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California Golden Bears vs Fresno State Bulldogs Football Preview

While there are mixed feelings about the Jeff Tedford era and expectations haven’t always been met in Berkeley, one thing Tedford has done is keep Cal competitive and going to bowl games, something no other coach has done at the program. That makes last year’s 5-7 effort disappointing indeed – the Golden Bears dropped every conference swing game against mediocre opponents ( Arizona, Oregon State, Washington). This season, Cal hopes to make the best of its new “road warrior” status: While Memorial Stadium gets a massive facelift, the Bears will play their home games at AT&T Park in San Francisco. The opener, however, will be at Candlestick Park for a Nor-Cal matchup against Fresno State.

2011 marks the close of the disappointing Kevin Riley era at Cal; the quarterback ended his career as an injured player. Junior Zach Maynard will take over the job after transferring from Buffalo. In his sophomore season in 2009, Maynard threw for 2,694 yards and 18 touchdowns. Tedford will look to Maynard to improve Cal’s anemic passing offense, which mustered only 175 yards per game last year. Maynard will be targeting Marvin Jones and Keenan Allen, who return after combining for 1,255 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. Isi Sofele is expected to step up in a starring role at running back to replace the talented Shane Vereen. As for Cal’s defense, coordinator Clancy Pendergast hopes the 3-4 defense he installed last season, which led Cal to a number 18 ranking in total defense, has created a foundation for success despite losing four starters to the NFL.

> Browse the selection of Cal Golden Bears Apparel online as well as Pac 10 Football Scores through Pac 10 Fans and partner sites.

Fresno State enters 2011 with considerable excitement. While the Bulldogs are coming off an 8-5 season, which included more wins over teams from BCS conferences and more losses to top teams in the WAC, excitement is still fresh with the anticipated debut of sophomore quarterback Derek Carr (yes, the younger brother of former Bulldog and NFL first round draft pick David). Without having taken a snap as a college player, Carr has – in the words of head coach Pat Hill – the “full trust” of the coaching staff in running the offense and leading the team. Carr will enjoy the services of junior tailback Robbie Rouse, who rushed for 1,129 yards last season despite missing two full games. Rouse should be an All-WAC performer by season’s end. While leading receiver Jamel Hamler has graduated, Carr will still have plenty of experienced receivers to target.

This game will be a matchup of strengths against strengths, and weaknesses versus weaknesses – which points to a good game. Fresno State’s defense surrendered 30 points per game last season and only returns five starters, but as noted, Cal’s offense has been struggling. If either of the new quarterbacks can step up and shine from the opening kickoff, it will go a long way toward deciding the game.

By Brett Hein
DFN Sports Staff Writer