Cal QB Riley to start against Oregon State

Nov 12, 2008 - 5:49 PM BERKELEY, California (Ticker) -- Despite a poor performance in the second half last week, California sophomore quarterback Kevin Riley has been tabbed to start Saturday's contest at Oregon State.

Riley completed only 4-of-16 passes for 59 yards in the Bears' 17-3 loss to Southern California after replacing Nate Longshore in the second half.

"His escape dimension and athletic ability gives you more options on offense," California coach Jeff Tedford said.

An Oregon native, Riley started six of the Bears' first nine games this season, although he twice lost the job.

Longshore started last week after Riley suffered a concussion the week before against Oregon, but Longshore was benched at halftime after connecting on 11-of-15 passes for only 79 yards.

California was held to its lowest point total in Tedford's seven seasons as coach.

Riley made his first career start against Oregon State last season, when the Bears suffered a 31-28 loss as the second-ranked team in the country.

That contest is best remembered for Riley's gaffe in the final seconds. He drove the Bears into position for a potential game-tying field goal, but allowed the clock to expire as he ran a play - rather than spiking the ball - with no timeouts remaining.