With the stunning outcome of the Stanford game officially in the rear-view mirror, attention for the Ducks has now turned to Saturday’s opponent in no. 24 Cal, a team riding high at 3-0 following two notable hard fought victories over North Carolina and BYU and a third over FCS opponent Idaho State.

Similar to the Stanford game, Saturday’s contest in Berkeley will provide its fair share of firsts for this Oregon team. For one, it will be the Ducks’ first road tilt of the season. It will also be the first opportunity for Oregon to acquit itself by purging the sour taste left over from last Saturday’s unthinkable result.

The game between the Ducks and Golden Bears will also be a reunion of sorts for a handful of key individuals involved, as Cal’s Justin Wilcox not only faces his alma mater for the second time as a head coach, but will also be tasked with devising a game plan to stop Oregon quarterback Justin Herbert, whose family is longtime personal friends of Wilcox’s. The game should also provide some extra incentive for a couple notable assistant coaches on opposing sidelines, as Cal offensive line coach Steve Greatwood was once a longtime Oregon assistant (1980-’94 and 2000-’16), while Oregon offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo was formerly the quarterbacks coach, passing game coordinator, and primary play-caller at Cal (2011-’12).

With three days remaining ’til game day, below is your Cal primer…

Cal Golden Bears

2018 record: 3-0 overall, 0-0 in conference
Last game: 45-23 win vs. Idaho State
Ranking: 24th in AP Poll/Unranked in Coaches’ Poll
All-time record vs. Oregon: 40-38-2
When and where to watch: Saturday, Sept. 29 at 7:30 p.m. (Pacific), Fox Sports 1

Items of note:

• The Ducks take on their second consecutive ranked opponent when they face no. 24 Cal on Saturday
• Oregon has won eight of the last nine meetings with Cal dating back to 2009 and have scored 40-plus points in seven consecutive meetings with the Golden Bears
• Cal ranks tied for second in the nation in interceptions with seven. Safety Jaylinn Hawkins ranks tied for second in the nation, individually, with three interceptions.
• The Bears have allowed its first three opponents to score just nine times in 43 combined drives (20.9 percent). Additionally, the Cal defense has not allowed a point in the first quarter this season, and has not allowed a touchdown in the first half in 2018.

Five Cal names you should know:

5. Camryn Bynum (CB)

A week after facing a stingy Stanford secondary, the Ducks will get another difficult test against a Cal defensive backfield that currently ranks fourth in the Pac-12 in pass defense. One of the leaders of this up and coming group is sophomore Camryn Bynum, a 6-foot-1, 195-pound cornerback who earned recognition from his teammates as the team’s top freshman a season ago. Three games into his second season at Berkeley, Bynum has picked up right where he left off, ranking tied for fourth in the conference with five passes broken up. With Oregon’s Dillon Mitchell coming off a career outing last week versus Stanford, expect Bynum to be shadowing him early and often Saturday night.

4. Patrick Laird (RB)

While Patrick Laird’s senior season hasn’t gotten off to the hot start that many were expecting following a junior campaign that saw him rush for over 1,000 yards (1,127) and eight touchdowns, the bell cow for the Cal offense is still the unit’s best overall weapon. Standing 6-feet and 205 pounds, Laird can be a chore for opposing defenders to take down, as the Arroyo Grande, Calif. native is one the conference’s toughest runners, particularly once he picks up a head of steam. He’ll have his hands full against an Oregon defense that ranks third nationally in yards per carry allowed on the ground (2.13), though he’ll be motivated to improve upon his 11-carry, 28-yard effort against the Ducks last season in Eugene.

3. Jaylinn Hawkins (DB)

A signature of the Cal defense in 2018 has been their ability to play ball-hawking football in the secondary. Through four weeks of the college football season, the Golden Bears enter Saturday’s game versus Oregon tied for second nationally in passes intercepted with seven. Leading the charge amongst that group is senior safety Jaylinn Hawkins, who has three interceptions to his name to lead all Pac-12 defenders. A former four-star recruit from Buena Park, Calif., Hawkins is a veteran leader that Cal defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter relies upon to help set the tone for the Golden Bears on that side of the ball.

2. Chase Garbers (QB)

Though he wasn’t necessarily expected to be guy for the Golden Bears behind center this season, redshirt freshman Chase Garbers has proven the past few weeks that he may just be guy leading Cal at quarterback for the foreseeable future. In his first game as a collegian, Garbers came off the bench to complete 7-of-13 passes for 54 yards and a touchdown against North Carolina in the season opener. From that point forward, Garbers has shouldered more and more responsibility within the Cal offense, earning it with performances that demonstrate steady improvement week after week. On the road versus BYU, Garbers was a key component to Cal’s victory, completing 64.3 percent of his passes for 176 yards and two touchdowns (against one interception). The following week against Idaho State, Garbers was even better, going 20-for-25 for 224 yards and three touchdowns (against one interception). Against Oregon he’ll face his toughest competition to date, though there’s no question he’s playing some of his best football with the Ducks coming to town.

1. Evan Weaver (LB)

As good as the Cal secondary has been, the player who has been doing it all for the Golden Bears on defense this season is junior linebacker Evan Weaver. Though he wasn’t the most highly-touted player coming out of Gonzaga Prep in Spokane, Wash., the 6-foot-3, 235-pound Weaver has emerged as a force in his third year at Berkeley. A season ago, Weaver finished sixth on the team in total tackles (55). This season, he’s pacing the Bears with 39 through three games, with his 13 tackles per game average ranking seventh nationally. If that wan’t enough, Weaver has also been tremendous providing support against the pass, as he has four pass break ups entering Saturday’s game. Look for him to be frequent presence around the football against an Oregon team that is rolling on offense.