I'm Back!!

Hi Bear fans

After a 6 month hiatus fighting the good fight against my business going down, I am back. I have a bit more time to spend on Oskitalk, so I am going to try to post a few times per week. Also, it was getting pretty boring at the end of football season. While the hoops team did well (and Dick Vitale has us ranked 14th in his Hoops Preseason shenanigans) it seems like life is back on track with football around the corner. I have my tickets, parking pass and new Cal shirt on. Let the season begin.

First, a few thoughts on what has been going on in the off-season. Nothing except the best recruiting class that the Bears have ever had at this stage of the game. We are in the run for some additional quality players, but if we get who we have been told we are getting, as well as half of who we think we may, we are in top shape for seasons to come.

Also, it has been a quiet off season in general. Why? Because there was not that much to whine about, and Bear fans, as you all know, are probably the biggest whiners out there (or, as we like to say, the most committed fans). So when there is nothing to whine about, it is pretty quiet. No Nate Longshore to kick around any more - we ended up with a bowl win and a decent season, even with the QB controversy. In fact, i would say that most thinking fans of the Bears predicted (as I did) a year or two ago that this would be the season of destiny. Actually, I think I said that we would be moving to a new elevation. By that I mean 10 win seasons on a regular basis - when 9 wins is a rebuilding year. I definitely thought last year was a rebuilding year, with a new line, new receivers, new QB situation, new defensive strategy, etc. So to grab 9 wins from that is good.

I think it is pretty clear that Cal is the number 2 program in the west - meaning west of Texas. We are getting recruits from all over, and we at a much higher level than most other programs from that perspective. We are building the High Performance Center - all that crap has washed away now, and you can actually see the progress. The ticket buying scheme has been working - the revenue is still strong for the athletic department.

In fact, the biggest obstacle to the Bears continued growth as a top notch place to play football is the state legislature, who by pure idiocy is endangering California's future by it's slash and burn approach to government.

That being said, it is a great time to be a Golden Bear. For those of you youngsters who don't know or don't remember, being a Cal fan for many years was a tough as nails proposition. The University hated sports, and tried to kill it in many ways. Many times, the Bears tried to rise, only to be smacked down by lunkheaded administrators, who had no idea what a flourishing athletic program can do for a community, a University and a region. It drives fundraising revenue, and helps the academic side of the house significantly.

So when 800 million is cut from the schools budget, how are you going to get that back? The University needs a much bigger endowment, and athletics and the institutional attachment that comes with athletics can help with that.

But back to my premise - that the Bears are the number 2 team in the west now. I have thought that for a while, but I believe that to be the case. So that would include schools in the following states: CA, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Hawaii, Idaho, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Nevada.

Anyone following recruiting knows that we have been successful in attracting top caliber players from all of those states, as well as Texas, and others, over the last few years, and particularly the last three years. As the SAHPC come together, as the wins continue to add up, the Bears have been consistently the team that has given USC it's toughest challenge over the last 7 years.

Now, we have only won one of those. But that will change. And the players know, Cal is the team that can do it, and will do it, eventually.

UCLA has a tough spot. They are cross town rivals, but never seem to be able to get it going. And the best do not see UCLA as a big player - they have been bad for so long that the young players do not remember when it was good. They could come back, but I do not see Neuheisel as the guy to do it.

The Washington Schools are getting out recruited by Boise State. The Arizona Schools just can not take players from California anymore, and they do not have enough talent at home. Similarly, Utah. BYU could actually give the Bears a run for the money, because, similarly to Notre Dame, they have a built in advantage. But the Bears get their share of Mormon kids, and they like Berkeley.

While Oregon has Nike supporting it, they do not have enough recruits there to make it a long term leader in the Pac 10. The Bears have beaten them 3 of the last 4 meetings, and 5 of 7.

While the Beavers have been doing well, they do not have the wherewithal to contend over time for the Pac 10 title. They have had some remarkable seasons, and will do well over time as long as their coach stays. But their talent pool is smaller than the Bears, who do not have a real natural rival in the local area that can compete with us for talent. Stanfurd has decided that it is not in the major football business by building a tiny tot stadium and by hiring Jim Hairball, who will bolt at the first NFL opening.

I like the position that the Bears have gotten to. It is similar to the position they were in during the early part of last century. A quality institution with great staying power, who can compete with the best for the best recruits. That does not mean that every year will be a winning year, but it does mean that the down years will be few and far between, and not as down as they have been in the recent past.

GO BEARS!!