Cal Football: Preview Box for Monday's Redbox Bowl

Cal hopes to end the season on a three-game winning streak with its first bowl victory since 2015 when it faces Illinois in the Redbox Bowl in Santa Clara on Monday afternoon.

With the game being close to home for Cal, it should have the majority of the crowd support. The distance from Cal’s Memorial Stadium to Levi’s Stadium is 44 miles; the distance from Illinois’ Memorial Stadium to Levi’s Statium is 2,156 miles. But the Bears have a better record on the road (4-2) than they have at home (3-3) this season.

It will be the last game on the Cal coaching staff for offensive coordinator Beau Baldwin, running back coach Nick Edwards and offensive line coach Steve Greatwood.

There are reports (unsubstantiated) that Cal may debut a new uniform design in this bowl game.

Here are the important facts for Monday’s contest:

CAL (7-5, 4-5 Pac-12) vs. ILLINOIS (6-6, 4-5 Big Ten)

SITE: Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, Calif.

WHEN: Monday, 1 p.m. Pacific time

TV: FOX – Joe Davis (Play-By-Play), Brock Huard (Analyst), Bruce Feldman (Sideline Reporter)

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

BETTING LINE: Cal is favored by 6 1/2 points; Over/Under – 43 1/2

TICKETS: Click here:

DIRECTIONS TO LEVI’S STADIUM: Click here

WEATHER FORECAST: Monday afternoon will bring partly cloudy skies with a 10-percent chance of rain and a high of about 59 degrees. Winds will reach 10 miles per hour. The field may be wet from rain on Sunday.

CAL-ILLINOIS HISTORY: Illinois leads the alltime series 7-3, but this will be the first time the Bears and Illinois meet in a bowl game. The teams have not faced each other since 2005, when Cal recorded a 35-20 victory in Berkeley. The last time the teams met in Champaign, Ill., was 2003, when Cal won 31-24. Illinois’ most recent victory in the series came in 2001, when the Fighting Illini posted a 44-17 victory in Berkeley. The first game in the Cal-Illinois series took play in 1955, when Illinois beat the Bears 20-13 in Berkeley.

CAL STORYLINES: Cal is playing in a bowl game in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2008-2009. Cal lost to TCU 10-7 in overtime in last season’s Cheez-It Bowl. . . Cal won its final two regular-season games this year, both on the road, against Stanford and UCLA . . . Cal will be without several key players, including starting wide receiver Jordan Duncan, starting safety Ashtyn Davis, starting outside linebacker Tevin Paul and safety Trey Turner III, who would have replaced Davis as a starting safety. As a result Cal may juggle some members of its secondary, with cornerback Elijah Hicks likely to get some playing time at safety . . . Cal ranks last in the Pac-12 in both total offense and scoring offense (20.1 points per game), and the Bears are fourth in the conference in both total defense and scoring defense (22.1 ppg) . . . The Bears have turned the ball over 13 times in 2019, and that would be the fewest ever in a Cal season. The 2016 Bears set the school record with 15 turnovers. Last season, Cal committed 31 turnovers, the most in the country . . . Cal has forced just 15 turnovers by its opponents in 2019, after having 28 takeaways a year ago.

ILLINOIS STORYLINES: The Fighting Illini are playing in their first bowl game since 2014, and they have not won a bowl game since 2011, when they beat UCLA 20-14 in the Fight Hunger Bowl. That game was played at AT&T Park (now Oracle Park) in San Francisco. The Fight Hunger Bowl was later renamed the Redbox Bowl and the site was moved to Santa Clara. . . A win would give Illinois its first winning seasons since 2011, when the Illini also finished 7-6. . . . Illinois quarterback Brandon Peters did not play in the final regular-season game against Northwestern because of a concussion, and the Illini lost that game at home 29-10. He has since been cleared, and will start in the Redbox Bowl . . . Illinois is first in the nation in defensive touchdowns (6), second in the nation in forced fumbles (18), third in the nation in turnovers gained (28), and ninth in the nation in turnover margin (plus-0.92 per game). . . . Illinois overcame a 28-3 deficit to beat Michigan State and rallied from a 23-14 deficit with six minutes left to upset then-No. 6 Wisconsin 24-23.

Justin Wilcox talks about dealing with Illinois' ability to force turnovers:

CAL PLAYERS TO WATCH: LB Evan Weaver (consensus All-American needs 21 tackles Monday to set the national single-season record); QB Chase Garbers (Cal is 6-0 this season when he plays more than a half); RB Christopher Brown Jr. (rushed for 111 yards against UCLA in the final regular-season game); CB Elijah Hicks (likely to see time at safety); WR Nikko Remigio (14 catches for 215 yards over last two games); LB Cam Goode (leads Cal in sacks, with 8.5, and tackles for loss, with 13); WR Kekoa Crawford (missed seven games, but expected to play Monday)

ILLINOIS PLAYERS TO WATCH:LB Dele Harding (second in the nation in tackles); DB Sydney Brown (3 interceptions, 80 tackles); RB/KR Dre Brown (big-play returner and running back); P Blake Hayes (Big Ten punter of the year); QB Brandon Peters (missed final regular-season game with a concussion); DL Oluwole Betiku (8.0 sacks, 11.5 tackles for loss); RB Reggie Corbin (third-team all-Big Ten in 2019, 1,085 rushing yards in 2018)

CAL STATISTICS, DEPTH CHART, NOTES: Click here:

ILLINOIS NOTES, STATISTICS, DEPTH CHART: Click here

JAKE'S PICK: Cal 24, Illinois 14

JEFF’S PICK: Cal 27, Illinois 21

BOB ASMUSSEN’S PICK (Champaign, Ill., News-Gazette): Illinois 21, Cal 20.

FIVE QUESTIONS ABOUT ILLINOIS ANSWERED BY BOB ASMUSSEN OF CHAMPAIGN (ILL.) NEWS-GAZETTE: Click here

Illinois coach Lovie Smith discusses recovering from four-game losing streak:

Smith talks about rebounding from 2-10 record in 2017 and 4-8 last year