BERKELEY -- The Cal Football team will return to the gridiron this weekend as they head to Salt Lake City to take on Utah in a Pac-12 matchup. The game will kickoff at 7 p.m.m PT/8 p.m. MT at Rice-Eccles Stadium. The Bears will look to snap their three-game losing streak as they take on the No. 12/12 ranked Utes. 

CAL TRAVELS TO SALT LAKE CITY FOR FIRST MATCHUP WITH UTAH SINCE 2016
- Cal leads the all-time series vs. Utah, 6-5.
- The Bears and Utes have split four games since Utah joined the Pac-12.
- Cal defeated No. 18 Utah with a goalline stand as time expired the last time these teams played in 2016. 
- Only nine players on Cal's roster have played in a matchup vs. Utah: Ashtyn Davis, Josh Drayden, Jordan Duncan, Jaylinn Hawkins, Zeandae Johnson, Alex Netherda, Trey Turner and Evan Weaver. Devon Modster started for UCLA at Utah in 2017. 
- In 2015, Cal went to Utah with ESPN Gameday in attendance. No. 5 Utah defeated No. 23 Cal by one score. 
- This will be Cal's first matchup with Utah with Justin Wilcox as the coach of the Bears. 
- Cal lost 31-24 on the road to Utah in 2003 when Wilcox was an assistant coach at Cal. 
- Cal is 1-3 all-time in Salt Lake City with the win coming in 1963. 
- Cal has defeated a top-15 team in four straight seasons, taking down No. 14 Washington earlier this year, No. 13 Washington (2018), No. 8 Washington State (2017) and No. 11 Texas (2016). 

EVAN WEAVER: TACKLING MACHINE
- National Defensive Player of the Year candidate ILB Evan Weaver leads the nation in total tackles (105), solo tackles (59), total tackles per game (15.0) and solo tackles per game (8.4).
- The NCAA record for total tackles in a season is 193 set by Lawrence Flugence (Texas Tech) in 2002. Weaver is on pace for 180 in a 12-game season and 195 in a 13-game season. 
- The only FBS player to have two 20+ tackle games in a season in the past five years and the only Pac-12 player to do it in the past 20 years. 
- Has 12 more tackles than the next most in the country. 
- Recorded double-digit tackles for 12 straight games, a streak that ended at Oregon. Has 10+ tackles in 6 of 7 games this year. 
- Weaver has four 15+ tackle games, most in the country (18 at Washington, 22 at Ole Miss, 15 vs. ASU, 21 vs. Oregon State).
- The only FBS player with three games with 18+ tackles. There have been 11 times where a player has recorded 18+ tackles this year and Weaver has three of them, no one else has more than one. 
- Lott IMPACT Trophy Player of the Week (Oregon State) 

DEFENSIVE LOCK DOWN
- Cal has held 14 straight opponents under 25 points, five of those have been held under 15 points and four did not score more than a single touchdown. This is the longest active streak in the country and the ninth-longest streak in conference history dating back to 1980. It is also the sixth-best streak in the NCAA since 2010. 
- The Bears have been stingy inside the red zone, holding teams to only 12 touchdowns in 25 red zone appearances, good for a 48.0% rate of touchdowns allowed.
- The Cal defense has stopped opponents from generating explosive plays, holding teams to three or fewer 20+ yard plays in five of seven games this season: UC Davis (2), Washington (2), North Texas (3), Arizona State (3) and Oregon State (3).
- The Bears led Oregon, 7-0, at the half – the first time they have shut out an opponent in the first half this season. It was also the first time Oregon had been shut out at home in the first half since 2004.
- Despite playing some high-scoring offenses, Cal's defense has held those teams below their normal output as those teams have averaged 13.8 points per game less when they've played Cal than they have in all of their other games in 2019. 

DEFENSIVE BACKFIELD SHOWCASES EXPERIENCE
- Cal has allowed only five passing touchdowns in seven games this season. 
- Cal's defensive backfield has combined for 27 career interceptions (Hawkins 7, Davis 6, Bynum 5, Beck 4, Drayden 2, Trey Turner III 2, Hicks 1).
- The 27 interceptions is tied for the second most interceptions by a defensive back group in the country, trailing only Louisiana Tech (32). Syracuse is third with 26. 
- Davis was named Second Team Midseason All-American by both The Athletic and Athlon.  
- Cal's secondary was ranked among the top eight in the nation in the preseason by three different media outlets: Phil Steele (second), Athlong (fourth), Lindy's (eighth).
- Hawkins is tied for 14th in the NCAA amongst all active players with seven career interceptions. 
- Bynum has five interceptions and 24 PBU's in his career. The 29 passes defended is tied for 22nd amongst all active players.
- Bynum's 24 PBU's are t-10th in Cal history alongside Josh Hill. 
- Cal recorded eight pass breakups in the opener vs. UC Davis, with five coming from five different members of the secondary. Eight PBUs is the most since Nov. 21, 2011 vs. Oregon State (8).

LUC BEQUETTE LEADING THE DEFENSIVE LINE  
- Luc Bequette has totaled 37 tackles, 3.5 TFL and 2.5 sacks in six games. His total of 37 tackles is tied for seventh in the NCAA amongst all defensive linemen.
- Bequette was a second-team preseason All-Pac-12 selection by the Pac-12 media.  
- Bequette recorded at least a sack and a TFL in each of Cal's first two games. 
- The defensive line has primarily rotated four players throughout the season; Bequette, Zeandae Johnson, Brett Johnson and Lone Toailoa. Aaron Maldonado returned to the rotation for the Bears' game vs. Arizona State.
- Zeandae Johnson had a career-high six tackles vs. Washington, he has notched sacks in back-to-back games vs. Oregon (1.0) and Oregon State (1.5). 

LINEBACKER UNIT STANDS OUT BEYOND WEAVER 
- Cal's linebacker unit was ranked among the nation's best this preseason as Athlon rates them No. 7 and Phil Steele has them ranked eighth. 
- Kuony Deng has been a standout in seven games with the Bears. He ranks 21st in the country in solo tackles per game (5.6) and 29th in total tackles (9.3), he ranks fourth in the Pac-12 in both categories. He also tallied 2.5 sacks (tied for 11th in the Pac-12), 3.5 TFLs, two quarterback hurries and two pass breakups. 
- Deng has five games with 9+ tackles and two games with 12 tackles in the first seven contests. He has also recorded at least 1.0 TFL in five of the past six games. 
- Deng and Weaver are the top ranked tackling duo in the country with 24.3 tackles per game. The next best duo is Akron's John Lako and Bubba Arslanian who average 20.6 tackles per game. 
- The duo has combined for 170 tackles through seven games and are on a 12-game pace (315) to break the school record for combined tackles, set in 2018 by Weaver and Jordan Kunaszyk at 307.
- OLB Cameron Goode has at least one sack in four of the six games he has played this year.
- Goode is tied for second in the Pac-12 in tackles for loss (8.5) and third in sacks (4.5).
- After missing the Ole Miss game, Goode returned with a career game against ASU. He totaled 11 tackles, 2.0 TFL, 1.0 sack and a forced fumble vs. the Sun Devils.

OFFENSE STARTS EXPLOSIVELY AND TAKES CARE OF THE BALL
- Last season, Cal generated five or more explosive plays of 20+ yards in three of the team's 13 games, it has done that three times in the team's first seven games this year. 
- The Bears generated five 20+ yard plays vs. both No. 14/12 Washington and No. 13/13 Oregon.
- The Bears have seven or more 15+ yard plays in five out of seven games this year, a feat they managed in 4-of-13 games in 2018. 
- Cal notched four 20+ yard plays vs. Ole Miss, including a 60-yard TD pass from Garbers to Tonges.
- Cal is 14-17 in converting in the red zone, scoring 10 touchdowns and hitting four field goals, including the game-winning 17-yard field goal by Greg Thomas to defeat Washington.
- Cal did not turn the ball over vs. Washington or North Texas, it was the first time the Bears recorded back-to-back zero turnover games since the final two games of the 2016 season. 
- The Bears have 0 or 1 turnovers in five of seven games in 2019, they did that only four times in 2018. 

BROWN & DANCY EMERGE AS 1-2 PUNCH IN RUNNING GAME
- Christopher Brown Jr. had 36 carries for 197 yards and a touchdown vs. UC Davis, the 20th-best rushing performance in school history. It is also the best performance in the Pac-12 this year. 
- Brown ranks 77th in the NCAA and 10th in the Pac-12 in rushing yards (480). 
- Brown has six touchdowns in seven games and has scored in five straight. 
- Brown and Dancy have combined to record 27 catches for 197 yards, and Brown caught a 13-yard touchdown pass vs. Ole Miss and a 22-yard TD catch vs. Oregon.