Stanford opens as a 12.5 point favorite over the Golden Bears.
Based on the season to date, Stanford is the better team. Cal's defense is much better than it was last year, but it's still not great. And, somewhat surprisingly, the Bears' offense has regressed a little bit - they're averaging two fewer points per game this year than last.
The concern, of course, is that Jared Goff is still Jared Goff, Cal has a number of receivers that can hurt you and Stanford's secondary is still young - and beat up. If Harris can't go, all five DB's will likely be freshmen and/or first-year starters. (Holder, Murphy, Meeks, Whitfield, Lloyd/Reid.) So that's a bit concerning. From the Cal games I've watched this year/the analysis delivered on the broadcasts, the thinking is that defenses have been able, at least at times, to pressure Goff and also press Cal's receivers to get that offense out of rhythm. So, perhaps even more than usual, it will be very important for Stanford to generate a consistent pass rush. You don't want Goff to get comfortable in the pocket with plenty of time to find an above average group of receivers.
USC and Oregon play at 12:30 next Saturday, so Stanford will know where it stands before the Big Game kicks off. The chances that Oregon loses to Oregon State the following week are non-existent, so it really will all boil down to Saturday. I suspect the Trojans will have a hard time slowing the Ducks (USC's pretty beat up on defense - and they're not great to begin with on that side of the ball) and it's in Eugene, so the Cardinal will probably need to win. (Though Oregon will give up some points.) Course Stanford wouldn't want to back into a Pac-12 North title anyway.
The Pac-12 South is a mess right now. USC is currently in the best position, but they have Oregon and UCLA left on the schedule. Utah has UCLA and Colorado. UCLA has Utah and USC. So who knows.
Based on the season to date, Stanford is the better team. Cal's defense is much better than it was last year, but it's still not great. And, somewhat surprisingly, the Bears' offense has regressed a little bit - they're averaging two fewer points per game this year than last.
The concern, of course, is that Jared Goff is still Jared Goff, Cal has a number of receivers that can hurt you and Stanford's secondary is still young - and beat up. If Harris can't go, all five DB's will likely be freshmen and/or first-year starters. (Holder, Murphy, Meeks, Whitfield, Lloyd/Reid.) So that's a bit concerning. From the Cal games I've watched this year/the analysis delivered on the broadcasts, the thinking is that defenses have been able, at least at times, to pressure Goff and also press Cal's receivers to get that offense out of rhythm. So, perhaps even more than usual, it will be very important for Stanford to generate a consistent pass rush. You don't want Goff to get comfortable in the pocket with plenty of time to find an above average group of receivers.
USC and Oregon play at 12:30 next Saturday, so Stanford will know where it stands before the Big Game kicks off. The chances that Oregon loses to Oregon State the following week are non-existent, so it really will all boil down to Saturday. I suspect the Trojans will have a hard time slowing the Ducks (USC's pretty beat up on defense - and they're not great to begin with on that side of the ball) and it's in Eugene, so the Cardinal will probably need to win. (Though Oregon will give up some points.) Course Stanford wouldn't want to back into a Pac-12 North title anyway.
The Pac-12 South is a mess right now. USC is currently in the best position, but they have Oregon and UCLA left on the schedule. Utah has UCLA and Colorado. UCLA has Utah and USC. So who knows.
