Bear Insider Podcast: Former Cal Wide Receiver Geoff McArthur

Legendary Cal receiver Geoff McArthur (2000-2004) celebrated his induction into the Cal Hall of Fame two weeks ago, joining a class of 10 former Cal athletes, coaches and broadcasters that made significant impacts in their years on campus in Berkeley.

Bear Insider had the opportunity to talk at length with McArthur about his thoughts on the honor, his time at Cal and more.

"I still can't believe that it all happened," said McArthur. "It's probably one of the best accolades that I've ever received in my life so I'm Just basically iiving the dream right now.

McArthur got his start in tackle football prior to high school -a transition that helped him with the more physical nature of prep football, not to mention the next level.

"I grew up playing football and basketball on the streets every day," said McArthur. "I liked basketball a little more at first but my big brother was a big influence on my wanting to play football. I wanted to be just like him. He was playing football so I just wanted to follow in his steps.

"The first year I played contact football was 8th grade. It was a rough year for me. It was the first time you were allowed to hit people and people could hit you, so that was something I had to adjust to. But once I got used to that part, I started to do really well.

"That 8th grade year, I played for the LA Sherriff Cardinals in Watts, which is where I grew up. So I was bussed out to Palisades.

"It was a great experience. It was definitely something that sparked my interest and made me want to continue playing."

McArthur went on to a stellar career at Palisades High School, earning Prepstar All-American honors while leading the nation with 1,779 receiving yards on 91 catches (19.5 ypc), which ranked fourth nationally as a senior along with 28 touchdown receptions. He also played free safety on defense, compiling 80 tackles and 3 interceptions as a senior, as well.

"I did it all for my high school team but we really just had a great group of coaches around me and we had great players, so no team could focus solely on me. That allowed me to flourish," said McArthur. "We were the first ones really doing the spread in 1999. There weren't a lot of teams using four wides. We had some shovel passes in there and kind of some game-changers as far as concepts go."

Though McArthur enjoyed success on both sides of the ball, the ability to impact a game with the ball in his hands led to the future Bear favoring playing on offense. Despite his preference, McArthur almost ended on D anyway.

"I actually committed to Oregon State to play safety originally," said McArthur. "Defense was something that came naturally. I guess those days growing up playing in Watts, where you could hit people without pads taught me toughness. But offense was a lot of fun.

"I'd received a letter from Cal that they were going to discontinue the recruiting process and I was bummed about it. I didn't know much about Cal but I knew that I liked that logo. Something about it made me feel like I was representing the entire state.

"One of my coaches -Steve Clarkson, who's a very influental man. They call him the Quarterback Guru. He said, 'Do you really want to go there?' So he called up Cal and they immediately sent a coach to check me out down at Palisades. From there, the rest was history.

"I didn't know much about college football and the recruiting process. There was a time that I was committing to everybody because my mom told me, if someone offers you something, you don't want to turn it down. Oregon State said, 'Are you coming? Are you committed? I didn't even know what that meant, so I said, 'Yeah, I'm committed.'

"With Cal, it was the same thing. They said, 'Are you committed?' I said, 'Yeah, I'm committed.' But Cal was the only program smart enough to tell me I didn't need to take any more of my trips then. I had a trip set to Oregon that next weekend and that bothered them a little bit (that he didn't come), but I was thankful to get that process over with."

His defensive experience bred a toughness in the future Cal Hall of Famer that served him well on offense. McArthur's competitive fire is a trait allowed him to stand out as a Bear throughout his stellar career at Cal.

"No doubt," said McArthur. "I was one of the tougher receivers. That's something that people would remember about me."

As a freshman at Cal under then head coach Tom Holmoe, the Bears seemed on the cusp of turning things around, with several close losses leading to the illusion that success was right around the corner in 2001.

That was not to be, as the Bears struggled to one of the worst seasons in the program's history, going winless in the Pac-10 and 1-10 overall.

"It was tough," said McArthur of his sophomore season. "I'm a very optimistic guy, so for me personally, I always felt like if we do things the right way and put our effort in, we can conquer anything. If someone can show me something, I'll believe. We worked so hard, we all thought we deserved to be successful."

2002 brought a sea change to the fortunes of Cal football, as then Athletic Director Steve Gladstone took a chance on an innovative young offensive coordinator from Oregon, Jeff Tedford.

Under Tedford, the transformation of the beleagured Cal program was immediate.

Facing another struggling program against Baylor in their season opener, the Bears served notice that things had changed in Berkeley in a big way, dominating their fellow Bears to the stunning tune of 70-22.

"That moment in my life -it was life-changing," said McArthur, who earned 2nd team All-American honors with 85 catches. "It changed the way I think about things. It defintely shaped who I am today. So being a part of that turnaround was special for me because it proves if you do the right things and commit yourself to something, you can accomplish it.

"We did it with the same guys that were 1-10. They were the same guys that were 7-5. But Coach Tedford benefitted from having guys that had been through so much that they were willing to do anything he said. So that fresh start was needed. And we all benefitted because we all believed and we worked out butt off."

The progress continued the next season when the Bears had a program-changing victory, defeating #3 USC 34-31 in triple overtime -the last time Cal defeated the Trojans heading into tonight's game at the LA Coliseum -a streak the program and fans are more than ready to end.

"It was huge for the program and huge for our confidence," said Tedford. "We all knew that they got better recruits than we did. I think our team really thrived on being the underdog. We had been gaining confidence week in and week out and I don't think USC was ready for us to do what we were doing."

2004 saw the program rise to new heights, going 10-2 on the season.

"It was great," said McArthur. "It was something that Coach Tedford knew was going to happen. I remember going into his office before the season started and said, 'I have this injury and I might have to miss some games.' He said, 'You're not missing any games. We're going to the Rose Bowl.' He knew what was going on.

"That year was special. Not all of us survived five years in the program but a lot of us were still there and we didn't want to go backwards.

"The leadership was the key. We had probably the best turnout at our summer conditioning we ever had and the fans were behind us. That was a really good time as a Bear."

To hear more from McArthur about his time as a Bear, his bonds with his former teammates, his induction into the Cal Hall of Fame and his thoughts on the current program and more, tune into the full interview on the Bear Insider Podcast. Listen here: