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The Best of Cal: 2002 Big Game

With Cal Spring Football postponed until at least June, UC Berkeley as a whole moving to remote instruction for the remainder of the semester, and Cal Athletics suspending spring sports altogether, we're taking a dive into games of the past and some of the greatest moments in the recent history of Cal Athletics. This continues with Cal's win over Stanford in 2002.

Previous Installments: 2019 Big Game | 2007 FB vs. Tennessee | 2010 MBB vs. Arizona State | 2015 and 2016 vs. Texas

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The 2002 Big Game resembled the 2019 incarnation in many ways. Both times Stanford came in with a massive winning streak against Cal (7 games in 2002, 9 games in 2019). Both times Cal came in with the better record. Both games Stanford scored on their first possession. That's where the similarities end, as the Bears figured out the Cardinal after that first drive in 2002, on their way to a 30-7 win, one that exorcised plenty of demons for the Bears and saw the Axe return to Berkeley.

The Major Points

- Both Cal and Stanford came into this matchup with new coaches. Jeff Tedford took the Cal job after a successful run as Oregon's offensive coordinator, and Buddy Teevens took over for Tyrone Willingham, who left for Notre Dame. Teevens was fired after the 2004 season, but has made a resurgence as a head coach at Dartmouth over the past couple of years.

- Neither team was bowl eligible, with Stanford sitting at 2-8 and Cal having a bowl ban, thanks to playing ineligible players in 1999.

- Cal had 24 seniors, none of which had beaten Stanford. Of them, Kyle Boller, Joe Igber, LaShaun Ward, Nnamdi Asomugha, and Jemeel Powell would have the biggest impacts.

The Finer Points 

- This, coloquially, is known as the Joe Igber game, as the senior running back put up 226 yards and a touchdown in his final game. Igber left Cal second all-time in rushing yardage (he's now fourth) with 3124 rushing yards. This performance ranks 8th all-time in Cal history. Igber eschewed pro football, instead finishing his degree in engineering. He currently works as a structural engineer in the Bay Area.

- Igber was one of the shiftier backs that the Bears had during their run of 1000 yard rushers, as evidenced by the run at 20:29 into the above video. He had the speed to get to edge and lower body strength despite being a physically smaller player. At 51:22, Igber runs a staple of many spread teams now, an angle route out of the split set, isolating on a linebacker and converting on 3rd and 10. 53:39 is another example of Igber's shiftiness on a draw that set up Ward's second TD

- (21:54) There's a reason Kyle Boller went in the first round of the NFL draft. It's for throws like this one, the first touchdown of the day to Ward. It's a bullet on a line, put into the tightest of windows.

- Bert Watts made an important appearance (34:00), as the Cal safety, who led the Bears in tackles in 2002, made the first hit on a key 3rd and 1 stop, one that forced Stanford to punt from deep in their own territory, setting Cal up for a field goal to give them the lead for good. Watts is currently the linebackers coach at Memphis, after being the defensive coordinator at Fresno State the last two years.

- Cal had a chance to (31:58) go ahead even sooner, but Boller dropped a snap on 4th and goal from the 1, stopping a prime opportunity.

- (55:52) Ward's second touchdown, a post route where Boller had an eternity in the pocket to load up and make a throw.

- (1:09:45) Simple Power concept. Igber hits the hole with a head of steam. He is not touched. That run put Igber over the 1000 yard mark, as he started a stretch of seven consecutive seasons of 1000 yard rushers in Berkeley.

- (1:16:00) A key 3rd down to end the half, Cal had figured out things defensively, with Teyo Johnson providing the only real offense for the Cardinal with his first quarter touchdown (Johnson would go on to be drafted by the Oakland Raiders, playing with Cal TE coach Marques Tuiasosopo). A six man pressure brought Kyle Matter down, with Lorenzo Alexander leading the charge. Alexander retired from the NFL earlier this year after his 15th season, finishing up with the Buffalo Bills as a linebacker.

- (1:37:30) The second half started with a big hit by a mainstay in the secondary, Ryan Gutierrez, who would start at safety in 2003-04

- (1:41:31) Powell got to close the scoring for the Bears, evading a couple tackles and blazing by the Stanford punt team to make up the final score of 30-7.

- (2:10:15) The final big Igber run of the day, zig-zagging across the field for 55 yards. There's some excellent downfield blocking by the wideouts, Ward in particular, that sprang him for the extra 20 yards.

- (2:16:45) Big sack from future Super Bowl winner Tully Banta-Cain, who pressed off the tackle to force a fumble. That was his 13th sack of 2002, a number that had him tied for 3rd all-time on Cal's single-season list, tied with Ron Rivera.

The Final Word

After the Bears and Cardinals traded scoreless possessions, the Bears would come away with the Axe. Kyle Boller crowdsurfed his way across the field, the North end-zone goalposts came down and were paraded down Bancroft Avenue in Berkeley. This started a string of 7 Big Game wins in 8 seasons for the Bears, with this being one of the most memorable.

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