Cal's run for roses falls short as team gets snubbed

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Dec 6, 2004 | by Dave Newhouse, STAFF WRITER

BERKELEY -- The University of California's football team just lost its rosy complexion. The Golden Bears won't be playing in the coveted Rose Bowl after all.

Cal's dream of returning to the Rose Bowl after a 46-year absence evaporated Sunday when the Bowl Championship Series committee picked Texas instead to face Michigan on New Year's Day in Pasadena.

Cal will play Texas Tech in the Holiday Bowl in San Diego on Dec. 30.

Cal may have been a victim of Texas coach Mack Brown's open campaigning for a BCS game. The Bears only needed to hold onto their No. 4 BCS standing in Sunday's final vote to get to Pasadena.

But Texas, ranked No. 5 in the BCS last week, leapfrogged Cal into the No. 4 spot after Brown lobbied for votes. Cal coach Jeff Tedford relied on his team's record on the field, and that was good enough to rank fourth, ahead of Texas in the current Associated Press and ESPN/ USA Today coaches polls.

However, compiled with the BCS' computer rankings, Texas had enough points to overtake Cal in a system riddled with confusion and imperfection.

"Obviously, we're very disappointed," Tedford said after getting the news. "We had our fingers

crossed, and I was hoping for the best situation for the kids. I really believed they deserved (the Rose Bowl)."

Cal ended the regular season 10-1, the most victories by a Cal team since it was 10-0 in 1949 before losing to Ohio State in the Rose Bowl.

Texas also is 10-1, but its only defeat came against No. 2 Oklahoma, while Cal's one loss was against No. 1 USC. But the Bears struggled to win at Southern Mississippi on Saturday, 26-16, which dropped them one spot in the BCS.

"There seems to be some injustice there," Tedford said of the BCS system. "I don't have an answer for it, but until we come up with a better answer, we have to live with what it is."

Margin of victory has become a determining factor, along with the number of victories in the BCS standings. Tedford had an opportunity to run up the score Saturday night in Hattiesburg, Miss., but he ran out the clock rather than try to embarrass the home team.

Ethics aren't rewarded, obviously, as much as begging for votes.

"I don't feel any anger," Tedford said. "Sometimes, things aren't fair."

Tedford, who has lifted Cal from 1-10 to 10-1 in three years, said he feels compassion for the alumni regarding the Rose Bowl.

The Rose Bowl might have preferred that Cal play there, too.

"We have been traditionalists," Tournament of Roses president Dave Davis said of the normal Pac-10 vs. Big Ten matchup. "(But) we understand the BCS rules. We need to comply with the BCS rules."

Cal's last trip to the Rose Bowl was during the 1958 season. Even though the current Bears' rosy glow disappeared Sunday, Tedford remained upbeat about playing Texas Tech (7-4) in the Holiday Bowl.

"As we get through the next couple days," he said of his players, "they'll have a passion to play in a great bowl game like the Holiday Bowl. I've been there before (at Oregon), and we're looking forward to going there."

That may be true, but only after Sunday's shock wears off.