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Traveling north to play the Washington State Cougars might be exactly what the Cal Golden Bears need to pull back to .500 in Pac-12 play.
The Bears haven't lost to the Cougars since 2002, when the Cougars were Pac-10 co-champions and headed to the Rose Bowl. Since then, it has been all Cal all the time, especially in the last two meetings.
The Bears beat the Cougars 30-7 last year and 20-12 in 2010. The Cougars were only able to garner 3.2 yards per play in those meetings. Things are a bit different this year however, as Cougars coach Mike Leach has mobilized his offense a bit better. Although the Cougars only rank 100th in the nation at 21.8 points a game they average 312 yards a game in the air, good for 15th overall.
Cal has had great success running the ball this year, averaging close to 175 yards a agame. Senior running back C.J. Anderson is coming off of a 151 yard rushing game in the win over UCLA last week. The Cougars defense has proven susceptible to the run this season, giving up 300 yards on the ground in a loss to Oregon and 186 yards in a loss to Colorado.
The oddsmakers still think it will be a close match-up. The Bears are favored by only one touchdown, and the over/under is sitting at around 55 points.
Kick-off is at 7:30 PT and the game will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Network.