The 20 seasons saw the Bears fall short of expectations, but they were still a talented team with a lot of potential.Ĭal had to replace the successful Nate Longshore under center, but junior Kevin Riley proved up to the challenge. Cal had challenged for the conference title in the mid-2000’s, even becoming co-champions with the Trojans in 2006, but they were left out of the Rose Bowl yet again. The 2009 California Golden Bears had been seeking to once again challenge USC for the top spot in the PAC-10. Without that loss, Cal would have tied the record for the longest winning streak in Big Game history, which had been set by the Cardinal from 1995 to 2001. Stanford’s only win, a 20-13 home victory in 2007, was a big upset. The Bears had dominated the Big Game since 2002, having won six of the previous seven contests. For starters, Cal began the season ranked and Stanford didn’t and that was considered normal. It’s amazing how much things have changed since 2009. The 2007 game comes close, as Harbaugh’s streak-breaking win was a sign of the progress that would soon be made, but I think that the 2009 meeting will go down in the annals of this rivalry as one of the best finishes, though not in a way Stanford fans would appreciate. The 120 th Big Game will be played at Stanford Stadium this weekend, so it’s fitting that we’ll be looking back at what I consider the best Big Game of the last ten years.