Oregon Daily Emerald sports editor Lucas Clark and Daily Californian assistant sports editor Edward Yevelev exchanged a few thoughts about their respective teams and how the game in Berkeley will unfold on Saturday. Here’s what the two had to say:
LUCAS CLARK: For the third straight game the Oregon defense will face a second string quarterback, how capable is Brock Mansion? What type of play should we expect from him?
Edward Yevelev: At 6-5, 230, he has all the physical tools to play very well; my fellow football writers and I like to joke that his body (and name) have been crafted by the football quarterback gods. And since he’s been here for a while as a junior, I don’t think that his performance will be that affected by a lack of knowledge.
To me, it’s all mental and situational. Against Washington State, Mansion put up some very nice throws, including a few good deep balls that I didn’t know he had in him. But as with any first start, he also made some overthrows and a couple of picks. I think that was all jitters. Making his first home start, he’ll have to handle his emotions.
LC: Even more importantly, his team has to help put him in good situations. Against Oregon State in particular (and Washington State to an extent), he got stuck with bad field position and a lot of third-and-longs due to bad protection, dropped passes and penalties. His first scoring drive against the Cougars was 95 yards. You and I can both agree that not many of those will work out against Oregon.
EY : When you put up this many points, there’s going be a lot of talk — how the offense is gimmicky, etc. Use this opportunity to impart truth and shed myths: What/who is it that makes the Ducks’ attack go? Is it really all that fancy/magical? Is the system more important, or the athletes running it?
LC: Oregon’s offense is everything it’s cracked up to be — believe I’ve pondered this question since early August. The national media likes to paint it with a lot of bells and whistles, but in reality the offensive scheme is not actually that complex. The zone-read depends entirely on a strong relationship between the quarterback and running back, and their abilities to read the defense. Darron Thomas, now in his sophomore season and first year as a starter, has improved week to week, and I think we have yet to see the best that Thomas has to offer. Obviously, having LaMichael James in the backfield changes nearly any offense, too. These guys both have redshirt seasons under their belts and, now, what it takes to make this Oregon team operate. In this case, I think Kelly and his staff have recruited nearly perfect athletes to run this fast-paced offense.
LC: Shane Vereen has been a workhorse for Cal this year, ranking fourth in the Pac-10 in rushing yards and second in touchdowns behind LaMichael James, but does he have adequate speed to be a factor in this game?
EY: You’re exactly right when you talk about a workhorse. The guy just never quits and does whatever you need him to do to win — he’s steady, always fights for extra yardage and also excels at catching passes out of the backfield.
As for his speed, I think it’s very underrated and can definitely be a factor. He’s obviously not Jahvid Best-fast, though they did sprint against each other in high school. Vereen runs with more power and can bounce off of defenders, but he can do more than enough to outrace them, too.
Like with Mansion, however, he needs help. A big key will be offensive line play, which has been very spotty this year. If he can get some creases, Vereen can do some damage in the open field. Also, Cal has to have some semblance of a passing game, or else it’ll be eight or nine on the box all game long.
EY: An overlooked aspect of the team has been its defense, which has performed very well despite going out on the field every two minutes or so. How has the ‘D’ been able to get used to this? Also, if you have seen at all, how has it performed against the offense in practice and who would you say is the defensive MVP at this point?
LC: Oregon’s defense, much like last year, is quietly forgotten about until things go haywire. They have to be the best-conditioned unit in the land, bar none, and are extremely deep at every position. Half the guys on the two-deep are more than capable as starters and it shows on game day. In practice, the first team defense only faces the first team offense for a couple periods toward the end of each morning, but they are always close battles. Sometimes the offense scores in two plays, other times Rob Beard is asked to kick a 49-yard field goal. In this way both the offense and defense benefit from one another’s strengths. If I had to pick an MVP at this point in the season, it’s hard to stay away from Cliff Harris, and he’s only started three games! He defines the term playmaker, and I guarantee there are few, if any, personalities like his in the game today.
LC: Historically, Oregon does not play well in Memorial Stadium, and Cal is undefeated in its four games at home in 2010. How big is the Golden Bear home field advantage? Coming from a place like Autzen, it makes me wonder what kind of atmosphere will be surrounding Saturday’s game.
The disparity between our home and road performances is really quite baffling.
EY: Tedford and the players try to downplay it, but it sticks out like a sore thumb. At home, we’ve only allowed two offensive touchdowns; on the road, we’re getting outscored, 158-81. Yikes. To a certain extent, it’s the level of competition — UC Davis, Colorado, UCLA, and ASU aren’t exactly world-beaters — but then you throw in Washington State, a team we would have dropped 50 (points) on in Berkeley. Instead, we trailed at halftime and almost lost.
At home, we jump on people early and they self-destruct. Away, it’s often a complete role reversal. These next two games will definitely be a good barometer of that home field advantage.
As for the atmosphere, it will be rocking, no doubt. Even though fans are under no illusions about the final result on Saturday, people will be pumped to see the No. 1 team in the country. The Bears are certainly fired up and, like everyone, will want to give the Ducks their best shot.
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