Cal Football 2021 Opponent Preview: Game 6 -- Bears at Oregon

Oregon is the preseason favorite to win the Pac-12 title for a third straight year, and Cal must face the Ducks in Eugene.

* Sixth in a series of stories taking an early look at Cal's 2021 football opponents

GAME 6: CAL AT OREGON

Date: Friday, Oct. 15

Oregon 2020 record: 4-3 overall, 3-2/third in Pac-12 North, but Pac-12 champion. Despite finishing third in the North, the Ducks received a berth in the Pac-12 championship game after first-place Washington could not field a team for the title game because of positive COVID-19 tests within the Huskies’ program. Oregon then beat USC 31-24 in the title game to claim the conference championship. The Ducks lost to Iowa State 34-17 in the Fiesta Bowl.

Series record: Cal leads the series 42-40-2. The Bears beat 23rd-ranked Oregon 21-17 in Berkeley in 2020 for Cal’s only win of the season. However, Oregon had won 10 of the previous 11 games against Cal, and the Ducks have not lost to Cal in Eugene, Oregon, since 2007.

Ducks coach: Mario Cristobal (25-10, 4th season)

Top players: Junior DE Kayvon Thibodeaux (third-team AP All-American in 2020, only returning Pac-12 player on any AP All-America team last season); senior RB CJ Verdell (1,220 rushing yards, 6.2 ypc in 2019; 285 yards, 4.4 ypc in 2020); junior CB Mykael Wright (first-team all-Pac-12 in 2020); junior OL Alex Forsyth (second-team all-Pac-12 in 2020); senior WR Jaylon Redd (118 career receptions, 1,238 yards, 14 TDs); senior WR Johnny Johnson III (114 career receptions, 1,617 yards, 14 TDs)

Strengths: Oregon’s receiving corps is among the nation’s best. Johnny Johnson III and Jaylon Redd have combined for more than 220 career receptions, and there is depth behind them. . . . The linebacking group includes the top two tacklers from last year – Noah Sewell and Isaac Slade-Matautia – and Sewell, who was the Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year, looks like a potential star . . . The defensive line is an automatic strength with elite pass-rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux at defensive end, although the Ducks could use a better inside run-stopper. . . The offensive line will not be overpowering, but with virtually all the key players back, it should be considerably better than it was a year ago. . . . The Ducks have two solid running backs in CJ Verdell and Travis Dye. . . Belief in the system is not tangible, but it is a strength. The Ducks have won the Pac-12 title each of the past two years and are expected to do so again. That breeds an expectation of success among the players.

Weaknesses: If there are questions at a position it must be labeled a weakness, and that is the situation at quarterback. Anthony Brown became the Ducks’ No. 1 quarterback by the end of the 2020 season, leading to Tyler Shough’s transfer to Texas Tech after he had started every game last season. Brown is expected to be the opening-game starter in 2021 and provides a running threat, but he has yet to prove he can accurately throw the deep ball and he has not been consistently productive. . . . The Ducks’ secondary is suspect. They had four defensive backs taken in the 2021 NFL draft, although only one of the four (Deommodore Lenoir) played for Oregon in 2020. All-conference cornerback Mykael Wright is back, but there are potential problems at the safety spots. Oregon has a new defensive backs coach (Marcel Yates) and a new defensive coordinator (Tim DeRuyter) after Andy Avalos left to become head coach at Boise State . . . . Depth at running back is also a concern. Oregon likes to use a number of running backs, but the stable is thin after Verdell and Dye.

What you should know about Oregon: Oregon has won the Pac-12 title each of the past two seasons, and has won the conference championship six times in the past 12 years. . . Oregon has had only two losing seasons since 1993, going 5-6 in 2004 and 4-8 in 2016 . . . Oregon’s Mario Cristobal is one of 12 former Nick Saban assistant coaches who became college head coaches. Ten of them, including Cristobal, are current FBS head coaches. . . Two men who were assistant coaches at Cal last season are now assistants at Oregon. Tim DeRuyter was at Cal the past four seasons, serving as defensive coordinator in the first two of those seasons. He is now the Ducks’ defensive coordinator. Marcel Yates, Cal’s defensive backs coach last season, is now the secondary coach for the Ducks . . .

Oregon spring football status: Anthony Brown competed with highly touted freshman Ty Thompson for the starting quarterback job during the spring, and Brown came out of it as the clear leader heading into the fall. Thompson was impressive enough to suggest he is likely to be the Oregon quarterback of the future, perhaps even late in the 2021 season if Brown falters. Oregon played its spring game on May 1. Inside linebacker Justin Flowe, who missed the 2020 season and the early part of spring drills with an injury, played well in the spring game and may be ready to fulfill his potential. Freshmen wide receivers Troy Franklin and Dont'e Thornton were impressive in the spring game, although they will have trouble getting targets in the regular season with the Ducks’ strong returning receiving corps.

Oregon 2021 season projection: Oregon is the favorite to win the Pac-12 North and the Pac-12 championship. The Ducks are likely to be highest ranked Pac-12 team in the preseason polls and could be ranked in the top 10 when the season opens. Oregon’s success will depend on the play of quarterback Anthony Brown. Oregon's Sept. 11 at Ohio State will indicate whether the Ducks can be called a national championship contender.

Cal-Oregon game prediction: Oregon 28, Cal 17

Click here for preview of Game 1: Nevada

Click here for preview of Game 2: TCU

Click here for preview of Game 3: Sacramento State

Click here for preview of Game 4: Washington

Click here for preview of Game 5: Washington State

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Cover photo of Oregon defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux is by Kirby Lee, USA TODAY Sports

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