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GAME NOTES: The second game ever at TCF Bank Stadium figures to be a good one, as the eight-ranked California Golden Bears hit the road for the first time and challenge the Minnesota Golden Gophers in their new arena this weekend.

The Bears have been nothing short of impressive through the first couple of weeks, outscoring their first two opponents 111-20. Cal opened the season with a pair of homes games, blasting Maryland (52-13) and most recently Eastern Washington (59-7) this past weekend.

"I felt going into the game that they were the most complete team I had ever seen on film," said Eastern Washington head coach Beau Baldwin of Cal. "They were big up front, they are physical, they are fast on defense. They do everything right, and on top of that they have great athletes with skill and speed everywhere."

Baldwin certainly had high praises for Cal, which scored 50 or more points in back-to-back games for the first time since 1973. However, things are only going get more difficult for the Bears, as they face a stiff test this weekend before opening Pac-10 play against Oregon and USC.

As for the Gophers, they christened their new 300-million dollar stadium with a 20-13 come from behind victory over Air Force last weekend. It was another gritty effort from Minnesota, which also needed a comeback to defeat Syracuse, 23-20, in overtime in its season opener.

"They showed tremendous resilience two weeks in a row, found a way to believe in each other; they believe that good things are going to happen and they continue to work hard," stated head coach Tim Brewster.

Minnesota and Cal have met five times previously on the gridiron, with the Bears winning three of those encounters. The teams last met in 2006, a 42-17 triumph by the Bears in Berkeley.

There is a lot to talk about when mentioning Cal's offense, as the unit has gained over 500 yards in each of its first two contests. The Bears have been especially impressive on the ground, rushing for 244 yards in the opener versus Maryland and 342 yards last weekend against EWU. Jahvid Best continues to prove he is one of the elite tailbacks in the nation and last weekend he toted 17 times for 146 yards and a touchdown.

"We started off a little slow, but then we got to what we do," said Best. "Things started opening up for us. We felt like we've done a lot of great things, but we still have some things to clean up. We're happy where we're at right now."

Best, who also caught a 22-yard touchdown pass, ran for 137 yards and a pair of scores in the opener and has shown the burst that helped him average 8.1 yards per carry in 2008. Shane Vereen provided a nice complement to Best last season and he has picked up right where he left off, scoring three touchdowns last weekend after recording two in the opener. Throw in Covaughn DeBoskie- Johnson, who has rushed for 146 yards in two games, and it's no wonder Cal has been unstoppable on the ground thus far.

The ability to run the ball successfully has take the pressure off quarterback Kevin Riley, who has responded in a big way. After throwing for nearly 300 yards and four touchdowns against Maryland, Riley hit on 13-of-20 tosses for 148 yards and a score last weekend. He has shown the poise and accuracy required to take this team to the next level, but he needs to remain consistent, even against tougher opponents.

Defensively, the Bears have gone about their business and held their first two opponents to a combined 538 total yards. Last weekend, Cal limited EWU to only 235 yards, including just 14 rushing, and a mere 13 first downs. The Bears even recorded four sacks after posting six in their opener.

Mychal Kendricks has led the charge for this group, notching 12 stops in the opener and 14 last weekend.

"Mychal is a solid player," said head coach Jeff Tedford. "He has great instincts to play the game and he's got a lot of physical ability. He can really run. He puts himself in position to make a lot of plays because he is so athletic."

Kendrick also had a fumble recovery last weekend, while Mike Mohamed registered a sack for the second straight week.

After coming from behind to down Syracuse in the team's opener, Minnesota needed a 17-point fourth quarter to slip past Air Force this past weekend. Quarterback Adam Weber hasn't exactly been lighting it up, but he has made plays when needed and last weekend he hit on 20-of-29 tosses for 219 yards.

"Adam (Weber) really played well," said coach Tim Brewster. "He really made some throws and we just got to stop shooting ourselves in the foot offensively, self inflicted wounds are really hurting us."

A veteran quarterback that has several Minnesota records, Weber is the type of player that gets better as the game moves on and his leadership is as important to this team as anything. Weber's favorite target is Eric Decker, who has set several school records himself. After catching nine balls for 183 yards in the opener, Decker hauled in 10 passes for 113 yards last weekend.

The Gophers' ground game has managed just over 100 yards in each game thus far and that simply won't get the job done against the betters teams. DeLeon Eskridge led the way this past weekend with 53 yards and a touchdown and with that success he probably deserved a little more than seven carries.

Minnesota's defense played another big part last weekend, as Nate Triplett's 52-yard fumble return for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter proved to be the game-winner.

"Nate Triplett is playing outstanding football for us, just really running hard to the football on every snap," stated Brewster. "A very smart football player, doing a really nice job."

Triplett finished with a game-high 17 tackles, a nice follow up to his nine- stop, one-interception performance in the opener.

The Gophers, who held Syracuse scoreless in the second half and overtime in the opener, have recorded four sacks and three takeaways on the season and have allowed just 643 total yards thus far.

A frenzied crowd is expected in the Twin Cities this weekend and that should give the Gophers a fighting chance against the Bears. Still, when all is said and done, Cal should emerge with the victory behind Best and its potent ground attack.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: California 32, Minnesota 17