Arizona State will play Cal in final meeting as Pac-12 opponents
Arizona State (1-3) will be on the road for the first time this season when the Sun Devils travel to Berkeley, California for the final time as members of the Pac-12 to face Cal (2-2).
The Sun Devils and Golden Bears have battled 35 times in their history, beginning on Sept. 25, 1976 when Cal beat ASU in Tempe. In their first meeting, Arizona State was still a member of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). Their first Pac-10 meeting came two years later in a Sun Devil win in 1978.
Cal leads the all-time series record 18-17, with the last meeting between the schools in 2019. ASU Running back Eno Benjamin ran for three touchdowns on the road to knock off the then-ranked no. 15 Golden Bears, 24-17. This was the smallest margin of victory for the Devils in the history of this matchup.
The Sun Devils will look to even the all-time series in Week 5 as head coach Kenny Dillingham takes the team on the road for the first time this season.
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Both programs share a record-long win streak of four games over the course of 39 contests, ASU’s closest Pac-12 opponent across the history of the conference. ASU’s four straight wins came from 1995-98 under head coach Bruce Snyder, winning twice in California Memorial Stadium and twice in Sun Devil Stadium.
Cal has two separate four game win streaks over Arizona State, from 2002-2006 and 2008-2011.
The widest margin of defeat between the two conference enemies came on Nov. 8, 1986 in a 49-point blank of the Golden Bears in Tempe. The 1986 Sun Devils team would go on to win the program’s first Pac-10 conference championship. Later that season, Arizona State defeated the Michigan Wolverines ,22-15, in the 1987 Rose Bowl for the program’s first Rose Bowl win.
In 2003, then Cal quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw for 307 yards and four touchdowns in Sun Devil Stadium as Cal defeated ASU, 51-23. Then in 2004, Rodgers threw for 165 yards and one lone touchdown for Cal in a 27-0 win over ASU, the Sun Devils only time being held scoreless in the series. ASU turned the ball over five times in the poor showing in Berkeley in Rodgers’ second start against the maroon and gold.
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In 2015, Jared Goff led a 48-46 come back win against Arizona State in the final two minutes in California Memorial Coliseum. The back-and-forth game led to Goff completing 30 passes for 542 yards and five touchdowns.
ASU has won three of the last four meetings since 2012 and will hit the road after losing three of its four home games to begin the season.
For more information about the history between the two school, click here.