In Tuesday’s weekly press conference, head coach Sonny Dykes noted that despite his team’s poor play and 1-4 record this year, he has begun to see signs of life — signs that have led him to believe things are at least headed in the right direction.
And for his sake — and his defensive coordinator’s sake — he needs those signs to start showing up on Saturdays.
Now more than six weeks into the season, the honeymoon period has ended between Dykes and his new fan base. The sheen has worn off. People are no longer willing to get excited about the fact that change happened but now want to see some positive results from said change.
Simply put, we’re entering the stage where we’re able to start looking at the Dykes regime with a more critical eye, no longer blinded by the shine coming off the new coat of paint.
You don’t need to look too far past the team’s record to understand why some impatience is beginning to brew. Yes, the team has had to trudge through what has probably been the toughest schedule in the nation. And yes, having nine of 11 defensive starters miss time with injuries certainly hasn’t made things easy on the new staff.
But that doesn’t mean we can’t be seeing flashes of life. Obviously, new things take time to reach their full potential, and jumping the gun to call the new coaching staff a failure would still be irrational at this point in time.
Yet, nearing the halfway point in the season, it’s time to see some evidence of why things are going to get better.
And to an extent, Cal’s passing game has provided that beacon. Jared Goff has looked every bit the part of the quarterback of the future, while Bryce Treggs and Chris Harper have proven they can be elite wide receivers. That trio looks like it could be dangerous for a very long time.
But throwing the ball for 500 yards a game isn’t going to be enough every time. Victories in college football are produced by one simple formula: establishing a consistent running game while preventing your opponent from doing the same. So far in 2013, the Bears haven’t even hinted at an ability to do either.
Averaging less than three yards a carry while giving up nearly five and half yards to opponents is a guaranteed formula for failure.
Things are unlikely to change dramatically against UCLA, a team that averages more than 300 yards on the ground per game. But the Bears don’t have to become a defensive juggernaut all of a sudden and impose their will at the line of scrimmage. Just show me something to make me believe that things will eventually get better — and preferably sooner rather than later.
Show me some sound, solid fundamentals in tackling. Show me some smart defensive pursuit angles. Show me some creative blitz packages. Show me you get off the field on third down every now and then.
I don’t need to see championship-caliber football yet. I just want to see evidence of sound fundamentals as a product of improved coaching. Given Cal’s injuries on defense and along the offensive line, it’s looking increasingly likely that even eclipsing last year’s three-win bar might be a lofty goal. But that doesn’t matter.
What does matter is that the Cal football team spends the rest of 2013 convincing its fan base things will be better in 2014. Because that’s all we want. And in all likelihood, that’s probably the best that Cal can do.
Connor Byrne covers football. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @ctbyrne91.