California Golden Bears next focus on Rodgers brothers

November 3, 9:58 PMCal Bears ExaminerRob Calonge

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(AP Photo/Ben Margot)

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Seven catches for 55 yards, 30 carries for 166 yards, and two touchdowns. Oh, and more importantly, one big 'W' in the process. That 'W' made the difference between a bid at the Holiday Bowl or a near-home game at the Emerald Bowl.

Not that Cal didn't enjoy their game at AT&T Park, but if you can't go to the Rose Bowl, the Holiday Bowl is the next best get for Pac-10 teams.

So where do all the numbers responsible for the 'W' come from? They come from the Rodgers brothers combined stats from last year that led to the 'W' against Cal last year. A win which helped them tie Oregon for second in the Pac-10 with a 7-2 record. Cal's conference record was 6-3.

The Beavers have been a thorn in the side of the Golden Bears for some time now. In their last seven meetings, Oregon State has come away with the victory. Combining that thorn with the thorn created last season with the pairing of the Rodgers, and you can guess that Cal has their work cut out for them this weekend.

Oregon State, they're an excellent football team. It never seems to change with them. Offensively, there as explosive as anyone. With the Rodgers brothers, they do such a great job. Their offensive line is always so well coached and physical and create gaps for Jacquiz to run in and then James, they do so many good things with him with screens and flys and now he's at receiver. Canfield's playing very well, very accurate throwing the ball, so tough group to stop. I don't know that you're ever going to stop them completely. You just hope to limit them, because they are very explosive. Jacquiz is a tough guy to tackle. And then on defense, they're as stingy as they have been in the run game. They're doing a great job there. So, like I said, the picture never really changes with those guys. They're doing a great job.
- Jeff Tedford on what he's seen from Oregon State on film

The main guy to stop for Cal is tailback Jacquizz Rodgers. Currently, his 115.25 yards per game are ranked 14th nationally and he's ranked 34th in receptions per game. His brother James, isn't someone to overlook though. James Rodgers is ranked 7th nationally in receptions per game and averages a 23rd-ranked 88.25 yards per game.

While much of the focus might be on the Rodgers brothers, Kevin Riley will be worried about the Beavers' defense--lucky for him, the Rodgers brothers don't play both ways. While the defense is ranked only 79th in total defense, Jeff Tedford said that it's not due to them playing poorly. "People have competed for the ball and made some plays against them. It's not because you see guys running wide open all over the place," said Tedford at Tuesday's media luncheon.

While the worst of OSU's defensive ranking is due to the pass defense, (82nd pass efficiency defense), their run defense is ranked 27th and will be formidable for Cal's explosive ground game. If Cal isn't able to run the ball, then the victory will be on the shoulders of former Oregonian Kevin Riley.

According to Riley, there's no extra-added incentive to beat Oregon State due to his roots. "Haven't beat them when I've played, so I'd like to beat them, that's for sure," said Cal's starting quarterback. "Both years we've had chances to beat them and we haven't, and we've just got to win."

I see what they've done in the past. They do what they do, and they do it well. They have athletes, lost a couple guys from last year but the guys coming back are good players as well. Bring good pressure on the quarterback, always have. Backers, secondary all good players. They don't do a ton of amount of things but they just run their things and they do it well, and they always have.
- Kevin Riley on the Oregon State defense

For more selected quotes, go to calbears.com by clicking here.

I haven't had the opportunity to transcribe some of the quotes from other players, but I'll get to that soon. I can't really say that you're missing much. The biggest revelation was that Tedford and the staff did have discussions about whether or not to send Tavecchio out for the final field goal. Obviously, they chose to stick with the kicker they started with, but the position is still up in the air on a weekly basis. Tedford said that there won't be a game that both D'Amato and Tavecchio don't suit up, mostly in case of an injury.