MEMORIAL STADIUM - The weather couldn’t have been better for the opening morning of spring ball this morning with blue skies and a light breeze and temps that hit the upper 60s by the end of today’s abbreviated hour and a half session at Memorial.
"First day spring football,” head coach Justin Wilcox said. “So it's a lot of fun being back on the field. Players seem to enjoy it. I know the coaches do. Just to get back out here competing and working on football again."
Lots of new faces were on the field today with some jumping right in on the action and others being eased in.
Much like former preferred walk-on Trond Grizzell had a strong connection with Mendoza last spring and fall, PWO receiver Jordan King was a favorite target today for the returning starter, pulling in passes of 20 and 25 yards in the session. Mendoza also had a standout completion for a 25-yard gain to Grizzell.
Mendoza’s added size and strength showed on the field where he was quick and decisive with his throws, with good velocity.
North Texas senior grad transfer Chandler Rogers was sharp much of the session, showing zip on his passes and good wheels when he pulled it down. His lone miscue was an overthrown pass that was picked by grad transfer cornerback Marcus Harris but he also had a long TD to PWO receiver Isaac Torres and a perfect 50-yard pass down the sideline that Notre Dame WR transfer Tobias Merriweather couldn’t hold onto. He play of the day was a perfectly thrown ball dropped over coverage for a 30-yard completion to Colorado transfer receiver Cole Boscia.
Wilcox noted that there’s no preference for finding a starter this spring vs. fall but that they’d be looking for some things in particular in the battle for QB1.
"Getting better," Wilcox noted. "Making great decisions, being accurate with the football. Running the offense. Leading the offense down the field.
“When the time comes, it reveals itself and we'll name the starter but really not gonna put any timeline, especially now early in spring ball. I know they're both real eager to practice and play football and improve. So that's what we're looking for.”
Returning Pac-12 rushing champion Jadyn Ott looked strong and quick with a pair of good runs. Old Dominion by way of Alabama running back transfer Kadarius Calloway opened eyes with some particularly speedy runs for good gains.
Wilcox was asked if there were players who stepped into leadership roles in the offseason and he noted a few standouts.
"You've got the ones that you would probably assume like Craig Woodson, who has been here a long time," Wilcox said. "Good player, got the respect of his teammates, Craig has done a nice job. David Reese has really been a guy that's taken that role on. He's got the mentality for this game and he works and he's earned the respect of his teammates. David Reese has been a guy that's been noticeable in terms of the leadership role. Xavier (Carlton), we talked about him in the same way, just taking another step. TJ Session is another one. So I think there's been a number of guys that have stepped up in terms of how they communicate with their teammates, and obviously handling their business but also encouraging and influencing other people to be better."
Stay tuned for more on today’s practice session with player interviews.
Agree - I feel sam didn't get a fair chance to show we he had. I would add that he came into the Oregon game when we were getting steamrolled and again played in a manner that didn't warrant him getting cast aside.
A "fair chance" would've been to bring him along at a slower pace, with this fall as the goal. Spavital evaluated SJV way too highly, thinking he could get him up to speed in six months. I get it: to go with his speed and athleticism, he has a strong arm and decent accuracy... and his 6-for-6 at TCU influenced people (even though it was the classic example of small sample size). His problem was that his "quarterback instincts" had not been developed.
I don't think it was a coincidence that Cal's offensive trouble started after Mendoza got injured. It was a shock that he was even able to go back in so soon.
He never sat out, right? So the official position is the running game was ineffective after the third possession because Mendoza was hurt?
I am skeptical, it reminds me too much of excuses made for Baldwin and Musgrave, but it is water under the bridge, what maters is Bloesch's offense this Fall. We both hope it will be great,
Before Mendoza was injured, they scored a 25 yard TD after the TT fumble on the first play from scrimmage. Then the next possession, they drove 85 yards on the next drive to the TT 5 before Mendoza was injured at the end of the play and Finley came in. Mendoza was 5-5 for 61 yards at that point and had run for 17 more. Once he was injured, his mechanics were clearly off when he came back in and TT could key on the run. Up to that point, Cal had run for 54 yards in 7 carries. It was all downhill after that. TT also has two DL projected to be drafted this year.
Mendoza has proven to be a serviceable QB. He has not yet proven to be a good QB. But he certainly has the potential to become one.
I don't disagree with your assessment of the first few drives in the bowl game. But it is missing an important piece of info: DeRuyter's defenses always seemed to take a few drives to get in the swing of things.
So the question is, would we have continued that offensive success if Mendoza didn't get nicked up?
Or was DeRuyter gonna squash our offense no matter what happened to Mendoza?
We are going to face better D-lines and defensive coaches this year than TT had last year. And Mendoza is going to get nicked up again this year. So unless he and our offensive coaches show major improvements, we will be in trouble.
TT finished 81st in total defense and was significantly worse the last month of the season than at any other point leading up to the bowl game.
The OL was pretty beat up heading into the bowl game and a bunch of those guys played hurt so they likely wore down quickly, especially when Mendoza's ability to throw was compromised.
It was a bad performance overall for sure. I just don't know how much can be drawn from it to indicate what to expect this season.
I appreciate this Moraga. As someone who has been lurking for nearly a decade now, from time to time I have picked up on a circle the wagons mentality from BI staff which has been a big turnoff. Glad to see you aren't looking at this through rose-tinted lenses.
We stunk vs TT. And yes, the OL was pretty beat up. But I cannot remember a time since mid-career Tedford that our OL has not been beat up and banged up. So at some point this can't be an excuse by those looking to make excuses (not you) -- especially since, as you say, TT's defense wasn't anything special.
Mendoza has proven to be a serviceable QB. He has not yet proven to be a good QB. But he certainly has the potential to become one.
I don't disagree with your assessment of the first few drives in the bowl game. But it is missing an important piece of info: DeRuyter's defenses always seemed to take a few drives to get in the swing of things.
So the question is, would we have continued that offensive success if Mendoza didn't get nicked up?
Noted in a thread on the Insider Board, he wasn't just nicked up, he was legit injured. It's the kind of thing that requires imaging so they didn't know at the time, but Fernando shouldn't have been out on the field after that.
The QB / Receiver chemistry is going to be interesting this Spring, esp. given the new faces. Without Mendoza, are Endries and Grizzel emerging like they did and vice-versa? They're all friends and in the same cohort. Was our surge last year once Mendoza got the job about leadership and belief by the whole team after getting beat down so much? Will they follow Rogers?
So why was he?
Our coaches kept our backup on the roster (can't remember his name - wasn't it something like Lonny Donavan?) despite him entering the portal for this very reason.
This. Way better off. I think Rogers is legit great competition for Mendoza. He has played a lot of ball. And been productive. IMO a big factor in the turnovers with Mendoza was his excitement. He played with a lot of energy and did not quit on the play. Sometimes he tried to make plays that were not available. Hopefully that experience will pay off. Rogers has a good history of low turnovers. New team and a step up in level of play though.
One thing that I do believe happened was despite comments to the contrary Jackson was always going to start game 1. And I think the team never really believed he earned it. Finley getting 2nd team reps and then starting was a major mistake. Once Mendoza got in even though they lost the games the team clearly responded.
If Rogers gets the nod I believe it will be because he earned the right. And I would expect the team to repsond well. Bloesch is an impressive guy. The players seem to like him and respect how he operates.
I dunno. It seems like most of BI was way more excited last offseason for SJV than we are this offseason for Mendoza/Rogers.
This. Way better off. I think Rogers is legit great competition for Mendoza. He has played a lot of ball. And been productive. IMO a big factor in the turnovers with Mendoza was his excitement. He played with a lot of energy and did not quit on the play. Sometimes he tried to make plays that were not available. Hopefully that experience will pay off. Rogers has a good history of low turnovers. New team and a step up in level of play though.
One thing that I do believe happened was despite comments to the contrary Jackson was always going to start game 1. And I think the team never really believed he earned it. Finley getting 2nd team reps and then starting was a major mistake. Once Mendoza got in even though they lost the games the team clearly responded.
If Rogers gets the nod I believe it will be because he earned the right. And I would expect the team to repsond well. Bloesch is an impressive guy. The players seem to like him and respect how he operates.
I dunno. It seems like most of BI was way more excited last offseason for SJV than we are this offseason for Mendoza/Rogers.
I think the board was mostly excited about Spavital.
This. Way better off. I think Rogers is legit great competition for Mendoza. He has played a lot of ball. And been productive. IMO a big factor in the turnovers with Mendoza was his excitement. He played with a lot of energy and did not quit on the play. Sometimes he tried to make plays that were not available. Hopefully that experience will pay off. Rogers has a good history of low turnovers. New team and a step up in level of play though.
One thing that I do believe happened was despite comments to the contrary Jackson was always going to start game 1. And I think the team never really believed he earned it. Finley getting 2nd team reps and then starting was a major mistake. Once Mendoza got in even though they lost the games the team clearly responded.
If Rogers gets the nod I believe it will be because he earned the right. And I would expect the team to repsond well. Bloesch is an impressive guy. The players seem to like him and respect how he operates.
I dunno. It seems like most of BI was way more excited last offseason for SJV than we are this offseason for Mendoza/Rogers.
I agree. And his experience was limited to 5 completed passes.
This. Way better off. I think Rogers is legit great competition for Mendoza. He has played a lot of ball. And been productive. IMO a big factor in the turnovers with Mendoza was his excitement. He played with a lot of energy and did not quit on the play. Sometimes he tried to make plays that were not available. Hopefully that experience will pay off. Rogers has a good history of low turnovers. New team and a step up in level of play though.
One thing that I do believe happened was despite comments to the contrary Jackson was always going to start game 1. And I think the team never really believed he earned it. Finley getting 2nd team reps and then starting was a major mistake. Once Mendoza got in even though they lost the games the team clearly responded.
If Rogers gets the nod I believe it will be because he earned the right. And I would expect the team to repsond well. Bloesch is an impressive guy. The players seem to like him and respect how he operates.
I dunno. It seems like most of BI was way more excited last offseason for SJV than we are this offseason for Mendoza/Rogers.
I think the board was mostly excited about Spavital.
There's that too. Excited about the return of Spavital and the arrival of Jackson. Neither lasted a year.
Agree - I feel sam didn't get a fair chance to show we he had. I would add that he came into the Oregon game when we were getting steamrolled and again played in a manner that didn't warrant him getting cast aside.
A "fair chance" would've been to bring him along at a slower pace, with this fall as the goal. Spavital evaluated SJV way too highly, thinking he could get him up to speed in six months. I get it: to go with his speed and athleticism, he has a strong arm and decent accuracy... and his 6-for-6 at TCU influenced people (even though it was the classic example of small sample size). His problem was that his "quarterback instincts" had not been developed.
People keep forgetting that Sam. although he only played QB his senior year of HS, was in the QB room at TCU for TWO YEARS before coming to Cal, allegedly learning an offense which had many similar concepts to Spav's. Now, who knows what that means? How much time/instruction did Sam actually get at TCU? But, considering he was part of Cal's spring and fall practices, I don't see how you could have slowed things down any more for him.
Sam was Spav's handpicked guy, and got a chance to cement the starter's role every day in practice.
Sam's early injury was bad luck, but Finley flamed out and Spav only went to Mendoza out of desperation and I believe that, if Sam had showed consistent improvement in practice during the season, he could have won the job back.
What's really depressing for longtime Cal fans (meaning back to the 1970s) is that, given the heritage of great QBs, we're reduced to arguing about guys who are barely so-so (not even good) college QBs.
This. Way better off. I think Rogers is legit great competition for Mendoza. He has played a lot of ball. And been productive. IMO a big factor in the turnovers with Mendoza was his excitement. He played with a lot of energy and did not quit on the play. Sometimes he tried to make plays that were not available. Hopefully that experience will pay off. Rogers has a good history of low turnovers. New team and a step up in level of play though.
One thing that I do believe happened was despite comments to the contrary Jackson was always going to start game 1. And I think the team never really believed he earned it. Finley getting 2nd team reps and then starting was a major mistake. Once Mendoza got in even though they lost the games the team clearly responded.
If Rogers gets the nod I believe it will be because he earned the right. And I would expect the team to repsond well. Bloesch is an impressive guy. The players seem to like him and respect how he operates.
I dunno. It seems like most of BI was way more excited last offseason for SJV than we are this offseason for Mendoza/Rogers.
Agree - I feel sam didn't get a fair chance to show we he had. I would add that he came into the Oregon game when we were getting steamrolled and again played in a manner that didn't warrant him getting cast aside.
A "fair chance" would've been to bring him along at a slower pace, with this fall as the goal. Spavital evaluated SJV way too highly, thinking he could get him up to speed in six months. I get it: to go with his speed and athleticism, he has a strong arm and decent accuracy... and his 6-for-6 at TCU influenced people (even though it was the classic example of small sample size). His problem was that his "quarterback instincts" had not been developed.
People keep forgetting that Sam. although he only played QB his senior year of HS, was in the QB room at TCU for TWO YEARS before coming to Cal, allegedly learning an offense which had many similar concepts to Spav's. Now, who knows what that means? How much time/instruction did Sam actually get at TCU? But, considering he was part of Cal's spring and fall practices, I don't see how you could have slowed things down any more for him.
Sam was Spav's handpicked guy, and got a chance to cement the starter's role every day in practice.
Sam's early injury was bad luck, but Finley flamed out and Spav only went to Mendoza out of desperation and I believe that, if Sam had showed consistent improvement in practice during the season, he could have won the job back.
What's really depressing for longtime Cal fans (meaning back to the 1970s) is that, given the heritage of great QBs, we're reduced to arguing about guys who are barely so-so (not even good) college QBs.
There's an old saying in coaching, "If he did it once, he can do it again." That's an asst trying to sell his guy in the recruiting meetings. Mostly, wishful thinking.
Sam had 2 years at TCU, 1 spring and 1 fall camp to show he could do it. Then, he got injured on an early play where he was showing what he could do - rpo. TT knew he was a one trick pony and were waiting for him. He tried to do too much on that play and left himself vulnerable.
Sam is somewhere else in their wr room and that should tell you all you need to know. Spav swung and missed (happens). Can we stop talking about Sam now?
Agree - I feel sam didn't get a fair chance to show we he had. I would add that he came into the Oregon game when we were getting steamrolled and again played in a manner that didn't warrant him getting cast aside.
A "fair chance" would've been to bring him along at a slower pace, with this fall as the goal. Spavital evaluated SJV way too highly, thinking he could get him up to speed in six months. I get it: to go with his speed and athleticism, he has a strong arm and decent accuracy... and his 6-for-6 at TCU influenced people (even though it was the classic example of small sample size). His problem was that his "quarterback instincts" had not been developed.
People keep forgetting that Sam. although he only played QB his senior year of HS, was in the QB room at TCU for TWO YEARS before coming to Cal, allegedly learning an offense which had many similar concepts to Spav's. Now, who knows what that means? How much time/instruction did Sam actually get at TCU? But, considering he was part of Cal's spring and fall practices, I don't see how you could have slowed things down any more for him.
Sam was Spav's handpicked guy, and got a chance to cement the starter's role every day in practice.
Sam's early injury was bad luck, but Finley flamed out and Spav only went to Mendoza out of desperation and I believe that, if Sam had showed consistent improvement in practice during the season, he could have won the job back.
What's really depressing for longtime Cal fans (meaning back to the 1970s) is that, given the heritage of great QBs, we're reduced to arguing about guys who are barely so-so (not even good) college QBs.
So true for Old Blues. I won't even go back to Morton or Bartkowski, but come on, Bart was the number one overall pick just like Goff! Joe Roth is the greatest college player never to play in the NFL...The back up to Joe Roth (Fred Besana) made it to the NFL...a back up! Rich Campbell was as good of a HS QB as there was in the nation and he picked Cal...Dave Barr? Almost a letdown by comparison and he was solid...Pawlawski lead Cal to a top 10, and he was seen as fair, not great by Cal standards... I don't need to rant any longer....me personally, I'm more frustrated by the lack of O-linemen developed by Cal vs. those earlier years. I have posted before the stats and names, but there was a period that Cal wouldn't go more than a year without an O-linemen being drafted in a decent round.
Agree - I feel sam didn't get a fair chance to show we he had. I would add that he came into the Oregon game when we were getting steamrolled and again played in a manner that didn't warrant him getting cast aside.
A "fair chance" would've been to bring him along at a slower pace, with this fall as the goal. Spavital evaluated SJV way too highly, thinking he could get him up to speed in six months. I get it: to go with his speed and athleticism, he has a strong arm and decent accuracy... and his 6-for-6 at TCU influenced people (even though it was the classic example of small sample size). His problem was that his "quarterback instincts" had not been developed.
People keep forgetting that Sam. although he only played QB his senior year of HS, was in the QB room at TCU for TWO YEARS before coming to Cal, allegedly learning an offense which had many similar concepts to Spav's. Now, who knows what that means? How much time/instruction did Sam actually get at TCU? But, considering he was part of Cal's spring and fall practices, I don't see how you could have slowed things down any more for him.
Sam was Spav's handpicked guy, and got a chance to cement the starter's role every day in practice.
Sam's early injury was bad luck, but Finley flamed out and Spav only went to Mendoza out of desperation and I believe that, if Sam had showed consistent improvement in practice during the season, he could have won the job back.
What's really depressing for longtime Cal fans (meaning back to the 1970s) is that, given the heritage of great QBs, we're reduced to arguing about guys who are barely so-so (not even good) college QBs.
So true for Old Blues. I won't even go back to Morton or Bartkowski, but come on, Bart was the number one overall pick just like Goff! Joe Roth is the greatest college player never to play in the NFL...The back up to Joe Roth (Fred Besana) made it to the NFL...a back up! Rich Campbell was as good of a HS QB as there was in the nation and he picked Cal...Dave Barr? Almost a letdown by comparison and he was solid...Pawlawski lead Cal to a top 10, and he was seen as fair, not great by Cal standards... I don't need to rant any longer....me personally, I'm more frustrated by the lack of O-linemen developed by Cal vs. those earlier years. I have posted before the stats and names, but there was a period that Cal wouldn't go more than a year without an O-linemen being drafted in a decent round.
And judging a player by their first few games or first season can be premature.
Boller completed 38.6% of his passes with 9 TDs and 15 Int for an 80 Passing Rating as a freshman.
Troy Taylor completed 57.5% with 1 TD and 8 Int for a 96.3 Passing Ratting as a freshman.
Pat Barnes completed 30.3% for 0 TDs and 3 Int for a 43.9 Passing Rating as a freshman.
Gale Gilbert completed 42% for 0 TDs and 3 Int and a 74.6 Passing Rating as a freshman.
Mike Pawlawski completed 42.2% for 0 TDs and 2 INT for a 51.7% Passing Rating as a sophomore.
Over Joe Roth's two-year Cal career he completed 53.7% for 21 TDs and 25 INT for a 116 Passing Rating.
Steve Bartkowski completed 42.4% with 4 TDs and 13 INT for a 82.7 Passing Rating his first year.
So in that context, Jackson was actually pretty good and Mendoza was even better. At least Mendoza will get a chance to continue to develop. Even if Rodgers beats him out this year, he could end up being really good as a junior and senior.
This. Way better off. I think Rogers is legit great competition for Mendoza. He has played a lot of ball. And been productive. IMO a big factor in the turnovers with Mendoza was his excitement. He played with a lot of energy and did not quit on the play. Sometimes he tried to make plays that were not available. Hopefully that experience will pay off. Rogers has a good history of low turnovers. New team and a step up in level of play though.
One thing that I do believe happened was despite comments to the contrary Jackson was always going to start game 1. And I think the team never really believed he earned it. Finley getting 2nd team reps and then starting was a major mistake. Once Mendoza got in even though they lost the games the team clearly responded.
If Rogers gets the nod I believe it will be because he earned the right. And I would expect the team to repsond well. Bloesch is an impressive guy. The players seem to like him and respect how he operates.
I dunno. It seems like most of BI was way more excited last offseason for SJV than we are this offseason for Mendoza/Rogers.
I agree. And his experience was limited to 5 completed passes.
This is why I disagree with the idea sometimes proposed here that athletics should be separated from the university and the people on BI should take over leadership of the athletic department.
Getting rid of Knowlton and replacing him with the yabbos who continue to support Wilcox and who thought SJV was the answer is like replacing Battista with Castro.
This. Way better off. I think Rogers is legit great competition for Mendoza. He has played a lot of ball. And been productive. IMO a big factor in the turnovers with Mendoza was his excitement. He played with a lot of energy and did not quit on the play. Sometimes he tried to make plays that were not available. Hopefully that experience will pay off. Rogers has a good history of low turnovers. New team and a step up in level of play though.
One thing that I do believe happened was despite comments to the contrary Jackson was always going to start game 1. And I think the team never really believed he earned it. Finley getting 2nd team reps and then starting was a major mistake. Once Mendoza got in even though they lost the games the team clearly responded.
If Rogers gets the nod I believe it will be because he earned the right. And I would expect the team to repsond well. Bloesch is an impressive guy. The players seem to like him and respect how he operates.
I dunno. It seems like most of BI was way more excited last offseason for SJV than we are this offseason for Mendoza/Rogers.
I agree. And his experience was limited to 5 completed passes.
This is why I disagree with the idea sometimes proposed here that athletics should be separated from the university and the people on BI should take over leadership of the athletic department.
Getting rid of Knowlton and replacing him with the yabbos who continue to support Wilcox and who thought SJV was the answer is like replacing Battista with Castro.
"People on BI taking over?" How is that even a thing, outside of tongue in cheek? "who thought SJV" was the answer....you feel like breaking that down to critical thinking vs. wishful thinking? It's a fan board-there is always going to be the hope that Joe Roth or Aaron Rodgers are lining up behind center(or under center), and fans get the surprise of their lives that they are among the best in the country...out of nowhere... Please enlighten us to the so called "yabbos." Fan support at football games is mostly disguised as empty seats. You are saying if more Cal fans showed disdain for Wilcox, we would have a new coach right now? I mean, please link me to all the threads here or elsewhere that extoll the virtues of Wilcox.
This. Way better off. I think Rogers is legit great competition for Mendoza. He has played a lot of ball. And been productive. IMO a big factor in the turnovers with Mendoza was his excitement. He played with a lot of energy and did not quit on the play. Sometimes he tried to make plays that were not available. Hopefully that experience will pay off. Rogers has a good history of low turnovers. New team and a step up in level of play though.
One thing that I do believe happened was despite comments to the contrary Jackson was always going to start game 1. And I think the team never really believed he earned it. Finley getting 2nd team reps and then starting was a major mistake. Once Mendoza got in even though they lost the games the team clearly responded.
If Rogers gets the nod I believe it will be because he earned the right. And I would expect the team to repsond well. Bloesch is an impressive guy. The players seem to like him and respect how he operates.
I dunno. It seems like most of BI was way more excited last offseason for SJV than we are this offseason for Mendoza/Rogers.
I agree. And his experience was limited to 5 completed passes.
This is why I disagree with the idea sometimes proposed here that athletics should be separated from the university and the people on BI should take over leadership of the athletic department.
Getting rid of Knowlton and replacing him with the yabbos who continue to support Wilcox and who thought SJV was the answer is like replacing Battista with Castro.
It was apparently Spav who thought Sam was the answer. BI was mostly against him from Day 1 and wanted him replaced for getting pulled from the game after getting injured going 3 of 4 for a TD. Most of BI preferred Finley and pinned for Plummer. The consensus on BI was Jackson is too short. Some said they just don't like "running" QBs. Wilcox too was uncharacteristically critical of Sam, even after wins, even when Sam played great in relief in Seattle.
BI and Wilcox united around Mendoza. Spav and Sam left.
This. Way better off. I think Rogers is legit great competition for Mendoza. He has played a lot of ball. And been productive. IMO a big factor in the turnovers with Mendoza was his excitement. He played with a lot of energy and did not quit on the play. Sometimes he tried to make plays that were not available. Hopefully that experience will pay off. Rogers has a good history of low turnovers. New team and a step up in level of play though.
One thing that I do believe happened was despite comments to the contrary Jackson was always going to start game 1. And I think the team never really believed he earned it. Finley getting 2nd team reps and then starting was a major mistake. Once Mendoza got in even though they lost the games the team clearly responded.
If Rogers gets the nod I believe it will be because he earned the right. And I would expect the team to repsond well. Bloesch is an impressive guy. The players seem to like him and respect how he operates.
I dunno. It seems like most of BI was way more excited last offseason for SJV than we are this offseason for Mendoza/Rogers.
I agree. And his experience was limited to 5 completed passes.
This is why I disagree with the idea sometimes proposed here that athletics should be separated from the university and the people on BI should take over leadership of the athletic department.
Getting rid of Knowlton and replacing him with the yabbos who continue to support Wilcox and who thought SJV was the answer is like replacing Battista with Castro.
It was apparently Spav who thought Sam was the answer. BI was mostly against him from Day 1 and wanted him replaced for getting pulled from the game after getting injured going 3 of 4 for a TD. Most of BI preferred Finley and pinned for Plummer. The consensus on BI was Jackson is too short. Some said they just don't like "running" QBs. Wilcox too was uncharacteristically critical of Sam, even after wins, even when Sam played great in relief in Seattle.
BI and Wilcox united around Mendoza. Spav and Sam left.
I was one who cautioned that we should be wary of "dual threat" quarterbacks, as it's rare that they are proficient passers (Job One for a QB). A lot of folks here drool over the dual threat guys.
(Thinking of changing my handle to "yabbo", but by the time I get around to it, it might be already snapped up!)
Agree - I feel sam didn't get a fair chance to show we he had. I would add that he came into the Oregon game when we were getting steamrolled and again played in a manner that didn't warrant him getting cast aside.
A "fair chance" would've been to bring him along at a slower pace, with this fall as the goal. Spavital evaluated SJV way too highly, thinking he could get him up to speed in six months. I get it: to go with his speed and athleticism, he has a strong arm and decent accuracy... and his 6-for-6 at TCU influenced people (even though it was the classic example of small sample size). His problem was that his "quarterback instincts" had not been developed.
People keep forgetting that Sam. although he only played QB his senior year of HS, was in the QB room at TCU for TWO YEARS before coming to Cal, allegedly learning an offense which had many similar concepts to Spav's. Now, who knows what that means? How much time/instruction did Sam actually get at TCU? But, considering he was part of Cal's spring and fall practices, I don't see how you could have slowed things down any more for him.
Sam was Spav's handpicked guy, and got a chance to cement the starter's role every day in practice.
Sam's early injury was bad luck, but Finley flamed out and Spav only went to Mendoza out of desperation and I believe that, if Sam had showed consistent improvement in practice during the season, he could have won the job back.
What's really depressing for longtime Cal fans (meaning back to the 1970s) is that, given the heritage of great QBs, we're reduced to arguing about guys who are barely so-so (not even good) college QBs.
So true for Old Blues. I won't even go back to Morton or Bartkowski, but come on, Bart was the number one overall pick just like Goff! Joe Roth is the greatest college player never to play in the NFL...The back up to Joe Roth (Fred Besana) made it to the NFL...a back up! Rich Campbell was as good of a HS QB as there was in the nation and he picked Cal...Dave Barr? Almost a letdown by comparison and he was solid...Pawlawski lead Cal to a top 10, and he was seen as fair, not great by Cal standards... I don't need to rant any longer....me personally, I'm more frustrated by the lack of O-linemen developed by Cal vs. those earlier years. I have posted before the stats and names, but there was a period that Cal wouldn't go more than a year without an O-linemen being drafted in a decent round.
And judging a player by their first few games or first season can be premature.
Boller completed 38.6% of his passes with 9 TDs and 15 Int for an 80 Passing Rating as a freshman.
Troy Taylor completed 57.5% with 1 TD and 8 Int for a 96.3 Passing Ratting as a freshman.
Pat Barnes completed 30.3% for 0 TDs and 3 Int for a 43.9 Passing Rating as a freshman.
Gale Gilbert completed 42% for 0 TDs and 3 Int and a 74.6 Passing Rating as a freshman.
Mike Pawlawski completed 42.2% for 0 TDs and 2 INT for a 51.7% Passing Rating as a sophomore.
Over Joe Roth's two-year Cal career he completed 53.7% for 21 TDs and 25 INT for a 116 Passing Rating.
Steve Bartkowski completed 42.4% with 4 TDs and 13 INT for a 82.7 Passing Rating his first year.
So in that context, Jackson was actually pretty good and Mendoza was even better. At least Mendoza will get a chance to continue to develop. Even if Rodgers beats him out this year, he could end up being really good as a junior and senior.
This. Way better off. I think Rogers is legit great competition for Mendoza. He has played a lot of ball. And been productive. IMO a big factor in the turnovers with Mendoza was his excitement. He played with a lot of energy and did not quit on the play. Sometimes he tried to make plays that were not available. Hopefully that experience will pay off. Rogers has a good history of low turnovers. New team and a step up in level of play though.
One thing that I do believe happened was despite comments to the contrary Jackson was always going to start game 1. And I think the team never really believed he earned it. Finley getting 2nd team reps and then starting was a major mistake. Once Mendoza got in even though they lost the games the team clearly responded.
If Rogers gets the nod I believe it will be because he earned the right. And I would expect the team to repsond well. Bloesch is an impressive guy. The players seem to like him and respect how he operates.
I dunno. It seems like most of BI was way more excited last offseason for SJV than we are this offseason for Mendoza/Rogers.
I agree. And his experience was limited to 5 completed passes.
This is why I disagree with the idea sometimes proposed here that athletics should be separated from the university and the people on BI should take over leadership of the athletic department.
Getting rid of Knowlton and replacing him with the yabbos who continue to support Wilcox and who thought SJV was the answer is like replacing Battista with Castro.
It was apparently Spav who thought Sam was the answer. BI was mostly against him from Day 1 and wanted him replaced for getting pulled from the game after getting injured going 3 of 4 for a TD. Most of BI preferred Finley and pinned for Plummer. The consensus on BI was Jackson is too short. Some said they just don't like "running" QBs. Wilcox too was uncharacteristically critical of Sam, even after wins, even when Sam played great in relief in Seattle.
BI and Wilcox united around Mendoza. Spav and Sam left.
I was rooting for Sam until he showed he wasn't a good college QB.
This. Way better off. I think Rogers is legit great competition for Mendoza. He has played a lot of ball. And been productive. IMO a big factor in the turnovers with Mendoza was his excitement. He played with a lot of energy and did not quit on the play. Sometimes he tried to make plays that were not available. Hopefully that experience will pay off. Rogers has a good history of low turnovers. New team and a step up in level of play though.
One thing that I do believe happened was despite comments to the contrary Jackson was always going to start game 1. And I think the team never really believed he earned it. Finley getting 2nd team reps and then starting was a major mistake. Once Mendoza got in even though they lost the games the team clearly responded.
If Rogers gets the nod I believe it will be because he earned the right. And I would expect the team to repsond well. Bloesch is an impressive guy. The players seem to like him and respect how he operates.
I dunno. It seems like most of BI was way more excited last offseason for SJV than we are this offseason for Mendoza/Rogers.
I agree. And his experience was limited to 5 completed passes.
This is why I disagree with the idea sometimes proposed here that athletics should be separated from the university and the people on BI should take over leadership of the athletic department.
Getting rid of Knowlton and replacing him with the yabbos who continue to support Wilcox and who thought SJV was the answer is like replacing Battista with Castro.
It was apparently Spav who thought Sam was the answer. BI was mostly against him from Day 1 and wanted him replaced for getting pulled from the game after getting injured going 3 of 4 for a TD. Most of BI preferred Finley and pinned for Plummer. The consensus on BI was Jackson is too short. Some said they just don't like "running" QBs. Wilcox too was uncharacteristically critical of Sam, even after wins, even when Sam played great in relief in Seattle.
BI and Wilcox united around Mendoza. Spav and Sam left.
I was one who cautioned that we should be wary of "dual threat" quarterbacks, as it's rare that they are proficient passers (Job One for a QB). A lot of folks here drool over the dual threat guys.
(Thinking of changing my handle to "yabbo", but by the time I get around to it, it might be already snapped up!)
Glad I can help Big C. I heard a coupla of English-speaking sports commentators use it a few weeks ago in thick Israeli accents while they were chain smoking in the patio of a coffee shop. I've been throwing it into my vocab ever since.
