Poinsettia Bowl
Poinsettia Bowl, This year’s Poinsettia Bowl may not carry the cachet of last season’s high-profile matchup (Boise State vs. T.C.U.), but the game will feature one team coming off of a B.C.S. bowl appearance and another whose preseason expectations included hopes of a B.C.S. spot of its own. Utah, as we know, rolled through the 2008 season undefeated before routing a talented Alabama squad in the Sugar Bowl. While the Utes slipped to 9-3 this regular season, Utah remains among the top 25 teams in the nation. California, on the other hand, has seen itself slide from a trendy pick for the best team in the Pac-10 in the preseason to a disappointing 8-4, sixth in the conference.
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Wednesday, 8 p.m., ESPN
Utah
Like its more staid neighbors in Provo, Utah is in the midst of one of the great periods in program history. The Utes may not be playing in another B.C.S. bowl, but even after dropping one to rival B.Y.U. to end the season, they find themselves ranked and with a shot at a second consecutive double-digit win season. Such a finish was far from a certainty early in the season. The Utes have missed the consistency at quarterback of year’s past, though that position seems to be more settled following the promotion of the freshman Jordan Wynn, who replaced the JUCO transfer Terrance Cain in the starting lineup with five games left in the regular season. The defense has done its part (again), limiting opponents to less than 20 points and 175 yards passing per game. Cal quarterback Kevin Riley would be wise to keep an eye on free safety Robert Johnson, who leads the Utes with five interceptions; that total gives him 12 over his three seasons with the program. Utah did drop its early-season Pac-10 matchup, losing by 31-24 at Oregon in September.
California
Yes, losing star running back Jahvid Best could serve as a valid excuse for a significant decline in offensive productivity. (Shane Vereen, a sophomore, has actually picked up the slack in the running game quite well.) Nevertheless, there is no excuse for scoring 5 less points per game this regular season compared to last, and there is certainly no excuse for the pitiful performance Cal put forth against premier Pac-10 competion: 3 points each against Oregon and U.S.C. and 14 against Oregon State. As if that wasn’t bad enough, the Golden Bears scored only 10 points in a disheartening 32-point loss to underdog Washington in the season finale. Suffice to say, this is a team heading into postseason play with confidence issues, in dire need of a win over a top 25 opponent in order to propel itself into the off-season with some semblance of momentum. The good news? Despite periods of inconsistency, Cal’s 3-4 defense has had its moments, especially against the run. Getting to the quarterback has been an issue — linemen Tyson Alualu (an all-conference pick) and Cameron Jordan are the only players with more than two sacks — limiting the defense’s ability to stop the pass.
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Pete: Utah. I don’t trust Cal in big games, and playing without Jahvid Best really hurts them.
Thayer: Utah. The real victory is that Cal tailback Jahvid Best isn’t playing.
Paul: California. A win would allow the Golden Bears to feel much better about their season.
Fred: Utah. I like Jordan Wynn to have a breakout game and I think Cal has looked terrible in some of its biggest games of the season.
Connor: Utah. Ask Alabama or Pittsburgh what it’s like to play the Utes in a bowl game.
Poinsettia Bowl was first posted on December 24, 2009 at 12:26 pm.
Coast Guard Plane Crash
Breaking news about Coast Guard Plane Crash, US coastguard Hercules plane and a Marine Corps helicopter collided each other off the coast of southern California.
A crew of seven was aboard the airplane and two were aboard the helicopter when the aircraft collided Thursday night 50 miles west of the San Diego County coast and 15 miles east of San Clemente Island, a Navy training site.
Aircraft and ships are scouring the ocean off San Diego for any signs of survivors of a nighttime collision of a Coast Guard C-130 airplane and a Marine Corps attack helicopter.
The officials said,
“A search was on Thursday night for nine people left missing after a Coast Guard plane collided with a Marine helicopter over the Pacific Ocean near Southern California,”
According to reports from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), at the time of the collision, a nearby pilot had reported seeing a fireball.
Coast Guard Plane Crash was first posted on October 30, 2009 at 9:53 pm.
Shawne Merriman arrested
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Early Sunday morning, Shawne Merriman was arrested on suspicion of physically assaulting Tila Tequila, a model and television personality. He was taken into San Diego County Jail.
Tequila, whose real name is Tila Nguyen, placed a call at 3:45 a.m., accusing Merriman of choking and physically restraining her. She claims Merriman prevented her from being able to leave his house, and signed a citizens arrest at the scene, charging him with battery and false imprisonment.
After winning Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2005, Merriman was suspended for four games in 2006 for a positive steroid test. In 2008, reconstructive knee surgery forced Merriman to miss almost the entire season after conflicting information floated around training camp and preseason about whether or not he’d be able to play. The Chargers’ defense fell to 25th in the league in total defense in ‘08 after finishing 14th in 2007.
It’s far too early to begin discussing possible legal or occupational repercussions (if any) for Merriman; there will surely be more details to emerge from this story before the dust settles.
The Chargers drafted outside linebacker Larry English in the first round of this year’s draft to improve depth and talent at the position, but Merriman’s healthy return had many people viewing the Chargers as a possible Super Bowl team.
San Diego opens the regular season next Monday night at Oakland, and Chargers players have been off since Friday’s exhibition finale against the San Francisco 49ers. General manager A.J. Smith, however, quickly issued a statement on Sunday that implied the Chargers will not take immediate disciplinary action against Merriman.
“It’s disappointing to hear about the issue involving Shawne Merriman,” Smith said in the statement. “We’ll continue to monitor the situation and let the legal process run its course.”
Shawne Merriman arrested was first posted on September 7, 2009 at 5:48 am.
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