September 1, 2009
Video: Cal RB's Power Running
Video: Cal RB's Power Running
Chris Nguon
BearTerritory.net Senior Writer
One of the major luxuries the Bears will have this season is a deep and talented running back corps. Even with star athlete Jahvid Best sitting out the majority of Fall Camp to rest some bumps and bruises, the Cal offense was still able to generate an effective rushing attack throughout Fall Camp. Players like Covaughn DeBoskie-Johnson is a big reason for that. Check out video of "DeBo" and his fellow teammates in action. The video includes quick clips of DeBoskie, Langston Jackson, Dasarte Yarnway, Shane Vereen and others.
Video: RB's Power Running
Familiar faces
Area football talent poised to make an impact throughout Pac-10
By Stephen Dorman sdorman@theacorn.com
At the local level, there are 30 players from the Acorn Newspapers’ five coverage areas—imagine traveling from Calabasas High to Rio Mesa High and then going east through Moorpark and Simi Valley—listed on Pac-10 rosters that played high school or community college football in the area.
LET’S RUN—Simi Valley native Langston Jackson is ready to make plays at Cal-Berkeley.
College football kicks off in a matter of weeks, so let’s take a look around the Pac-10 to see what we can expect from the familiar playmakers.
California Golden Bears
Punters don’t get a lot of love from the media, but Camarillo native Bryan Anger isn’t your run-of-the-mill kicker. Anger’s foot is pure power, as evidence by his 43.1yard average last year, with a long of 76 yards. For his efforts as a redshirt freshman, Anger was named first team Freshman All-American by Sporting News Today , College Football News and Rivals.com, as well as second-team All-Pac-10.
Area football talent poised to make an impact throughout Pac-10
By Stephen Dorman sdorman@theacorn.com
At the local level, there are 30 players from the Acorn Newspapers’ five coverage areas—imagine traveling from Calabasas High to Rio Mesa High and then going east through Moorpark and Simi Valley—listed on Pac-10 rosters that played high school or community college football in the area.
LET’S RUN—Simi Valley native Langston Jackson is ready to make plays at Cal-Berkeley.
College football kicks off in a matter of weeks, so let’s take a look around the Pac-10 to see what we can expect from the familiar playmakers.
California Golden BearsPunters don’t get a lot of love from the media, but Camarillo native Bryan Anger isn’t your run-of-the-mill kicker. Anger’s foot is pure power, as evidence by his 43.1yard average last year, with a long of 76 yards. For his efforts as a redshirt freshman, Anger was named first team Freshman All-American by Sporting News Today , College Football News and Rivals.com, as well as second-team All-Pac-10.
Like his booming kicks, the sky’s the limit for Anger as a sophomore. “My goal is to be more consistent,” Anger said. “I’ll hit some really good ones, but then here’s a bad punt mixed in every now and then. I’ve made a few little tweaks to become more consistent.” He’s also hit the weight room to build more core strength.
Simi Valley’s Langston Jackson watched from the sidelines as a redshirt freshman running back. With a year of practice under his belt, Jackson believes he can make plays as a member of the Bears’ tailback committee and on special teams. “Coming out of the tunnel as a redshirt and seeing it filled with people, it’s a crazy feeling,” Jackson said. “It’s like nothing I’ve ever felt before. Now I’m just ready to get on the field.”
Cal Football Post-Practice Quotes
Head coach Jeff Tedford, and quarterbacks Kevin Riley and Brock Mansion address the media after Tuesday's scrimmage.
August 19, 2009
ESPN.com's Rank `Em: Heisman Watch 2009 (Vote for Jahvid) 2009 Cal Football: Cal Conducts Training Camp Scrimmage Cal Ranked 12th in USA Today Poll Season Outlook Buy Tickets Follow Cal Athletics: Facebook Twitter YouTube
Head coach Jeff Tedford, and quarterbacks Kevin Riley and Brock Mansion address the media after Tuesday's scrimmage.
August 19, 2009
ESPN.com's Rank `Em: Heisman Watch 2009 (Vote for Jahvid) 2009 Cal Football: Cal Conducts Training Camp Scrimmage Cal Ranked 12th in USA Today Poll Season Outlook Buy Tickets Follow Cal Athletics: Facebook Twitter YouTube
BERKELEY - California head coach Jeff Tedford, and quarterbacks Kevin Riley and Brock Mansion addressed the media following the team's training camp scrimmage at Memorial Stadium on Tuesday. Following are selected comments of what the three had to say.
JEFF TEDFORD On how the team looked during the scrimmage "Rusty. Offensively, we had too many penalties, too many bad snaps that you can't have in certain situations - great film to learn from. Defensively, I thought we played pretty well. Obviously, we gave up a few touchdowns in the red zone but for the most part we did a pretty nice job. We got some three and outs."
More on whether he expected the team to be rusty "It's about typical in what you're looking for or what you usually see. We played a lot of young guys today and gave them some scrimmage time. Sometimes, there's not a lot of need to play your veterans in a scrimmage like this. You want to evaluate what other guys can do."
On the quarterbacks "They made some good throws; they made some bad throws in certain situations. I would say they played average."
On the kickoffs "We need to improve there. We need some more work on the kickoffs and to do a better job."
On Brock Mansion "I'll have to lock at the tape but off the surface, I thought he made some good throws. He threw a ball or two deep, he threw a screen well. His presence and command was pretty good. This is the first time they've been out there on their own, getting signals and that type of thing. There's some work we need to do with that, so we'll work on it."
On Kevin Riley's presence "That's where his experience really helps Kevin. He's been in a situation where he's utilized the clock in and out of the huddle. A couple of times the clock was running down and we had motion in the backfield ... he's pretty calm with that. When you've been in those game situations, it's something that you get used to. His experience helps him."
On big catches by the tight ends "They're doing a great job. They ran what they are supposed to run. We caught them in a short yardage situation where they were playing the run and popped them there. The tight ends have done a good job and been very consistent."
On his wide receivers "I'm pleased with them. Certain ones have stepped up. Marvin Jones has really stepped up quite well, Verran (Tucker) has started to catch his stride a little bit well, so that's good. Nyan's (Boateng) back and playing well. When he caught the ball today, he really got up the field north and south, where last year he probably would have danced. So you can tell that's he used to a little more the speed of the game and the physical part of the game. They played well. I'm excited about that."
JEFF TEDFORD On how the team looked during the scrimmage "Rusty. Offensively, we had too many penalties, too many bad snaps that you can't have in certain situations - great film to learn from. Defensively, I thought we played pretty well. Obviously, we gave up a few touchdowns in the red zone but for the most part we did a pretty nice job. We got some three and outs."More on whether he expected the team to be rusty "It's about typical in what you're looking for or what you usually see. We played a lot of young guys today and gave them some scrimmage time. Sometimes, there's not a lot of need to play your veterans in a scrimmage like this. You want to evaluate what other guys can do."
On the quarterbacks "They made some good throws; they made some bad throws in certain situations. I would say they played average."
On the kickoffs "We need to improve there. We need some more work on the kickoffs and to do a better job."On Brock Mansion "I'll have to lock at the tape but off the surface, I thought he made some good throws. He threw a ball or two deep, he threw a screen well. His presence and command was pretty good. This is the first time they've been out there on their own, getting signals and that type of thing. There's some work we need to do with that, so we'll work on it."
On Kevin Riley's presence "That's where his experience really helps Kevin. He's been in a situation where he's utilized the clock in and out of the huddle. A couple of times the clock was running down and we had motion in the backfield ... he's pretty calm with that. When you've been in those game situations, it's something that you get used to. His experience helps him."
On big catches by the tight ends "They're doing a great job. They ran what they are supposed to run. We caught them in a short yardage situation where they were playing the run and popped them there. The tight ends have done a good job and been very consistent."
On his wide receivers "I'm pleased with them. Certain ones have stepped up. Marvin Jones has really stepped up quite well, Verran (Tucker) has started to catch his stride a little bit well, so that's good. Nyan's (Boateng) back and playing well. When he caught the ball today, he really got up the field north and south, where last year he probably would have danced. So you can tell that's he used to a little more the speed of the game and the physical part of the game. They played well. I'm excited about that."KEVIN RILEY On the scrimmage "There were good and bad. I made a couple of (good) throws; I made a couple of bad throws. You would like to eliminate the bad things, but it was nothing terrible and I responded well coming back. The first series I would have liked to have done more than a minus three, but we got stuck in a bad situation, got moved back and got stuck in a second-and-20. It's tough to get out of those things."
On the differences between a scrimmage and a regular practice "It's a lot more game-like. Coaches are off the field and you're running the show. You don't have people yelling in your background like `Hey, switch your play.' You're on your own, and it's football out there. You get to run it, and it's more fun."
On being more comfortable with his mechanics than last year "I worked on it a lot over the summer and during the spring. On some throws it (elbow) drops, but it's almost come to a thing that it's natural every time. It's going back here [demonstrates] instead of going here [demonstrates] like last year. I'm going to keep on working on it, and it will get better and better. I think I messed up on a couple today, but I'm going to try to improve a lot the next few days."
On doing his part to win the quarterback job "I'm being consistent. I missed a couple too many throws today, but I can't really worry about. I just have to improve. I just need to move the ball in some crucial situations, scoring in the red zone is huge and converting our third downs is big."
On his 30-yard touchdown pass to Jarrett Sparks during the scrimmage "After a little play-action, I saw him wide open. I just saw him there, and it was an easy toss out to him. The safety jumped on that play-action run a ton, and he was just standing by himself."
On his comfort level with the tight ends "It's very comfortable. We have a lot of guys who can play and have been making plays during camp. Anthony Miller has definitely been there. Skyler Curran has stepped up his game a ton since last year and even since the spring has stepped up his game a lot. Tad (Smith) is a reliable guy that always does the right thing. Jarrett (Sparks) is a great receiving tight end as well."
BROCK MANSION On the scrimmage and how things went for him "I feel things went pretty well. I was pretty happy with our ready list today, and I felt pretty smooth going through everything. It felt very comfortable out there."
On throwing a lot of passes in a row during one stretch "I felt good just warming up today at the very beginning when I first walked on the field. I thought today was going to be a good day. The way coach (Andy) Ludwig was calling the plays made sense to me. I just went out there and had a nice little rhythm going and made some passes."
On the differences between scrimmages and other practices "It's completely different. In practice, you feel like your hand is being held a little bit, but out here you are just thrown out in the wild. It was nice to kind of get off on your own and be able to see what you can do just off by yourself."
On feeling more comfortable now than last spring during scrimmage "I don't want to say way more comfortable, but I did fell more comfortable running with both teams - the one's and the two's. I feel a lot more comfortable now after summer workouts and the beginning of fall camp. I feel like I have a great handle on all the routes and all the progressions. Now, I'm just trying to polish up what I know about the protections and being able to protect my front side or back side."
On doing what he needs to do to win the starting quarterback job "I do everything the coaches ask me. Obviously, you have to do that or you won't have a chance. But (I've also been) going the 5-10 minutes early and staying the 5-10 minutes after to make sure you know what the heck is going on and what you're trying to get accomplished with each call."
On starting early and staying late for practice "It's not so-much after practice now, because we have such a tight schedule during fall camp. Coming out early and throwing with the QB's and tight ends does help a lot. I also do some footwork drills."
O
n where he thinks he stands in the quarterback competition "Each day I come out here and have a good day like this, I think I stride further. But, it's not so much me beating out Kevin (Riley). It's me proving to the coaches that they can trust me and that they can feel comfortable with me knowing that if they throw me out there, that I'm not going to lose the game or anything like that. I think I'm getting way closer than I have in the past (of getting to the point where the coaches feel comfortable with me during a game)."
On the differences between a scrimmage and a regular practice "It's a lot more game-like. Coaches are off the field and you're running the show. You don't have people yelling in your background like `Hey, switch your play.' You're on your own, and it's football out there. You get to run it, and it's more fun."
On being more comfortable with his mechanics than last year "I worked on it a lot over the summer and during the spring. On some throws it (elbow) drops, but it's almost come to a thing that it's natural every time. It's going back here [demonstrates] instead of going here [demonstrates] like last year. I'm going to keep on working on it, and it will get better and better. I think I messed up on a couple today, but I'm going to try to improve a lot the next few days."On doing his part to win the quarterback job "I'm being consistent. I missed a couple too many throws today, but I can't really worry about. I just have to improve. I just need to move the ball in some crucial situations, scoring in the red zone is huge and converting our third downs is big."
On his 30-yard touchdown pass to Jarrett Sparks during the scrimmage "After a little play-action, I saw him wide open. I just saw him there, and it was an easy toss out to him. The safety jumped on that play-action run a ton, and he was just standing by himself."
On his comfort level with the tight ends "It's very comfortable. We have a lot of guys who can play and have been making plays during camp. Anthony Miller has definitely been there. Skyler Curran has stepped up his game a ton since last year and even since the spring has stepped up his game a lot. Tad (Smith) is a reliable guy that always does the right thing. Jarrett (Sparks) is a great receiving tight end as well."
BROCK MANSION On the scrimmage and how things went for him "I feel things went pretty well. I was pretty happy with our ready list today, and I felt pretty smooth going through everything. It felt very comfortable out there."
On throwing a lot of passes in a row during one stretch "I felt good just warming up today at the very beginning when I first walked on the field. I thought today was going to be a good day. The way coach (Andy) Ludwig was calling the plays made sense to me. I just went out there and had a nice little rhythm going and made some passes."
On the differences between scrimmages and other practices "It's completely different. In practice, you feel like your hand is being held a little bit, but out here you are just thrown out in the wild. It was nice to kind of get off on your own and be able to see what you can do just off by yourself."On feeling more comfortable now than last spring during scrimmage "I don't want to say way more comfortable, but I did fell more comfortable running with both teams - the one's and the two's. I feel a lot more comfortable now after summer workouts and the beginning of fall camp. I feel like I have a great handle on all the routes and all the progressions. Now, I'm just trying to polish up what I know about the protections and being able to protect my front side or back side."
On doing what he needs to do to win the starting quarterback job "I do everything the coaches ask me. Obviously, you have to do that or you won't have a chance. But (I've also been) going the 5-10 minutes early and staying the 5-10 minutes after to make sure you know what the heck is going on and what you're trying to get accomplished with each call."
On starting early and staying late for practice "It's not so-much after practice now, because we have such a tight schedule during fall camp. Coming out early and throwing with the QB's and tight ends does help a lot. I also do some footwork drills."
O
n where he thinks he stands in the quarterback competition "Each day I come out here and have a good day like this, I think I stride further. But, it's not so much me beating out Kevin (Riley). It's me proving to the coaches that they can trust me and that they can feel comfortable with me knowing that if they throw me out there, that I'm not going to lose the game or anything like that. I think I'm getting way closer than I have in the past (of getting to the point where the coaches feel comfortable with me during a game)." 
Fall Camp Notebook: Day 11
Bears Hold Helmets-Only Session in Preparation for Tuesday Scrimmage By Matt Kawahara
Daily Cal Staff Writer
Tuesday, Aug 18, 2009 - With its first scrimmage scheduled for tomorrow, the Cal football team took it easy in a helmets-only practice on a cool Monday afternoon at Memorial Stadium. The Bears worked primarily on technique during the two-hour session, and there were no competitive 7-on-7 or team sessions between the offense and defense -- they'll see each other up close tomorrow in full pads and at full speed.
In Best's absence, Tedford said, Shane Vereen should play limited series tomorrow and younger backs like Dasarte Yarnway, Kevin Lewis and Langston Jackson will all see significant playing time. Redshirt freshman Covaughn DeBoskie-Johnson will be watching from the sideline, as he has been out for the last two days with what Tedford called a pulled muscle.
With its first scrimmage scheduled for tomorrow, the Cal football team took it easy in a helmets-only practice on a cool Monday afternoon at Memorial Stadium. The Bears worked primarily on technique during the two-hour session, and there were no competitive 7-on-7 or team sessions between the offense and defense -- they'll see each other up close tomorrow in full pads and at full speed. Not including tomorrow's scrimmage, the team has seven full-pad practices left before Maryland week.
Cal Football: Training camp practice No. 11 notes
Sunday's practice wasn't as physical as the Saturday morning situational practice was, but the tempo of practice was just as quick. Coach Tedford has been pleased with how training camp has gone so far saying, "I've been pleased with every practice we've had. I think they've all taken the field with great focus and intensity and it's been good."
Here are some of my notes from Sunday's practice:
Running back Langston Jackson seemed to have a very solid day. After his first run in 11-on-11 practice, he came up limping a little. The limp disappeared on his next run as he scampered off tackle for a big gain of +10 yards. Later on another play, he was trapped going around the right end, but stayed upright and fought through second and third-efforts to break out of the pack for another +10-yard run.
August 17, 2009
Fall Camp Day 10: Countdown to scrimmage
Chris Nguon
BearTerritory.net Senior Writer
The Cal football team has wrapped up Week 1 of Fall Camp and although early, several positive aspects of head coach Jeff Tedford's team is slowly starting develop.
9-ON-9 (NO WR or CB)
This session is based on running the ball only, with the occasional play-action pass mixed in.
Sunday evening, with the refs present, there was also the possibility of holding calls and the such being made. False starts committed by offensive linemen automatically meant 1 lap around the field.
Daily Cal Staff Writer
Tuesday, Aug 18, 2009 - With its first scrimmage scheduled for tomorrow, the Cal football team took it easy in a helmets-only practice on a cool Monday afternoon at Memorial Stadium. The Bears worked primarily on technique during the two-hour session, and there were no competitive 7-on-7 or team sessions between the offense and defense -- they'll see each other up close tomorrow in full pads and at full speed.
In Best's absence, Tedford said, Shane Vereen should play limited series tomorrow and younger backs like Dasarte Yarnway, Kevin Lewis and Langston Jackson will all see significant playing time. Redshirt freshman Covaughn DeBoskie-Johnson will be watching from the sideline, as he has been out for the last two days with what Tedford called a pulled muscle.
With its first scrimmage scheduled for tomorrow, the Cal football team took it easy in a helmets-only practice on a cool Monday afternoon at Memorial Stadium. The Bears worked primarily on technique during the two-hour session, and there were no competitive 7-on-7 or team sessions between the offense and defense -- they'll see each other up close tomorrow in full pads and at full speed. Not including tomorrow's scrimmage, the team has seven full-pad practices left before Maryland week.
Cal Football: Training camp practice No. 11 notes
Sunday's practice wasn't as physical as the Saturday morning situational practice was, but the tempo of practice was just as quick. Coach Tedford has been pleased with how training camp has gone so far saying, "I've been pleased with every practice we've had. I think they've all taken the field with great focus and intensity and it's been good."
Here are some of my notes from Sunday's practice:
Running back Langston Jackson seemed to have a very solid day. After his first run in 11-on-11 practice, he came up limping a little. The limp disappeared on his next run as he scampered off tackle for a big gain of +10 yards. Later on another play, he was trapped going around the right end, but stayed upright and fought through second and third-efforts to break out of the pack for another +10-yard run.
August 17, 2009
Fall Camp Day 10: Countdown to scrimmage
Chris Nguon
BearTerritory.net Senior Writer
The Cal football team has wrapped up Week 1 of Fall Camp and although early, several positive aspects of head coach Jeff Tedford's team is slowly starting develop.
9-ON-9 (NO WR or CB)
This session is based on running the ball only, with the occasional play-action pass mixed in.
Sunday evening, with the refs present, there was also the possibility of holding calls and the such being made. False starts committed by offensive linemen automatically meant 1 lap around the field.
The PLAY-BY-PLAY
Brock Mansion under center
- Dasarte Yarnway over left tackle for 10 yards
- Langston Jackson up the middle for 5 yards
- Kevin Lewis off left tackle for 10 yards BUT offensive holding called
- Langston Jackson slips through for 6 yards over left guard
- FS Brian Schwenke (who proceeds to run 1 lap around the field)
- Kevin Lewis 3 yards off left tackle
- Langston Jackson 10 yards up the middle
Allan Bridgford under center
- Kevin Lewis over left tackle 2 yards
- Langston Jackson stuffed for no gain right tackle
Brock Mansion under center
- Dasarte Yarnway over left tackle for 10 yards
- Langston Jackson up the middle for 5 yards
- Kevin Lewis off left tackle for 10 yards BUT offensive holding called
- Langston Jackson slips through for 6 yards over left guard
- FS Brian Schwenke (who proceeds to run 1 lap around the field)
- Kevin Lewis 3 yards off left tackle
- Langston Jackson 10 yards up the middle
Allan Bridgford under center
- Kevin Lewis over left tackle 2 yards
- Langston Jackson stuffed for no gain right tackle
11-ON-11 (first session)
The defense performed well in this session, holding the offense to short passes and minimal rush gains up the middle.
Beau Sweeney under center
- Complete short to Verran Tucker for 7 yards
- Langston Jackson no gain over right guard
- Kevin Lewis 9 yards over left tackle
Ryan Wertenberger under center
- Langston Jackson 2 yards over left guard
The defense performed well in this session, holding the offense to short passes and minimal rush gains up the middle.
Beau Sweeney under center
- Complete short to Verran Tucker for 7 yards
- Langston Jackson no gain over right guard
- Kevin Lewis 9 yards over left tackle
Ryan Wertenberger under center
- Langston Jackson 2 yards over left guard
2009 Cal Football Preview Debuts On Comcast SportsNet California Tuesday
(SAN FRANCISCO) – The 2009 Cal Football Preview television show will make its debut on Comcast SportsNet California this Tuesday, August 18 (6 p.m.). The half-hour program is hosted by Damon Andrews and will feature interviews with several members of the Cal football team, including in-depth sessions with head coach Jeff Tedford, Heisman Trophy candidate running back Jahvid Best and first-team preseason All-American cornerback Syd’Quan Thompson. The show will also feature a special segment with offensive tackle Mike Tepper mic’d up.
After its August 18 premiere, the show will be replayed on CSN California on August 20 (6:30 p.m.), August 21 (10:30 p.m.) and August 22 (9:30 p.m.). For additional air dates and times on both CSN California and CSN Bay Area, visit csncalifornia.com. The 2009 Cal Football Preview will also be available on Comcast Digital Cable’s ON DEMAND Channel 1.
Cal is in the midst of its 2009 training camp that continues through August 29 with that day’s practice followed by Fan Appreciation Day at Memorial Stadium from noon-2 p.m. All practices are closed to the public.
The Golden Bears begin their 2009 campaign with a nationally televised ESPN2 contest against Maryland at Memorial Stadium on Saturday, September 5 (7 p.m.). Fans are encouraged to participate in a Blue Out of the season-opener. The best way to show your support is to pick up the 2009 Cal Football Official Game Day Tee. For more information, visit CalBears.com/Blueout.
For 2009 Cal football tickets, visit CalBears.com or call (800) GO BEARS.
(SAN FRANCISCO) – The 2009 Cal Football Preview television show will make its debut on Comcast SportsNet California this Tuesday, August 18 (6 p.m.). The half-hour program is hosted by Damon Andrews and will feature interviews with several members of the Cal football team, including in-depth sessions with head coach Jeff Tedford, Heisman Trophy candidate running back Jahvid Best and first-team preseason All-American cornerback Syd’Quan Thompson. The show will also feature a special segment with offensive tackle Mike Tepper mic’d up.
After its August 18 premiere, the show will be replayed on CSN California on August 20 (6:30 p.m.), August 21 (10:30 p.m.) and August 22 (9:30 p.m.). For additional air dates and times on both CSN California and CSN Bay Area, visit csncalifornia.com. The 2009 Cal Football Preview will also be available on Comcast Digital Cable’s ON DEMAND Channel 1.
Cal is in the midst of its 2009 training camp that continues through August 29 with that day’s practice followed by Fan Appreciation Day at Memorial Stadium from noon-2 p.m. All practices are closed to the public.
The Golden Bears begin their 2009 campaign with a nationally televised ESPN2 contest against Maryland at Memorial Stadium on Saturday, September 5 (7 p.m.). Fans are encouraged to participate in a Blue Out of the season-opener. The best way to show your support is to pick up the 2009 Cal Football Official Game Day Tee. For more information, visit CalBears.com/Blueout.For 2009 Cal football tickets, visit CalBears.com or call (800) GO BEARS.
