August 6, 2009

Chris Nguon
BearTerritory.net Senior Writer

1. Giorgio Tavecchio vs. David Seawright and Vince D'Amato

How many times do kickers lead the news to anything?

Usually, as senior offensive tackle Mike Tepper admittedly notes in his number one item on his very popular blog about ten things that "makes me mad," kickers are usually um ? misunderstood.

All half-jokes aside though, the kicking battle this camp will be more highly watched than any other special teams position battle in the Jeff Tedford era. If the Bears really are going to challenge for a conference and national crown this season as some are predicting, then there is about a 99 percent chance that someone is going to have to nail at least one late-game, pressure packed field goal sometime this season.

But who will that guy be?

If the season started tomorrow, the diminutive 5-foot-8, 173 Tavecchio will almost certainly get the nod. Because of that, Tavecchio heads into Fall Camp in the driver seat of the competition. If he kicks the ball well in August, chances are he's going to run out on the field for field goals and extra points in the season opener against Maryland in September.

The sophomore, who converted 9-of-13 kicks last season, has some stiff competition staring him in the face however.

Fellow sophomore David Seawright actually began last season as the starter after he beat out incumbent Jordan Kay. Seawright kicked the ball well, nailing 5-of-7 field goals to begin the year, before a groin injury sidelined him for the rest of the season.

If this were just a Seawright versus Tavecchio competition, this battle definitely would not top this list because pretty much all 20-plus positions on a football team (outside of a couple rare exceptions) become a two-man battle once the team heads into the pre-season.

What makes this kicking competition so intriguing however is the addition of true freshman Vince D'Amato. As fans that follow the recruiting game undoubtedly know, head coaches around the country rarely give out full scholarships to placekickers right out of high school. The fact that Tedford went against the grain in a sense and offered D'Amato means two things. One, D'Amato is a special talent. Two, Tedford feels the kicking game could use a little jolt of extra competition.

Tedford admitted earlier this week that he has never had a team going into camp where three kickers had a legitimate shot at winning the job.

2. Eddie Young and Devin Bishop vs. Jarred Price and Ryan Davis

While the kicking competition might top the list simply because of its bizarre nature of having three athletes battle for the job, the most closely watched competition this fall might be among the outside linebackers. Battling two veterans are two junior college transfers who come into the program with extremely high accolades.

Berkeley native Eddie Young won't "wow" anyone with his physical ability but what has gotten him on the field so far during his career is his penchant to play hard and play smart. Same goes for fellow senior Devin Bishop, who is one of the hardest hitters on the roster.

First and foremost, it'll be interesting to see who can provide a solid pass rush off the edge. Currently, the 6-foot, 239 pound Young (40 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss last season) is slotted in the spot left by the departed Zack Follett, who put together arguably the best single-season defensive performance (87 tackles, 23 tackles for loss, 10.5 sacks, 5 forced fumbles, 4 pass breakups) by a Cal athlete in the last 20 years not named Deltha O'Neal.

Young is a capable pass rusher but not nearly on the level of Follett. In a lot of ways though, he doesn't have to match Follett's production this season, but Young does need to be solid on the edge - especially against the run. If the staff feels Price or Davis can provide a stronger and more lethal pass rush off the edge however, the job could very well be theirs to take.

On the other side of the line resides 6-foot-1, 239 pound Bishop (13 tackles last season), who is slotted to play on the weakside this season. Much like Young, Bishop is a cagey athlete who has now learned what defensive coordinator Bob Gregory wants him to do out there. Bishop has bounced around inside and outside throughout his football career and with Mychal Kendricks and Mike Mohamed entrenched on the inside, Bishop's best bet to start this season will be on the edge.

Bishop began Spring Ball on the inside but was moved back outside after two weeks as he essentially switched positions with the mega-talented Kendricks and both players performed reasonably well after the flip-flop.

When it comes to the junior college athletes, not much will be known about what Davis and Price can bring to the field until full contact practice begins. From what we've been able to gather, both junior college transfers will get their shot at strong outside 'backer. However, both are reportedly versatile enough to play on weakside if need be.

From past seasons, history says that it takes a year for things to fully "click" for junior college transfers, especially linebackers.

Outside of Desmond Bishop, who was spectacular the moment he arrived on campus, former Cal defensive players in the Tedford era who came from junior college understandably didn't explode until year 2 in the system.

Former junior college standouts Joe Maningo, Ryan Riddle, Desmond Bishop and Mickey Pimentel are some examples.

Maningo:
2003: (31 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks)
2004: (45 tackles, 9 tackles for loss, 6 sacks)

Riddle:
2003: (29 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks)
2004: (48 tackles, 19 tackles for loss, 14.5 sacks)

Desmond Bishop:
2005: (89 tackles, 6 tackles for loss)
2006: (126 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, 5 sacks, 3 interceptions)

Pimentel:
2005: (34 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks)
2006: (64 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks)

As BearTerritory documented in this Signing Day surprise, Davis spurned the Washington Huskies at the last moment to come to Cal because he's convinced he can excel in the 3-4 scheme as the hybrid rush 'backer. Price meanwhile is a small, 5-foot-9 219 pound dynamo who rushes off the edge like a Tasmanian devil. As people around college football often say, coaches don't bring in players from junior college to sit on the bench, so the competition for these two slots should be very heated.

The anticipation surrounding Price and Davis is highly depended on high much can they contribute right away? If it is on a Bishop level, then both guys should find themselves in the starting lineup. If not, they should be capable backups this season behind Young and Bishop.

3. The Wide Receivers vs. the Wide Receivers

No one can go far talking about this year's team without mentioning the wide receivers. Much maligned, criticized and touted for their potential all at the same time, who emerges from the pack at the end of Fall Camp is honestly anyone's guess.

Not that the wide receiving corps is devoid of talent, but the inconsistency surrounding their overall performance is what needs to be ironed out if Cal is going to make a serious run at a conference title.

With all the attention that teams will undoubtedly put on stopping Jahvid Best this season, the Cal wide receivers will find themselves in plenty of mano-y-mano scenarios against defensive backs. Bottom line, they need and should win those battles the majority of the time.

To put it in perspective, in 2003, former Bears' standout Geoff McArthur recorded more receptions (85 catches), yards (1504) and touchdowns (10) than the entire Cal returning receiving corps managed to tally combined (76 catches, 1122 yards, 10 touchdowns) last season. Of course, the numbers McArthur put up that year were of record-breaking status, but there's no denying that there is plenty of room for improvement.

What should make Cal fans very excited about this receiving corps is that they are the first ones to admit it.

As cornerback Syd'Quan Thompson stated earlier this week when asked about his counterparts on the other side of the line of scrimmage, hearing constant bashing from outside forces can be a great reason to work even harder.

"It's a big motivation for them," he said. "Even though we try not to get into all the criticism, you have no choice (as a player) but to hear that. You are going to feel it and think about it. These people are your fans that are watching you. Being criticized in the wrong way is not a good feeling. That and the motivation of wanting to be that guy that we are going to go to in the fourth quarter is what motivates them."

4a. Mark Boskovich vs. Matt Summers-Gavin

With Alex Mack now on to the NFL, the Bears lost a leader, competitor and their best offensive lineman from last season's squad. While Chris Guarnero is more than capable of playing well in the middle, losing an All-American center and arguably the best offensive lineman in school history makes the guard play this season even more important.

After playing the two seasons ago mostly at right guard when veteran Noris Malele was out with injury, redshirt junior Mark Boskovich moved over to left guard last year and begins year 2 of his campaign. The 6-foot-4, 304 pound Boskovich held his own during Spring Ball at his position, playing some of the most hard-nosed and physical football of his collegiate career.

Boskovich had his good and bad moments last season, but overall was solid considering it was his first full year as a starter on the Division-I level.

Boskovich will be pushed hard by redshirt freshman Matt Summers-Gavin, an ultra-talented prep athlete who came into the program as the most highly decorated high school offensive lineman in the Tedford era. Summers-Gavin was recruited by virtually every school in the country and in the end decided to stay close to his San Francisco home by coming across the Bay to Berkeley.

As a prep athlete at St. Ignatius High, Summers-Gavin was a jack of all trades, earning several post season honors on his way to leading his high school program to several successful seasons before graduation. Some projected Summers-Gavin as a tackle on the collegiate level but it looks like he's settled in nicely as a guard.

Summers-Gavin, or "MSG" as a lot of coaches and teammates refer to him as, suffered through various concussion and head injuries his true freshman season, which eventually forced him to enroll in school a year later in 2008. Because of that, Summers-Gavin is still behind the curb in terms of learning about technique and scheme on the collegiate level.

Still though, it hasn't taken long for Summers-Gavin to pick up the pace. Summers-Gavin performed well in Spring Ball and comes into Fall Camp threatening Boskovich's position. It won't be easy though. Boskovich is essentially a two-year starter with a lot of experience in the trenches.

4b. Chet Teofilo vs. Richard Fisher and Justin Cheadle

There's no doubt that new position coach Steve Marshall has a lot of talent to work with this upcoming season. Going into Fall Camp, both tackle positions (Mitchell Schwartz and Mike Tepper) are pretty much sewed up along with the junior Guarnero under center.

The guard positions are very much up for grabs though and a big focus will be on the comings and goings of the battle at right guard.

The aforementioned Malele has graduated and now three players fight for his starting position. Athletic senior Chet Teofilo played tackle last season but was moved inside in the spring. As players like Mack have stated in the past, Teofilo's biggest issue has always been his technique and if he can get it down consistently many have stated that Teofilo can be a beast of an offensive lineman.

The senior from Chula Vista (Calif.) stands a imposing 6-foot-3, 329 pounds but moves as if he's 290 pounds. During Spring Ball, Teofilo could be seen leading the way on several blocks in open space that really exemplified his athleticism. The former defensive tackle was moved over to the offensive side of the ball early in his career and earned a starting gig at left tackle after Tepper went down with injury before the start of the '08 season.

Teofilo struggled badly at left tackle however and was eventually moved to the right side in favor of the younger, more consistent Schwartz. With Tepper's return though, the staff wanted to keep Teofilo on the field and the best way to do that was to move him over to guard.

Battling Teofilo will be the versatile Richard Fisher and redshirt sophomore Justin Cheadle. Two seasons ago, Fisher was an unknown player. Last year, Fisher began to make his move during Spring Ball and all of a sudden people were asking who is that kid? Fisher stands 6-foot-4, 290 pounds and despite being a vegetarian possesses a tremendous amount of bulk and strength at the point of attack. Fisher is also a big-time team player as well, as shown by his willingness to switch from guard to center midway through last year when Guarnero went down with injury.

Meanwhile, Cheadle is certainly no slouch either. The Bakersfield (Calif.) native saw spot duty last season, including major playing time at USC after Malele had to limp off because of injury. Cheadle is very athletic in his own right and probably possesses the quickest feet of the three linemen competing for the right guard spot.

5. Kevin Riley vs. Brock Mansion and Beau Sweeney

From talking to various players both on and off the record, the consensus seems to be that the starting quarterback job is Riley's to lose.

To be honest, it's not too surprising that many players feel that way.

Riley took the majority of first-team snaps in Spring Ball and has continued to take those snaps in summer workouts leading into Fall Camp. While he did have his inconsistent moments in Spring Ball, the 6-foot-2, 221 pound junior was the most consistent of the three quarterbacks that will battle for the job in the fall (assuming true freshman Allan Bridgford doesn't have a meteoric rise up the depth chart).

From statements such as: "Being the quarterback, Riley is the chief," by wide receiver Jeremy Ross to the honest answer of "I think it's going to be Riley," when Jahvid Best was asked about the starting quarterback this week, its clear that Riley has the upper hand.

So, what does Mansion and Sweeney have to do to win the job?

For Mansion, one of the bigger issues that has plagued him so far in practice is accuracy throwing the ball down the field. Standing a stout 6-foot-5, 237 pounds, Mansion has all the physical tools needed to be a very successful Division-I quarterback. Mansion has shown flashes of his athleticism in practice but has also shown signs of his youth as well.

Mansion is outstanding throwing the ball on the run and can make almost any throw on the field. Over the last year, Mansion has also looked more and more comfortable in the huddle and understanding of Tedford's complicated playbook. To beat out Riley though, Mansion needs to bring his "A" game every single practice this fall. There are going to be bad throws and good throws, but overall every day has to be a good one for the redshirt sophomore.

From what we've observed watching Mansion practice the last two seasons, the big Texan is getting better at taking what the defense gives him. Many occasions lately, Mansion will look down the field before checking down to his safety valve below. The more he can show the coaching staff he understands tempo and control of what throws to make, the better off his standing will obviously be.

Two of the more successful quarterbacks under Tedford didn't have nearly the physical tools that Mansion has at his disposal. Tedford has stated on many occasions that Aaron Rodgers had a mental understanding of the position like very few players his age and Tedford enjoyed coaching Reggie Robertson for the very same reasons.

Mansion, who now enters his third year in the system, definitely looks more and more comfortable with what he is asked to do out there. The number one thing for a quarterback though is to obviously deliver a ball to a receiver on target when it's supposed to get there. Mansion's accuracy will be a big area of concentration that a lot of people will observe this fall.

For Sweeney, it is much the same deal. Sweeney is not as big as Mansion or Riley but is just as tough. Tedford said this week that he'll consider giving Sweeney more first and second team reps to get a better evaluation of what he can and cannot do. The redshirt freshman has been forced to run around and scramble on many occasions so far during his brief career and despite that, has shown a propensity to make a good play out of a bad looking situation.

Sweeney's time is probably a year or two away, but a strong Fall Camp can change a lot of opinions.

Chris Nguon is the lead football writer for BearTerritory. He's well known for his recruiting and game coverage in the star-studded Oakland Athletic League, plus his numerous contributions with The Daily Californian, UC Berkeley's only independent, student-run newspaper. Nguon is also a correspondent with the Oakland Tribune, and will cover Cal football and men's and women's basketball in 2009.