Cal 'Pacs' a punch in beating Tennessee - No. 12 Golden Bears set the tone early with physical play and score one for the Pac-10 with a 45-31 victory over No. 15 Tennessee.

Or something like that.

On a summer Saturday night at Memorial Stadium that rivaled any Southeastern Conference game atmosphere -- here we go again with the comparisons -- No. 12 California exacted an almost desperate revenge for last season's face-plant in Knoxville with a 45-31 win over No. 15 Tennessee in Hippieville.

"We've been carrying this for a year," Cal Coach Jeff Tedford said of the burden.

The reality: Cal had no choice but to win if it wanted to keep its national credibility membership card. And what was good for Cal was good for the Pac-10, which found itself defending its honor after Louisiana State Coach Les Miles made disparaging preseason remarks about West Coast teams other than USC.

Expect the argument to spill, like a saloon fight, into Internet chat rooms.

Was Cal's victory as convincing as Tennessee's 35-18 win over the Golden Bears last year in Knoxville?

No.

What about Tennessee quarterback Erik Ainge having to play the game with a broken pinkie finger?

Well, maybe it was a factor, although Ainge did finish with a career-best 32 completions.

The bottom line is Cal needed Saturday more. Tennessee can recover from this and stay in national title contention because winning the SEC is always going to be viewed as better than winning the Pac-10, right?

It's just the way it is.

Conversely, two season-opening losses in a row to Tennessee would have relegated Cal to the discard bin.

"It was important," Tedford said.

Cal tried Saturday to dispel stereotypes about the Pac-10 being a finesse-first conference.

On the first series, linebacker Zach Follett made a jarring blindside hit on Ainge that dislodged the ball from the quarterback's hand and led to a 44-yard touchdown return by teammate Worrell Williams.

Follett heard for a year how soft Cal was last season at Knoxville.

This year?

"They folded," Follett said of the Vols. "In the third quarter, their offensive linemen were taking a knee. So I never want to hear that again."

Cal showed flash, too, as DeSean Jackson officially launched his Heisman Trophy campaign when he returned a second-quarter punt 77 yards for a touchdown to put his team up, 21-14.