BERKELEY “”mdash; One of the most anticipated matchups of Saturday’s game was Cal’s center, Alex Mack, against UCLA’s defensive tackle tandem of Brian Price and Brigham Harwell.
Mack is known as one of the best centers in the country while Cal coach Jeff Tedford tabbed Price and Harwell as one of the best interior line in the conference earlier last week.
Price and Harwell both faced consistent double teams, opening up opportunities for defensive end Korey Bosworth, who finished with two sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss.
“It was a huge matchup, and we got a lot of double teams today,” Harwell said. “Our front did really well, and it’s just something positive we can take on and try to get better next week.”
For Price, who recorded three tackles for loss with a sack, nothing came as a surprise when he hit the turf against Mack.
“I expected everything that he gave us,” Price said. “We worked hard this week for him. He’s a real good player so hats off to him.”
WALKER PROUD OF DEFENSE: Though the final score showed Cal 41-20, UCLA’s defense was a point of pride for defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker after the game. The defense gave up 27 points despite consistently being forced onto a short field.
“I thought they played their asses off the whole game,” Walker said. “I’m not pissed off one bit. I’m really not. There’s going to be plays I’ll be pissed off, but I just think collectively, they played their asses off.”
The defense was on the field for almost 35 minutes and held the Bears to only four third- down conversions on 13 attempts.
PEREZ SAYS FAKE PUNT WAS WRONG CALL: UCLA punter Aaron Perez’s fake punt on fourth and 23 was not exactly drawn up for that situation. Though Perez’s pass to Courtney Viney was complete for 22 yards, Perez told the Orange County Register that he had realized it was the wrong call to have made because of the down and distance.
The ball was snapped from the left hash mark and crossed the middle of the field to reach Viney, who lined up as the right gunner. The ball was underthrown and Viney, who is a cornerback, was tackled 1 yard short of the first down. Directly following the turnover on downs, the Bears ran a flea-flicker for a 53-yard touchdown, putting them up 27-13.
RUSHING ATTACK FLOUNDERS: After posting only 16 yards on the ground, which is not their season-low, the Bruins running game now ranks 117 out of 119 in the country, averaging 81.5 yards per game.
“All I know is that if you’re going to be successful, you have to be able to run the football,” offensive coordinator Norm Chow said. “When you play like this, sometimes you get away from your game plan because you fall behind, so you don’t really know whether you can run the ball.”
Neuheisel saw his lack of a running game as an issue of strength on his offensive line, as they were often unable to force the defensive front off the line of scrimmage.
“We have to get stronger to the point where we can move people,” Neuheisel said. “I don’t know that we’ve ever been able to move people. I think sometimes we look good in clock drive situations, … but we have not achieved the ability to take the pressure off our quarterback.”
FORCIER TOSSES FIRST TD: Though usually brought in to add speed at the quarterback position, redshirt freshman Chris Forcier aired it out on Saturday. He attempted five passes, mostly in the fourth quarter with the game decided, and completed one for 9 yards and his first career touchdown.
RECORD DAY: Perez’s 67-yard punt in the first quarter was his career-high. … Terrence Austin’s 82-yard kickoff return in the fourth quarter was also a career-high. Austin recorded 203 return yards on the day, ranking second only to his school record of 206 against Fresno State set earlier this season.