HOW THEY MATCH UP

When UCLA has the ball--The game plan won’t change. DeShaun Foster will get his share of carries, especially in the first half. UCLA has thrown fewer passes than any other Pacific 10 Conference team and quarterback Cory Paus ranks last in yardage a game with 177.8. This might be a good time for him to air it out because Cal is last in pass defense (320.2). With Brian Poli-Dixon sidelined, watch for Tab Perry, Ryan Smith and Craig Bragg to be frequent targets.

When Cal has the ball--Eric Holtfreter is the second consecutive backup quarterback to make his first start against UCLA. He has played well in relief, completing 25 of 48 passes for 313 yards. But he has thrown four interceptions, adding to the Bears’ turnover woes. Their minus-16 turnover margin is last in the nation. Running the ball will be difficult. Joe Igber is a solid tailback, but UCLA has given up only 35 yards a game to opposing tailbacks and held Washington to minus-8 yards rushing.

Key to the game-No letdown. UCLA is coming off a victory against Washington, a top 10 team, and has rigorous tests against Stanford, Washington State and Oregon on the horizon. Cal’s best game came against Washington, a 31-28 loss, the week before the Huskies played UCLA. So the Bears can be bothersome to a team looking past them.

Fast fact-Cal is off to its worst start in 119 years and a loss today would be the Bears’ ninth in a row, a school record. However, they have won four in a row against Southern California schools, beating UCLA and USC each of the last two years.

The pick-UCLA should stifle the Bear running game and move the ball without much trouble, making this a one-sided game. The edge: Bruins.

The line-UCLA by 30.