Finally, something to complain about.

Oregon should've known they were in trouble before the game started when Cal came out of the tunnel with the more brightnoxious uniforms.  The Bears were ready to match and beat the Ducks in every category.
   Mark this as a win. But for the first time this season, an opponent comes away feeling like they could've beaten Oregon. And they would be right. Cal exposed weaknesses in Oregon's offense like never before, leaving Duck fans to wonder if those weaknesses are treatable or terminal.
   When Oregon's offense was on the field, I could swear Cal had 15 defenders on their side. Play after play, it seemed like they threw three or four defenders at the ball carrier while keeping everyone else covered. Their speed and talent on defense was the best the Ducks have faced this season.
   It didn't help that LaMichael James was playing hurt. As the game went on, his inability to blast through the line was growing more obvious until the final drive.
   But if LaMJ was hurt, why not play Kenjon Barner or Remene Alston Jr.? LaMJ's limitations weren't more evident than when Barner came in for a few plays on that final drive. It was like someone had flipped a switch. Barner was blasting through the line for large gains. LaMJ was lacking that burst of speed.
Photos from Oregonian

Kenjon Barner was a bright spot against Cal's tough rushing defense.

The following article adds drama to Oregon's next two games. From the SF Chronical:

Cal creates blueprint for slowing Oregon's offense

By GREG BEACHAM
AP Sports Writer

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) Clancy Pendergast deserved to take a bow after his California defense did the previously unthinkable, holding No. 1 Oregon's high-octane offense to 317 yards and one touchdown.


Instead, the Golden Bears' defensive coordinator could only lament their wasted effort Saturday night in a 15-13 loss that kept the humbled Ducks on track for a national title shot.

"You don't play for moral victories," Pendergast said while the Ducks celebrated their narrow escape with a large contingent of Oregon fans in chilly Strawberry Canyon.

Yet the Bears' breakthrough certainly wasn't a waste for the Ducks' final three opponents: Arizona, Oregon State and their bowl foe. Pendergast concocted a game plan that largely stopped the Oregon juggernaut, forcing the Ducks (10-0, 7-0 Pac-10) to rely on their defense to move within two games of a perfect regular season.

"They had our number this week," Oregon center Jordan Holmes said. "They came to play. Their schemes worked. I'm not exactly sure what they were doing. They figured out something that was working for them, but we finally started adjusting."

Holmes had no idea how the Bears did it, but a few strategies stood out.

Cal (5-5, 3-4) used a myriad of defensive fronts, alternating its number of down linemen on almost every play. The Bears made their changes as quickly as the Ducks run their plays, usually using the same players.

In the secondary, the Bears had at least five defensive backs on the field for most plays, even after starting cornerbacks Marc Anthony and Darian Hagan were injured. They used simple man-to-man coverage on almost every play, and safety Chris Conte spent most of the game right near the line of scrimmage, spying on Oregon quarterback Darron Thomas.

"You never could really tell when they were blitzing," said Oregon tailback LaMichael James, who left Berkeley on crutches - he said he was fine - after managing a season-low 91 yards and failing to score for the first time this season. "They move around a lot and have a lot of different fronts. I think that was the toughest part."

Maehl had a great game, but probably wishes
he could do over this perfectly thrown drop.

[Chip Kelly said this week the team will be working on passing.  With man-to-man coverage and the safety up close, Thomas should've had several TD passes. The offense's only TD was a pass to a wide open Jeff Maehl over the middle.  Other than that, overthrows, drops, and just a general inability to get the ball to an open receiver made Cal's job easier to shut down Oregon's offense. 

  If Oregon can't complete defense-stretching passes against Arizona or Oregon State, those games won't be any easier.]  
Pendergast's greatest achievement might have been something a bit less tangible: He convinced his players that they could hang with an offense averaging 54.7 points and 567 yards while winning each of its first nine games by at least 11 points.

The Ducks are an intimidating flock, with their slick uniforms and crazed fan base, yet the Bears didn't flinch.

"I had no doubt that we were going to win this game," Conte said. "It was ripe for the upset. We knew that if we came out and executed, this team was very beatable."

[Cal was probably inspired by Washington's first quarter the week prior when they just lined up straight and played tough, hard nosed assignment football. The Bears, with better personnel, were able to envision and formulate a game plan that could work. And with Oregon losing faith in their ability to throw the long ball, it actually did work.]

There's another possible tactic that opponents might want to consider: The Ducks complained about the Bears' series of clock-stopping injuries on defense, almost all involving a backup player at a point when Cal really could have used a breather.

They might have been legitimate, or they might have been minor gamesmanship. Either way, the Ducks couldn't snap the ball immediately after the referees put it on the turf. [Minor gamesmanship? What the hell does that mean? Faking injuries is just bush league cheating.  Maybe LaMJ can do a little minor gamesmanship whenever he finds himself going down in a crowd by reaching up and grabbing his own facemask. How about if D.Thomas flops down after every throw in hopes of coaxing a roughing-the-passer penalty?

   Oregon should start keeping the following statistics to provide to the media.

Number of opponents' questionable injuries during Oregon drives: Whatever # -- 8, 12, maybe more.

Quantifiable success of those time-stopping fakes: None. Zilch. Zero.]


"That slowed our tempo down, and the refs let them do it," said Thomas, who went 15 of 29 for 155 yards and just one touchdown.

[Perhaps the refs should be granted some discretionary judgement to go to the coach and say, "You've got five seconds to get your injured player off the field or you'll be charged a timeout."]

With a bye week before two games against slumping teams to finish the season, the Ducks are close enough to fantasize about the BCS title game - not that coach Chip Kelly would ever allow such a thing, of course.

If Oregon beats the Wildcats on the day after Thanksgiving, the Ducks will clinch their second straight Pac-10 title even before the Civil War.

Oregon hadn't really been challenged in a fourth quarter this season until Cal nearly took a one-point lead early in the period. Kicker Giorgio Tavecchio's botched field goal attempts helped the Ducks, but their final drive was even more important.

Before the Ducks took over at their own 20 with 9 1/2 minutes left, Kelly told the offense that this drive would be something they described to their grandchildren. Eighteen plays - 17 on the ground - and 65 yards later, when Thomas took a knee to run out the clock, Kelly was proven correct.

"That last drive is one of the most satisfying things I've ever been a part of," Holmes said. "At that point, they're putting the game on us, and on LaMichael's shoulders. We love that."


I recorded that mindnumbing game and reviewed the final drive.  I still question if LaMJ should've just been pulled at some point in the second half to allow the rest of the running back committee to finish. But LaMJ must have been inspired by 1) Kenjon Barner's success in the fourth quarter, and 2) Kelly's pep talk. Because in the waning minutes of that final drive, he blasted through holes. He dragged tacklers. He lunged for yards.
   And after the clock read 0:00, he had to be helped off the field and put on crutches.

That won't come up on any Heisman watcher's stat sheet.

LaMichael James: Nobody's paying him to play hurt to the finish.

   Give LaMJ and Oregon's point-a-minute offense credit on that final drive for keeping the ball an incredible 9-1/2 minutes, running 18 plays including three third downs, to suffocate Cal for the victory. But how comfortable are we supposed to feel about this win?
   In interviews following the game, Chip Kelly scoffed at the score and hard game by simply stating, "A win is a win," and "We don't care about the score." 
   That's mighty tough talk, Coach.  And your "Win the Day; Fast, Hard, Finish" words hang over my door.  Those players would follow you to the gates of hell. And we fans would watch you on ESPN and cheer as you marched to the gates of hell.
   But the reality is your team almost lost.  Aren't you bothered by that?  When you meet with your team this week at the Cas Center, are you going to pretend like nothing's wrong and everything is going to plan?  Or are you going to have a real talk about adjusting and improving before the next opponent is finally able to put a complete defeat package together?
  A win is a win.  But this late in the season with the Ducks controlling their own destiny, a loss would be a terrible shame.  Arizona and Oregon State will try to put the "FINISH" on the Ducks, Coach.  Your best team in the nation has to play better.  

All the talk about Cal's defense should not diminish the phenomenal
performance of Oregon's D. They proved to be the better of the two.

--KB