PAC 12 Cal @ Oregon

Thursday night action in the PAC 12 is becoming a common occurrence this season. Cal plays Oregon tonight and then takes on USC @ home on Thursday, Oct. 13th. Arizona State played UC Davis in their opener on Sept. 1 and UCLA pays a visit to Arizona on Oct. 20th, both Thursday games. Arizona and Utah played Oklahoma State and Montana State respectively, you’ve got it… on Thursday! I, for one, really enjoy Thursday night games, as they usher in the end of the work week and signal another exciting weekend of college football. So let’s get it rolling!

Cal and Oregon have played in each of the past five years; the Golden Bears won in 06, 45-24, again in 07, 31-24, and in 08, upset the then 23rd ranked Ducks, 26-16. Apparently, the Bears hit a nerve in 08 as the Ducks pounded Cal 42-3 in 2009. Last year Cal slowed the game down to the point that Oregon complained that they were faking injuries. The Bears gave the then one #1 ranked Ducks all they could handle before falling 15-13.

Oregon rolls into the contest @ 3-1, an opening loss to LSU, 40-27, at Cowboy Stadium, in Arlington, Texas. They followed up that loss with three straight wins; A 69-20 pounding of Nevada, trounced an FCS opponent, Missouri state, 56-7, and humbled Arizona 56-31. The Ducks had a bye last week and thus two weeks to prepare for Cal. California heads north to Eugene with an identical 3-1 record. They opened their season at Candlestick Park, with a win over Fresno State 36-21, beat Colorado on the road 39-33 and pounded an FCS team, Presbyterian, 63-12. They dropped their first game of the year, on Sept. 24th @ Washington, 31-23 and like the Ducks, were idle last week and have had ample time to heal and prepare.

Oregon is giving 24.1/2 points and should be able to move the ball on the ground against Cal’s defense. The last three games, the Ducks have rushed for 275, 415 & 416 yards. While the Bears have been good in their run defense, giving up a respectable 117 yards to Washington, they simply have not faced anyone near the ability of LaMichael James. Throw QB Darren Thomas into the mix, and couple that with the fact there is no love lost between the teams… Ducks roll 48-17.