Auburn Welcomes the Cal Golden Bears for the First Time

The Cal Golden Bears head to SEC land to take on a formidable foe in the Auburn Tigers. It will be the first time the Golden Bears play at Jordan-Hare Stadium and just the second time these two teams face off. Last year, Auburn headed out west to play the Golden Bears in a sloppy back-and-forth affair that saw the Tigers escape with a win 14-10. Tigers Head Coach Hugh Freeze knows his team was lucky to come out with the win.

This year, Cal looks to return the favor and get a big win on the road after letting last year’s game slip between their fingers.

Cal Keys for the Upset

Forcing turnovers will be critical if Cal wants to pull off the upset on the road. While they struggled on defense last year, the Golden Bears were terrific at creating turnovers. With 28 of them last year and three interceptions this past weekend, they will need to wreak havoc in that department this weekend and replicate what they did to Auburn last year, forcing four Auburn turnovers.

Establishing the run game with Jaydn Ott will be critical for Cal. While last week’s game was not his best to begin the year, he was still effective enough to find the endzone twice. He was very effective last year against Auburn and will be a key figure in chewing the clock, extending drives, and taking the crowd out of it.

Auburn Keys to Victory

It was a very ugly showing last year when these two met for quarterback Peyton Thorne, as he threw for under a hundred yards and turned the football over twice in the win. The senior quarterback looks to bounce back this time around with a much better showing, and Auburn will need him to be at his best in order to secure the victory. Thorne’s dual-threat ability will be a big key as it adds another dimension to the run game with already a solid group that’s led by senior running back Jarquez Hunter.

The stars of a blowout win over Ala A&M, Auburn's wide receivers will face a tougher defense this week.

“Here's our chance to prove we can be a fundamentally efficient scoring machine against a team I think plays really efficient defensive football.”https://t.co/UjnyUdKUcn

— Bryan Matthews (@BMattAU) September 5, 2024

While Cal does force a lot of interceptions, this is still a susceptible group that struggled mightily last year at defending the pass, ranking 131st in pass defense last season. This means there are plays to be made through the air. Senior transfer Keandre Lambert-Smith is the veteran in this receiving room filled with young talent. Freshman studs Malcolm Simmons and Cam Coleman are just more weapons that can exploit a weak Cal secondary.