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Politics : Stockman Scott's Political Debate Porch -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: stockman_scott who wrote (64603)	10/31/2004 10:46:24 AM
From: Wharf Rat	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 89467

Oh yeah? Take this... (I can hardly believe it; I have a football team.) Defense carries Bears Straight shutouts first time since '68 Sunday, October 31, 2004 By Jeff Fletcher THE PRESS DEMOCRAT BERKELEY - On a night that Cal's vaunted offense was misfiring, the less-heralded Bears' defense took over the game. Posting back-to-back shutouts for the first time since 1968, Cal beat high-scoring Arizona State, 27-0, on Saturday night at Memorial Stadium to keep alive its hopes for the school's first Rose Bowl appearance since 1959. The No.7 Bears, who improved to 6-1 overall and 4-1 in the Pac-10, are tied for second in the conference with Oregon, which comes to Berkeley next Saturday. That game, and this one, formed the most serious obstacles to Cal finishing second in the conference. With No.1 USC on track to play for the national title in the Orange Bowl, the conference's second-place team would likely play in Pasadena. What's more, the Bears have a chance to move into the top 5 for the first time since 1952 because of losses by No. 3 Miami and No.5 Florida State. Cal figured to face a stiff challenge from the Sun Devils, who brought in one of the conference's most dangerous offenses, but the Bears' defense took center stage. "This game will show everyone we're a complete team," said Cal defensive end Ryan Riddle. "We're not just a high-powered offense with nothing else. This is a complete team, and I think this game demonstrated that." It had been 36 years since Cal blanked San Jose State and Colorado in back-to-back games. Cal had not posted back-to-back shutouts against conference foes since 1938. Cal's high-powered offense never got rolling because quarterback Aaron Rodgers was not producing at his normal efficiency. He completed only 15 of 29 passes - his worst percentage of the season - for 165 yards. More telling, though, was that Cal's offense failed to convert on several chances to break the game open early. So the defense did it instead. Arizona State quarterback Ryan Walter was looking for two more touchdown passes to break John Elway's conference record. Instead, the only pass he threw that wound up in the end zone went the wrong way. With Cal leading, 13-0, early in the third quarter, cornerback Tim Mixon stepped in front of receiver Moey Mutz to pick off Walter's pass. Mixon then raced 58 yards for a touchdown, putting Cal up, 20-0. The Bears' defense was not finished making big plays. A couple of plays later, Arizona State's Hakim Hill bolted down the right sideline for what looked like it would be a 64-yard touchdown run, but cornerback Harrison Smith chased him down and knocked him out of bounds at the 7. Cal then pushed Arizona State backward, with the help of a holding call. Walter was then sacked. On 3rd-and-goal from the 14, the Cal secondary locked up on the Sun Devils' receivers, forcing Walter to scramble around in the backfield. He was 20 yards behind the line when he finally uncorked an incomplete pass. Kicker Jesse Ainsworth then missed a field goal, to keep Cal's shutout intact. The Sun Devils drove deep into Cal territory on their next possession, but this time Matt Giordano hit receiver Terry Richardson near the sideline at the Cal 10, knocking the ball loose. Riddle picked it up as he tiptoed along the sideline, barely staying in bounds. Early in the fourth quarter, Riddle sacked Walter and knocked the ball loose. Lorenzo Alexander recovered it at the Arizona State 13, setting up the put-away score for the Bears. Giordano brought down Matt Miller at the 5 to preserve the shutout with 4 minutes 35 seconds to go in the game. Cal recovered four fumbles from an Arizona State team that had not lost a fumble all season. The first was forced by Cal's special teams on the game's opening kickoff. Rodgers needed just one play to turn that turnover into points, hitting freshman receiver Robert Jordan on a 24-yard touchdown just 10 seconds into the game. Jordan and running back J.J. Arrington were the two offensive stars for Cal. Jordan, a freshman thrust into his first college start because of injuries to three senior receivers, caught seven passes for 116 yards. "I'm so proud of him," said Cal coach Jeff Tedford. "Three weeks ago , he was on the scout team. Now he's a starting receiver. He was not overwhelmed at all. He has a tremendous future." Arrington ran for 188 yards in 30 carries, his seventh consecutive 100-yard game. Arrington also reached 1,000 yards for the season faster than any player in school history. Chuck Muncie needed eight games to reach 1,000 yards in 1975.