INSIDE SLANT

All season long, California’s offense has been criticized for being unable to sustain long drives, and its defense has been criticized for being unable to create game-changing plays.

The Bears did both in their 34-28 upset of Stanford on Nov. 21.

Cal’s offense controlled the ball for long stretches of time and had six consecutive drives of 62 yards or more during the middle part of the game to put up enough points. The Cal defense, which kept the potent Stanford offense in check most of the game, came up with a game-saving play when linebacker Mike Mohamed intercepted an Andrew Luck pass at the Cal 3-yard line with 1:36 left in the game.

Not only did the win knock archrival Stanford out of the Rose Bowl race, but it assured Cal a winning Pac-10 record and put the Bears in position to land a more attractive bowl berth. The Bears now have a week off to recover from the emotional victory before playing a Dec. 5 road game against Washington in their final regular-season game.

The Bears could still finish as high as a tie for second place in the conference and have a decent shot at winding up in the Sun Bowl, which is No. 3 in the Pac-10’s pecking order of bowl berths. Before the season started, that scenario would have seemed like a letdown for a team that thought it had a chance to get to the Rose Bowl, but after the Bears lost their first two conference games to Oregon and USC by a combined score of 72-6, being 5-3 in the conference is a pretty good accomplishment.

The Bears beat ranked teams (Arizona and Stanford) the past two weeks without standout runner Jahvid Best, who was sidelined with a concussion. His backup, Shane Vereen, had another big game Saturday, carrying the ball 42 times for a career-high 193 yards.

Kevin Riley also had a productive day after a slow start. He was not sacked, and his only turnover was the result of a deflected pass that was intercepted. Riley ran nine times for 28 yards.

However, the key to the Bears’ victory over Stanford was their defense. Cal figured to be able to move the ball against Stanford’s suspect defense, but no team has been able to slow Stanford’s offense, especially lately. Stanford had scored more than 50 points in wins against Oregon and USC the previous two weeks, but the Cardinal did little after two big plays helped Stanford take an early 14-0 lead.

Cal kept Toby Gerhart under control, limiting him to 75 yards after his early 61-yard scoring run, and it forced Luck into the worst game of his brief college career. Cal did not do anything fancy defensively, but it was fundamentally sound and did not make major mistakes. It even stayed strong after it lost its best defensive player, cornerback Syd’Quan Thompson, midway in the fourth quarter.

NOTES, QUOTES

• By beating Arizona and Stanford, Cal recorded wins over ranked teams in consecutive weeks for the first time since 1950, when the Bears beat Washington and UCLA back-to-back.

• The Bears have won seven of the past eight games against Stanford, and Jeff Tedford is 7-1 against the Cardinal. Tedford also got his 67th Cal victory, tying him with Pappy Waldorf for the most Cal coaching victories since 1925.

• The Bears overcame a 14-point deficit in a victory for the first time since the 2007 Armed Forces Bowl, when Cal came back from a 21-0 deficit behind Kevin Riley to get a 42-36 victory over Air Force.

• Tedford made a controversial decision when he had Kevin Riley simply take a knee on third down from the Stanford 9-yard line with 2:42 left and the Bears ahead by three. He opted to kick a field goal to give Cal a six-point lead rather than try for the clinching touchdown.

• Bryan Anger had a punt blocked for the first time this season, and it gave Stanford the ball at the Cal 19-yard line, leading to a touchdown that gave Stanford an early 14-0 lead.

Game Ball Goes To:   RB Shane Vereen—After carrying the ball 30 times for 159 yards in the Nov. 14 victory over Arizona, Vereen had 42 rushing attempts for 193 yards and three touchdowns against Stanford. Although he is not the break-away threat Jahvid Best is, Vereen is a sturdier runner who is more effective inside the tackles than Best. He also caught a pass for 10 yards. He did much of his running from the Wildcat formation, using his ability to pick holes and find space. In the two victories over ranked teams this season, Vereen rushed for 352 yards on 72 carries.

Keep An Eye On:   WR Alex Lagemann—Although Marvin Jones continues to be the Bears’ No. 1 receiver, Lagemann has developed into a reliable third-down receiver. He has a knack for getting open over the middle and making tough catches. He had three receptions against Stanford, two of which came on Cal’s second scoring drive that resulted in a field goal.

Quote To Note:   “All week long, the talk was about how physical they are, how they were going to run the ball on us, things like that. Our motto all week was, ‘We’re going to find out on the field.’”—Cal coach Jeff Tedford.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

Looking Good:   Cal’s defense, both against the pass and the run, has played well the past two games against the strong offenses of Arizona and Stanford. A blocked punt helped Stanford get an early 14-0 lead, but Cal allowed Stanford very little thereafter. Toby Gerhart had only 75 yards after his 61-yard run on the third play of the game, and Andrew Luck completed just 10 of 30 passes. The Bears defense ranked seventh in the Pac-10 overall and ninth against the pass heading into the game, but it played its best all-around game against the Cardinal. It even came up with the big play that had been missing all season when Mike Mohamed intercepted a pass on Stanford’s final possession.

Still Needs Work:   Kickoffs are still an issue for Cal. Giorgio Tavecchio performed the kickoff duties against Stanford, and he seldom gets his boots inside the 10-yard line. As a result, Cal has opted to squib-kick most of its kickoffs, which helps its opponents get pretty good field position. Cal squib-kicked its final kickoff, which helped Stanford get the ball at its own 42-yard line to start its final drive.

Roster Report:  

• RB Jahvid Best, who had sustained a concussion on Nov. 7, missed his second straight game on Nov. 21, but he is hoping he can play in the Dec. 5 game against Washington. The chances of him playing against the Huskies are not good, though.

• CB Syd’Quan Thompson, Cal’s best defensive player, was sidelined for Stanford’s final three possessions after spraining his ankle. He is expected to be ready for the Dec. 5 game against Washington.

• RB Shane Vereen’s 42 rushing attempts were the most by a Cal player since Paul Jones set the school record with 46 against Washington State in 1978.

• TE Anthony Miller had missed the previous two games following knee surgery before returning for the Nov. 21 game against Stanford and catching three passes for 53 yards.

• Vince D’Amato replaced Giorgio Tavecchio as the Bears’ placekicker and he made both of his field-goal attempts against Stanford, from 21 and 28 yards.