Top job at Cal is a golden opportunity for Tedford. (College Football: Insider).(University of California head coach Jeff Tedford)(Brief Article)

Jeff Tedford is ready to meet the press. Sporting a deep blue Cal cap and matching blazer, the newly introduced head coach at California even looks ready for kickoff. The only thing missing is a headset. But that can wait. There's a lot of work to be done before the first kickoff of 2002.

Tedford is one of nine new hires since the end of the 2001 season. The others are Steve Roberts at Arkansas State; Mark Mangino at Kansas; Rickey Bustle at Louisiana-Lafayette; Paul Johnson at Navy; Tom Craft at San Diego State; Phil Bennett at SMU; Chan Gailey at Georgia Tech, and Bobby Johnson at Vanderbilt. There still are vacancies at Notre Dame and Indiana.

In terms of prestige, the Golden Bears job ranked behind only those at Notre Dame and Georgia Tech. But those schools have enjoyed much more success in the last decade than Cal, which hasn't had a winning season since 1996 or won the Pac-10 since 1975. So Tedford, who has no head coaching experience, faces big pressure to win right now.

That burden has been increased by the success several first-year coaches have enjoyed in recent years. In 2001 alone, Ralph Friedgen led Maryland to the ACC title, Gary Crowton took BYU to the Mountain West crown, and Larry Coker led Miami to the national title game. So, the thinking goes, why not Cal?

But the right question is "Why Cal?"--especially because of the school's rigid academic standards. The balance between academics and athletics was illustrated a few weeks ago when renowned hoops recruit Julian Sensley left for Iona after failing to score high enough on his entrance exam. He claimed Cal didn't help him enough. The message is clear: Athletes won't be given special assistance--no matter how good they are.

Still, Tedford, 40, refuses to use academics as an excuse--and he's correct. Coaches at other schools with strong ...