move the game. We know there will be new stars this year on CAL's team, we just don't know who they are, yet. Same for the teams we play. I think a very large part of the equation for our success will be based on two things that Connelly hasn't taken into account: 1. Harsin's play calling and our execution of his offense, 2. how well our O-Line plays. Then there is the QB play which is a big unknown.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: games are played on Saturday's just to fuck up sportswriters predictions. Looking forward to another fun year.
The uncertainty is enough to get me (over)excited! Thus is the life of a Cal fan! Thank U Nick!
We are all waiting for the game in Corvallis to see what talent this year's GB team actually fields. Until then, the 5.5 schedule seems pretty reasonable. 9-3 would be awesome, but that is some pretty big sunshine pumping imho... GO BEARS
15-0
Cal sunshine pumping will live forever!!!!! GO BEARS!
By the way, Rich Lyons being our chancellor cannot be underestimated - he loves the university so much in all the right ways
JKS named QB1
Yeah, not a surprise to me
Hi Nick, yes, Jacob de Jesus can create big plays on punt and kickoff returns, he is an exciting player, our new jet. I don't know about the kickers or punters, I never do, just have to wait and see come August 30th, from section 232. Would hate to think we didn't learn anything from those loses last year. As for how we do with the season schedule, I have no freaking idea. Except that, we will see better OL play over last year; it just has to be, right? Most everything else will improve because of that. On defense, the line and linebackers will be better, but the secondary won't gel until maybe Minnesota. And, we will continue to play aggressive offense through out the entire darn game, no matter what the score. Go Bears.
Excellent....I have to admit, my stomach turns when reminded of our three losses last year due to missed kicks. Hope springs eternal, and I chose to find some hope in your overview, not least with improvements on punt returns and some consistency in the kick game. Is there a reason you didn't mention kick offs? Go Bears Forever!
I can't even remember who our kickers were last season. I tried for about a min and gave up.
Funny, I’ve blocked their names as well… says it all
I did google and remembered them now.
So many roster turnovers every year. I used to remember all the kickers until maybe Matt Anderson, and a few others like Longhetto and Baghani.
I think we remember them when they are our heroes...
I actually really think that this year, we will finally be a complete team in all three phases of the game, with ST not being a liability - which would be good enough for me.
So’oto is no longer listed as ST coordinator. I seem to remember sometime in the spring Wilcox saying that special teams would essentially be run by committee. I guess we’ll see how that works out.
"...every single player who returned a kick or a punt last year is no longer on Cal’s roster..." and "... Isiah Crosby (3 punt returns) is the only player still on the roster who was involved in returns last year. Crosby did have Cal’s longest punt return of the year, of 24 yards."
are confusing/contradictory statements. Not that confusion and contradiction are uncommon when discussing and documenting Cal special teams, which does tend to highlight the bigger problem. But a little clarification would help.
Fixed
Crosby did return 3 punts last year, so the first statement is an error.