Ross Bowers is going to finish the month of September without throwing a single interception. Last year, Bowers finished the year with 12 picks in his first year as a starter. With four games on the schedule, the redshirt junior will be taking on a quartet of teams that weren’t great at snagging picks last year. North Carolina ranked outside the top 100 in interceptions last year. BYU was 89th in the country in picks. Oregon lost Tyree Robinson and Arrion Springs. And Idaho State is going to be an overmatched FCS foil.
The defense is going to score two touchdowns in the first month of the season for the Golden Bears. Cal scored three times on defense last year, and a veteran secondary is going to return a pair of picks for touchdowns. Jordan Kunaszyk, an inside linebacker who led the team in interceptions last season, could also get one of those scores.
Patrick Laird is going to have at least a half-dozen touchdowns on the ground in September. The redshirt senior will boost his national profile and his draft stock in the process. Laird rushed for 1,127 yards last year, and he will be have at least 500 yards before October arrives. Cal will enjoy better run/pass balance on offense thanks to the work of Laird out of the backfield.
