DrDanger;842259553 said:

---

You misunderstood my point.
We need kids who value getting the degree while aspiring to play in the NFL.

---

Is there such an athlete anymore? I think it's showing more and more - particularly on this team - that it's better to get out any way you can than to stay and get this great degree.

DrDanger;842259553 said:

---

You misunderstood my point.
We need kids who value getting the degree while aspiring to play in the NFL.

---

You might want to get that memo to Sonny since he is currently trying to poach a UA commit with a reported 2.8 GPA.

kjl80;842259425 said:

---

I'm not entirely sure what you're asking, but I count 14 that have left in some shape or form (transferred, retired, dismissed, declared for draft) since Dykes took over. You can't blame Dykes for all of them but shoot, it's a pretty depressing list:

Allan Bridgford, QB (prior to start of the 2013 season, transferring to Southern Miss)
Khairi Fortt, LB (declared for draft)
Jonah Hodges, RB (transferring, destination TBD)
Kameron Jackson, CB (declared for draft)
Gabe King, DT (Midseason retirement for academic reasons)
Alex Logan, S (Midseason retirement for medical reasons)
Chris McCain, LB/DE (dismissed from the team)
Vili Moala, DT (declaring for draft)
Johnny Ragin, LB (transferring to Oregon)
Richard Rodgers, WR/TE (declared for draft, signed with agent)
Freddie Tagaloa, OL (transferring to Arizona)
Chad Whitener, LB (transferring to Oklahoma State)
Dave Wilkerson, LB (prior to start of the 2013 season, transferring to Arizona)
Zach Kline, QB (transferring to Oregon State)

Not sure if I missed anyone. I didn't include Bigelow since I haven't heard anything definitive on him leaving...

---

I'm curious as to whether this has happened before? To any team. If Bigelow goes, and 1-2 more, that's 3 short of 20. We're a few shy of an ESPN story.

philly1121;842259595 said:

---

I'm curious as to whether this has happened before? To any team. If Bigelow goes, and 1-2 more, that's 3 short of 20. We're a few shy of an ESPN story.

---

(If Bigelow goes,and 1-2 more, that's 3 short of 20)

Why not just write if Bigelow goes and 5 more go that's 20 players. That's a weirdly constructed thought.

Can the last Player to leave please

The Dykes train wreck keeps rollin.

Darby;842259594 said:

---

You might want to get that memo to Sonny since he is currently trying to poach a UA commit with a reported 2.8 GPA.

---

Sonny knows the new ground rules, as he was hired under them.
It remains to be seen if he can do it at Cal and provide a winning product, but the APR is trending the right way. There are academic exceptions every year, and some kids (the Russell Whites for example) do succeed here when evidence suggest they might not. The problem is, we took an overload of the kind of kids who would struggle at Cal the last 4-5 years, and we know where that got the program...

I mentioned on the board a few weeks back that a parent told me that there would be quite a few more departures. With that said, I am not surprised. Moala's size alone is a big plus. Players with ideal 3-4 nose tackle size are not easy to find.

StillNoStanfurdium;842259596 said:

---

(If Bigelow goes,and 1-2 more, that's 3 short of 20)

Why not just write if Bigelow goes and 5 more go that's 20 players. That's a weirdly constructed thought.

---

I am so sorry for my weirdly constructed thought. I think I am what I am trying to write, based on my poor ability at proper prose, is that this seems unprecedented. :cheer

CalGrad95;842259598 said:

---

Can the last Player to leave please

---

Hilarious.

:gobears:

Schroeder71;842259345 said:

---

Why wouldn't he wait to see who the new defensive coordinator is and his new position coach (DTs)?

---

Maybe it's an indication of what he thinks of Dykes.

might as well continue to speculate...

How about it's an indication of what he thinks of books.

At least we will be closer to the greatest nfl pipeline in the world if these guys make it. Two years from now, they'd be gone anyway, and no one will remember that they left on strange terms. Maybe they'll rep cal, too. Go bears. NFLU

bearsandgiants;842259649 said:

---

At least we will be closer to the greatest nfl pipeline in the world if these guys make it. Two years from now, they'd be gone anyway, and no one will remember that they left on strange terms. Maybe they'll rep cal, too. Go bears. NFLU

---

Cal seems to be the NFL minor league that a lot of posters covet

My Lasting memory of Moala was during the Nevada game at Cal 2012. Nevada had the ball on the 3yd line; I was sitting in the Blue zone with a perfect view to see Moala getting blasted from his DL spot and the Nevada running back running right over the spot he was supposed to be for an easy TD run. And he wasn't double teamed. He got blasted 5 yds into the endzone. I felt sorry for the guy; he looked really bad.

I was thinking this guy was a 5 star DL recruit? WTF?

Maybe Moala is entering the draft because he won't be starting next year...

HungryCalBear;842259566 said:

---

Good post. I've never seen so many wanting to transfer, or committing to the draft even when knowing their chances are very limited.

I think of two possible reasons: (1) no confidence in the coaching staff as you said, or (2) Dykes booting them out, as he suggested after the Furd game. something about "go on and transfer, so we can recruit athletes who really want to play."

The problem is there're a lot of athletes who really want to play but don't want to come to Cal.

Is Dykes still assembling his top 3 recruiting class?

---

Guys, no reason to stress over the recruiting class.. he will deliver a top 3 class ... in the UC system! 1) UCLA, 2) UC Davis, 3) our Bears. I think he just mis-spoke when he referenced the Pac 12. :gobears:

CalGrad95;842259598 said:

---

Can the last Player to leave please

---

So. Is the other cat saying, "yo, turn out the lights so i can lick my balls in private"???

biely medved;842259697 said:

---

So. Is the other cat saying, "yo, turn out the lights so i can lick my balls in private"???

---

lol... i didn't notice that part... very funny :rollinglaugh:

SacBear87;842259665 said:

---

My Lasting memory of Moala was during the Nevada game at Cal 2012. Nevada had the ball on the 3yd line; I was sitting in the Blue zone with a perfect view to see Moala getting blasted from his DL spot and the Nevada running back running right over the spot he was supposed to be for an easy TD run. And he wasn't double teamed. He got blasted 5 yds into the endzone. I felt sorry for the guy; he looked really bad.

I was thinking this guy was a 5 star DL recruit? WTF?

Maybe Moala is entering the draft because he won't be starting next year...

---

He really did play poorly for three years. Most of the posters here just can't let that "5 star" bullsh1t go..

:axe

BeachyBear;842259429 said:

---

I thought it was illegal to smoke crack in the NFL. I've never seen anything like this. We should name the 2013 Cal defense the "Peter Principle Defense" - suck at your job, get promoted. I'm waiting for some NFL team to come after Buh.

SMH...

---

Wait, isn't the Peter Principle to be *good* at your job and get promoted until you reach a job level you suck at (and then stay there and no longer get promoted)? In that universe we would be stuck with Buh for a lifetime contract.

I agree this seems like Bizarro world with so many guys entering the draft from such a bad team. Is it all really about draft grades? Did they get better draft grades than Brett Hundley who is returning to UCLA (I think)?

I do have a question: are all these guys getting agents? Is there a chance players like Moala, Lowe, Bigelow will test the waters but try to leave an option to return to Cal to play next year? What are the rules on that exactly?

OneKeg;842259747 said:

---

Wait, isn't the Peter Principle to be *good* at your job and get promoted until you reach a job level you suck at (and then stay there and no longer get promoted)? In that universe we would be stuck with Buh for a lifetime contract.

I agree this seems like Bizarro world with so many guys entering the draft from such a bad team. Is it all really about draft grades? Did they get better draft grades than Brett Hundley who is returning to UCLA (I think)?

I do have a question: are all these guys getting agents? Is there a chance players like Moala, Lowe, Bigelow will test the waters but try to leave an option to return to Cal to play next year? What are the rules on that exactly?

---

There's a point of no return where they give up their college eligibility forever. I think it was 3 days before the draft.

OneKeg;842259747 said:

---

I do have a question: are all these guys getting agents? Is there a chance players like Moala, Lowe, Bigelow will test the waters but try to leave an option to return to Cal to play next year? What are the rules on that exactly?

---

For some reason, once a player declares for the NFL Draft they cannot return. NBA is slightly different, and the deadline is closer to the actual draft day.

The NFL essentially requires a player to renounce their eligibility by the deadline to be included in the draft. I have no idea on the legality and what exactly 'renouncing' does in the eyes of the NCAA, but it seems to be something on the NFL side so that they don't draft players that will go back to school. A player really isn't a pro IMO until he accepts money, so it seems the NCAA is playing by the NFL's rules to appease the NFL and prevent the NFL from starting to poach younger players.

Dykes' DC, D-line and DB hires better be spectacular with the freakin attrition we are seeing for what was the probable two-deep for the 2014 season. You can say what you want regarding not being negative, but no 1-11 team has had this many players declare for the NFL draft, transfer, quit, get dismissed or retire for medical reasons. I have never seen anything like this. Looks like youth and inexperience could again become an issue for Cal. Cal has had at least 14 players who are no longer part of the program and we could see more. How many scholies are we going to have for this recruiting class which is 27 days away?

gobears725;842259562 said:

---

u know whats bad. we dont have enough linebackers to play a 3-4 or enough DT's to play a 4-3

---

Do we have enough DBs to field 11 on D?

Jesus

This one does not surprise me at all, all things considered.
It comes back to the fact that Cal has to attract student athletes who want to get their degree from Cal, as opposed to those kids who are only here to get to the league.

---

I would love to see the number of recruits who want a Cal degree over the NFL...Does the degree even matter anymore?? We seem to think so..but I truly doubt it.

KoreAmBear;842259772 said:

---

Do we have enough DBs to field 11 on D?

---

CB:
Cheeks
Allensworth
McClure
Willis
Dozier
Walker
Lapite
Lee
SAF:
Drew
?Lowe? (So far have not heard he's leaving)
Farmer
Tartabull
Atoe
?gibson? (Does he stay at safety)
Sebastian

We're a football factory, people. Deal with it.

72CalBear;842259793 said:

---

This one does not surprise me at all, all things considered.
It comes back to the fact that Cal has to attract student athletes who want to get their degree from Cal, as opposed to those kids who are only here to get to the league.

---

I would love to see the number of recruits who want a Cal degree over the NFL...Does the degree even matter anymore?? We seem to think so..but I truly doubt it.

---

+1

And frankly, Moala has been overall a relative disappointment to me his entire time here. A 5* with all kinds of issues not related to injury. Fitness, grades, and technique I've heard as well. I mean now he wants to go to the NFL, I mean, ok, and we so sad why? Answer: because he is what we always feared he was, not very mature as an individual.

Just for nothin'...Moala's play has been interesting to me. You can see his strength when he just bull rushes straight ahead. His difficulties lie in two areas: withstanding blocks from the side and hand/arm techniques. With regards to hand/arm techniques he is not unique for a Cal DL. I have always thought that Cal DLs are weak in this area and I suspect the guys we get to coach the DL are just not that great at teaching hand play. If he's lucky he'll work with a coach or with teammates in the NFL that can improve this. As for withstanding side blows I think this is very interesting. I don't know whether this is physiology (ie. being big and strong but not having what I call ballast) or whether it is gamesmanship (ie. seeing/feeling blocks coming from different angles and reacting a split second before impact so as to brace and hold your position). Mebane was not as big or as strong (by weightlifting standards) as Moala but the guy was unmovable. Moala gets bounced around easily on the DL by side blocks and I don't know that he can improve on this (ie. if it is a physiology issue). If he can't he has ZERO chance in the NFL.
My three cents on Moala. I'm sure he and you guys appreciate it.

This is bizarre.

If we restrict our recruiting pool to candidates who value a Cal degree over preparation for the NFL we had better expect a lot of 1-11 seasons. I would guess that the vast majority of players with the ability to start in the PAC12 would, given the choice, pick the NFL over a Cal degree.

Do all those Stanford seniors not value the NFL? That's where many of them will end up.

SRBear;842259870 said:

---

Do all those Stanford seniors not value the NFL? That's where many of them will end up.

---

Wow. Get this junk out of here. It's one thing to trash our players but it's another to give furd a HJ in the process.