Cal opens ACC play at Syracuse on Saturday afternoon. The game preview:CAL (0-1, 0-0 ACC) vs. SYRACUSE (1-0, 0-0 ACC)SITE: JMA Wireless Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.WHEN: Saturday, 12:30 p.m. Pacific time (3:30 p.m. Syracuse time)TV: ACC Network -- Jorge Sedano (Play-by-Play), Rodney McLeod Jr. (Analyst), Kendra Douglas (Sideline Reporter) RADIO: 810 AM -- Justin Allegri (Play-By-Play), Mike Pawlawski (Analyst), Ben Ross (Sideline Reporter)BETTING LINE: Syracuse is favored by 3.5 points as of Friday afternoon, according to FanDuel. Over/under is 56.5 points WEATHER FORECAST: The weather is not a factor because the game will be played indoors. Saturday afternoon in Syracuse is expected to be mostly sunny with a high of 80 degrees. There is a 25% chance of rain.Cal-Syracuse HistoryThis will be the fourth time Cal has played Syracuse in football, and the Orange holds a 2-1 advantage in the series. Their most recent meeting – and their only matchup as an ACC game – came in 2024, when Syracuse defeated the Bears 33-25 in Berkeley. Cal lost the 1967 game in Syracuse 20-14, but won the next year in Berkeley 43-0 when Syracuse came into the game with a 3-1 record and a No. 10 national ranking.CAL PLAYER AVAILABILITY: Running back Carter Vargas is listed as doubtful. Outside linebacker Justin Beadles and tight end Rico Walker are also doubtful for the game. Wide receivers Trevor Rogers and Cole Boscia are questionable. Center Bastian Swinney and tight end Dorian Thomas are not listed on the injury report, which means thaty are expected to play.SYRACUSE PLAYER AVAILABILITY: Linebacker Maurice Medley is out. Wide receiver Calvin Russell III is questionable.Cal Storylines---This is the ACC opener for Cal, which won its ACC opener last year against Boston College, but lost its 2024 ACC opener to Florida State in the Golden Bears’ first season in the ACC.--- Cal will travel 2,500 miles and cross three times zones for Saturday's game, but the Bears did well in cross-country trips to the East Coast last year, winning two of three games. They beat Boston College and 14th-ranked Louisville on he road and lost at Virginia Tech in double overtime. In 2024, the Bears' first year in the ACC, Cal went 1-2 in trips to the East Coast and 1-1 in games in the Central time zone. The two East Coast losses in 2024 were to Florida State by five points and to Pitt by two points.---This will be Tosh Lupoi’s second game as Cal’s head coach, and he is hoping he won’t be the first Cal head coach in 66 years to start 0-2 in his first season as a Golden Bears head coach.---Cal is coming off a 45-24 loss to UCLA in its opener in Berkeley. The Bruins outscored Cal 21-0 in the fourth quarter to break away from a 24-24 tie after three quarters. ---Cal is hoping to avoid being just the third Golden Bears team since 2001 to start a season 0-2. The Bears started 0-2 in 2001 and finished 5-7. Cal lost its first three games in the shortened 2020 pandemic season and finished 1-3.---Quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele is hoping to bounce back from what was, by his standards, a so-so performance against UCLA. He committed three turnovers – two interceptions (one of which was not his fault) and a fumble. He did not throw any interceptions in his final four games last season.---Tight end Dorian Thomas, who was a first-team all-Mountain West selection last year while at New Mexico, is likely to make his Cal debut on Saturday after missing last week’s game against UCLA.---Cal running back Adam Mohammed may have another busy day Saturday. He carried the ball 28 times to gain 120 yards and added seven receptions against UCLA. No. 2 running back Carter Vargas is unlikely to play Saturday, which means another day with a lot of carries for Mohammed. Ashten Emory is likely to get more playing time if Vargas can’t go.---The Golden Bears want to improve their run defense, after yielding 277 yards on the ground and six rushing touchdowns against UCLA. Syracuse had 238 rushing yards against New Hampshire last week.---Cal’s two highly touted transfer wide receivers – Ian Strong and Chase Hendricks – combined for 11 catches and 160 receiving yards in last week’s opener.---The Bears’ player rotation on defense will be worth watching. Last week, 23 players played at least 12 snaps on defense for Cal, and nearly half the starters were not projected to be starters. That total does not include defensive backs Jasaiah Wagoner and Marquis Groves-Killebrew, who did not play last week but are available this week and are expected to get significant playing time. It also does not include outside linebacker Justin Beadles, who is likely to miss his second straight game.---Cal does not provide a weekly depth chart, so there is no way to be sure who the starters will be until the game begins.Syracuse Storylines---Syracuse is coming off a 66-3 victory over FCS school New Hampshire in its opener last week. It was the largest margin of victory under Fran Brown, who became head coach of the Orange in 2024.---Syracuse was picked to finish 14th in the ACC in the preseason conference media poll.---Since the start of the 2025 season, Syracuse is 4-1 when Steve Angeli was its starting quarterback, and 0-8 when he wasn’t. Angeli, who transferred from Notre Dame after the 2024 season, threw for 263 yards and three touchdowns against New Hampshire and will be the Orange’s starting quarterback against Cal.---It’s possible that freshman Syracuse wide receiver Calvin Russell III will make his collegiate debut on Saturday. He did not play against New Hampshire and is listed as questionable for Saturday’s game. He is a five-star football recruit and the highest-rated prospect in Syracuse’s freshman class. He also had basketball offers from Michigan, Illinois, LSU and Arizona State, among others. ---Syracuse is hoping to win its ACC opener for the third straight year, recording upsets each of the past two season. The Orange defeated Clemson 34-21 on the road last year, and beat then-No. 23 Georgia Tech 31-28 in its 2024 conference opener.---The Orange will try to start the season 2-0 for the third time in the past four years. Last season, Syracuse began the season 3-1, after losing the opener to then-No. 24 Tennessee 45-26. --- Syracuse recorded five sacks and nine tackles for loss last week against New Hampshire. Sagapolutele was sacked three times last week and was hurried several other times.---Two Syracuse running backs rushed for more than 90 yards in the opener. Freshman Shavane Anderson Jr. ran for 102 yards and three touchdowns on 10 carries, and Tylik Hill ran for 91 yards and a score on 16 carries.---Syracuse was just 2-4 at home in 2025, but had a record of 15-5 over the previous three years in its home stadium, which is now called JMA Wireless Done but was known as the Carrier Dome until 2022. It has a FieldTurf artificial playing surface, which is similar to the Matrix Turf artificial surface at California Memorial Stadium. Five questions about Syracuse answered by a Syracuse beat writerCal Players to WatchQB Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele – 24-for-41 for 271 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions against UCLA.WR Ian Strong – Five receptions for 94 yards against UCLA, but had a pass bounce off his hands for an interception.WR Chase Hendricks – Six catches for 66 yards and a touchdown last week.TE Mason Mini – Four receptions for 58 yards and a touchdown against UCLA.RB Adam Mohammed – 120 yards rushing and seven receptions against UCLA.S Kingston Lopa – An outstanding Cal debut last week and accounted for the Bears’ only takeaway with an interception.Syracuse Players to WatchQB Steve Angeli – Syracuse is 4-1 with him as its starting quarterback since the start of the 2025 season.DB Chris Peal – Preseason first-team all-ACC selection. RB Shavane Anderson Jr. – A freshman who was ACC rookie of the week after rushing for 102 yards on 10 carries last week against New Hampshire. He may not be the Orange’s starting running back against Cal, though.WR Umari Hatcher – He had eight receptions for 147 yards and two touchdowns last week. He missed all but one game last year because of injury.LB Keyshawn Johnson – He was an FCS first-team All-American selection at Tennessee-Martin in 2025 when he had 20 tackles for loss. He started his Syracuse career with 2.5 sacks against New Hampshire.DB/WR/PR/KR Demetres Samuel Jr. – A triple-threat athlete who is an effective defensive back but can also play wide receiver on occasions and is a dangerous punt and kickoff returner.CAL STATISTICS: Click hereCAL GAME NOTES: Click hereSYRACUSE STATISTICS: Click hereSYRACUSE GAME NOTES, DEPTH CHART: Click hereJAKE'S PICK: Cal 31, Syracuse 28JEFF'S PICK: Syracuse 31, Cal 30JAVON EDMONDS PICK (Syracuse Post Standard): Syracuse 28, Cal 24TICKETS: Click here. StubHub: Click here. SeatGeek: Click here• Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. • If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.Follow California Golden Bears on SI on X: https://x.com/jakecurtis53Find California Golden Bears on SI on Facebook by going to https://www.facebook.com/si.calsportsreportAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow