Cal Football Game Preview: Bears Visit No. 14 Louisville

Cal will play at road game against 14th-ranked Louisville on Saturday evening.

The preview:

CAL (5-4, 2-3 ACC) vs. NO. 14 LOUISVILLE (7-1, 4-1 ACC)

SITE: L&N Stadium, Louisville, Kentucky

WHEN: Saturday, 4 p.m. Pacific time (7 p.m. Louisville time)

TV: ESPN2 -- Dave Flemming (Play-by-Play), Brock Osweiler (Analyst), Stormy Buonantony (Sideline Reporter)

RADIO: KSFO (810 AM) -- Justin Allegri (Play-By-Play), Mike Pawlawski (Analyst), Ben Ross (Sideline Reporter)

BETTING LINE: Louisville is an 18.5-point favorite as of Friday morning. Over/Under is 50.5 points

WEATHER FORECAST: It might be a little wet in Louisville. There is a 50% chance of a brief shower Saturday night and an 11% possibility of thunder storms, which could interrupt the game. It will be partly cloudy and there may be some patchy fog early Saturday evening. The temperature at the start of the game will be about 55 degrees and will drop to about 45 degrees by the end of the game.

CAL-LOUISVILLE HISTORY: Cal and Louisville have never faced each other on the football field.

CAL PLAYER AVAILABILITY: Despite being listed as "probable" for Saturday's game, linebacker Cade Uluave is not expected to play against Louisville. Aaron Hampton will start in his place. Starting defensive tackle T.J. Bollers was ruled out for Saturday’s game and will miss a game for the first time this season. Backup running back LJ Johnson Jr. will miss his third straight game, but backup running back Brandon High Jr. will probably be available after missing the previous four games. Starting safety Aiden Manutai will miss his second straight game, and offensive lineman Lamar Robinson, who was expected to get his first start at center this week, also will miss his second straight game.

LOUISVILLE PLAYER AVAILABILITY: Starting running back Isaac Brown, who leads the nation in yards per carry (8.6) and is second in the ACC in rushing yards, is not available for Saturday’s game with a leg injury, and he is expected to miss next week’s game as well. Starting middle linebacker Stanquan Clark, who missed the past six games, is also out for Saturday. Running back Duke Watson, who missed the past two games, is likely to be available Saturday.

CAL STORYLINES:

---The Bears need one victory in its final three games to become bowl-eligible for the third straight year. However, Cal could be an underdog in all three of those games – Louisville, Stanford on the road and SMU at home.

---Cal has lost 14 consecutive games to teams ranked in the AP top 25. The last time Cal beat a ranked team was in the shortened 2020 season when the Bears upset 23rd-ranked Oregon in Berkeley in Cal’s final game of that four-game season. The last time Cal beat a team ranked in the top 15 was 2018 when the Bears defeated 15th-ranked Washington 12-10 in Berkeley. The last time Cal beat a ranked team on the road was 2009 when the Bears defeated 14th-ranked Stanford 34-28 at Stanford Stadium.

---The Bears are 18.5-point underdogs at most betting sites for Saturday’s game, by far Cal’s largest underdog spread of the season. The previous biggest spread this season was 6.5 points in favor of Cal’s opponent. The 18.5-point spread is the largest for Cal in an underdog role since the Bears were anywhere from a 24.5-point to 25.5-point underdog against sixth-ranked Oregon on the road in 2023. Oregon covered the spread in that game, winning by 44 points, 63-19.

---For Cal to have a chance against Louisville, true freshman quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele probably needs to have an outstanding game. He has thrown 11 touchdown passes with nine interceptions, which is not a good ratio, and he threw two interceptions with no TD passes last week against Virginia. Cal presumably will try to put together long, sustained drives to eat up the clock and shorten the game.

---Cal rushed for just 8 yards in last week’s 31-21 loss to Virginia. Subtracting the sack yardage lost, the Bears still had just 37 rushing yards in that game. The Bears rank last in the ACC and second-last in the country in rushing yards per game (78.6 yards per game). Only New Mexico State ranks behind Cal in rushing among FBS schools.

---Cal needs to win two of its final four games (including a potential bowl game) to end up with a winning record for the first time since 2019. The Bears must win two of their final three ACC games to finish with a .500 or better winning percentage in conference games for the first time since 2009.

---Justin Wilcox’s job could be in jeopardy if the Bears do not perform well over their final three games. An upset of Louisville would help his job security considerably. His contract runs through the 2027 season.

---The Bears have lost two in a row have a 2-4 record in their past six games after starting 3-0. Cal is coming off a 31-21 home loss to then-No. 14 Virginia.

---Bears slot receiver Jacob De Jesus has been the Bears’ best receiver this year and is also their big-play threat as a receiver or punt returner. He has 57 receptions for the season, which ranks second in the ACC.

---Cal linebacker Cade Uluave is not expected to play against Louisville. He is second in the ACC with 81 tackles and tied for third in tackles for loss with 10.5. It means Aaron Hampton, who came to Cal as a walk-on, would be the starter in Uluave's place. He recorded 15 tackles as Uluave’s replacement last week in the first significant action of his career.

---Bears cornerback Hezekiah Masses leads the nation in passes defended with 14 (four interceptions, 10 passes broken up).

LOUISVILLE STORYLINES:

---Louisville is in good position to land a spot in the ACC championship game. The Cardinals are one of five ACC teams with one conference loss, and all five are trailing Virginia, the only team unbeaten in ACC play. Louisville’s final two conference opponents after Cal are Clemson (2-4 in the ACC) and SMU (4-1 in the ACC). Louisville does not play two of the teams that currently have one ACC loss – Pitt and Duke.

---Louisville will be without standout running back Isaac Brown for at least the next two games. He leads the country in rushing yards per carry at 8.6, and is second in the ACC in rushing with 782 yards. Keyjuan Brown is the Cardinals’ likely starter at running back against Cal, and he averages 6.2 yards per carry behind an excellent offensive line. Louisville will also have running back Duke Watson, who averaged 8.9 yards per carry last season but missed the past three games this season with an injury will probably play this week.

---The Cardinals are seeking their first conference title since 2012, when they finished in a four-way tie for first place in Big East. The last time Louisville won an outright conference championship was 2006, when the Cardinals finished alone in first place in the Big East.

---Louisville is No. 15 in the first College Football Playoff rankings released this week, which puts the Cardinals outside the 12-team CFP bracket at the moment but within reach of a CFP berth. Louisville has been listed in nine of the 13 CFP rankings since head coach Jeff Brohm took over in 2023. This is the Cardinals highest CFP ranking since being No. 15 in the final 2023 rankings.

---Cal faced Louisville quarterback Miller Moss in 2021 when Moss was playing for USC. Moss entered that game in the fourth quarter with USC trailing 17-7 after starter Jaxson Dart left the game with an injury. Moss went 8-for-13 for 74 yards, one touchdown, no interceptions and one costly fumble in Cal’s 24-14 victory.

---Louisville has rallied from deficits in four of its seven wins, and that includes last week’s game against Virginia Tech, when the Cardinals trailed 16-7 at halftime, but won 28-16 for the Cardinals’ third straight victory. Their only loss came in overtime against Virginia.

---Louisville’s strength is its defense. The Cardinals rank No. 1 in the ACC in total defense and allow the fewest yards per play in the conference (4.5). The Cardinals rank ninth in the conference in total offense and sixth in scoring offense (33.8 points per game).

---Wide receiver/punt returner Caullin Lacy is Louisville’s game-changing player, especially as a punt returner. He has returned two punts for touchdowns this season and averages better than 20 yards per punt return. Lacy had 193 all-purpose yards in the win over Virginia Tech, the fifth time he has had over 100 all-purpose yards in a game.

---Louisville has scored at least 24 points in 22 consecutive games. The last time the Cardinals failed to score at least 24 points was the final game of the 2023 season. They have scored at least 24 points in all eight games in the 2025 season.

---Five questions to a Louisville beat writer about the Cardinals football team---

Jeff Brohm's Monday pres conference:

CAL PLAYERS TO WATCH: QB Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele (11 TD passes, 9 interceptions); LB Cade Uluave (81 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss); WR/PR Jacob De Jesus (57 catches, 10.7 yards per punt return); CB Hezekiah Masses (4 interceptions, nation-leading 14 passes defended); WR Trond Grizzell (season-high 8 catches last week); TE Mason Mini (34 receptions, team-leading 4 TD receptions); WR Jordan King (16 catches over the past 5 games); CB Paco Austin (6 pass breakups last week).

LOUISVILLE PLAYERS TO WATCH: QB Miller Moss (11 TD passes, 6 interceptions); RB Keyjuan Brown (6.2 yards per carry); WR/PR Caullin Lacy (44 receptions, 2 TDs, 23.4 yards per punt return, 2 return TDs); WR Chris Bell (56 receptions, 6 TDs); LB Stanquan Clark (possibly back this week after missing six games); EDGE Clev Lubin (4 sacks, 5 pass breakups, 3 QB hurries); RB Duke Watson (8.9 yards per carry in 2024, likely to return after two-game absence; LB T.J. Quinn (59 tackles, 4 tackles for loss)

CAL STATISTICS: Click here

CAL GAME NOTES, DEPTH CHART: Click here

LOUISVILLE STATISTICS: Click here

LOUISVILLE GAME NOTES, DEPTH CHART: Click here

JAKE'S PICK: Louisville 28, Cal 14

JEFF'S PICK: Louisville 30, Cal 21

MATT McGAVIC (Louisville Cardinals on SI): Louisville 35, Cal 21

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