Tag: California Golden Bears

Latest CBS Sports bowl projections have Duke football facing new conference rival

With the Blue Devils already bowl-eligible, the latest bowl projections from CBS Sports have them facing a new conference rival.

Another week has come and gone in the college football season, leaving just two more before the end of the regular season. With that comes more bowl projections.

The Blue Devils (7-3, 3-3) have already earned their bowl eligibility, so now it’s just a matter of who they’ll face. According to Jerry Palm’s most recent bowl projection for CBS Sports, Duke could thrown down with a new conference rival.

Palm put Duke against the California Golden Bears in the Sun Bowl on New Year’s Eve. The game would take place at 2 p.m. Eastern time in El Paso, Texas.

California is projected to make a bowl, but the Golden Bears (5-5) are still searching for their sixth win of the season. After a strong 3-0 start, they’ve lost five of their last seven. Each of those defeats came by one score, and three of them came by one or two points.

California will finish the season against Stanford and SMU, needing a victory over one of the two to secure a spot in the postseason.

CBS Sports projects Duke football will face new conference foe in latest bowl projection

In CBS Sports’ latest bowl projection, the Duke Blue Devils are facing a west coast team that recently joined the ACC.

The Duke football team entered Week 11 already eligible for the college football postseason with six wins, but that’s just a starting point. After the Blue Devils took down the NC State Wolfpack, they will enter the final stretch of the season with seven wins and counting on their resume.

As a result, CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm updated his bowl projections to have the Blue Devils facing the California Golden Bears, a new member of the ACC, in the Sun Bowl on December 31. The game would take place in El Paso, Texas.

With a 1-4 record in conference play, the Golden Bears currently sit just 15th in the ACC standings ahead of the Florida State Seminoles and Stanford Cardinals. However, four non-conference wins have California 5-4 for the season as a whole.

Cal started the season 3-0 before losing four in a row, losing one-score games against the Seminoles, Wolfpack, Pittsburgh Panthers, and Miami Hurricanes. The Golden Bears have, however, gotten back on track in the last two weeks by taking down Oregon State and Wake Forest to keep their bowl hopes alive.

For Cal to become bowl-eligible, they need to win one of their last three games against Syracuse, Stanford, and SMU. The Mustangs, the last team left without a conference loss in the ACC, would be the toughest of those three, but the 2-7 Cardinal provide a reasonable task.

Chiefs scouting report: California Golden Bears RB Jaydn Ott

If the #Chiefs want to select a RB in the 2025 NFL draft, they should consider looking at California Golden Bears rusher Jaydn Ott.

The Kansas City Chiefs must add running back depth in the 2025 NFL draft. Three running backs on their roster hit free agency after the season, and the recent injury to Isiah Pacheco revealed how heavily the team relies on him. Fortunately, there are plenty of running back prospects in the upcoming class.

California Golden Bears rusher Jadyn Ott is an explosive one-cut running back with the acceleration to blow past the defense’s second level. Linebackers can’t match his burst and struggle to maintain their pursuit angles. Safeties who take steep downhill paths to the football find themselves trailing Ott.

Ott patiently surveys gaps behind the line of scrimmage until he spots an opening and darts through it. The junior processes run lanes quickly, using his fast footwork and excellent lower body control to maneuver through traffic. Once he spots an opening, he makes a sharp cut and slams on the accelerator.

Ott offers value as a pass-catcher out of the backfield. He showcases impressive urgency with his routes to give the quarterback an open target early in the play. Linebackers struggle to stick with Ott’s speed on routes. He’s a natural hands catcher who hasn’t dropped a pass since 2022.

The Chiefs could select Ott on the draft’s third day. Ott is an intriguing prospect, but he lacks the size of an every-down back and projects best as a rotational player. He offers a nice change of pace compared to Pacheco and Carson Steele.

The Golden Bears face North Carolina State on Saturday, Oct. 19 at 2:30 p.m. CST. Both programs lost their last two games by one-score differences.

Cal fans convince Nick Saban to change red tie during College GameDay

Nick Saban works the Cal crowd before changing his red colored tie to a yellow and blue one during a segment on College GameDay.

There’s rarely a dull moment on ESPN’s College GameDay, especially when the crew is posted up at a school they’ve never been before.

The excitement and enthusiasm from a fanbase like Cal’s was palpable all morning long, and the hosts did a great job of feeding into it – including former Alabama coach Nick Saban who is clearly coming out of his shell after a few weeks in the booth.

All morning long Cal fans were giving Saban a hard time over his red tie. Saban responded by playing to the crowd, even kissing his tie before eventually taking it off – much to the delight of the crowd and Pat McAfee, who quickly helped fit Saban with a new yellow and blue tie to match the Cal colors.

The 72-year-old former head coach is clearly having fun this season on GameDay, opening up his personality a bit more as he adjusts to being behind the microphone, rather than on the sidelines, for the first time since he began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Kent State in 1973.

Cal and Miami will kickoff late Saturday evening at 10:30 PM ET.

The Cal Woke Mob memes taking over college football, explained

The Calgorithm comes for us all.

Welcome to FTW Explains, a guide to catching up on and better understanding stuff going on in the world. Have you seen some stuff about Cal football and a “woke agenda”? And you’re very confused about that whole thing? Don’t worry. We’re here to help.

These are very strange times in college football.

On Saturday in Week 4, the 3-0 California Golden Bears face 0-3 Florida State in an ACC matchup. That alone is quite a lot to process. But it gets a little bit weirder these days as Cal’s extremely online fan base started sharing memes that poke fun at every stereotype of the students at Berkeley.

You know that final rap battle in 8 Mile where Eminem uses every single diss Captain America has against him to win? It’s a lot like that. But in the last week, the Cal Woke Mob memes have truly taken over college football. It’s utterly ridiculous and unavoidable.

It’s also the SEC’s fault.

Wait, how is the SEC involved?

Well, you can go way back to the SEC kicking off another round of realignment that led to the death of the Pac-12 as we know it. But let’s fast forward to the lead up to last week’s matchup at Auburn.

Tigers fans thought they could get their jokes off at the expense of Cal fans without any pushback before the game.

Then Auburn associate AD Bill Shannon replied to a joke on X/Twitter about Cal fans mistaking Toomer’s Drugs for a marijuana dispensary with a sarcastic remark of his own.

“I have another caution: No military flyover has taken place at a Cal game since the 50’s,” Shannon posted. “Those who do stand for the National Anthem may need something to calm them down. USAF jets incoming.”

Of course, that is claim absolutely false — Cal had an F-15 flyover last October. But it was too late. The damage was done.

Shannon offered a backhanded apology, then deleted his account entirely.

“No offense meant to Cal. Thought it was a bit of humor,” Shannon posted. “I grew up in California and know the political views there or at least the stereotypical ones. We cherish our ROTC cadets here and it’s gratifying to know Cal does to [sic] @california.”

That really backfired, huh?

Sure did! Especially after Cal came to Auburn and won, 21-14.

And that’s where this thing takes a turn for the absurd as Cal fans memed Auburn into oblivion, starting with this gem:

https://twitter.com/terencelau/status/1832882511665308062

It was all a little too perfect. Cal fans making every joke before someone else could use it as an insult somehow made all the sense in the world.

Especially considering the school now plays in an ACC conference featuring a number of schools located in much more conservative-leaning states.

Cal fans knew all the buzzwords to make the eyes of many conservative fans of those teams start to twitch: DEI, Woke Mob, Critical Race Theory, Gender Neutral Bathrooms.

Pretty much all the most recent dog whistles thrown into the “culture war” were suddenly getting thrown right back.

You can guess what happened next.

After Florida State lost to Memphis at home to drop to 0-3 — and before Cal even played it’s Week 3 matchup against San Diego State — Golden Bears fans set their sights on triggering everyone in Tallahassee.

You mean CALahassee?

You catch on quick!

Let’s take a brief look at some of the more popular memes that floating around before Week 4’s matchup:

https://twitter.com/haasofott/status/1836915073186468145?s=12&t=Z25PykXLy1oALqwmGLm3ZQ

https://twitter.com/golDonbear/status/1750304077161099645

https://twitter.com/wokemobfootball/status/1835698640113029631

 

https://twitter.com/oskisdrunkuncle/status/1836916383524815316?s=12&t=Z25PykXLy1oALqwmGLm3ZQ

https://twitter.com/rexvolcano/status/1836964403411042773?s=12&t=Z25PykXLy1oALqwmGLm3ZQ

https://twitter.com/golDonbear/status/1835044575368691810

Cal fans, I owe you an apology, I wasn’t really familiar with your game

I’m not sure any of us were prepared for what happens when you bring Pac-12 After Dark mainstays into the daylight.

The Cal Woke Mob memes are only gaining in strength, and it seems like everyone on college football Twitter has found them impossible to avoid.

Is there a name for this phenomenon?

It’s called the Calgorithm. And it comes for us all.

https://twitter.com/ChrisVannini/status/1836892970282360964

https://twitter.com/38Godfrey/status/1833532169664528449

https://twitter.com/NicoleAuerbach/status/1836069039707242922

If you’re reading this, it’s probably too late for you to avoid the power of the Calgorithm.

At least now, you have an understanding why: Blame Auburn.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=692541049 tag=692542602]

Legendary running back named guest picker for College GameDay in Week 6

Former Cal running back Marshawn Lynch is the celebrity guest picker for ESPN’s College GameDay in Week 6 in Berkeley, California.

For the first time ever, ESPN’s College GameDay will post up in Berkeley to take in Cal’s first home ACC matchup on Saturday against the Miami Hurricanes. And there was little mystery who would get selected to be the celebrity guest picker: former Golden Bears running back Marshawn Lynch.

Lynch is known for his gregarious personality, goofy antics with the media, love of Skittles, and as one of the best running backs of the past 20 years.

Beast Mode spent three years at Cal from 2004-2006, leading the country with 1,356 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns from scrimmage in 2006, earning Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year.

He went on to have a prolific 12-year NFL career, earning five Pro Bowl nods and being named a first team All-Pro in 2012 with the Seattle Seahawks.

GameDay’s announcement on social media poked fun at one of Lynch’s most infamous moments, when he rode a golf car onto Cal’s field.

Fans who attend the GameDay festivities in Berkeley will have a long time to wait until the game kicks off, which will happen at 7:30 PM local time on October 5th.

College GameDay heads to brand new location for Week 6

Cal’s first home game in ACC play comes against Miami, and ESPN’s College GameDay will be in Berkeley for it.

ESPN’s College GameDay crew will be in Berkeley, California for the first time ever on Saturday when Cal hosts No. 7 Miami in coast-to-coast ACC football action.

The Bears and ‘Canes are set to kick off at 10:30 PM ET on Saturday at Memorial Stadium, the first home game for Cal as new members of the ACC and the first time Miami is playing in Berkeley since 1990.

“We are thrilled that ESPN’s College GameDay will be coming to the Berkeley campus this week,” UC Berkeley Chancellor Rich Lyons said. “A college football Saturday brings together our community, and we welcome the wonderful opportunity ESPN’s College GameDay provides to show what Berkeley is all about.”

While this is Cal’s first time hosting GameDay, it will be the team’s fourth time participating in a GameDay contest, going 1-2 in three previous games all on the road: a loss to No. 1 USC in 2004, a win over No. 11 Oregon in 2007, and a loss in 2015 to No. 5 Utah.

Cal is 3-1 in 2024, coming off a bye week after losing on the road at Florida State, 14-9, in Week 4. Miami is undefeated but coming off a hardfought 38-34 win over Virginia Tech which ended controversially on a hail mary play that was overturned after initially being ruled a touchdown for the Hokies.

Following Saturday’s GameDay festivities, there will be just five power conference programs who have never hosted GameDay: Illinois, Maryland, Rutgers, Syracuse, and Virginia.

Is Camryn Bynum the answer to the Vikings problem at cornerback?

There has been no hiding it: the Minnesota Vikings have had some issues at the cornerback position almost two weeks through training camp.

There has been no hiding it: the Minnesota Vikings have had some issues at the cornerback position almost two weeks through training camp. Besides the devastating loss of Khyree Jackson to his family, forget about football.

There have been other events that, while they don’t compare, do keep happening within the same position group.

The season-ending injury to Mehki Blackmon, a torn ACL, was a gut punch. That was followed up by Shaq Griffin suffering a hamstring injury, and we know those injuries can linger throughout the entire season. The team has been actively signing three free-agent defensive backs, but none will likely be worthy of being opposite Byron Murphy Jr. in the pass-happy NFC North.

One solution already on the roster is college cornerback Camryn Bynum, who became an NFL safety once drafted by the Vikings.

Bynum was a middle-tier cornerback prospect in the 2021 draft class. The Vikings’ move to safety for him has proved to be a great one, as he has outplayed his draft capital and is poised to be extended by the team.

But what about moving him back to cornerback, just for the season?

His PFF coverage grades in college were favorable. He earned an average grade of 75.2, with his highest grade coming in his sophomore year when he graded out at 82.4.

The preseason is all about moving the chess pieces around and seeing what strategies work. Bynum making a move to cornerback is simple, it makes sense, and it is the band-aid solution this team needs.

Duke Blue Devils earn ‘A+’ academic prestige grade on EA Sports College Football 25

According to a glimpse at the EA Sports College Football 25 recruiting mechanics, Duke earned of of the six ‘A+’ academic prestige grades.

Duke University has always been proud of its academic reputation, as evidenced by its placement in the university rankings from U.S. News this year.

EA Sports didn’t ignore the Blue Devils’ prowess in the classroom, either. The studio released another glimpse at College Football 25, the highly anticipated return of the NCAA Football video game series, on Tuesday that dove into Dynasty mode, which lets players control programs as the head coach.

One segment of the video broke down the mechanics for recruiting high school prospects, with each prospect prioritizing different things in their future school. On the right side of the screen, the game’s ‘Academic Prowess’ grades can be seen. Only six schools earned an ‘A+’ on the scale, and sure enough, the Duke Blue Devils made the cutoff.

Rice took the top spot in the rankings. Stanford, Northwestern, California, and UCLA also earned the highest grade. With the Cardinal and the Golden Bears joining the conference on Monday, three of the six ‘A+’ teams now hail from the ACC.

Michigan, Notre Dame, and Vanderbilt all barely missed the cut, causing some uproar from other fanbases who pride themselves on their education. Georgia Tech, another ACC program, also finished within the top 11.

The game will be released on July 19.

California, Stanford, and SMU officially join the ACC

The long-awaited conference realignment finally became official on Monday with three new teams joining Duke in the ACC.

The Atlantic Coast Conference officially got a little bigger on Monday.

The Stanford Cardinal, the California Golden Bears, and the SMU Mustangs became members of the ACC on Monday with the 2024-25 athletic calendar kicking off in July.

The Golden Bears and the Cardinal come from the Pac-12, and the West Coast conference now only has Oregon State and Washington State left as teams fled to the Big 12 and the Big Ten. SMU joins from the American Athletic Conference, and the Mustangs won the football conference championship last season.

There are now 18 teams in the conference for the athletic calendar, although there will only be 17 teams on the football slate since Notre Dame remains independent.

The move does not come as a surprise with schedules already in place for months including the new schools. Duke will play SMU during the last weekend in October, but the Blue Devils don’t play either of the two West Coast teams this season.