Washington State Football: Preview, prediction, live stream vs. Cal

Washington State football is 6-0 midway through the season. Can they remain undefeated on the road at California?

The Washington State Cougars are riding high after a big road victory at Oregon last Saturday. They hit the road again this week for some Friday night “Pac-12 After Dark”, matching up against the California Golden Bears. Cal is coming off a thumping to the hands of Washington.

Last week, many thought Washington State could have a let down at Oregon after their big victory against USC the previous week but that was not the case with the Cougars winning 33-10. As of right now, the Cougars appear to be heading for a big end of season clash with undefeated Washington. However before they can get there, they must take care of business against the teams they should beat.

Cal is the middle of a tough stretch. After starting the season 3-0, they have lost their last 3 games, all of which were Pac-12 contests. Granted two of those games were against top 10 foes, USC and Washington, and now they get their third top 10 opponent in four weeks. It will be tough for the Bears to avoid starting 0-4 in conference.

Here’s everything you need to know about the match-up and how you can watch Washington State at California Friday night.

Date: Friday, Oct. 13
Time: 10:30 p.m. ET
Location: Berkeley, CA
Venue: Memorial Stadium
TV: ESPN
Live Stream: WatchESPN

Keys to Victory

The key for the Cougars is to keep doing exactly what they are doing and not look ahead. It would be easy for them to hit cruise control, only looking towards their games against Stanford but more importantly, Washington. However they should not play with fire.

With Luke Falk at quarterback, the Cougars have an outstanding pass offense, ranked third in the country with 392 yards per game through the air. Falk has passed for an even 2,000 yards, also good for third in the country.

The surprising thing about Washington State though has been their defense. They have allowed 276 yards per game, ranked 11th in the country and second in the Pac-12 behind Washington. The Cougars have only given up 18.5 points per game.

It will be a tough task for Cal to pull the upset. If there is one part of the Cougar defense that is weaker, it is the rush defense. It ranks 41st in the country which isn’t bad, but its pass defense is in the top 10. Cal running back Patrick Laird leads the team with 400 yards and six touchdowns so it will be essential to establish the run attack to maybe loosen up Washington State’s secondary. The Cal secondary will have it’s hands full with Luke Falk.

Betting Odds

Odds courtesy of Sportsbook Review

Point Spread: Washington State -14.5
Over/Under: 53

Prediction

As of late, Cal has dominated this series. The Bears and Cougars have met every year since 2005, with the Bears winning 10 of those 12 matchups. Washington State last won in Berekley in 2013, but I see no reason why they shouldn’t be able to win there this Friday night.

Next: 25 Bold Predictions for the Top 25 - Week 7

Luke Falk will throw all over the weak Cal secondary, passing for over 300 yards and 4 touchdown passes. The Cougar defense even joins the party with a pick 6. The Bears show some pride in hanging around for most of the 1st half, but the Cougars will just be too much in this one. Washington State rolls and gets to 7-0 for the first time since 2001

Final Score: Washington State 41, California 17