Advertisement
football Edit

Cal Football Countdown: 61 Days, A Good What If, Part 2

"All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

Tolstoy.

No, you haven't come to the wrong place. This is still a Cal football column, and Day 61 on our countdown to kickoff series. But it is, at least, an explanation for why we ran five "worst case scenarios" last week -- because most "best case" scenarios involve the team winning more games, and in the ideal/best case scenario, the Bears are in the Rose Bowl (or National Title Game), I find such a mental exercise less fruitful, and certainly not worth your time reading, much like Anna Karenina would have been boring without any of the scandal that tore apart her life.

But, in the interest of balance, as all things should be, we've decided to explore some possible "Good What Ifs". Trace began this yesterday with a look at Tevin Paul's continued emergence, and I'll handle a couple more this week, beginning with:

What if the DBs stay?

It's true that Ashtyn Davis, Trey Turner, and Jaylinn Hawkins are out of eligibility after 2019, and that Josh Drayden and Traveon Beck also likely to exhaust the "1" of their "2 to play 1". This is why the DB class is as big as it is, and still likely to grow bigger. But you'll notice that there are two names missing on that list of guaranteed departures: Elijah Hicks and Cam Bynum, the best pair of corners Cal has had working in a decade. Both could still return in 2020 -- the former would be a senior, the latter, in his fifth year. How likely that is at this exact moment, no one knows but them, and Bynum flirted with the idea of entering the draft already late last season, before coming back for this last run with the OG Takers. If they did, though, we would be looking at a 2020 opening day front seven of:

DE: Brett JOHNSON! (2nd year)

DL: Siu/Maldonado/Coleman (RS JR/JR/2nd year)

DE: Gabe Cherry/Braxten Croteau/JH Tevis (RS JR/2nd year/RS SO)

OLB: Cam Goode (RS SR, possibly) OR Orin Patu (2nd year)

LB: Evan Tattersall (RS Soph)

LB: Kuony Deng (SR)

OLB: Tevin Paul (RS SR, possibly) OR Ogunbanjo/Alftin/Moos (JR/RS SOPH/RS JR)

CB: Cam Bynum (RS SR)

S: Daniel Scott (RS JR)

S: Isaiah Humphries (RS SO)

CB: Elijah Hicks (SR)

Would it be unlikely? Yes. Would it be inconceivable? No.

A few things to consider:

1) Cal would have its best pass rush yet, if Orin Patu develops on a normal curve and Kuony Deng makes that second year JUCO jump most guys do.

2) The schedule would be easiest for them to be successful, with Oregon, UW, UCLA, and Stanford all at home. Every even season makes the Bears will automatically have a better shot at the North, thanks to that quirk.

3) Chase Garbers is projected to be in his third year of starting, which means the team should have shrugged off the worst of its offensive issues by then. The stop gap receivers could have stabilized, Chris Brown would be in full control of the run game...

(These reasons are also why I project 2020 to a more successful season than 2019 will be, but that's just getting ahead of myself at the moment.)

The bigger question is this: could that unit be potentially better than the '18 or '19 teams, if those two were here to anchor the secondary? How many wins might that team pull off?

Trace's Notes:

A few things to consider on the defense going into 2020:

1. The 2019 class of linebackers (Blake Antzoulatos, Ryan Puskas, Kyle Smith, Curley Young, Myles Jernigan, and Patu) will have a year under their belts to add depth.

2. The addition of Humphries meant a whole lot for 2020. He's a ballhawk at safety, and has the potential to be another NFL guy from this secondary.

3. Even with losing staples like Weaver, Bequette, Davis, Hawkins, Z. Johnson and Beck, there's still plenty in the cupboard. Wouldn't be surprising to see a guy like Isaiah Young taking over Beck's role early.

A Final Thought from Nam:

Screw it, I'll say it. If Cam Bynum and Elijah Hicks stay in 2020, it will be the best Cal team since 04. Yes, even better than the Goff year.

Advertisement