Opponent Links: Week 1, California Golden Bears

Cal heads to Evanston looking to avenge last year's 44-30 defeat against Northwestern. Here's some reading to help you educate yourself on the Golden Bears ahead of Saturday's kickoff.

-Cal is much healthier across the board than when they played NU last year, and the Bears are eager to make a statement after last year's disappointing season. Saturday is Cal's first chance to show the PAC 12 that they're not going to be the bottom feeder seemingly every pundit believes they will be.

-Cal, known in the academic world as UC Berkeley, like Northwestern, is one of Division 1's very best academic institutions. Their players have been following the Northwestern unionization saga with keen interest.

-Cal's secondary was terrible last year. When you go 1-11, chances are a few of your units suck collectively. But of all the defensive units, it's Cal's secondary that's most experienced, which could mean improvement in 2014.

-Freshman QB Jared Goff burst onto the scene for the Bears last year in the season-opener against Northwestern, throwing the ball 63 times for 445 yards and two touchdowns (and three interceptions). This year, he's in complete control of the offense, which is a scary thought for NU's secondary.

-The defense really was historically bad last year: 124th out of 125 FBS teams in points allowed/game, 119th in yards per play allowed, and 121st in yards per passing attempt allowed. They've brought in a new defensive coordinator in Art Kaufman, but losing projected starting middle linebacker Nathan Broussard to a season-ending ACL injury is a setback.