Cal Bears will weather the Miami Hurricanes' storm

This is it for the season.  For both teams, they'll be sending their seniors off with a final bowl game experience.  Those seniors will come away with memories that will forever be etched in their minds, but it's the underclassmen that will either pay or enjoy the outcome of the game.  It's the winner of this battle between east and west that will be poised for a top 25 placement to begin next season.

If college football had its own American Top 40, Casey Kasem might be calling Cal's name from anywhere between number 40 to number 30, depending on the poll.  Miami wouldn't be as fortunate, but with as much young talent as they have and their rise from the ashes under coach Randy Shannon, they could find themselves there to end the season.

The problem for the U, is they face a Cal Bears team that presents an imposing hurdle for them to climb in order to win the Emerald Bowl.  They'll also be doing it without their starting quarterback at the helm of an offense that ranked 88^th out of 119 FBS teams this season.

It will be Miami's defense that will have to tame a Cal offense that will call upon a quarterback that had been sitting on the bench recently.  Nate Longshore will face a Miami defense that ranked 25th this season, powered by their ability to play the pass.  The Hurricanes only allowed 169.33 yards per game in the air and 146.42 on the ground this season.

Cal Bears (8-4, 6-3) ; Last Game : Won vs Washington Huskies 48-7

Keys on Offense:

1. Avoid costly mistakes - With Longshore starting, the finger can easily be pointed to him when it comes to mistakes being made on offense.  He's had trouble with throwing interceptions that are returned for six points the other way, and if he wants to finish his Cal career on a high note, he'll have to avoid doing it against Miami.  Longshore isn't the only player that needs to avoid mistakes.  Cal's runners have not been perfect when it comes to fumbles and the offensive line has suffered breakdowns in protection and been called for penalties during their losses this season.
2. Play within their game - Much has been written about the lack of a playmaking wideout for the Bears, but the simple fact is that they've been able to account for that lack of production by accentuating what they are best at.  Jahvid Best, Shane Vereen, Will Ta'ufo'ou, and Cameron Morrah have been the strength of this offense for much of the year.  There's no reason to change that now.  Longshore has been able to involve more of the receivers so it's not out of the realm of possibility that he'll do that in this game.  When a play has to be made in a crucial moment in the game, the Bears should, and probably will, turn to one of the afformentioned players to come through.

Keys on Defense:

1. Stop the run - That may seem like a poor key, but in looking at their losses it's definitely a key.  In their loss to Maryland, they allowed two different runners to run for over 80 yards each.  This allowed Maryland to control the tempo of the game.  Against Arizona, a backup runner came in and rushed for 151 yards.  Against USC, three runners combined for 194 yards, and when they lost to Oregon State, they allowed over 200 (144 to Jacquizz Rodgers).  For the 25^th best rushing defense in all of FBS allowing an average of 122.50 yards per game, those numbers are much higher than in their eight victories (97.88 yards per game).
2. Contain the quarterback - The Bears definitely want to pressure the quarterback and sack him when they can, but they can't afford to let Jacory Harris pick up first downs with his legs.  Against Oregon, the Bears had trouble with Jeremiah Masoli running for 97 yards.  Harris and the Miami offense don't pose the same threat, but he is capable of making the Bears pay if they decide to fall too deep into zone coverage.  For the season, he's rushed for 108 yards and two touchdowns in part time work.  The last thing they can afford to do is allow first downs on third and long.

Miami Hurricanes (7-5, 4-4) ; Last Game : Lost at North Carolina State Wolfpack 28-38

Keys on Offense:

1. Cooper must be super - Graig Cooper leads Miami this season with 778 yards on 159 carries.  That's an average of 4.8 yards-per-carry, but the problem is he's underutilized.  In the last three games, he's rushed for only 144 yards, but he carried an average of 11 times per game.  Cal's defense allows only 3.17 yards-per-carry, so it's unlikely that Miami will attempt to run right at them.  They'll need to get good yardage when they do run the ball and a heavy dose of Cooper could be the answer.
2. Avoid the big play secondary - Cal's Darian Hagan and Syd'Quan Thompson highlight a Cal secondary that is fast, talented and very opportunistic.  This secondary has already accounted for the most interceptions in Cal Bears history with 23 on the season and they're looking to add to that total against Miami.  It may be fortuitous for the Hurricanes that they'll be starting Harris instead of the suspended Robert Marve.  Marve threw 13 picks to nine touchdowns while Harris has thrown 10 touchdowns to only six interceptions.  He may have to be even better against Cal if the running game can't get going.

Keys on Defense:

1. Be the 'best' against Best - While Best is no longer a hidden treasure for the Bears, this bowl game will be a coming out party of sorts for him.  National attention is now on him to determine his Heisman status for next season and he'll have to be prepared to make a strong showing.  That's why Miami is going to have to answer with a run defense better than they've had all season...better than Cal has faced other than USC.  Against USC, Best was only able to gain 30 yards on 13 carries.  If the Hurricanes can keep him to less than 100 yards on the day, they'll give themselves an opportunity to win the game.  If Best does what he normally does, Miami will be blown out by the half.  Bad news for 'Canes fans - they've allowed 691 yards rushing in their last two games.
2. Give Tedford a good reason to switch quarterbacks - For all of the controversy that the Kevin Riley / Nate Longshore quarterback conversation has brought to fans in Berkeley, there is only one attribute that Riley has that Longshore can't better or match - mobility.  While Longshore is more the prototypical pocket passer, Riley is able to be a mobile target and a better fit in a West Coast style offense.  The defensive line is going to have to put enough pressure on Longshore to either sack him or force him into making mistakes.  While they'll have trouble getting around Draddy Trophy winner, Alex Mack, the rest of the line is young and inexperienced enough to be an even match.

Cal Bears Examiner prediction:

Miami is no longer the feared 'U' that it once was in the 90's, but they do have plenty of talent to become that in the near future.  The major problem that they'll have to overcome is the opposing team's talent.  Cal is actually a better team overall with the same skill position talent and a much more experienced, albeit young, team.

The mistakes that the Hurricanes make won't be overcome by having more talented players on the field in this game.  With Longshore at the helm for the Bears, the explosive offense that Cal has lacked could be back in this game.  The experience and talent of seniors Zack Follett, Worrell Williams, and others on the Bears' defense proves to be too much for the 'Canes to handle.

Cal Bears 41 - Miami Hurricanes 24

All Star game rosters include 5 from Cal

Five Golden Bears players will be playing in one more college game before ending their playing days as a Cal Bear.  The prestigious Senior Bowl will have Alex Mack on offense and Zack Follett on defense for the North.  The oldest postseason collegiate game is the East-West Shrine Game which will have Worrell Williams, Anthony Felder and longsnapper Nick Sundberg as members of the West team.

Doing well in either of these games can elevate the players draft status dramatically.  In the Senior Bowl, players will be coached by actual NFL staffs and be scouted by nearly 800 coaches, general managers, scoutes and front office personnel.  The Shrine game is for a great cause.  It's run by the Shriners Hospitals for Children to raise funds for and awareness about the expert orthopaedic, burn, spinal cord injury rehabilitation, and cleft lip and palate care.  It is also heavily scouted by NFL teams and been a great showcase for some of the lesser known players in college football.