Finally, Big Deal For Real

For the first time in a long time, the Big Game has Big Meaning to those outside the Bay Area.

That’s because, for the first time in a long time, there will be a Rose Bowl berth at stake when Stanford and Cal clash Saturday at Stanford. All the Cardinal (6-3, 6-1) has to do is win against its fierce rival and it is in the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1971.

“We’d be happy if we clinched against the Sisters of the Poor, said Stanford coach Tyrone Willingham following his team’s 50-30 win over Arizona state last weekend. “But it makes the Big Game something special.”

The last time the Big Game had special postseason meaning was 1975. That year Cal needed a win to keep pace with UCLA for the Rose Bowl. The Bears scored the most points in Big Game history, 48, and won. But UCLA beat USC the next week and went to the Rose Bowl by virtue of the tiebreaker.

Before that, the most significant Big Game was 1958 when Joe Kapp led the unranked Bears over No. 19 Stanford and into the Rose Bowl. That was also the last time the Bears were in the Rose Bowl. Stanford’s last trip was after the 1971 season.

Of course, everyone will always remember 1982 and The Play. But while that game may have been the most exciting in Big Game history, only pride was on the line, not postseason.

And for Cal (4-6, 3-4), this year’s game is also just for pride.

“Winning season or not, this game can make or break what you’ve done at Cal,” senior linebacker Keith Miller told the San Francisco Examiner. “This is our bowl game. This is our biggest game, our biggest challenge offensively and defensively. We’re going to make the most of it.”

Problem is, Cal has not made the most of it in the last four years. Since Willingham came to Stanford, the Cardinal is unbeaten in the Big Game. If the Cardinal wins again, it would be the longest winning streak in the Big Game since the 1960s, when Stanford won six in a row.

Turn on, tune out

Last week, executives at ABC decided not to air the Big Game or the Apple Cup, opting instead for the USC-UCLA matchup.

The Apple Cup, however, will be televised locally by KXLY.

Neither USC or UCLA can go to a bowl and the teams are tied with identical 4-6 overall and 2-5 conference records.

“I think it’s an embarrassment to the conference,” Cal athletic director John Kassar told the San Francisco Chronicle. “But ABC has the pick. They paid us a lot of money to have the choice.” Call to arms

Three teams will be forced to go deep into their bench for starting quarterbacks this week.

Cal, which has the worst offense in the Pac-10, lost Kyle Boller when he separated the shoulder on his throwing arm against Oregon. Replacing Boller will be rarely used walk-on senior Wes Dalton. Dalton is making his first start because backup Sam Clemons is still out with a foot injury and stress fracture in one leg.

The broken collarbones of UCLA quarterback Cory Paus and USC’s Carson Palmer have created a matchup of former fourth-stringer Ryan McCann (UCLA) and former linebacker John Fox (USC).

Bowl picture

Stanford, Washington, Oregon and Oregon State are eligible for bowls. The winner of the Arizona-Arizona State game on Nov. 27 will join them.

Stanford just needs to win and it goes to the Rose Bowl. If it loses and Washington wins, the Huskies go to the Rose Bowl.

Oregon is also still alive for a Rose Bowl berth, but barely. If the Huskies and the Cardinal lose and Oregon beats Oregon State, the Ducks would head to Pasadena.

As for the other bowls: the second-place team is supposed to go to the Holiday Bowl, the third-place team to El Paso, and the fourth- and fifth-place teams to Hawaii. But if the three top teams (Stanford, UW and Oregon) win, the Holiday Bowl might pick third-place Oregon (7-3, 5-2) over second-place Washington (6-4, 5-2) because of a better overall record.

Players of the week

Stanford quarterback Todd Husak was named the offensive player of the week after leading the Cardinal to a 50-30 win over ASU. Husak was 20 of 35 for 311 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions. Oregon State linebacker Jonathan Jackson was named the defensive player of the week. Jackson had nine tackles, eight unassisted, including two for losses. He also had an interception, which he returned for 26 yards, and forced a fumble. Washington kicker John Anderson was named specialist of the week for his 50 and 56-yard field goals.

News and Notes

Twenty coaches took over Division I football programs in 1995. The two winningest to date are Rick Neuheisel (Colorado and Washington) with 39 wins and Oregon’s Mike Bellotti with 37… . Four of the five winners in last week’s games were outgained by the losers. The exception was UCLA… . The Pac-10 has had four 1,000-yard rushers only three previous times - in 1973, 1978 and 1990. This year, the conference could have as many as six. Oregon State’s Ken Simonton and Arizona’s Trung Canidate have already broken the 1,000-yard barrier. Arizona State’s J.R. Redmond (973), Oregon’s Reuben Droughns (942), USC’s Chad Morton (914) and Washington State’s Deon Burnett (857) still have chances… . Stanford’s Troy Walters and Arizona’s Dennis Northcutt are second and third in Division I-A receiving with 127.44 and 117.73 yards per game, respectively… . Oregon State’s Dennis Erickson and Neuheisel will join a list 15 previous Pac-10 coaches to take their teams to a bowl game in the first season on the job.