ACC Game Picks: Old Rivals Cal & Stanford Clash for the 127th Time

This is the first time the Big Game participants are members of the Atlantic Coast Conference

Cal running back Jaivian Thomas / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

At last, an opponent on Cal’s schedule that we all recognize.

After weeks of largely unfamiliar ACC fare, the Bears meet century-old rival Stanford on Saturday at Memorial Stadium in the 127th Big Game.

Cal and Stanford first met back in 1892 in San Francisco — 41 years before the Bay Bridge connected the East Bay to the city.

The Big Game — which wasn’t even called that back then — wasn’t the only big thing that happened in 1892. Ellis Island welcomed its first immigrant, the diesel engine and the telegraph were both received patents, the first basketball game was played in Springfield, Mass., and the Nutcracker ballet was premiered.

So, eager to redeem ourselves after a brutal week, our picks . . . 

Last week: Jake 1-5, Jeff 1-5

Season: Jake 63-52, Jeff 61-54

All picks against the spread 

Betting line from Vegas Insider

Rankings shown are the current College Football Playoff rankings

Thursday

— NORTH CAROLINA STATE (plus-9.5) at GEORGIA TECH, 4:30 p.m., ESPN

Jake: Yellow Jackets QB Haynes King may still be limited as a passer, but having him in the lineup makes Georgia Tech a better team.  Wolfpack freshman CJ Bailey has had solid games, but he’s too inconsistent to bet on. Pick: Georgia Tech

Jeff: Georgia Tech is 4-0 at home including a win over previously undefeated Miami in its most recent game. NC State’s only ACC wins were over Cal (by one point) and Stanford. Pick: Georgia Tech

Saturday

— WAKE FOREST (plus-23.5) at No. 8 MIAMI, 9 a.m., ESPN

Jake: Wake Forest has lost two in a row, but this a huge spread in favor of a team coming off a loss. Cam Ward will have a big game and the Hurricanes lead the nation in scoring. But Wake will cover. Pick: Wake Forest

Jeff: Wake has given up 77 points in it past two games. That’s not a good recipe for trying to stay with a Miami squad determined to return to its high-scoring, winning ways. Pick: Miami

— No. 14 SMU (minus-9.5) at VIRGINIA, 9 a.m., ESPN2

Jake: Virginia has uncertainty at the quarterback position – both Anthony Colandrea and Tony Muskett are taking first-team snaps this week in practice – and that’s never a good thing. Pick: SMU

Jeff: SMU has a chance to make this a special season. The Mustangs aren’t going to blow that against a team that has lost four of its past five games. Pick: SMU

— UCONN (plus-10.5) at SYRACUSE, 9 a.m., ACC Network

Jake: Orange QB Kyle McCord can be outstanding if he has time to throw.  We’re guessing he’ll have time this week. Pick: Syracuse

Jeff: Were we impressed by quarterback Kyle McCord and the Syracuse offense last Saturday in Berkeley? You bet we were. Pick: Syracuse

— NORTH CAROLINA (minus-3.5) at BOSTON COLLEGE, 9 a.m., CW Network

Jake: Boston College has quarterback issues, and North Carolina has Omarion Hampton. Pick: North Carolina

Jeff: UNC has won three in a row, averaging nearly 36 points. BC has dropped four of five, surrendering more than 33 per game. Pick: North Carolina

— CHARLESTON SOUTHERN (no line) at FLORIDA STATE, 10:30 a.m., ESPN+/ACC Extra

Jake: If the Seminoles lose this game when they are favored on some sites by almost five touchdowns . . . well, they better not. Pick: Florida State

Jeff: Charleston Southern, an FCS team, is 1-10 with eight straight defeats. After some long, hard thought . . . Pick: Florida State

— THE CITADEL (no line) at No. 17 CLEMSON, 12:30 p.m., CW Network

Jake: Some betting sites have the spread at 50 points.  Clemson might cover that, too. The Citadel is getting $475,000 to be the victim. Pick: Clemson

Jeff: The Citadel beat the North Greenville Crusaders 54-0 back in September but this one could result in the same score, flipped. Pick: Clemson

— STANFORD (plus-13.5) at CAL, 12:30 p.m. ACC Network

Jake: That Stanford win over Louisville had to be a fluke. Right? Uh, Right?  And Cal is not as bad as it showed last week against Syracuse. Right? Uh, Right? Pick: Cal

Jeff: Justin Wilcox hopes to join Andy Smith, Stub Allison and Jeff Tedford as the only Cal coaches to win four straight Big Games. That’s right, not even Pappy Waldorf did that. Pick: Cal

— PITTSBURGH (plus-8) at LOUISVILLE, 1 p.m., ESPN2

Jake: Pitt QB Eli Holstein is questionable to play and the Panthers have lost three in a row.  Too much working against Pitt, and Louisville is going to be mad after losing to Stanford. Pick: Louisville

Jeff: Pitt quarterback Eli Holstein’s dream freshman season has hit a bump in the road. He has two TD passes and three interceptions the past four games. Pick: Louisville

— VIRGINIA TECH (minus-3) at DUKE, 5 p.m., ACC Network

Jake: Virginia Tech quarterback Kyron Drones and running back Bhayshul Tuten are both questionable for Saturday’s game. Duke has a habit of playing close games, and the Blue Devils only home loss was to SMU in overtime.  Pick: Duke

Jeff: Virginia Tech has lost two in a row, but the opponents were Syracuse and Clemson. Duke is 2-3 since its 5-0 start. Pick: Virginia Tech