The Bears...

http://espn.go.com/blog/pac12/post/_/id/26188/page/picks/pac-12-predictions-week-4

Quote:

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California 28, Washington 24: The Huskies defense is struggling and this is the best offensive line it will have faced. Cal QB Zach Maynard making his first start in a tough road venue is a concern, but not as much as Huskies QB Keith Price running around on a pair of sprained knees. And, Cal, I'm warning you ... don't make me wrong (again). You wouldn't like me when I'm wrong.

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I hope Miller is right this time. I think our O will score on the mutts but their O looks scary on paper (Polk, Kearse, ASJ and an accurate but gimpy QB). Shoot out?

I hope CP throws everything at them and not hold plays for later on the season.

MOAR MOALA BEAR!


:gobears:

tactiCAL;575903 said:

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The Bears...

http://espn.go.com/blog/pac12/post/_/id/26188/page/picks/pac-12-predictions-week-4



I hope Miller is right this time. I think our O will score on the mutts but their O looks scary on paper (Polk, Kearse, ASJ and an accurate but gimpy QB). Shoot out?

I hope CP throws everything at them and not hold plays for later on the season.

MOAR MOALA BEAR!


:gobears:

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we have to establish that they are a 1 dimensional team EARLY...if we can get two harsh blindside sacks on their qb...and continue our r.b. dominance (on defense) then I see it being a shootout, but one thing we have is a quarterback that's healthy that can move.

this is truly going to be a great game

We need to stuff their run and pressure their QB. The rest will take care of itself. Defense will win or lose this game.

so Miller thinks our O-line is better than Nebraska's? OK.

I think on paper, given UW's slightly gimpy QB and our better defense, we should win this game more times than not, but I'm not entirely convinced our road game woes are behind us. Still, I'm optimistic about our chances, and think that we'll win by more than a touchdown.

ManBear;575913 said:

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so Miller thinks our O-line is better than Nebraska's? OK.

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Hmm yeah I haven't been that impressed by our o-line yet.

I haven't been too impressed with Miller's picks yet....which gives me cause for concern.

The second Miller even begins to contemplate jumping onto the Cal bandwagon, things begin to crumble. I just assume he picks us to lose the rest of our games.

This quote tells me how much he's paying attention:

Cal QB Zach Maynard making his first start in a tough road venue is a concern

Not as much of a concern as a sports writer not even bothering to look up where Cal's three games have been played and that one of them was in Colorado. Road venues don't come much tougher than that, say what you will about CU's abilities as a team.

I don't care that he picked Cal, he's a blind monkey who doesn't have a clue about our program. If the Bears will it will be for reasons totally unrelated to Miller's lame analysis.

Didn't Cal technically play THREE games AWAY from home already?????!

I think Ted actually has a good pause on the conference and is almost always informed and objective. Calling him a blind monkey is a bit harsh. I do agree that Cal hasn't really had a single "home" game yet, so playing on the road isn't quite as big a concern as has been in years past.

I don't think Miller knows enough about Cal to make an educated pick - I doubt he has even seen a Cal game this year. I think if Cal's coaches game plan well (i.e. use Anderson more as UW's run defense looks vulnerable as long as the RB does not fall down on first contact) and the D plays a decent game then we have a good chance.

As noted above the O-line comment also shows Miller really knows nothing about our team. I love that he comments "Cal, don't make me wrong again" - he might be right more often if he actually watched some games and followed the team.

It'll be interesting to see what condition Price is in this weekend and how aggressive a defense we run based on that. If he's mobile, I imagine similar game play to Colorado and hope our secondary performs much better than they did in Colorado. If he's not mobile or if we can apply pressure, then I look forward to Pendergast's aggressive D and think we have the edge.

CMHBear;575938 said:

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I think Ted actually has a good pause on the conference and is almost always informed and objective. Calling him a blind monkey is a bit harsh. I do agree that Cal hasn't really had a single "home" game yet, so playing on the road isn't quite as big a concern as has been in years past.

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Given that Maynard has played in a hostile environment, and even in a hostile Pac 12 environment, and that Miller made Maynard's playing on the road his primary cause of concern in evalutating the game, it's a sign he's not paying attention.

I'll withhold the blind monkey assessment, though, as it relates to the rest of the Pac 12. He does seem informed about the other eleven teams. Maybe's he's so jaded with Cal football he can't bear to follow us, and I can't say I blame him.

calgldnbear;575936 said:

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Didn't Cal technically play THREE games AWAY from home already?????!

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Technically, we've played one neutral, one home and one away.

Holding back on plays during any P12 game from now on, unless we are winning comfortably, would be counterproductive.

For what it's worth, Miller stated that Maynard will be "making his first start in a tough road venue."

I'm pretty sure Miller is aware of the fact that we've played on the road this year. I think he was arguing that playing in Husky Stadium is the first time that Maynard would be playing in a tough road environment as a Bear.

Colorado can be tough, but it isn't nearly as hostile as Husky Stadium.

It might have been worded better, but I agree it's harsh to jump on Miller as not knowing anything about Cal.

I have to vehemently disagree. Home is in Strawberry Canyon. Going across the bay in a venue with fewer seats and nearly zero college football pageantry without the band marching to the stadium, frat houses going bonkers, and picnics/tailgates around a picturesque campus. The Bears have entered the Twilight Zone this year, and I look forward to a return to normalcy in Strawberry Canyon ASAP.

i don't know. miller wrote that udub is maynard's 1st road start in another one of his blog entries.

he's also butchered osu qb's name.



not only that, in his video blog, he congratulated tedford for his 70th victory.


miller is slacking....

Husky stadium is definitely a nice home field advantage for the Dawgs but just looking at last year's results shows you how much of an advantage Colorado's home field is for them. The Buffs were fairly terrible on the road but played like a top 25 team at home. I expect you'll see the same this year. So yes, Ted is wrong, Maynard has already played in a very difficult road atmosphere.

Precisely, Colorado's stadium doesn't have the right configuration to amplify noise like Husky Stadium. Least that's what some article stated last year.

bearwithfangs;575967 said:

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For what it's worth, Miller stated that Maynard will be "making his first start in a tough road venue."

I'm pretty sure Miller is aware of the fact that we've played on the road this year. I think he was arguing that playing in Husky Stadium is the first time that Maynard would be playing in a tough road environment as a Bear.

Colorado can be tough, but it isn't nearly as hostile as Husky Stadium.

It might have been worded better, but I agree it's harsh to jump on Miller as not knowing anything about Cal.

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A friend of mine was at Colo for the game and has been to Cal games at both UW and UO.

My friend said that the crowd at Colo this year was as loud as any games he attended at UW and UO.

To that if you add the altitude factor, I would conclude that Colo was a tough venue.

68great;575979 said:

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A friend of mine was at Colo for the game and has been to Cal games at both UW and UO.

My friend said that the crowd at Colo this year was as loud as any games he attended at UW and UO.

To that if you add the altitude factor, I would conclude that Colo was a tough venue.

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Yeah, from the looks of it Maynard, Allen and even CJA seem to not get rattled by enemy territory. In fact, CJA (by his own words) thrives on it. Love watching Allen putting his fingers to his lips to hush the audience after huge plays.

if a game is on the line, I don't think they ever hold anything back. They'd be stupid to hold anything back. They know we'll be rushing hard so we need to wach out for screen passes and draws.

68great;575979 said:

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A friend of mine was at Colo for the game and has been to Cal games at both UW and UO.

My friend said that the crowd at Colo this year was as loud as any games he attended at UW and UO.

To that if you add the altitude factor, I would conclude that Colo was a tough venue.

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Yep - I heard it was very loud at Colorado as well. The altitude is the real killer there though. You could definitely see Cal get winded in the second half. It bites that Cal gets no real home field advantage this year, but maybe this is the year we shake the road demons of the past.

we come out on top by 10 either holding them off or picking up a big play toward the end to make the difference. The road issue is the only issue in my opinion. Penalties and turnovers swinging the mo. We have more talent at every unit, including rb and ST. On a neutral field or home we win no question.

I think Miller's already wrong by saying we're the best OL that UW has faced.

dupdadee;575972 said:

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i don't know. miller wrote that udub is maynard's 1st road start in another one of his blog entries.

he's also butchered osu qb's name.



not only that, in his video blog, he congratulated tedford for his 70th victory.


miller is slacking....

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Miller needs his own TV show on the future PAC-12 Network. It would be half serious and half comedy. Call it the "The Miller Life" and set it up in some mock-up of the "Animal House" Frat House in Oregon.

Everyone in the PAC then could call/tweet him to blast or praise him on his picks or observations. It would rule.

Personally I like Miller. I think his stuff is often funny and almost always entertaining. With that said, if you read all of today's postings he clearly thinks Cal is playing its first road game. Whatever. I for one wouldn't blame him if he wrapped himself in a giant body condom before climbing into our band wagon. It's been a really scary place for as long as he's had the ESPN blog job.

BeachyBear;575944 said:

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Given that Maynard has played in a hostile environment, and even in a hostile Pac 12 environment, and that Miller made Maynard's playing on the road his primary cause of concern in evalutating the game, it's a sign he's not paying attention.

I'll withhold the blind monkey assessment, though, as it relates to the rest of the Pac 12. He does seem informed about the other eleven teams. Maybe's he's so jaded with Cal football he can't bear to follow us, and I can't say I blame him.

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He's been a big supporter of Cal in the past, so the assessments here are a big harsh. We have disappointed many pundits in the past, coming into the season with big expectations, then imploding down the stretch.

ducky23;575925 said:

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The second Miller even begins to contemplate jumping onto the Cal bandwagon, things begin to crumble. I just assume he picks us to lose the rest of our games.

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Yeah, this is not a good sign. I think we'll know fairly early on whether we're in the ballgame or this is another road flop.

Also, while I hate to say it, I would consider seeing Isi get the lion's share of the carries in the first quarter to be a leading indicator that we're playing too conservative. However, I don't think that'll happen. I get the sense that this year is different and that Tedford is going to make more game to game adjustments - look for CJA and Bigelow to get more combined carries than Isi on Saturday.

upsetof86;575999 said:

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we come out on top by 10 either holding them off or picking up a big play toward the end to make the difference. The road issue is the only issue in my opinion. Penalties and turnovers swinging the mo. We have more talent at every unit, including rb and ST. On a neutral field or home we win no question.

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no we don't. we have more depth at RB, but Polk is WAY better than anyone we have. As for ST, their kicker Folk is much better than Tavecchio.

Why all the hate for Ted Miller? If he picks us to succeed you say he's full of it. If he picks us to fail you'd probably say he's full of it.

Miller does a very good job. Yes, he has watched a Cal game this year.

dupdadee;575972 said:

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i don't know. miller wrote that udub is maynard's 1st road start in another one of his blog entries.

he's also butchered osu qb's name.



not only that, in his video blog, he congratulated tedford for his 70th victory.


miller is slacking....

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^This

MisterNoodle;576063 said:

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Why all the hate for Ted Miller? If he picks us to succeed you say he's full of it. If he picks us to fail you'd probably say he's full of it.

Miller does a very good job. Yes, he has watched a Cal game this year.

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I can't speak for everyone, but I think some of the clowning has to do with the fact that Miller jumped on our bandwagon early a few times and we always let him down. The fact that he's choosing us now has us bracing for more of the same and he has done a great job of reminding us what happens when he starts calling things our way. I hope this is the time that he got it right and that things are different and that we'll win, but as a Cal fan I fear for the stomach punch.

MisterNoodle;576063 said:

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Why all the hate for Ted Miller? If he picks us to succeed you say he's full of it. If he picks us to fail you'd probably say he's full of it.

Miller does a very good job. Yes, he has watched a Cal game this year.

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I don't care whether he is for us or against us. The reason we are on him is because he is not informed. He is not watching all of the games.

ARe you sure he has wached a Cal game this year? We know for a fact that he did not watch the Fresno State game. We know he didn't watch teh Presby game. Are you sure he watchedthe Colorado game? I'm not.

Even if he did watch the Colorado game, watching one of our three games, WHEN YOU ARE ESPN'S PAID PAC 12 BLOGGER, is not good enough.