[tps_title]Cal at Oregon[/tps_title]
[tps_header]8:30 p.m., ESPN2[/tps_header]
CAL (5-3, 2-3) AT
OREGON (5-3, 3-2)
8:30 p.m., ESPN2
Pointspread: Oregon is favored by 3.5 points
— Oregon opened as a 7.5-point favorite this week.
— His injury trouble behind him, Oregon quarterback Vernon Adams is back to having fun. Adams returned two weeks ago against Washington, throwing for 272 yards and two touchdowns in a 26-20 Oregon victory. Last Thursday, he threw for 315 yards and four TDs in a 61-55 triple-overtime win at Arizona State. Adams was named the Pac-12 offensive Player of the Week for his performance. He’ll look to continue the comeback when the Ducks host California.
— Oregon, with losses to Michigan State, Utah and Washington State, sits in second place in the Pac-12 North standings with the Cougars. The Ducks will have to catch No. 9 Stanford (7-1, 6-0) if they hope to defend their Pac-12 title, but time is running short. Oregon visits the Cardinal next week.
— Like the Ducks, Cal needs one more victory to be bowl eligible, but the Golden Bears have lost three straight after a promising 5-0 start.
— Cal junior quarterback Jared Goff threw for 272 yards and two touchdowns in last weekend’s 27-21 loss to USC, which put him in the 10,000 yards-passing club. Goff has 10,018 yards passing and is the 92nd player in FBS history to reach the mark. He’s also got a school-record 75 touchdown passes.
— Oregon has a six-game winning streak over the Golden Bears, who haven’t defeated the Ducks since a 26-16 victory in Strawberry Canyon in 2008. Oregon has outscored California 273-105 over that span.
— Oregon sophomore running back Royce Freeman has amassed 1,109 yards rushing this season, becoming the fourth running back in school history to have back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons. He ranks eighth nationally with 138.6 yards a game.
— In 2013, Goff went into the game against Oregon as the nation’s leader with an average of more than 435 yards passing a game, but after completing just three of six passes for 11 yards in the first quarter, he was replaced by Zach Kline. The Golden Bears lost 55-16.
California is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of California’s last 5 games
California is 7-2 ATS in its last 9 games on the road
California is 7-18 SU in its last 25 games on the road
Oregon is 13-5 ATS in its last 18 games
Oregon is 20-5 SU in its last 25 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Oregon’s last 6 games
Oregon is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games at home
My pick: Oregon will win and cover
Steve Rivera’s pick: Oregon will win and cover
Anthony Gimino’s pick: Oregon will win and cover
[tps_footer]
ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He has also written articles for Bleacher Report and Lindy’s College Sports.[/tps_footer]
