USC football had one of its most heartbreaking losses in recent memory Saturday at home in the Coliseum against Utah in a 34-32 loss.
Caleb Williams will try and bounce back as the USC Trojans (6-2) battle the California Golden Bears (3-4) at Memorial Stadium on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. Eastern time, 1 p.m. local time in Berkeley.
Cal has had some time to rest and make adjustments. The Golden Bears head into this game coming off an open date. The last week that Cal was in action, the team fell 34-14 to Utah, the same opponent USC faced this past Saturday.
USC is dealing with a lot of distractions. Lincoln Riley is sick and resting at home under doctor’s orders. Dennis Simmons is the acting head coach. Kliff Kingsbury has been elevated to an assistant coaching role. Alex Grinch is on the hot seat as defensive coordinator. Caleb Williams’ NFL draft stock is falling. There’s a lot of chatter inside the system. USC has to block out the noise and focus on this game.
This is the last rivalry matchup between Cal and USC for the time being, given that the two schools will go to separate conferences next year. The Trojans are 72-33-6 all time against the Golden Bears.
I expect USC, thrust into a must-win matchup, to dominate on the road versus Cal.
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