Cal Football: Preview Box for Saturday's Game Against Washington State

Cal is riding a four-game losing streak heading into Saturday’s home game against Washington State, and Devon Modster will be the Bears' starting quarterback for that game.

Cal defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter provides his assessment of Washington State’s offense and quarterback Anthony Gordon in the above video. (The reference to zombies relates to a Mike Leach video available here.)

Here are the important facts for Saturday’s contest:

CAL (4-4, 1-4 Pac-12) vs. WASHINGTON STATE (4-4, 1-4 Pac-12)

SITE: Memorial Stadium Berkeley, Calif.

WHEN: Saturday, 4 p.m.

TV: Pac-12 Network – Ted Robinson (Play-By-Play), Yogi Roth (Analyst), Lewis Johnson (Sideline Reporter).

RADIO: KGO 810 AM - Joe Starkey (Play-By-Play), Mike Pawlawski (Analyst), Todd McKim (Sideline Reporter)

BETTING LINE: Washington State is favored by 7 1/2 points (as of Friday); Over/Under – 51 1/2

WEATHER FORECAST: Saturday will bring partly cloudy skies to Berkeley, with the temperature expected to reach a high of 68 degrees in the afternoon and dropping to 48 degrees Saturday night. Humidity is expected to rise to 82 percent Saturday night, but there is less than a 10 percent chance of rain.

CAL-WASHINGTON STATE HISTORY: Cal leads the alltime series 47-28-5. Washington State won last year’s meeting in Pullman, Wash., 19-13, but Cal beat the Cougars 37-3 in Berkeley in 2017 when WSU was ranked No. 8.

CAL STORYLINES: Cal, which is coming off a bye following a 35-0 loss to Utah, has lost four in a row after its 4-0 start earned the Bears a No. 15 national ranking . . . The last time Cal lost four consecutive games was 2016, and the last time the Bears lost more than four in a row was 2013, when the Bears lost 10 in a row in a 1-11 season . . . Cal has played well against Washington State since Justin Wilcox arrived. The Bears pulled off a 37-3 upset of a WSU team that was 6-0 and ranked No. 8 in 2017, and they gave 10th-ranked Washington State a scare on the road last year, losing 19-13 when the Cougars scored the go-ahead touchdown in the final minute . . . Quarterback Chase Garbers continues to be sidelined with a right-shoulder injury . . . A number of prominent Cal wide receivers are questionable for the game with injuries – Kekoa Crawford, Nikko Remigio, Jeremiah Hawkins and Ricky Walker III . . . Cal’s offensive line has been hit with injuries, but center Michael Saffell may return after a two-game absence . . . Cal ranks last in the Pac-12 in yards per rushing attempt at 3.1, and it ranks last in the conference in scoring, averaging 17.4 points per contest. . . . Cal’s defense yielded 35 points to Utah, ending a streak of 14 consecutive games in which it allowed fewer than 25 points. But the Bears still rank third in the PAC-12 in scoring defense, allowing 20.8 points per game. . . . Running back DeShawn Collins may get more playing time Saturday.

WASHINGTON STATE STORYLINES: The Cougars are coming off a bye, and lost the previous week to Oregon 37-35 as the then-No. 11 Ducks kicked the game-winning field goal as time expired . . . Washington State started 3-0 and was ranked No. 19, but has lost four of five games since . . . Washington State leads the nation in passing offense, averaging 436.7 yards per game, is sixth in total offense (529.1 yards per game) and is eighth in scoring offense (41.8 points per game). . . . Cougars QB Anthony Gordon leads the nation in passing yards per game, and running back Max Borghi leads the Pac-12 in yards per carry (7.2) . . . WSU ranks last in the Pac-12 in rushing defense and 10th in total defense.

CAL PLAYERS TO WATCH: RB Christopher Brown Jr. (has averaged just 2.73 yards per carry over last five games); LB Evan Weaver (leads the nation in tackles at 15.9 per game); S Ashtyn Davis (third on the team in tackles, six career interceptions); CB Camryn Bynum (Cal’s best cover man); LB Kuony Deng (third in Pac-12 in tackles at 10.0 per game, 16 tackles vs. Utah).

WASHINGTON STATE PLAYERS TO WATCH: QB Anthony Gordon (leads the nation in passing yards and TD passes, with 32); RB Max Boghi (7.2 yards per carry lead Pac-12, 44 receptions lead all FBS running backs); WR Brandon Arconado (second in Pac-12 in receiving yards per game at 98.5); WR Easop Winston Jr. (second in Pac-12 in TD receptions at 9); LB Jahad Woods (team-leading 79 tackles).

CAL STATISTICS: Click here

CAL DEPTH CHART: Click Here

WASHINGTON STATE NOTES, STATISTICS, DEPTH CHART: Click here

JAKE'S PICK: Cal 21, Washington State 20

JEFF’s PICK: Washington State 24, Cal 13

THEO LAWSON PICK (Spokane Spokesman Review reporter): Washington State 27, Cal 13

FIVE QUESTIONS ABOUT WASHINGTON STATE ANSWERED BY THEO LAWSON OF THE SPOKANE SPOKESMAN REVIEW: Click here

TICKETS: Click here.

PARKING: Click here

GAME-DAY STADIUM POLICIES: Click here

CAL CAMPUS MAP: Click here