USC Trojans (4-7) vs. California Golden Bears (4-7)
December 4, 2021 11:00 pm EDT
The Line: California Golden Bears -4 / USC Trojans +4; Over/Under: -52.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Cal Golden Bears face the USC Trojans meet on Saturday in Pac 12 conference college football action from the California Memorial Stadium.
The USC Trojans come into this game looking to bounce back from a 35-31 loss to BYU last time out. Kedon Slovis has thrown for 2,153 yards, 11 touchdowns and 8 interceptions on 65% passing while Jaxson Dart’s got 1,162 yards, 8 touchdowns and 5 picks on 61.3% passing. Keaontay Ingram has a team-high 911 rushing yards with 5 TDs while Vavae Malepeai has 395 rushing yards with 6 scores. Drake London leads USC’s receivers with 88 grabs for 1,044 yards and 7 touchdowns while Gary Bryant Jr. and Tahj Washington each have 500+ receiving yards as well this season with Bryant Jr. recording 7 TDs. On defense, Kana’I Mauga has a team-high 88 total tackles while Drake Jackson has a team-high 5 sacks and Tuli Tuipulotu has 4.5 sacks this season.
The Cal Golden Bears will be looking to shake off a 42-14 loss to UCLA in their last game. Chase Garbers has thrown for 2,354 yards, 16 touchdowns and 8 interceptions on 62.7% passing while Christopher Brooks and Damien Moore each have 500+ rushing yards combining for 1,075 yards and 8 TDs this season. Trevon Clark has a team-high 604 receiving yards with 4 TDs while Kekoa Crawford has 491 receiving yards and Jeremiah Hunter’s got 388 receiving yards as well this season. On defense, Daniel Scott leads Cal with 72 total tackles and is one of three Golden Bears with at least three INTs this season. Cameron Goode also has a team-high 6 sacks this season.
USC is 6-17 ATS in their last 23 games as an underdog and 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games overall while the over is 5-1 in their last 6 conference games. Cal is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 conference games and 4-9-1 ATS in their last 14 home games while the under is 7-1 in their last 8 games as a home favorite.
I think it’s safe to say with all of the quality on the board on Saturday, this game should probably shift to the back burner, but with that said, side-by-side, it’s Cal that’s been playing the far better football over the last month. Sure, USC has solid pieces, but it doesn’t mean squat when those pieces can’t execute and I just think that with all cards on the table, the Golden Bears are and should be the play here. Give me Cal in this one.
