California
Golden Bears

But being without Best this week will make things difficult for the Bears, who are already questioning themselves after losing decisively at home to Oregon State on Nov. 7. The Bears' hopes for a Pac-10 title are long gone, and their shot at an attractive bowl have almost disappeared. They have not even assured themselves of any bowl berth, although they are bowl-eligible.

After being picked to finish second, and given a reasonable chance to surpass USC, the Bears certainly do not want to finish with a losing conference record for the second time in three years. The Bears need to win at least one of their next two challenging games -- Arizona at home and then Stanford on the road Nov. 21 -- to avoid it.

Meanwhile, Arizona is just a half-game out of first place, tied with Oregon in the loss column with one each, so the Wildcats have Rose Bowl thoughts and have plenty of motivation. The Wildcats are coming off a victory over Washington State, which is almost like having a bye, so they should be prepared.

Best's absence will mean Shane Vereen will get the bulk of the carries. He is certainly a quality running back, but he does not provide the home-run threat that Best does.

More significantly, Best's absence will put more pressure on the Bears' passing game, which has been good some games and poor others under the direction of QB Kevin Riley. He will have his hands full against Arizona, which has a strong pass defense and ranks second in the conference in sacks per game.

After Best went out with his injury midway in the second quarter against Oregon State, the Bears managed just 53 yards and two first downs on their next seven possessions. By that time, Cal trailed 31-7. It is obvious Best's absence against Arizona will hurt Cal.

Oregon State QB Sean Canfield sliced apart Cal's pass defense in the first half, and Arizona passes more often than the Beavers. Nick Foles has been an effective passer for the Wildcats, and he will be a problem for the Bears.

--Cal dropped out of all three major rankings -- Associated Press, USA Today and BCS -- after its loss to Oregon State. In fact, the Bears did not get a single vote in the AP or coaches' poll. Cal began the season ranked No. 12 and got as high as No. 6.

--In its three losses, Cal has averaged 6.7 points. In its six wins, it averaged 43.8 points.

SERIES HISTORY: Series tied 13-13-2 (last meeting 2008, 42-27 Arizona)

SCOUTING THE OFFENSE: Cal's offense was poor against Oregon State on Nov. 7 and has developed a trend for being toothless against the conference's best teams. In its three games against quality Pac-10 opponents -- USC, Oregon and Oregon State -- the Bears managed a total of one meaningful touchdown (it scored another TD in the final minute of its 31-14 loss to Oregon State). QB Kevin Riley had played well the three games prior to the Oregon State game, but could not move the team against Oregon State. The Bears rely heavily on big plays, and much of that aspect will be removed by the absence of Jahvid Best. Despite his reputation as a passing coach, Jeff Tedford's teams have been primarily running teams. Running will not be easy to do against the Wildcats' strong run defense. Cal receivers Marvin Jones, Verran Tucker and Jeremy Ross have been better than expected, but Riley has been unable to get them the ball consistently enough.

SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: Cal played pretty good defense in the second half against Oregon State, and its run defense was outstanding throughout, limiting Jacquizz Rodgers to 67 rushing yards, much of which came in the final nine minutes when the outcome had been decided. The Bears' front seven has been effective against the run, but the Bears have trouble in the secondary. Cal ranks ninth in the Pac-10 in pass defense, which is not a good thing against Arizona. The Wildcats are second in the conference passing offense, right behind Oregon State, which riddled Cal with passes in the first half of the Nov. 7 game. Cal has only eight interceptions, a big difference from last season when the Bears were third nationally in picks with 24.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "They get the ball out so fast. If they let a (defensive) guy go free on the edge, they would still probably get it off." -- Cal coach Jeff Tedford, on Arizona's pass offense, which has yielded just four sacks this season.

PLAYERS TO WATCH: RB Shane Vereen -- Vereen is Jahvid Best's best friend on the team, and he was hit as hard as anyone by Best's injury. He will have to running carry the load offensively, and he is a capable runner, averaging 42.9 yards a game and 5.1 yards a carry, pretty good numbers for a backup. He has also caught 17 passes, although he is not the deep threat Best was. When Best missed a game last season, Vereen rushed for 93 yards against Arizona State. He had 154 rushing yards earlier this season against UCLA.

LB Mike Mohamed -- He is the one player on the Cal defense capable of making a big play, whether it be forcing a fumble or intercepting a pass or getting a tackle for a loss. He leads the Pac-10 in tackles, but it is his ability to make a game-changing play that makes him so valuable. He may need to get an interception or a key sack against Arizona for the Bears to win.

WR Verran Tucker -- He had a big game against Oregon State on Nov. 7, collecting six receptions for 74 yards and a touchdown. Tucker has the ability to make amazing catches, and it looked like he would be the Bears' big-play man when the season started. Injuries have slowed him a bit, but he has shown signs of regaining that big-play touch. The Bears need him to come up with one of his game-changing catches against the Wildcats.

ROSTER REPORT: NT Derek Hill, who missed the past two games with a sprained shoulder (stinger), is questionable for the Nov. 14 game against Arizona.

-- OG Matt Summers-Gavin missed the Oregon State game with a shoulder injury, but probably will play against Arizona.

-- TE Justin Miller missed the Oregon State game after having minor knee surgery several days before the game. There is an outside chance he will play against Arizona.

-- Fifteen Cal seniors will be playing their final home game against Arizona, and that includes CB Syd'Quan Thompson, WR Verran Tucker, DE Tyson Alualu and LB Eddie Young.