(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
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As if beating your hated rival on their home field and taking an heirloom that was originally made to belittle the very institution you play for isn't enough, reaping rewards for doing it is just icing on the cake. That's what Cal football is enjoying this week, along with a couple of their star players.
As many on the California Golden Bears' roster would say, 'team first.' Since that's been the motto of every player this season, we'll review the rewards granted to the team--other than getting the axe for another year that is.
Cal moved up in the rankings in every poll. In the Examiner.com weekly rankings, Cal appeared again for the first time since November 2. They re-debut in the weekly poll at No. 24. They also moved into the AP Top 25 poll by getting voted No. 21 this week. Cal is saying that they are also ranked No. 21 in the USA Today/Coaches' Top 25, but according to USA Today, they ranked 26th--so they are yet to be ranked there yet. In the Harris Interactive Top 25, Cal entered the poll ranked No. 23. The most important poll of them all is the BCS standings, and Cal didn't disappoint there either. They moved up from No. 23 to No. 22 thanks to their win on Saturday.
Two weeks ago, had someone come to me and told me that the Golden Bears (8-3, 5-3 Pac-10) could still make it to the Holiday Bowl, I may have rudely laughed in their face. While the goal is the Rose Bowl, taking the second best bowl game offered to the Pac-10 isn't bad for a team that lost three conference games this season. I'm not sure yet how it is possible for Cal to get that bid just yet, but I'm hearing from some semi-reliable sources that they still have a shot at a game in San Diego this year.
| Pac-10 Standings | ||
| TEAM | CONF | OVERALL |
| * - Oregon | 7-1 | 9-2 |
| * - Oregon State | 6-2 | 8-3 |
| * - Stanford | 6-3 | 7-4 |
| * - California | 5-3 | 8-3 |
| * - USC | 4-3 | 7-3 |
| * - Arizona | 4-3 | 6-4 |
| * - UCLA | 3-5 | 6-5 |
| x - Washington | 2-5 | 3-7 |
| x - Arizona State | 2-6 | 4-7 |
| x - Washington State | 0-8 | 1-10 |
Shane Vereen rushed for 193 yards on 42 carries against Stanford to become everyone's player of the week. He was named the Walter Camp Football Foundation's BCS National Offensive Player of the Week, a nominee for the AT&T All-America Player of the Week Award and was an honorable mention selection for the College Football Performance Awards Running Back Performer of the Week.
(Fans can help Vereen win the Week 12 AT&T All-America Player of the Week honor by voting for him in the only college football honor determined by fan voting. Text VOTE to 345345 and then reply with your selection. Fans have until 8:59 p.m. PT on Wednesday to submit their votes. The winner will be announced during Thursday's ESPN College Football Primetime presented by Applebee's. Standard text messaging rates apply.)
Right now, everyone in Berkeley loves Mike Mohamed. The junior linebacker made the game-saving interception at the three-yard line to help the Golden Bears beat Stanford. He also had a team-high 10 tackles, and for that he gets a few awards himself.
Mohamed was named as one of CFPA's Linebacker Honorable Mention Performers of the Week and he was also named as the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Week.
Jeff Tedford called into KNBR on Tuesday night for a phone interview. Just in case you missed it, I found the audio for you. You can listen to it by clicking here.
Also, just in case you can't get enough of the highlights from the Big Game, our good friends at AthletixNation.com have provided us with more than enough highlights to get you through the day:
Next up:
California Golden Bears at Washington Huskies
DATE: Saturday, Dec. 5, 2009
TIME: 3:30 PM PST
LOCATION: Husky Stadium, Seattle, Wa.
TELEVISION: CSN California/FSN Northwest
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Comments
And it's all the sweeter when they are a good team and the win probably gets you a New Year's bowl (don't you think?).
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