Clemson’s first ACC road test of the season comes with a strange twist: a conference game in Berkeley, a 10:30 p.m. kickoff, and a trip that stretches more than 2,500 miles across four time zones.
The Tigers are 2-1 overall and 1-0 in the ACC, while Cal enters at 2-1 and 1-0 as well. They’ll meet Sept. 25 on ESPN, in a game that figures to test not just talent, but stamina and timing. Clemson fans may need the fourth quarter to wait for daylight - or at least for a lot of coffee.
This is only the second meeting between the programs. Cal won the 1992 Citrus Bowl 37-13, and Clemson’s history on the West Coast is a short one: a 44-16 win over Alabama in the national championship game in Santa Clara in January 2019, plus losses at Southern Cal in 1966 and at Pacific in 1951.
For Clemson, the trip comes after a much-needed 28-20 win over North Carolina on Sept. 19.
That result mattered after a rough 51-10 loss to LSU and a sluggish 22-7 win over Georgia Southern. The Tigers needed something cleaner, something steadier, and they got at least a little of that against the Tar Heels.
The offense finally found some rhythm late. Clemson produced three touchdown drives and scored 22 second-half points. Quarterback Tait Reynolds wasn’t spotless - he threw for 215 yards with one touchdown and one interception - but he settled in after the third-quarter pick and finished with a stronger stretch.
The defense, meanwhile, showed two very different sides. The pass defense held UNC to 135 passing yards, and cornerback Elliot Washington II ended the game with a last-minute interception.
But the run defense remains a real issue. LSU gashed Clemson for 309 rushing yards, and North Carolina added 214 on the ground.
Right now, the defensive tackles are the shaky spot.
Cal has its own new-look feel under first-year coach Tosh Lupoi. The Golden Bears were handled by UCLA 45-24 in their opener, but they’ve bounced back with wins over Syracuse and Wagner. The Syracuse game was all about takeaways: Cal scored on its first interception, returned its second for a touchdown, and closed things out with a third pick on Syracuse’s final drive.
There’s size in the Cal secondary, and the standout there has been 6-foot-5 safety Kingston Lopa, who leads the ACC with five interceptions.
Clemson may have found something on the ground against North Carolina. The Tigers rushed for 186 yards and two touchdowns at 5.6 yards per carry, and Gideon Davidson delivered a career day with 106 rushing yards and his first touchdown for Clemson.
That matters because Cal has not been especially sharp against the run. The Golden Bears are 14th in the ACC in rushing yards allowed per game at 169, and they’ve already given up 507 rushing yards through three games.
Still, Cal’s biggest edge may be the one most likely to decide the game: quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele. Dabo Swinney praised the 6-3, 225-pound sophomore’s arm talent, creativity and accuracy multiple times this week, and the numbers back up the hype. Cal ranks fourth in the ACC with 321.7 passing yards per game, while Sagapolutele is 20th in the FBS with 866 passing yards.
Clemson’s secondary has been the best part of its defense so far, so this won’t be easy for Cal. But the Tigers are staring at a tough setup: a late-night road game, a long trip, and a quarterback on the other side who has been one of the ACC’s better playmakers.
Prediction: Cal 24, Clemson 21. Either side could win this one, but Cal has a little more working in its favor.
The Golden Bears have the quarterback edge, and they aren’t dealing with the same cross-country travel after spending all of Sept. 19 in a stadium because of a weather delay. Both defenses have strong secondaries and similar statistical profiles, and both teams are still trying to get their run games where they want them.
Reynolds showed progress late against UNC, but Sagapolutele looks like the more likely difference-maker.
In Other News...
UNC Suddenly Faces A QB Decision That Could Define The Season
The bye week arrived at a useful time for North Carolina, because the conversation around the offense changed fast after the 28-20 loss to Clemson. Billy Edwards Jr. had a rough afternoon through the air, finishing 13 of 30 for 135 yards with a touchdown and an interception, while the defense faded after halftime and left the Tar Heels chasing the game. In a season where every small edge matters, the quarterback spot has suddenly become one of the most consequential decisions on the table.
A change is at least being discussed internally, and the timing makes sense with a break in the schedule to reset before the next stretch of difficult games. Still, this is not a simple plug-and-play call, and the context around the offense suggests any move could be premature if the staff believes the bigger issues go beyond one position. For now, UNC has a week to sort through whether it needs a new answer under center or simply a better version of the one it already has. [Read more 🡒]
UNC Just Got An Eligibility Boost With Bigger Questions Ahead
A court ruling out of Indiana has given North Carolina football kicker Rece Verhoff and three Tar Heels field hockey players a temporary path back to competition, restoring a fifth season of eligibility while the broader legal fight plays out. The decision also covers Ryleigh Heck, Sietske Brning and Dani Mendez, and it comes as part of a challenge to the NCAAs new age-based eligibility model for athletes in the high school Class of 2022.
For UNC, the immediate effect is simple enough: the athletes are allowed to return during the 2026-27 academic year if they choose to keep going. The bigger issue is still unresolved, though, because the injunction only addresses eligibility for now and leaves the larger question of how the NCAAs new standard will hold up in court hanging over players who thought their college timelines were already set. [Read more 🡒]
UNC Already Has 3 Breakout Stars Fans Need To Notice
North Carolinas 2-1 start has given the Tar Heels a little breathing room heading into their Week 4 bye, and it has also surfaced a few names worth keeping on the radar. The early buzz starts up front with defensive tackle Lewis, who has been a major force in the pass rush despite the team dealing with injuries around him, while linebacker Seelmann has quickly made his presence felt after arriving from Richmond and settling into a bigger role.
On the offensive side, tight end Thurman has stepped into the mix at an important time after the injury to projected starter Jaxxon Warren, becoming a more reliable part of the passing game. For a team still sorting out its identity this early in the season, those kinds of breakout performances matter because they can help stabilize both sides of the ball while the Tar Heels use the bye week to reset and prepare for what comes next. [Read more 🡒]