Editor's Note: During the summer, we're going to be doing a team-by-team preview of Syracuse football's 2026 opponents. We started with New Hampshire on Tuesday, and we continue our series today with Syracuse's matchup against Cal on Sept. 12.Syracuse will play California at the JMA Wireless Dome on Sept. 12. The Golden Bears completed their second year in ACC with a record of 7-6, improving by one win from their debut season in 2024 before losing to Hawaii, 35-31, in the Hawaii Bowl.A look back at Cal's 2025 seasonCal was led by standout freshman quarterback, Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele. Sagapolutele completed his freshman season throwing for 3,454 yards on 64.5% passing and a TD-INT of 18-9. Sagapolutele’s primary targets were Jacob De Jesus and Trond Grizzell. De Jesus recorded an impressive 1,030 yards on 103 receptions. Cal boasted one of the strongest passing games in the ACC last season placing fourth in conference, but struggled mightily in the run game finishing dead last in the conference. The Golden Bears season was marked by inconsistency, trading wins with other middling ACC teams. The Cal AD ultimately made the decision to let longtime head coach, Justin Wilcox, go after a week 11 loss to Stanford. The Golden Bears named former Cal defensive lineman and assistant coach Tosh Lupoi as its new head coach. Lupoi lands back at Cal after 5 years (2014-2018) with Alabama where he served as the defensive coordinator for a year, three years in the NFL with various teams, and lastly as the defensive coordinator for Oregon from 2022-2025. Previewing Cal's 2026 seasonLupoi’s job coming into 2026 is simple: retain Sagapolutele and build around him. Part 1 was completed as Sagapolutele committed to return to Berkley. Part 2 also seems to be coming along as Lupoi has brought in two 4-star WR transfers, Ian Strong out of Rutgers and Chase Hendricks out of the University of Ohio. Lupoi also added 4-star running back, Adam Mohammed, from Washington to help bring the running game up to par. Lupoi attracted a handful of players that he is bringing with from Oregon, but none more impactful than 4-star DL Jericho Johnson. Lupoi went all out in the portal this offseason, acquiring more 3 and 4 star EDGES and lineman, and of this year's transfer class Cal ranks 14th in the nation and third in the ACC. PredictionThis is almost as tough as a week 2 matchup can get for Syracuse. There seems to be a buzz around the Golden Bears following a very active offseason. They look poised to break out in the ACC in their third year in the conference. The Orange have the benefit of being in the Dome and not carrying the baggage of a cross-country trip. Despite this the energy around Cal could be too overwhelming as they look to make a statement early in the season, and I predict a 31-27 win for Cal. SUPPORT THE JUICE ONLINEFollow us on Twitter @TheJuiceOnline, like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram @SUJuiceOnline and listen to our podcast.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow