UW-Cal: One of life’s mismatches

  • John Sleeper / College Sports Writer
  • Thursday, September 27, 2001 9:00pm
  • Sports

Ever own someone?

Ever beat someone virtually every time, say, in golf? In every way possible?

Ever look at your foe before you play and know he’s meat?

That’s Washington against Cal.

The Golden Bears haven’t beaten the Huskies since 1976. That’s 18 games. That’s the Gerald Ford administration. That’s before any of the current players were born. That’s Don James’ second year as UW coach.

And it doesn’t matter how badly Cal outplays the Huskies. The Bears have had leads of 24, 21 and 20 points and lost. In 1999, Cal was up 14 and lost. Last year, the Bears were up 24-13 going into the fourth quarter, gave up 23 straight points and lost.

Someone asked UW tailback Rich Alexis this week if he thought Cal might still be furious about last year’s debacle.

“I dunno,” Alexis said. “I would be.”

There are few signs it will stop Saturday in Strawberry Canyon.

The Bears’ defense ranks 113th out of 115 Division I teams in points against. They have the nation’s second-worst turnover ratio (minus-11). Cal hired Al Borges away from UCLA to be its offensive coordinator, but the Bears still average just 18 points a game. Kyle Boller has struggled in his two-plus seasons as Cal’s quarterback and was benched against Washington State last week, but coach Tom Holmoe said Boller will start Saturday.

“We’ve just killed ourselves,” Holmoe said. “We’re our own worst enemy.”

So furious was Cal linebacker Chris Ball after the team’s 44-16 loss to BYU that he went off on his teammates through the media, saying some had no heart.

Then, before the WSU game, Ball missed a team meeting and was benched.

So when will the wins come? Following No. 13 Washington, Cal has No. 6 Oregon, No. 12 UCLA, No. 19 Oregon State, undefeated Arizona and USC in the sked.

It just isn’t pretty in Berkeley.

Here’s a look at Saturday’s games involving Pac-10 teams:

Kickoff: 2 p.m. at Memorial Stadium, Berkeley, Calif.

TV, radio: No live TV, KOMO radio (1000 AM)

Stars to watch: Washington – Rich Alexis starts at tailback in place of injured Willie Hurst (hamstring) and figures to get 20 carries. Coach Rick Neuheisel has raised questions about Alexis’ conditioning. We’ll see here. Quarterback Cody Pickett has been efficient in a conservative offense that hasn’t taxed him or a young offensive line. Wideout Reggie Williams has been unstoppable. Defensive tackle Larry Tripplett heads a staunch, quick defense. Outside linebacker Kai Ellis and inside linebacker Ben Mahdavi are solid pass rushers. Special teams has accounted for four touchdowns, led by Roc Alexander and Charles Frederick.

Cal – Tailback Joe Igber has burned the Huskies for 298 yards on 52 carries in two games. He has been slowed a by a sore ankle, but figures to be near full speed Saturday. Quarterback Kyle Boller has struggled and was benched against WSU last week, but has completed 54 percent of his passes and has thrown for three TDs. His favorite target is Charon Arnold, with 14 catches for 174 yards. Fullback Marcus Fields has 12 receptions for 142 yards.

Breaking down the game: The Huskies should win big, but the offense has to adjust to life without tight end Jerramy Stevens, out eight weeks with a broken foot. This will be a game in which they have to adjust accordingly. It also is a game in which the offensive line should show signs of improvement. Cal’s defense has been simply awful, and the offense, while averaging nearly 400 yards a game, has had horrible problems with turnovers.

Bottom line: The Bears nearly always play the Huskies tough. They’re playing at home, but that hardly can be expected to stop the slide.

Pick: Washington, 38-10.

Kickoff: 7 p.m. at Arizona Stadium, Tucson, Ariz.

TV, radio: no live TV, KRKO (1380 AM) and KHHO (850 AM)

Stars to watch: Washington State – Wideout Nakoa McElrath leads the nation with 514 receiving yards. Quarterback Jason Gesser’s 432 passing yards against Cal last week was the third-highest total ever by a Cougar, leading coach Mike Price to mention him in the same breath as Ryan Leaf and Drew Bledsoe. Tailback Dave Minnich is fourth in the Pac-10 in rushing at 91 yards a game. Free safety Lamont Thompson has 15 careeer interceptions, a school record.

Arizona – Quarterback Jason Johnson, from Puyallup, has completed 64 percent of his passes, with six TDs and an interception. Freshman Tremaine Cox ran for 111 yards on eight carries against UNLV, including an 80-yard TD run. Defensive end Alex Luna leads the conference with four sacks. Inside linebacker Lance Briggs leads the Pac-10 in solo tackles with 20.

Breaking down the game: This is the Cougs’ first test of the season, and it figures to be close to 90 degrees at kickoff. The Wildcats haven’t played anyone of consequence, either, but they have put up impressive numbers on offense. The big difference is in secondaries. WSU’s has a collective 75 starts and 27 interceptions.

Bottom line: The Cougs have been nearly flawless. And their defense figures to make some big plays against Johnson.

Pick: Washington State, 34-28.

UCLA at Oregon State: The first huge game of the conference season. UCLA has played as well as any team in the nation; OSU is working out some early-season kinks and will miss safety Calvin Carlyle for the rest of the season with a shoulder injury. The Bruins’ defense gave up just 45 passing yards to Ohio State. What bothers us is that Oregon State hasn’t played in three weeks, and that’s a long time without having to conjure up game speed. Look for OSU to start slow, but win in a comeback at home. Pick: Oregon State, 28-27.

Stanford at USC: We knew the Cardinal offense was going to be explosive (44.5 points a game, sixth in the nation), but its defense will get a test against USC quarterback Carson Palmer. The question is how well the Trojans will bounce back from last week’s stunning, last-second loss at Oregon. Pick: Stanford, 34-31.

Oregon at Utah State: Ducks coach Mike Bellotti isn’t happy about much these days. His offense is 7-for-38 on third-down situations, he threw open the place-kicking job after Jared Siegel missed a 38-yarder against USC and his young defense simply isn’t getting it. Utah State is what the Ducks need to get Bellotti off their backs. Pick: Oregon, 51-3.

San Jose State at Arizona State: Here is the Sun Devils’ chance to right the ship after its secondary got scorched by Stanford’s Randy Fasani. The Spartans will offer little resistence in what amounts to a scrimmage. Pick: ASU, 31-9.

Sleeper pick of the week: LSU 17, Tennessee 13.

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