California Golden Bears - Football - California Golden Bears Athletics

Tom Holmoe is in his third year at the helm of the Golden Bear program.

Coach Holmoe's Responses

Darren Inouye (Carlsbad, California)
It seems to me that our opponents are stacking the defensive line to prevent the run, and making the young quarterback beat them. Compounding the problems are the youth and injuries at the wide receiver positions. Have you considered going to a more wide-open offense, which includes 3 or more options at the receiver position, plus a tight end or H-back position? This could potentially give our young quarterback more options when he is being pressured heavily.

Coach Holmoe: That's exactly what we're trying to do offensively -- spread the offense out to get better match-ups and give our quarterback some options in the passing game. We've shown some signs of getting better, but we still have a ways to go. I believe we're doing the right thing and I believe we're going to get better as our quarterback and receivers gain more experience. While we want to spread the field in the passing game, we don't want to sacrifice the running game. Joe Igber gives us a tremendous dimension at tailback and we want to give him every opportunity to run with the ball.

Kevin Montoya (San Francisco, CA)
Any fear that Kyle will develop bad habits or become gun shy with all the blitzing he is seeing?

Coach Holmoe: No. He is getting the best education in the world with all the blitzing he is seeing. While he didn't throw the ball as good as he's capable at BYU, he made good reads and good checks. He checked to the run which Joe Igber had the touchdown run and that's a great sign for a young quarterback. He's on the fast track of the learning curve right now and it's all part of the learning process. He has such a great attitude that I really don't worry about him regressing. He's our guy and he's going to be a great player for us.

Leah Anderson (Davis, CA)
How does it feel to return to BYU as a coach - coaching against your alma mater?

Coach Holmoe: It felt great to go back to my old school and see so many familiar faces, especially Coach Edwards. The funny thing was once the game started, it was just like any other road game I coach. I thought maybe I'd be pressing or stressing because it was the BYU game, but it was just the same as any other game in terms of concentration and watching the game develop. While it was fun to go there, I'm even more looking forward to when they come out here to play in 2001 when we can have the home field advantage.

Andrew Jensen (Indianapolis, IN)
Cal fans have had to endure a string of Coaches who have experienced success and then promptly left town for a better job. Bruce Snyder took us to a #6 national ranking and then left for the desert of ASU. Coach Mooch had the program rolling offensively and then left for the 49er job. Now, you have the program going in the right direction and have many of us fans really excited about the future. What are your plans for the future and how long do you see yourself staying at Cal?

Coach Holmoe: I'm staying at Cal for a long time. I enjoy the players here, the atheltic department people I work with, the other coaches and the alumni and fans here at Cal. I'm not going anywhere. When we win here, there will be no better job in the country.

Gluido Costella (Fairfax, CA)
In your opinion, what is Sanyika's role this year. I know he is out there doing his part, but he is not as visable this year as compared to last year. Also when he lines up in the defensive position, does he pick where he lines up (on the line or linebacker spot) or is it a total coaching manuever?

Coach Holmoe: Sekou's role hasn't changed from last year. He still plays primarily over the tight end. He made a lot of very visible plays last season. Statistically, he might not have the same numbers this year, but technically he's playing better. He's doing a great job on the tight end and that bodes well for his pro future. Pro teams could care less about the stats, they watch the film and see how he is playing technically and Sekou has made progress in that area. He's started to make more visible plays the last couple games and I expect that to continue. One other thing is that we also had Matt Beck last year balanced on the other side and an opponent didn't have many options. This year, they can game plan a little more to avoid Sekou.