Stanford Football: Cardinal seek ninth straight win over Cal
By John Scimeca
Stanford football looks for nine wins in a row in the Big Game vs. its Bay Area rival. It’s already the longest streak in this series that began in 1892.
It’s been a disappointing 2018 season for Stanford, which rose to No. 7 nationally before a 38-17 loss to Notre Dame back in Week 5. The Cardinal were ranked in the 2018 preseason Top 15 by many pundits and were expected to compete for a College Football Playoff berth in the Pac-12.
Cal also achieved a national ranking, No. 24, in the early weeks of the season after victories against North Carolina, BYU, and FCS foe Idaho State. That early-season momentum was decisively slowed down by a 42-24 Week 4 loss to Oregon and two more losses in a row.
The Big Game, as this rivalry is called, was postponed from Week 12 due to concerns about wildfires in the region. The Camp Fire in this area of northern California has burned thousands of acres, destroyed thousands of homes and is responsible for many deaths. This game hopes to be a slight respite from the difficult situation.
Both teams enter this matchup with 7-4 records, having already been eliminated from contention for the Pac-12 title game. While a conference crown might not be in the line, there’s always a lot at stake in an intense rivalry game. The Cardinal and the Golden Bears certainly seem poised to pull out all the stops to win Saturday afternoon’s contest.
Date: Saturday, Dec. 1
Time: 3:00 p.m. ET
Location: Berkeley, Ca.
Venue: Memorial Stadium
TV: Pac-12 Network
Live Stream: Pac-12 Network | FuboTV
Keys to Victory
Stanford quarterback K.J. Costello vs. the Cal secondary. In last week’s 49-42 against UCLA, Costello completed 23-of-37 passes for 344 yards and a career-best five touchdowns. Cardinal Wideout JJ Arcega-Whiteside has 14 touchdown receptions this season, tying a school record. This discussion is without mentioning running back Bryce Love, who many considered as a preseason Heisman contender. Love has dealt with an ankle injury this season and has rushed for only six touchdowns, including rushing for barely half of his average from 2017 (8.1 yards per attempt).
Cal is capable of putting a stout defense on the opposing side of the field to counter Stanford’s balanced attack. The unit gives up only 319 yards per game, good for 16th-best in the nation. In last week’s 33-21 win against Colorado, the Cal defense scored two touchdowns on interception returns and forced a season-high five turnovers. In a 12-10 Week 12 upset of No. 11 Washington, Golden Bears linebacker Evan Weaver returned an interception for the game’s deciding score at the end of the third quarter.
Clearly, the ability to force turnovers and limit Stanford’s passing attack will be the key for California on Saturday.
Betting Odds
courtesy of ESPN PickCenter
Line: Stanford (-3.5)
Over/under: 46
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Prediction
The timing may be odd — playing a wildfire-induced postponed game in the first weekend of December at the end of the season — but this is a heated rivalry, the Big Game, and these teams both want an eighth win for 2018. Stanford seniors don’t want to be the ones to let up on the eight-game winning streak against Cal, and the Golden Bears would love nothing more than to upset the Cardinal after falling short by a score of 17-14 last year. Look for Bryce Love, on senior day, to be a difference-maker against a strong Cal defense.
Expect all band members to remain in their places (never a given for Stanford, though) until the game clock expires, and expect all trombone players to hold on to their instruments.
Final Score: Stanford 28, Cal 23