Nov. 20, 2004
By Greg Beachman
Berkeley, Calif. (AP) - J.J. Arrington ran for 169 yards to set California'ssingle-season rushing record and the fourth-ranked Golden Bears beat Stanford41-6 on Saturday for their biggest victory in the Big Game since 1930.
Freshman Marshawn Lynch added 122 yards on just nine carries, including aspectacular 55-yard touchdown run. Lynch also threw a TD pass as the Bearsracked up 474 total yards in coach Jeff Tedford's third straight victory overStanford in the 107th edition of the rivalry.
Aaron Rodgers passed for 120 yards and a score for the Bears (9-1, 6-1Pac-10), who kept their Bowl Championship Series hopes thriving with theirsixth straight victory.
Despite the impressive final score, it might have been Cal's ugliest win ofthe season. There was little offensive rhythm, and the teams combined for 26penalties for 228 yards.
If top-ranked Southern California wins its final two games and the Bears wintheir hurricane-postponed game at Southern Mississippi on Dec. 4, Cal will bethe odds-on favorite for its first trip to the Rose Bowl in 45 years.
T.C. Ostrander passed for 148 yards for the Cardinals (4-7, 2-6), whofinished their third straight losing season under coach Buddy Teevens with just180 yards of total offense.
Stanford fell short in several games this season, losing to USCby three points and falling to Arizona State on a last-second touchdown pass.
Stanford had won seven straight meetings in the nation's ninth-longestrivalry before Tedford arrived at Cal.
Thousands of Cal fans stormed the field after the game, but police andsecurity workers prevented any trouble from breaking out. The goalpostsremained intact.
With a sellout crowd of 72,981, Cal set a new record for average attendanceand went unbeaten at Memorial Stadium for the first time since 1950.
Freshman Robert Jordan caught an early touchdown pass for Cal, and GeoffMcArthur caught five passes to bring his career total to 195, surpassingDameane Douglas' school record - but the Bears were carried by their dynamicrushing duo.
Arrington had his 10th 100-yard game of the season, and he made a 33-yardrun shortly before halftime to surpass Chuck Muncie's single-season Cal rushingrecord of 1,460 yards in 1975.
Arrington, a late-surging Heisman Trophy candidate with 1,584 yards, is theonly running back in the NCAA to gain at least 100 yards in all of his gamesthis season.
But Lynch stole the show with his tackle-breaking touchdown run, giving Cala 20-3 lead and providing another glimpse of the Oakland native's potential.Many observers believe if Arrington wasn't setting records for Cal this season,Lynch could match the numbers of Oklahoma super-freshman Adrian Peterson.