Sports

The Daily Cal sports staff looks back at the last year in Cal sports, and its most memorable moments.

 

1. Jeff Tedford let go following 3-9 season

He is the winningest coach in Cal history. His 11-year tenure restored the football program to a level of respectability not seen since the 1950s.

But in December, Cal Athletics decided to let Jeff Tedford go after a 3-9 season — his worst ever.

His firing seems justified, as the team has been overflowing with NFL-level talent that has not translated to wins on the collegiate gridiron in years.

As November rolled into December and 3-4 turned into 3-9, two words began to be whispered on the lips of Cal faithful everywhere: “It’s time.”

Time for Tedford to go.

But while his legacy is still sour right now, in time, he may very well be known as the man who restored Cal football.

After all, he took the team to eight bowl games. We won the Axe five years in a row. Nine of his 11 years featured winning seasons. And, most importantly, Tedford made the $321 million dollar renovation to Memorial Stadium possible.

Tedford may have been the architect of his own demise, as the expectations that exist now only came after his dominance in the early half of the decade. But in the end, he leaves the program with a greater chance at long-term success than it has had in decades.

— Riley McAtee

2. Cal athletes take home 17 medals at the Summer Olympics in London

When people think about Cal, they think, “No. 1 public university in the world.”

As seen from last summer’s 2012 London Olympics, however, this title encompasses Cal’s international prowess not only in academics but also in athletics.

Cal sent 38 athletes to compete at the London Olympics — the most for a public university and just two athletes shy of leading USC and Stanford — and in the span of 18 days, the Bears garnered 17 medals, 11 of which were gold.

The Bears showcased what is arguably one of the greatest Olympic performances across the nation in school history.

Every four years, Cal’s Olympians have been showing improvement over their previous performances at each of the summer Olympic Games. Since taking home seven medals in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, Cal has either equaled or increased its medal haul, with 17 medals tying for the most they have ever won in Cal history.

Among those who earned medals in 2012 were former Cal athletes swimmer Nathan Adrian and soccer star Alex Morgan. While Adrian won three medals and two gold ones in London, Morgan led Team USA to a narrow 4-3 semifinal victory with a game-winning header, after which she earned her first gold medal in a 2-1 win over Japan.

If the trend persists, the Bears will continue to make a name for themselves on the international athletic totem pole in years to come.

 — Janice Chua

3. The Cal women’s basketball team makes an improbable run in the NCAAs

With Cal football faltering sans a bowl bid and Cal men’s basketball unable to leave a mark in the postseason last year, the Cal women’s basketball team’s historic season comes as a cathartic gust of fresh air to anyone parched to see the Golden Bears represented on national television.

Last season was a season of many firsts for Lindsay Gottlieb’s squad. On March 2, the Bears clinched their first Pac-12 title in program history. Four weeks later, they advanced to their first Elite Eight appearance and, soon after, their first Final Four appearance.

Between these three big shots of Cal athletics, we haven’t seen such levels of success since the men’s basketball team’s last Final Four appearance in 1960. Fifty-three years. That’s a long time for anyone to endure a triathletic drought.

And the best part is that this just might be start of something better. While the key seniors have left, this current squad is young and talented. While a Final Four encore in 2014 might be premature, the Bears look like they are reloading for another deep run in the March Madness in the next few years.

 — Seung Y. Lee

4. Memorial Stadium reopens after 21-month long renovation

It’s good to be back.

After a year of football in AT&T Park, California Memorial Stadium finally reopened for the beginning of the 2012 season.

The historic stadium was vastly improved in a renovation effort that took nearly two years.

The facade was restored. The concourse was widened. The field was lowered to allow the first few rows to have a better view. Wheelchair seats were added. Wooden bleachers were replaced with aluminum ones. A new press box was built, and the list goes on.

But the most important improvement is one that fans will not readily see. The stadium sits on a major fault line and, thanks to remarkable engineering, is now earthquake-safe for fans. Essentially, three completely separate structures make up the stadium, allowing each piece to move freely in the event of an major earthquake.

Hopefully, nothing too drastic happens — but in any event, the stadium is prepared.

Of course, there was — and still is — controversy. No plan worth $321 million could come without it. And there are doubts that Cal Athletics’ funding plan will be able to cover the long term cost.

But right now, it’s just nice to not have to cram onto BART cars to make it to AT&T Park by noon.

 — Riley McAtee

5. Sonny Dykes hired as head football coach

A poor 3-9 season and a brand-new football stadium is certainly not a good mix. It ultimately cost Jeff Tedford his job, opening an opportunity for Daniel “Sonny” Dykes to move from Louisiana Tech to Cal as the next head coach.

Hired Dec. 5, Dykes is set on not just improving the record for the upcoming football season. He’s committed to scrapping the old, pro-style offense under Tedford for a new, unconventional air raid offense and to changing the culture of Cal football entirely.

A little more than a month removed from his Cal debut against Northwestern on Aug. 31, only a few things are certain about Sonny Dykes so far.

First, he’s a pretty likable dude. He has more personality than Tedford in front of the public. Second, his zany offense — “Bear Raid”, “Air Bears” or whatever other moniker it has earned from the fans — will be fun to observe. It’s safe to assume the scoreboard will be kept busy for next season.

But to win the collective heart of the Cal fanbase, it’ll take more than likeability and offensive potency. There’s only three words Dykes has to remember:

Just win, baby.

— Seung Y. Lee

6. Missy Franklin commits to Cal

If Cal women’s swim wasn’t already enough of a threat on the national leaderboard, now the team will have five-time Olympic gold medalist Missy Franklin to call its own.

On Oct. 20, 2012, the teenage swimming star committed to Cal after deciding between other top national swimming programs like USC and Georgia, which finished seventh and first, respectively, at the NCAA Championships this past year.

One month later, Franklin solidified her commitment to the Bears after signing the National Letter of Intent to join the Cal women’s swimming team this fall.

The impressive 18-year-old showcased her talent in the pool at the 2012 London Olympics last summer, winning a total of five medals, four of which were gold. Franklin swept the 100 and 200 backstroke events for Team USA, and the Colorado native will only add more natural talent to Cal’s deep swimming lineup.

Franklin will be joining other U.S. national swimming teammates, like Rachel Bootsma and head coach Teri McKeever.

Although the recent high school graduate turned down the opportunity to go professional straight out of high school, Franklin plans to compete on the collegiate scale for only two years, after which she will turn pro and train for the 2016 Olympics.

 — Janice Chua

7. Rugby falls on final play of Varsity Cup

When you watch BYU’s Jonathan Linehan’s buzzer-beating, title-clinching drop-kick goal against the Cal rugby team in the National Championship game on tape, there is an eerie similarity to South African Joel Stransky’s extra-time kick in the 1995 Rugby World Cup finals.

In historical significance, Linehan’s kick pales in comparison to Stransky’s game-winner, which inspired countless documentaries and a movie starring Matt Damon and Morgan Freeman.

But in a dramatic climax, they stand as near equals. Both games featured a David and Goliath. (Cal and New Zealand played the latter.) Both came down to the wire for an emotional finish that concluded in a drop-kick goal.

The loss was a bitter pill for Cal rugby and its fans; after three decades of unmatched domination, the Bears aren’t familiar with losses. Usually, no team takes the Bears to crunch time on a tied score.

But can you really say you didn’t appreciate seeing one of the finest endings in American collegiate rugby in recent history? Maybe, if you are a staunch Cal loyalist.

If that is the case, just look at the tape.

— Seung Y. Lee

8. Cal Athletics unveils massive redesign

New coach, new team, new era.

In April, Cal Athletics undertook a massive rebranding of Cal’s athletics — including a new logo, new font and new uniforms for nearly every team.

The theme for the redesign was “Respect the past, represent the future.” As such, the new update does not stray away from the traditional Cal script or blue and gold colors.

But that did not stop Cal Athletics from taking the look in a bold new direction. The new Bear logo is a snarling behemoth that is a definitive change from the more mild logos of Oski or the walking bear that Cal has used in the past. And the football team unveiled a new color, gray, which has never been used before.

Though the design is not loved by everyone, it accomplishes Cal Athletics’ primary goals of featuring a look that is universal and consistent among Cal’s various sports as well as being modern and well recognized — a trait that Cal Athletics argues could influence recruitment.

Despite any controversy, the Bears will charge into the next year with a new brand and updated identity.

 — Riley McAtee

9. Men’s golf upset in NCAAs after record-breaking season

The Cal men’s golf team amassed arguably the greatest season in collegiate men’s golf history this past year.

But the Bears finished the year without a national trophy.

After winning 11 out of 13 tournaments — breaking a record that has been in place since the 1970s — and topping the ranks at No. 1 for a majority of the season, Cal narrowly dropped the NCAA Championship semifinal match against Illinois after the 20th hole.

Then-senior Max Homa putted the ball standing seven feet away from the 20th hole, but failed to land the ball into the cup. The No. 5 seed Illinois took down the top-seeded Bears that weekend, 3-2, to end the Bears’ historic campaign. The NCAA Championship trophy eventually went to No. 3 Alabama, who defeated Illinois, 4-1.

Because the NCAAs were run on a match-play format, which emphasized individual performance on each day, instead of the normal stroke play, the Bears struggled more than usual.

But despite losing out on the title they were essentially working toward all year, there’s no doubt that the Bears compiled their greatest season ever.

“If it leaves a dent, it should be a very, very small one,” Homa said after the tournament. “We should be considered the best team of all time.”

 — Janice Chua

 

10. Cal football’s graduation rates and APR scores rank last in Pac-12

Maybe it was the nail in Tedford’s coffin. Maybe it was just a coincidence.

In 2012, the football team’s academics hit rock bottom. The Bears’ 47 percent graduation rate was the worst in the Pac-12.

Jeff Tedford tried to claim that the reason for the subpar rate was the many players that his program sent to the NFL each year. While there is some truth in this, it hardly tells the entire story.

In June, the NCAA released its Academic Progress Rate scores, and again, Cal football was in last place on the list. Since the APR report only takes into account academic standing — and doesn’t penalize programs for players who turn pro — it was clear that the academics of the football team were hurting.

The scores were so poor that the team is currently treading dangerously close to NCAA sanctions.

It is one thing to be terrible on the field, but in the classroom too? Ouch.

There is rampant speculation that those poor marks were a leading reason for Tedford’s dismissal in December, but we will never know for sure. At any rate, they certainly didn’t help.

 — Riley McAtee

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