The California Golden Bears travel to Seattle to face the Washington Huskies in a game with incredibly significant for the Bears. Cal lost 16-13 to the Huskies in 2010 on a Chris Polk rushing touchdown as time expired. The loss kept Cal out of a bowl game for the first time since 2002. Needless to say, the Bears have something to fight for beyond just getting a much-needed early season victory. Here is a look at that final drive that stuck a knife in the heart of Cal fans.
The Bears enter the game 3-0 following a thorough beatdown of the Presbyterian Blue Hose. For those wondering where that matchup came from, it was due to a last minute scheduling snafu which left the Bears stuck trying to find anybody to play. Enter the Blue Hose.
The Bears are off to a bit of a wild start in 2011 as QB Zach Maynard is looking like a fairly legit QB, although inconsistency could drive Cal fans to drink this season. His 51% completion percentage sort of says it all. While it's not necessarily all or nothing with Maynard, you are unlikely to change your channel on passing downs. He's shown some wheels and escapability in the pocket, but he also struggles at times with some incredibly poor decisions. His receivers have bailed him out at times, but not before your heart jumps into your throat. It at least makes for some entertaining football.
The Huskies are sitting at 2-1 following a tough road loss to the Nebraska Cornhuskers. The Huskers jumped on top early and looked ready to roll after taking a 44-17 lead early in the fourth quarter. However, a furious Washington comeback kept things interesting before falling short in the 51-38 loss. The loss followed victories over Eastern Washington and Hawaii.
The Huskies have a solid QB in Keith Price who is 16th in the country in passer rating and has completed 64.4% of his passes. However, if the Huskies are going to win this game, it will be on the back of running back Chris Polk. Through three games, Polk has 362 rushing yards on 5.4 yards per carry. Jesse Callier is solid in relief but will likely only see five or six carries if the game is close. For more on the Huskies offense ManBearCal breaks down the starters and reserves at California Golden Blogs.
Desmond Trufant is a player to watch on defense as the cornerback has two interceptions on the season clinched their home opener against Eastern Washington with one of those interceptions. He may need to step up big as the Huskies defense statistically has been one of the worst in the country. Giving up 51 points to Nebraska is not pretty, but giving up 27 and 32 in victories over Eastern Washington and Hawaii is not going to cut it. For more on the Huskies defense, California Golden Blogs has an incredibly thorough breakdown.
For more on the Bears check out California Golden Blogs. For more on the Washington Huskies, check out UW Dawg Pound and SB Nation Seattle.