Nice event tonight tonight at CMS to go through the class. Spent some time talking to Buh and Dykes, both of whom were great. Tony Franklin was very impressive as well.

Best line of the night came during the Q&A when it was observed that the complexity of the playbook kept Bigelow off the field for large chunks of last season despite what he was able to do to tOSU. Coach Dykes response was "If he can tell left from right he can play in my offense. And if he can't tell left from right we're going to put a big "L" and a big "R" on his shoes and put him on the field anyway." Was music to my ears.

Hahahaha so funny. Thanks for sharing!

Sebastabear;842076908 said:

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Nice event tonight tonight at CMS to go through the class. Spent some time talking to Buh and Dykes, both of whom were great. Tony Franklin was very impressive as well.

Best line of the night came during the Q&A when it was observed that the complexity of the playbook kept Bigelow off the field for large chunks of last season despite what he was able to do to tOSU. Coach Dykes response was "If he can tell left from right he can play in my offense. And if he can't tell left from right we're going to put a big "L" and a big "R" on his shoes and put him on the field anyway." Was music to my ears.

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Another good one was something like this, someone had said to Sonny reportedly, "I heard Bigelow had a hard time run-blocking, how are you going to deal with that?" ... Sonny thought for a quick second and said back something like, "Simple, maybe we'll tell him not to block anybody."

I enjoyed the event tonight and you captured some of Sonny's quick wit. The program did it up tonight with the straw hat band forming a tunnel for folks entering and they had the pom pom or what ever they are called these days with Oski.

Coaches stressed the simplicity of their system and the speed they run plays at. Focus on putting the best players on the field regardless of age/class. Look for freshmen to play. Recruited full offense five linemen, QB, RB and 4 wide outs/ TE. Light on DB

omg ... a coach with a great sense of humor ... and understanding.
How often did he say "no doubt about it"? (no need to answer, rhetorical question)

a team of coaches, working together, having fun, teaching a simple system.
The team should respond and enjoy the hard work.

BearlyClad;842076916 said:

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Another good one was something like this, someone had said to Sonny reportedly, "I heard Bigelow had a hard time run-blocking, how are you going to deal with that?" ... Sonny thought for a quick second and said back something like, "Simple, maybe we'll tell him not to block anybody."

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Also enjoyed his response to a question about our 2012 no-huddle offense lining up and then getting a delay of game penalty anyways while everyone is staring at the sideline for 20 seconds.

"I don't know in 3 years if we ever got called for delay of game. We had our share of penalties, but delay of game?"

Nice that he had Buh introduce the D and Franklin introduce the O. Just listening to each one of them one could feel the energy and enthusiasm - and get an idea of why they were recruited (For instance, one comment Franklin made about Whitehurst as we saw him do a shake move at the LOS before getting behind the defender..."if you see a 6-6 guy who can make that move that quickly, you go and get him").

And finally - was really nice to have Dykes finish off the evening stress how open his practices are - reiterating we start Feb 25th and go through Mar 23rd - and "we'll see you all on February 25th!"

Hopefully I will see some of you there - and naysayers who can't wait a couple of years to see how this staff and class pan out and seem more concerned about being seen with "fat chicks instead of cheerleaders" determined to withhold coffee from this staff until we hire guys who can recruit - please stay home.

SonOfCalVa;842076960 said:

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omg ... a coach with a great sense of humor ... and understanding.
How often did he say "no doubt about it"? (no need to answer, rhetorical question)

a team of coaches, working together, having fun, teaching a simple system.
The team should respond and enjoy the hard work.

---

On last night's "Chronicle Live," a very entertaining, interview-laden, eclectic sports' program on Comcast Sports Net Bay Area (Ch. 419 on DISH), and after his interview with Coach Sonny Dykes, host Jim Kozimor stated something to the effect, "I really like that guy. I'm going to have him on more at Chronicle Live."

:cheer:cheer:cheer

Hail2Calif;842077005 said:

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Also enjoyed his response to a question about our 2012 no-huddle offense lining up and then getting a delay of game penalty anyways while everyone is staring at the sideline for 20 seconds.

"I don't know in 3 years if we ever got called for delay of game. We had our share of penalties, but delay of game?"

Nice that he had Buh introduce the D and Franklin introduce the O. Just listening to each one of them one could feel the energy and enthusiasm - and get an idea of why they were recruited (For instance, one comment Franklin made about Whitehurst as we saw him do a shake move at the LOS before getting behind the defender..."if you see a 6-6 guy who can make that move that quickly, you go and get him").

And finally - was really nice to have Dykes finish off the evening stress how open his practices are - reiterating we start Feb 25th and go through Mar 23rd - and "we'll see you all on February 25th!"

Hopefully I will see some of you there - and naysayers who can't wait a couple of years to see how this staff and class pan out and seem more concerned about being seen with "fat chicks instead of cheerleaders" determined to withhold coffee from this staff until we hire guys who can recruit - please stay home.

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+1 ... thanks for sharing :cheer
It's going to be interesting to hear how Tommerdahl does with the inside receivers (formerly TEs) including, finally, Rodgers <and how Tommerdahl does with Special Teams>.
So, Dykes called out Austin and Franklin called out Whitehurst ... and Whitehurst came from a new relationship with CCSF.
And, of course, hearing about how Yenser does teaching the OL in the BearRaid.

Looking forward to yours and others reports on the process and progress of the team.
I agree, the "cynics" and "skeptics" should stay home and be quiet. Guys who talk about supporting Cal yet always have a BUT are all butts.

Sebastabear;842076908 said:

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Nice event tonight tonight at CMS to go through the class. Spent some time talking to Buh and Dykes, both of whom were great. Tony Franklin was very impressive as well.

Best line of the night came during the Q&A when it was observed that the complexity of the playbook kept Bigelow off the field for large chunks of last season despite what he was able to do to tOSU. Coach Dykes response was "If he can tell left from right he can play in my offense. And if he can't tell left from right we're going to put a big "L" and a big "R" on his shoes and put him on the field anyway." Was music to my ears.

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He also had some good comments on the system for awarding stars. While not dissing it entirely, he said that stars are often awarded for reasons that do not really reflect a players ability to perform on the field such as how many camps the player attended and whether the player played on a team in a large league. For example he reported several WR's recruited by Boise State have often not been given as many stars as they deserved despite the fact that they were big strong and fast and had good hands but they would regularly receive fewer stars than they deserved. He said his recruit Jack Austin was one of those.

Signing Day events not my favorite. But this presentation was refreshing, energetic, informative, insightful, with aforementioned sense of humor. Field Club was a good venue for this type of presentation. Video clips of signees were visible and easy to follow.

Personally, I would plow through a wall for Coach Buh! Coach Franklin left no doubt in my mind what our offense will look like--quick, quick, quick.

How nice to look forward to spring practice.

Mama Bear;842077085 said:

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Signing Day events not my favorite. But this presentation was refreshing, energetic, informative, insightful, with aforementioned sense of humor. Field Club was a good venue for this type of presentation. Video clips of signees were visible and easy to follow.

Personally, I would plow through a wall for Coach Buh! Coach Franklin left no doubt in my mind what our offense will look like--quick, quick, quick.

How nice to look forward to spring practice.

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+1 ... great ... wish there was a video. (Is there? link?)

68great;842077062 said:

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He also had some good comments on the system for awarding stars. While not dissing it entirely, he said that stars are often awarded for reasons that do not really reflect a players ability to perform on the field such as how many camps the player attended and whether the player played on a team in a large league. For example he reported several WR's recruited by Boise State have often not been given as many stars as they deserved despite the fact that they were big strong and fast and had good hands but they would regularly receive fewer stars than they deserved. He said his recruit Jack Austin was one of those.

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I thought that was an interesting observation, although I'd heard pieces of it before I don't think I'd had someone put it all together in quite that way.

Only black (or maybe grey) cloud was that we came in light on the DB's in the class. Even there I thought Sonny and the Staff handled that issue very well. Basically Sonny said we missed on a few recruits late and we'll make this a very high priority for 2014. No previcating or pretending up is down. Just a straightforward answer to a question. In speaking with Buh, he clearly felt that LJ Moore was coming our way until the very, very end, but c'est la vie. You take the kids who want to be here.

The story about Bigelow not blocking is refreshing because clearly Sonny could care less if he is preparing his players for the NFL. He's preparing his players for the playing field at CMS and that is all he is hired to do. I'm sure the extra playing time and bigger stats will more than compensate for the lack of blocking skills when it is time for Bigelow to go pro.

This is a GREAT thread. Thank you so much for posting.

Being able to block isn't something to do with preparing for the NFL. That has to do with being able to execute the assignments required of the position.

Dykes is again expressing that he intends to flex the roles that his offense to get players out there doing things they are able to do. Even with that, I would expect that the guys will have to be able to do some fundamental level of execution on a consistent basis to get on the field.

Tedford's offense wasn't designed to train guys for the NFL. Apparently it was too complex for Bigelow, even though it hadn't been for a dozen other backs in recent years.

I think the fact that we put a lot of guys into the NFL speaks to our previous staffs' ability to identify talent and having them in a system that overall prepared them well for that next level of competition where they could go to an NFL camp and pick things up quickly enough to not get cut.

heartofthebear;842077130 said:

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The story about Bigelow not blocking is refreshing because clearly Sonny could care less if he is preparing his players for the NFL. He's preparing his players for the playing field at CMS and that is all he is hired to do. I'm sure the extra playing time and bigger stats will more than compensate for the lack of blocking skills when it is time for Bigelow to go pro.

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And that is something I mentioned some time back after the hire, but in relation to the QB position.

How, if at all, might this impact recruiting if kids and their parents feel (right or wrong, true or not), that Cal football student athletes will not be ideally groomed for the next level?

Honestly, if I were a parent of such a gifted child, let's say a RB (to keep consistent with the current discussion) , one who had all the earmarks of NFL potential (think 4 & 5 star material), I'd want him to go to a school that would best prepare him for that game. For a RB, that would include not just running, but blocking (run and pass pro) and catching...

As I have said before, in reference to Oregon, school is there to best prepare all of us for our chosen vocation. Now that Chip is in the NFL, if that style of ball can succeed (I have my doubts, but I'm really curious, as most here I'm sure), then great...

Please, I'm as excited as any here about SD, this staff and the future of Cal football. I too would ultimately like to see it not just succeed at Cal, in a major, diverse conference against great competition, but in the NFL someday.

Until then, I wonder how this might impact recruiting at Cal. I find this to be a fair, objective question. I had posed this some time ago in another thread, but I believe it never received a response. If it merits it's own thread, so be it...

FrankBear21;842076912 said:

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Hahahaha so funny. Thanks for sharing!

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I don't find this at all funny. What he did was to publicly humiliate one of his players in front of coaches, staff, and hundreds of fans.

68great;842077062 said:

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He also had some good comments on the system for awarding stars.

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He commented that while at another university, one rating service told him that he could pick two of his recruits and they would receive 4-star ratings.

calbearo;842077146 said:

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Being able to block isn't something to do with preparing for the NFL. That has to do with being able to execute the assignments required of the position.

Dykes is again expressing that he intends to flex the roles that his offense to get players out there doing things they are able to do. Even with that, I would expect that the guys will have to be able to do some fundamental level of execution on a consistent basis to get on the field.

Tedford's offense wasn't designed to train guys for the NFL. Apparently it was too complex for Bigelow, even though it hadn't been for a dozen other backs in recent years.

I think the fact that we put a lot of guys into the NFL speaks to our previous staffs' ability to identify talent and having them in a system that overall prepared them well for that next level of competition where they could go to an NFL camp and pick things up quickly enough to not get cut.

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I was always pleased that so many Cal players made it in the NFL. But at the same time I was always troubled by the fact that, despite such players, we did not see corresponding success on the field (in terms of wins).

My favorite comment from last night.
Coach Buh to linebacker commit: "Tell me something good about you I can tell the folks at the recruiting dinner."
Player (Edward Tandy) : "Well, I knocked out six guys........"

Cal Geek;842077266 said:

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My favorite comment from last night.
Coach Buh to linebacker commit: "Tell me something good about you I can tell the folks at the recruiting dinner."
Player (Edward Tandy) : "Well, I knocked out six guys........"

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I am very glad that Mr. Tandy has brought his talents to Berkeley.

BAMSPhD;842077186 said:

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I don't find this at all funny. What he did was to publicly humiliate one of his players in front of coaches, staff, and hundreds of fans.

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Maybe you had to be there, but in now way, shape or form was this a slam at Bigelow. Dykes was rather trying to make a point about the simplicity of his offense.

Cal89;842077154 said:

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And that is something I mentioned some time back after the hire, but in relation to the QB position.

How, if at all, might this impact recruiting if kids and their parents feel (right or wrong, true or not), that Cal football student athletes will not be ideally groomed for the next level?

Honestly, if I were a parent of such a gifted child, let's say a RB (to keep consistent with the current discussion) , one who had all the earmarks of NFL potential (think 4 & 5 star material), I'd want him to go to a school that would best prepare him for that game. For a RB, that would include not just running, but blocking (run and pass pro) and catching...

As I have said before, in reference to Oregon, school is there to best prepare all of us for our chosen vocation. Now that Chip is in the NFL, if that style of ball can succeed (I have my doubts, but I'm really curious, as most here I'm sure), then great...

Please, I'm as excited as any here about SD, this staff and the future of Cal football. I too would ultimately like to see it not just succeed at Cal, in a major, diverse conference against great competition, but in the NFL someday.

Until then, I wonder how this might impact recruiting at Cal. I find this to be a fair, objective question. I had posed this some time ago in another thread, but I believe it never received a response. If it merits it's own thread, so be it...

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I think that Dykes scheme will be attractive to parents of kids that want to get to "the next level" because he will actually get them playing time as freshmen and sophmore and will not put them on the bench because they are not perfect blockers. It is hard for NFL scouts to scout a player that isn't on the field. IMHO, NFL scouts look for talent and figure they can develop and coach kids with the appropriate blocking schemes.

We shall see, but, if Dykes puts a winning product on the field, I'm sure Cal will continue to put their fare share of players in the pros.

There are plenty of schools that are able to land great recruits without having a great history as an NFL pipeline.

BAMSPhD;842077186 said:

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I don't find this at all funny. What he did was to publicly humiliate one of his players in front of coaches, staff, and hundreds of fans.

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Humiliate? gawd ... don't check a mirror.
His point, a simple point, is that Sonny plans to get Bigelow on the field, playing.

Mastering an absurd playbook or blocking is NOT a requirement of the RB position.

humilate ... get real.

[We shall see, but, if Dykes puts a winning product on the field, I'm sure Cal will continue to put their fare share of players in the pros.

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That. besides, What would we rather be able to say ? We won the Rose Bowl. Or I'm pulling for Atlanta cuz they have Cal players?

I'm still expecting that the bulk of players starting and getting most PT will be upperclassmen. Where this shouldn't be the case would: significant gaps in recruiting, significant injuries or players not panning out at a position, changes in scheme that don't suit current personnel, a remarkably talented underclassman.

Generally, though the upperclassmen are more skilled, more mature and more physically developed than the underclassmen.

There are a lot of posts here about the favoritism for upperclassmen from the previous staff as if that is something unique to our program under Tedford. That is the norm for college football. While I like the idea of Dykes giving good looks to younger guys and his honesty at the presser that sometimes the guys you think will play early aren't the ones who can do it, I don't expect a mad rush of underclassmen playing.

On offense, the simplified offense might give some guys a chance. Moreso the fact that we run a billion plays and play spread might give them more touches because there will be more plays, but Tedford generally found ways to get all of the best young guys on the field. Dykes indicates he doesn't expect it from the linemen because of the skill and physical development required, but will we see young WRs and RBs play - yes. We saw that under Tedford as well.

didnt play younger QBs.... had hinder or bohem started or played JT might still have his job

Cal Geek;842077266 said:

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My favorite comment from last night.
Coach Buh to linebacker commit: "Tell me something good about you I can tell the folks at the recruiting dinner."
Player (Edward Tandy) : "Well, I knocked out six guys........"

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Yes! That one brought quite a roll of laughter throughout the attendees!

:gobears:

I find it offensive that those who point out some real warning signs about the direction of the program are told to stay away, presumably because we're not real fans. Nice.

tequila4kapp;842077601 said:

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I find it offensive that those who point out some real warning signs about the direction of the program are told to stay away, presumably because we're not real fans. Nice.

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Maybe I missed something, but what does this have to do with CMS Event on Wednesday?

Cal89;842077154 said:

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And that is something I mentioned some time back after the hire, but in relation to the QB position.

How, if at all, might this impact recruiting if kids and their parents feel (right or wrong, true or not), that Cal football student athletes will not be ideally groomed for the next level?

Honestly, if I were a parent of such a gifted child, let's say a RB (to keep consistent with the current discussion) , one who had all the earmarks of NFL potential (think 4 & 5 star material), I'd want him to go to a school that would best prepare him for that game. For a RB, that would include not just running, but blocking (run and pass pro) and catching...

As I have said before, in reference to Oregon, school is there to best prepare all of us for our chosen vocation. Now that Chip is in the NFL, if that style of ball can succeed (I have my doubts, but I'm really curious, as most here I'm sure), then great...

Please, I'm as excited as any here about SD, this staff and the future of Cal football. I too would ultimately like to see it not just succeed at Cal, in a major, diverse conference against great competition, but in the NFL someday.

Until then, I wonder how this might impact recruiting at Cal. I find this to be a fair, objective question. I had posed this some time ago in another thread, but I believe it never received a response. If it merits it's own thread, so be it...

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I think in the case of Bigelow, if he is breaking off 80 yard TD runs against top-5 teams like tOSU or turning short passes into long gains like against Stanford in 2013, some NFL team is going to look past his supposed inability to block.

Considering championship contending teams in the NFL (49ers and Patriots to name 2) are implementing parts of the zone read and hurry up concepts - I doubt these "fancy pants" schemes (as Ted Miller might say) will be just a passing fad - and I believe if we are winning, we will always be able to recruit enough good athletes that we will be well represented in the NFL.

One other interesting point that the coaches mentioned at the event was that the offensive coaches had ranked their O-line candidates one through seven. Coach said (I can't remember which one. Franklin?) that they got their top 5 O-line recruits. That seemed odd to me because I can't believe Hunt wasn't in the top 5 in our O-line targets, but the point I think was that they really, really liked the recruits they got here. Fingers crossed. This was a huge area of need for us, but I really like what who we've been able to land in the area in the last two classes. I'm a firm believer that the offense is all about the O-line - you have a great line and good things will happen.

Hail2Calif;842077688 said:

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I think in the case of Bigelow, if he is breaking off 80 yard TD runs against top-5 teams like tOSU or turning short passes into long gains like against Stanford in 2013, some NFL team is going to look past his supposed inability to block.

Considering championship contending teams in the NFL (49ers and Patriots to name 2) are implementing parts of the zone read and hurry up concepts - I doubt these "fancy pants" schemes (as Ted Miller might say) will be just a passing fad - and I believe if we are winning, we will always be able to recruit enough good athletes that we will be well represented in the NFL.

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H2C, and others who responded, thank you for the thoughtful replies.

I am really anxious to see our offense. I sense that it can lend itself better to the next level than the Houdini stuff Oregon runs...

Hail2Calif;842077688 said:

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I think in the case of Bigelow, if he is breaking off 80 yard TD runs against top-5 teams like tOSU or turning short passes into long gains like against Stanford in 2013, some NFL team is going to look past his supposed inability to block.

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The interesting thing, if you read through it here, is that our previous coach did not look past such things. He was so wedded to a RB concept that he limited the type and experience of a RB who could appear on the field for him. He wouldn't look past it, but NFL teams would?? Hmmm.

All I know, is personally when I saw what he did at tOSU and then rarely saw the field thereafter in a 3-9, it was part of the "last straw" with JT for me. Not too smart on this one. Arbitrary.

put a big "L" and a big "R" on his shoes and put him on the field anyway." Was music to my ears.

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