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The college football season kicks off tonight when the California Golden Bears take on the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors square off at ANZ Stadium in Sydney, Australia on Friday Aug. 26 at 8:00 p.m. MT (Saturday Aug. 27 at noon local time) with television coverage provided by ESPN. Cal is favored in this game by almost three touchdowns, and in the last three games where Cal is favored by 20 or more points, they are 3-0 against the spread. So, why should you watch a game that is likely to be a blowout? Well, here are three reasons.
College Football is Back!
Do we really need to twist your arm all that hard to watch college football? Nope, that’s what I thought. We have been without college football since Alabama beat Clemson for the national championship on Jan. 10. Having been without college football for over eight months, any game should be fun to watch even if the game does not end up being close.
The Game is Being Played in Australia
This is the first college football game being played Down Under since BYU defeated Colorado State in Melbourne, Australia in 1987. ANZ Stadium in Sydney, where this game is being played, was built for the 2000 Olympics with a listed capacity of 83,500. You can read here about what the stadium will have for the game. There will be “American-style food” with highlights including TWO FEET LONG HOTDOGS! Cal, as the designated home team, was responsible for bringing all of the necessary equipment. ESPN Staff Writer David Lombardi wrote an excellent article about the logistics of making this game happen.
Utah Plays at Cal in Week Five
Utah fans/coaches/players can get a good look at the Cal Bears in this game. Utah and Cal square off in Berkeley, Calif. in week five of the college football season. Cal lost a lot of talent off of last year’s team, including 2016 NFL Draft No. 1 pick quarterback Jared Goff. The Bears had a great offseason though adding Texas Tech transfer quarterback Davis Webb, a five-star wide receiver in Demetris Robertson (the No. 1 overall wide receiver in the 2016 class) and four-star wide receiver Melquise Stovall, a one-time silent commit to Utah. Cal will be breaking in a lot of new faces, and this game will be the first opportunity for people to see how they perform.
College football is back TODAY in all of its glory, rejoice everyone!