With shelter-in-place still in effect, we're taking a look at the nine opponents the Bears will face in 2020 that they faced in 2019.
Today, we're looking at USC, who the Bears will play down in the Coliseum on October 10th.
Previous Installments: Utah | Washington State
Cal had one of their toughest games of the season when USC came to Memorial Stadium in 2019. Chase Garbers returned to the starting lineup, but would exit due to a head injury in the first half. Running back Chris Brown left the game after a nasty hit on the first drive. Linebacker Evan Tattersall got knocked out of the game and sent to the hospital on a dirty hit on a kickoff. All that combined with one of the worst games for the Cal defensive backfield led to a 41-17 stomping of the Bears by the Trojans.
That may not be giving the Trojans the credit they deserve, as Kedon Slovis had a fantastic freshman year, taking over for JT Daniels after Daniels tore his ACL in their first game of the season. Graham Harrell bringing the Air Raid to LA worked for the Trojans, as their receiver group of Michael Pittman Jr., Tyler Vaughns, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Drake London stacked up with the best in the country. This wasn't like the USC teams of old, which featured the likes of Reggie Bush, Marcus Allen, and Lendale White among others.
USC did finish 8-5, producing more calls for the head of Clay Helton (along with the worst ranked recruiting class in USC history), but the changeover saw the Trojans revamp their defensive staff in an attempt to utilize some of the talent that they've recruited over the past couple years.
Cal Offense vs. USC Defense
Key Players to Replace
Cal: WR Jordan Duncan
USC: LB John Houston Jr., DE Christian Rector
USC doesn't lose much off their defense from year to year, with an emphasis on young talent in the defensive backfield. The likes of Isaiah Pola-Mao, Chris Steele, Isaac Taylor-Stuart, Olaijah Griffin, Chase Williams, and a whole host of other players make up as good of a foundation at the position as anyone in the conference. Drake Jackson is a future 1st round pick on the defensive line. Kana'i Mauga is young at linebacker, but he should be able to take a larger role.
The bigger piece for USC is their staff. Former Texas defensive coordinator Todd Orlando has taken the same role with the Trojans. Donte Williams came down from Oregon to coach corners. Vic So'oto crossed the country to coach the defensive line (from Virginia). Craig Navar came over from Texas. There's lots of new faces there for a group that struggled against the run at points in 2019, but had solid pass defense.
Differences in the 2020 Matchup
Health willing, and at this point if the season happens, Cal will have Chase Garbers to play the full game. That didn't happen in the 2019 edition, as Devon Modster struggled to throw the ball when the Bears got down. Cal's offensive line also allowed five sacks to the Trojans, even though the group was mostly healthy by this point in the season.
Expectations for the 2020 matchup
Cal will be bringing in a new offense either way, a bigger personnel offense, something USC had a bit of trouble with against the likes of Notre Dame and BYU in 2019. Whether that will still hold in 2020 remains to be seen. USC does return plenty of talent, but how they utilize that talent in a new system is up in the air.
Cal Defense vs. USC Offense
Key Players to Replace
Cal: ILB Evan Weaver, S Ashtyn Davis, S Jaylinn Hawkins, DE Lone Toailoa
USC: WR Michael Pittman, WR Velus Jones, OL Austin Jackson, OL Drew Richmond
Pittman is the biggest loss of the group, followed closely by Jackson, as Pittman had 180 yards receiving and a score against the Bears in 2019. There's a ton of players waiting in the wings to replace Pittman, including Kyle Ford and Bru McCoy, both redshirts from a year ago.
Jason Rodriguez and Frank Martin should get cracks at replacing Jackson and Richmond, though the Trojans had only one spring practice prior to the Coronavirus shutdown.
Differences in the 2020 Matchup
There aren't many, as the issues the Bears faced will be mostly the same in 2020 as they were in 2019. USC still has Slovis and a bunch of NFL wideouts who will beat their opponents athletically.
One change may come in the form of Chigozie Anusiem. He's a taller corner for the Bears, one who they moved Elijah Hicks to safety to get extra playing time for. He matches up better against some of the USC wideouts. Josh Drayden, who sat out the 2019 contest to keep a final year of eligibility, will also be available for this contest.
Expectations for the 2020 matchup
Cal showed in the 2018 matchup that scheme can take on talent in certain circumstances. USC showed in 2019 that talent, when put in the right offensive scheme, can be overwhelming. The Bears have to figure out a way to slow Slovis, who threw for over 400 yards and only threw 6 incomplete passes in the 2019 matchup.
