DeCoud leads Cal's hit parade.

Byline: Curtis Anderson The Register-Guard

From his starting position at free safety in the California secondary, senior Thomas DeCoud has quietly built a reputation within the Pac-10 as the leader of a ball-hawking defense.

Only one problem with that.

Before last week's victory over Arizona, the 6-foot-2, 204-pound DeCoud (pronounced DAY-coo) had never registered a sack, never forced a fumble, and never even intercepted a pass in his three seasons with the Golden Bears.

And while the personable DeCoud did his best to ignore those stats, others wouldn't let him forget it.

`Oh yeah, before we played Arizona, I was teasing him that for as much of a ball hawk as he claimed to be, he didn't have any interceptions,' said R. Todd Littlejohn, Cal's defensive secondary coach.

It didn't take long for DeCoud to rectify those numbers.

Last Saturday, with 3:20 left in the first period and the Wildcats at their own 16-yard line, DeCoud recorded the first sack of his career. He slammed into Willie Tuitama on a blitz, forcing the Arizona quarterback to fumble the ball, which was recovered in the end zone for a Cal touchdown.

Shortly after that game-changing play, DeCoud finally earned his first career interception as he picked off a Tuitama pass at Cal's 19-yard line. He added a fumble recovery on Arizona's first drive of the second half.

DeCoud finished the game with a season-high 10 tackles, and his performance was duly noted by the conference as the Golden Bears' team captain was named Pac-10 defensive player of the week.

So which career first was most satisfying?

`I think getting my first pick, because I've waited so long to get it,' DeCoud said. `It didn't come until my senior year, so I felt especially happy about that.'

DeCoud, a bona-fide NFL prospect who is listed as the No. 6 free safety in the nation by ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper, might not be too familiar to Duck fans.

Although he was responsible for six blocked kicks as a special teams demon during his first two seasons at Cal, he was just starting to emerge as a defensive force at safety - leading the team with 27 tackles through four games last year - when he went down with a twisted knee.

The injury kept DeCoud on the sidelines for Cal's next three contests against Oregon, Oregon State and Washington State.

On Saturday, if the sixth-ranked Golden Bears (4-0 overall, 1-0 Pac-10) hope to slow down the No. 11 Ducks (4-0, 1-0) at Autzen Stadium, he will be asked to step up again.

DeCoud can't wait.

`It will be two great teams going at it on a national stage,' he said. `You always get a little more pumped up to play a really good team like Oregon. It's a chance to test yourself, to see how you measure up against their top athletes.'

Before his breakout game against the Wildcats, DeCoud was probably best known for his signature hit on UCLA freshman Corey Bosworth last year, a blindside blast that has since become a YouTube classic.

He was peeling back to block for DeSean Jackson on a punt return, and the full-speed collision brought the Memorial Stadium crowd to its feet, left both players momentarily knocked out on the field, and Jackson celebrating in the end zone.

DeCoud said the Ducks should expect the same treatment.

`As a safety, I take pride (in making the big hit),' he said. `We want to send a message to the other team that even our little guys on defense are bringing the wood, and that it's going to be a slobberknocker.'

DeCoud's leadership has been a huge bonus for the Cal defense this year.

He is playing with a sense of urgency and focus that only a senior can fully appreciate as they come to the realization that their career is slowly winding down and each game is the last time they'll meet an opponent.

`Thomas is a team leader,' Littlejohn said. `He brings some explosion, some excitement and some big-game experience. He understands his role on defense and he knows how to get guys lined up the right way.

`One of the unique things about him is that as important as he is to our defense, he is equally important to our special teams, and he loves that role. Some guys are concerned about getting injured, but Thomas just goes out and plays, and it shows.'

Not surprisingly, the offensive playmakers for both teams have been basking in the media spotlight this week.

But UO coach Mike Bellotti knows the Bears have some playmakers on defense, too.

`Their safeties make a lot of plays,' he said. `The design of their defense is much like ours, so their free safety and strong safety guys are the free hitters. They're the playmakers in that scheme, and they're making the most of it.

`They pride themselves on being a physical defense, and when they're 4-0, it's hard to quibble with what they're doing.'

On that point, he'll get no argument from DeCoud.

NO. 11 OREGON VS. NO. 6 CAL

12:30 p.m. Saturday at Autzen Stadium. TV: ABC. Radio: KUGN-AM (590) and KZEL-FM (96.1).

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