Associated Press

Cal quarterback Kyle Boller is sacked by an Oregon defender earlier this season. Boller missed his team's past two games, but will see action against Arizona Saturday.

Thursday November 1, 2001

California in the midst of worst-ever season

The California football team is used to losing.

After all, the Golden Bears haven't had a winning season since 1993. Their last bowl game was five years ago. They're routinely in the bottom of the Pacific 10 Conference standings.

But, as bad as Cal's record has been in recent years, the Golden Bears have never experienced a season like this.

Cal (0-7, 0-5 Pac-10) is off to its worst start in the 119-year history of the program. The Bears are in the midst of a 10-game losing streak dating back to last season. They've given up the most points in the conference and have given up the fourth-most in the country. To make matters worse, the one bright spot on the team, running back Joe Igber, will miss the rest of the season with a broken clavicle.

Cal head coach Tom Holmoe said he sees Saturday's game with Arizona as an opportunity to reverse course. His standout quarterback, junior Kyle Boller, is expected to play after missing the last two games with sciatica. Igber's replacement, freshman Terrell Williams, ran for 104 yards on 26 carries last weekend against Oregon.

Then again, the offense is much less of a worry for Holmoe than his defense.

The unit has given up 293 points this season - an average of 41.9 per contest - and is on pace for setting an all-time school record for most points allowed in a season. Opponents have averaged 153.6 yards on the ground and 307.9 yards in the air per game.

Holmoe cites inexperience as the main reason the defense has been unsuccessful this season.

"We have new players in the lineup, at least defensively in the front seven, and we have younger players and (junior college) guys on the defensive line that are looking at things for the first time - (Josh) Gustaveson, (Tom) Canada, Tosh Lupoi, (Louis-Philippe) Ladouceur and Lorenzo (Alexander) to name a few," he said.

"In the secondary, we really had to pare back, so that there wasn't a lot to think about so that we could get better."

While Boller was tentatively cleared to play Saturday, Holmoe has said it's likely he and freshman Reggie Robertson will split snaps in the game against Arizona.

Robertson - who was a standout at Tucson's Sahuaro High School - started last week against Oregon State and impressed Holmoe enough that the coach didn't feel compelled to rush Boller back into the fold.

"Kyle is going to practice and what we'll end up doing, at least today, is see how well he can practice," Holmoe said. "We anticipate that Reggie will get a lot of reps, and if Kyle can take reps and get as many as he can, we might go 50-50 with the reps in practice this week. We'll see how Kyle responds ... he's been out of practice for two weeks.

"Reggie's had some good things happen the last two weeks and gives us enough cause to think that he can go play some of this game. It might be a good idea to ease Kyle back into it, at least this week, to see where he's at."

No matter who the quarterback is, many of the passes will be thrown in the direction of senior wide receiver Charon Arnold, who is currently third in the Pac-10 with over four catches per game.

However, the loss of Igber remains the sticking point for the offense. He was not only one of the few offensive stars on the team - he ranks seventh all-time in career yards for the Bears - but he was also a locker room presence on a young team.

"Losing Joe is very tough," Holmoe said. "To me, you lose one of your key ingredients on the team, and that's a kid that everybody loves. They love him. He's a kid that works hard. He's always got a smile on his face. He's a smart kid, and he gives everything of himself on the field. He kind of blends through the locker room and can get along with everybody, and you miss that."