PAC-10 action kicks off at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, California Saturday as the 21st ranked Cal Golden Bears close out a three game home stand by hosting the 22nd ranked Sun Devils of Arizona State. The 3:30 p.m. (EDT) kickoff will be televised nationally on FSN. California posted an impressive 42-16 victory over Portland State on Saturday while the undefeated Sun Devils are coming off a 21-3 win over Colorado.
Arizona State brings a perfect 3-0 mark to Memorial Stadium on Saturday. The Sun Devils have climbed to No.22 in the nation following wins over Northern Arizona, Nevada and Colorado. Sophomore quarterback Rudy Carpenter, who led the nation in pass efficiency last year, is averaging 28.07 yards per game and has thrown for nine touchdowns. A two-pronged running attack of sophomore Keegan Herring and junior College transfer Ryan Torain have combined for 103 yards rushing per game and three touchdowns. Defensively, the Sun Devils have used a ferocious pass rush to hold opponents to just 278.7 yards of total offense per game. The Devils have 12 different players combining for 18 sacks in just three games. Senior Derron Ware has 15 tackles with four sacks. Senior Beau Manutai also has 15 tackles while junior college transfer Chris Baloney has 10 tackles and two interceptions. ASU entered the 2006 season having won back-to-back bowl games.
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The Golden Bears got off to a 0-1 start on opening day (Sept.2) losing to Tennessee 35-18. Cal rebounded in week two by tripping up Minnesota 42-17 in Berkeley followed by the win last Saturday (Sept. 16) over Portland State.
Cal quarterback Nate Longshore leads the offensive charge for the Bears and has completed 37-of-54 passes for 525 yards with six touchdowns and just one interception in the last two games. In three games Wide Receiver DeSean Jackson is nearly halfway to what he accomplished statistically in 12 games in 2005 with 16 catches for 304 yards and five touchdowns. Cal’s triple threat at tailback, Marshawn Lynch, Justin Forsett and Marcus O’keith only need three rushing yards to push over 4,000 for their careers. Lynch went over 2000 career rushing yards against Minnesota, the ninth player in Cal history to reach that milestone.
ASU head coach Dirk Koetter knows his team must contain the Cal running game and especially Marshawn Lynch. “ He (Lynch) can break tackles.” Koetter said. “ You have to do a great job pursuing him. He can make guys miss tackles and can break them. He has a rare combination of speed and power and can go all the way on every play. You got to get guys around and contain him.
Koetter is just as impressed with the Cal defense. “Defensively, they are deep and they go after you. The front seven, the linebackers are very physical. They are less experienced on their secondary but are leading on tackles. We didn’t play too well when we went up there two years ago, so it will be a big challenge for us.”
Cal is favored by -8 points and the total is set at 57.
