So who "made a statement" on a cold and breezy late afternoon in Strawberry Canyon?

Quarterbacks:

Starting with the two-minute drill run from 11-on-11 sets, then later with goal line reps, Kevin Riley looked to be in command of the offense. Riley throws to both primary and secondary targets were generally on target. Highlights included a 60-yard (carry) bomb to Calvin.

Observers also got a tantalizing glimpse of the future when Brock Mansion took extended reps in 11-on-11 drills that simulated an end-of-game situation with the offense working against a prevent-style defense. In perhaps his best throw this spring, Brock fired a 25-yard frozen rope to a well-covered LaReylle Cunningham. Then, coming back to earth, Mansion drilled his next pass into the mitts of a surprised junior linebacker Shea McIntyre who couldn't hold on for the interception. Mansion also connected with a 10-yard pass on a crossing pattern to Michael Calvin that the 6'3" speedster took to the house.

On offense:

Wide receivers Calvin continued his move toward a starting role. Nyan Boateng remains a picture of inconsistency; he made several really tough grabs in traffic but had his miscues as well. To be fair, on one of his drops, Charles Amadi made a nice play to record a break-up. With several of Cal's receivers seeing limited action this spring, Boateng has had a good the opportunity to reach for a starting slot, but for the present it looks like Calvin as a starter with all other WR slots open for competition. In August, new freshmen and a JC transfer will join the competitive mix.

Cameron Morrah did not practice so Tad Smith and Skylar Curran took most of the first team reps at tight end. Smith was solid in both receiving and run blocking. His pass blocking is raw but that is to be expected from a newly converted defensive lineman. With the activity of Morrah, Smith, Curran and Cal's other tight ends this spring it appears that the position will be fully integrated into the Tedford/Cignetti playbook this season.

In the (almost) no news department, the starting O-line was Tepper, Fisher, Mack, Malele and Teofilo. Fisher may have stepped ahead (again) of Mark Boskovich if the last two practice sessions are a reliable indicator. Once again, Mack looked outstanding in 1-on-1 drills. Mack may not have experienced a single "loss" in 1-on-1 drill this spring.

On defense:

A Future All Pac-10? An early best guess in the someone-not-named-Mack-category: Syd'Quan Thompson.

That said, the best defensive play recorded by a defensive back was Darian Hagan's perfectly timed theft of a Mansion-to-Cunningham pass that Hagan returned for six points, much to the vocal delight of the defensive coaches and team.

A Future All Pac 10 in the if-he-can-stay-healthy category: Zack Follett. Follett had several blitzes Wednesday afternoon where if he hadn't held up at the moment of contact one of Cal's healthy QBs would have joined Nate on the sidelines.

Follett is clearly enjoying the experiment with different defensive looks. Follett and Rulon Davis have emerged as vocal team leaders and both are having excellent springs.

Staying healthy will be critical to Cal's success this coming season, as it is with all teams, but depth at linebacker will provide Cal with an injury firewall at that position. Steady Eddie Young has been solid starting at outside linebacker; Worrell Williams, Anthony Felder and Follett join him in the starting rotation. The talent level doesn't drop much when Mike Mohammed, Charles Johnson, Devin Bishop and DJ Holt rotate in.

Cameron Jordan enjoyed a fine practice on Wednesday, dividing his reps with the first and second team defense and recording an impressive TFL. Gregory continues to experiment with different combinations in his three down linemen, and in one rotation, Owusu, Jordan and Davis manned the D-line.

The Clock:

The coaches put in extra work on "clock-limited" drills, both with the normal 12-play 2-minute drills that open practice, but also with the end-of-game 90-second simulation. Good news for a team that has had clock management issues in the past.

©Copyright 2008, BearInsider.com and Scout.com. All rights reserved.

If you haven't done so already, subscribe to The Bear Insider so you can participate in this active online Cal community and get access to the members-only content from the nation-wide Scout.com network.

Bear Insider staff writers visit the Insider discussion board regularly, and are available to discuss questions you may have about this article and Cal Athletics.