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### Betting Fool # The 'Big Game' and bowling: This Cal team should stay home ## Betting Fool, SFGate Tuesday, November 15, 2005
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The tradition and gatherings and press outings continue but the fact is, the "Big Game" isn't very big. It's not even the biggest game in California.

With Sac State and UC-Davis movin' on up, in a few years it might not even be the biggest game in Northern California.

This season, the partcipants in the "Causeway Classic" could have pulled off an astonishing Bay Area sweep. But Cal QB Joe Ayoob hadn't had enough time to digress to his current level.

If Cal and Sac State had played last week, you can see the game story . . . "Joe Ayoob had a brutal Saturday as he tossed six interceptions during a shaky 5-for-21 performance that included seven sacks and several bad. . ." OK, I'll lay off the guy. He doesn't get paid, I know. And he might not even play against Stanford.

But please, for anyone to get all upset because Cal fans are booing him . . . sorry, it's the big time, baby.

You can have a bad day against Foothill JC, and nobody cares. Cal was in the Rose Bowl last year, until they were voted out by coaches who never saw them play. Cal fans aren't used to QBs getting worse as the season goes on (much worse, in fact), especially with "The QB Coach" in charge.

While some myopic Bay Area fans think Cal vs. Stanford is the one of the biggest, most important rivalries in college football, anyone who knows anything about "real" college football knows it's not in the Top 10.

We're talking importance and good football, not tradition, so you won't see Harvard-Yale on the list.

Ohio State-Michigan, Alabama-Auburn, Texas-Oklahoma, USC-UCLA, Florida State-Miami, Oregon-Oregon State, Georgia-Georgia Tech, Florida-Georgia, Michigan-Notre Dame, Michigan-Michigan State, Notre Dame-USC. That's 11 better ones right there.

I could go on (there are at least five more), but I need to get to the point of the column: How can this Cal team even think about going to a bowl game, even if the Bears manage to stuff Stanford?

Cal has six wins, but I cannot consider any of them quality wins.

The first four games were against four of the very worst teams in the nation. Illinois and Washington can be good, but both are dreadful this year. Illinois has been crushed six straight times in Big Ten play. The Huskies had one win (over wretched Idaho) before they beat Arizona.

Sac State and New Mexico State were exhibitions, barely more than practice games. The shutout win over Arizona was OK, but when the Wildcats were stomped at home by Washington last week, it took that game off the "quality" board.

The win over Washington State doesn't quite cut it because the Cougars have lost six straight in Pac-10 play and because Cal almost gave the game away.

Cal had chances to beat Oregon and UCLA, but couldn't. USC clowned the Bears last week, clearly bored with the game in the second half. That didn't stop several Cal defenders from jumping up and acting like idiots after meaningless tackles, but that's another subject.

Stanford is more minor bowl worthy. Road wins at Oregon State and Washington State are more impressive than anything Cal can produce.

So if Cal beats Stanford for a seventh win, should Cal go? No! Stanford lost to UC-Davis, which has lost four times at the Div 1-AA level and is no longer in the 1-AA Top 25.

We can go around and around about this, but Cal should have more pride than to show up at the Emerald/Insight Bowl, useless games for middle-of-the-pack teams barely above .500.

Roll over you Bears. Send everyone home and start working with Nathan Longshore as soon as possible.