Cal faces Stanford in mid-October

Cal hosts No. 22-ranked Stanford in the 115th Big Game on Oct. 20, but the circumstances for this traditional Bay Area rivalry are unprecedented.

Typically, Cal and Stanford meet at the end of the season in a game that stood alone in importance. Cal could save a poor season by beating Stanford or ruin a good season with a loss to the Cardinal.

Coaches of the two teams had even expressed disappointment in recent years when one or two regular-season games followed the Big Game, claiming it ruined the sense of finality to the Big Game.

But this is different. Never have Cal and Stanford met before November, and now both teams have virtually half the season left after the Big Game. Although there will be the traditional hoopla in the days leading up to the Big Game, it will end up being little more than a glorified conference game, one that Cal needs to win to get to .500 and improve its bowl chances.

The Golden Bears seemed to find themselves in the 43-17 victory over UCLA on Oct. 6 and continued their resurrection in the 31-17 victory over Washington State on Oct. 13.

The Bears have rediscovered the ground game that was the impetus for their success in the second half of last season and was expected to be their strength this year. It has enabled Cal to control the ball and gain an offensive rhythm it did have in the first five games. More important, perhaps, is that the running threat has slowed down the opposing defense’s pass rush, which has helped Zach Maynard and the Cal passing game.

Running the ball against Stanford will be a tougher task than doing it against UCLA or Washington State, though. The Cardinal has one of the best front sevens in the country and ranks seventh in the nation against the run.

That doesn’t mean the Cardinal won’t try to run against the Cardinal.

Defensively, Cal has two missions: Slow down the Cardinal running game to force Stanford to throw, and prevent Stanford tight ends Zach Ertz and Levine Toilolo from being dominant weapons.

Cal’s defense has been good against the run in some games and not so good in others, but it did a pretty good job against the Cardinal runners last season, when Stanford had a better running game than it does now.

Stanford quarterback Josh Nunes has not been very effective in road games, and the Bears want the Cardinal to have to rely on Nunes’ passing to move the ball.

A few weeks earlier, when Stanford was ranked No. 8 and Cal was 1-3 and on its way to becoming 1-4, this game looked like a mismatch. Now it seems Cal has a chance to win, although Stanford should still be considered the favorite.

NOTES, QUOTES

Maynard on his game entering Stanford tilt

–The Cal-Stanford game was moved to the middle of the season to accommodate the Pac-12 television schedule. Officials for both Cal and Stanford opposed having the game played at midseason, but officials from the other conference schools approved the schedule. Not since 1896 has Cal faced Stanford in a game placed in the middle of the season. Having the Pac-12 title game set for the first weekend of December limited the options. The Cal-Stanford game could have been played the Saturday after Thanksgiving, but the two schools did not want the holiday to conflict with the events leading up to the Big Game. The game could have been played the Saturday before Thanksgiving, but officials from other conference schools vetoed that because of a variety of scheduling issues. The Cal-Stanford game will be played late in the season again in most future seasons.

–Cal QB Zach Maynard had his best game of the 2011 season against Stanford in the Bears’ 31-28 loss. His numbers were better than those of Stanford’s Andrew Luck that day, with Maynard completing 20-of-29 passes for 280 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions, while Luck was 20-for-30 for 259 yards, two scores and an interception. Maynard is coming off two solid games against UCLA and Washington State, and he rushed for a career-high 78 yards against Washington State.

–It will be interesting to see how Cal defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast defends Stanford’s receivers. Cal’s strength has been its cornerbacks — Steve Williams, Kameron Jackson and Marc Anthony (if he’s healthy). But the Cardinal’s wide receivers have not been effective, and the Cardinal passing game focuses on its tight ends. Recent Stanford foes have been double-teaming TEs Levine Toilolo and/or Zach Ertz with a linebacker and a safety.

–Cal’s two-game winning streak has quieted talk about coach Jeff Tedford’s job security, but that could arise again if Cal loses decisively to the Cardinal. This is a pivotal game for Cal. If it wins to get to .500, Cal would have a shot to improve to 5-4 the following week against a Utah team that has struggled because of quarterback problems.

–Stanford is 0-2 in road games this season, and it failed to score an offensive touchdown in either of those games.

SERIES HISTORY: Stanford leads 57-46-11 (last meeting 2011, Stanford 31-28).

SCOUTING THE OFFENSE: Cal’s offense has been productive the past two games, albeit against suspect defenses (UCLA and Washington State). The biggest improvement has been in the running game and pass protection, and the improvement in pass protection is largely the result of the improved running threat. The Bears have developed a three-man rotation at tailback, with C.J. Anderson being the anchor after rushing for more than 100 yards in each of the past two games. Brendan Bigelow provides a big-play threat out of the backfield that Cal did not have before he started getting playing time. QB Zach Maynard has completed 73.6 percent of his passes the past two games, primarily because he’s had time to throw. He did throw three interceptions in those two games, however, with all three coming early in the game. Like most quarterbacks, Maynard has struggled when facing a good pass rush, and Stanford has by far the best pass rush Cal has faced this season.

SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: Cal has not been as good defensively as it was last season, but it has been improving. The main difference is in turnovers. Cal has forced eight turnovers the past two games, including six interceptions. The Cal cornerbacks have been surprisingly good in pass coverage. The Bears’ defense has been OK, but not great, against the run, as defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast has relied on a defense that features two linemen, four linebackers and five defensive backs. Cal has playmakers at outside linebacker in Chris McCain and Brennan Scarlett.

QUOTE TO NOTE: “You play whenever they tell you to play it. It doesn’t help to get angry about it. … At some point there has to be a stand for rivalries and traditional games.” — Cal coach Jeff Tedford, on playing Stanford in mid-October instead of at the end of the season as both schools would prefer.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

THIS WEEK’S GAME: Stanford at Cal, Oct. 20 — This is the 115th meeting between Cal and Stanford in a contest known as The Big Game. Stanford is 4-2 (2-1 in the Pac-12) after its controversial overtime loss to Notre Dame, and Cal is 3-4 (2-2 in the Pac-12) after beating Washington State 31-17. Jeff Tedford is 7-3 against Stanford, but the Cardinal has beaten Cal the best two seasons.

KEYS TO THE GAME: Cal must give QB Zach Maynard time to throw. Stanford has the best pass rush Cal has faced this season, and the Cardinal creates pressure in a number of ways. Even though Cal did not allow a sack against Washington State, it has yielded 29 sacks for the season, the most in the country. Establishing a running game is the main way to slow down the Cardinal’s pass rush, but the Cardinal is good against the run, which will make that difficult. Cal needs several big plays from Keenan Allen, either as a receiver or runner, to take advantage of his ability to move in space against Stanford’s secondary. Defensively, Cal must prevent Stanford from getting major rushing gains on first down. If the Cardinal consistently gets six or seven yards on first-down runs, it relieves a lot of pressure from Stanford QB Josh Nunes. Cal has to force Stanford to throw.

PLAYERS TO WATCH:

WR Keenan Allen — Always QB Zach Maynard’s No. 1 target, Allen had his best game of the season with 166 receiving yards against Washington State. He is capable of producing a big play as a receiver, runner or punt returner, and the Bears will need a big play or two to score against Stanford.

RB C.J. Anderson — Anderson has become the No. 1 rushing threat for the Bears and has rushed for 151 yards and 112 yards the past two games. The Bears have been using two tailbacks in the same backfield quite a bit recently, and Anderson has been the team’s most consistent ball carrier.

QB Zach Maynard — He had outstanding games against Ohio State and UCLA, and it’s no coincidence those were Cal’s best games overall. He added a running dimension against Washington State, rushing for a career-high 78 yards, and that threat could be critical against Stanford.

CB Steve Williams — Williams seems to get better every week, and he had an outstanding game against Washington State. Stanford has not had much production from its wide receivers.

ROSTER REPORT

–CB Marc Anthony is questionable for the Stanford game because of a knee injury.

–DE Aaron Tipoti is questionable for the Stanford game with a knee injury.

–CB Steve Williams was named Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week after collecting six tackles, four pass breakups and an interception against Washington State. It’s the second straight week a Cal cornerback was so honored, with Kameron Jackson being named Player of the Week the previous week.

–G Dominic Galas is getting closer to being ready to play, but he remains questionable for the Stanford game with a pectoral injury.
–LB Khairi Fortt (knee) apparently will redshirt the season.