Virtually no one expects Cal to win the ACC football championship in the Bears’ first year in the new conference, but one The “expert” from CBS Sports even went so far as to predict that the Golden Bears will finish last.
In fact, the eight CBS Sports reporters surveyed in the site’s Most Overrated and Underrated Teams report had Cal all over the place in their prediction of where to finish in the ACC. However, none saw the Bears finishing in the top half of the standings, and three saw Cal finishing 15th or worse in the 17-team conference.
For Cal, the first season in the new league is not exactly optimistic.
The report listed five ACC teams as overrated – Clemson, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Duke and Miami – and mentioned seven ACC teams that were considered underrated by a member of the expert panel – Cal, Stanford, SMU, Pitt, North Carolina State, Georgia Tech and Miami.
The fact that Georgia Tech and Miami are in both the overrated and underrated groups shows the wide difference in opinion regarding ACC football in 2024.
Here is what the author of the CBS Sports Report, Chip Patterson said of Cal’s undervaluation:
Cal: The Bears seemed lost last season before winning three straight games (and covering the performance) to finish the regular season 6-6. Now, coach Justin Wilcox has all six of his All-Conference selections from last year, most notably star running back Jaydn Ott, and plenty of additional experience from a 23-player transfer class that ranked No. 4 in the ACC, according to 247Sports. SMU may be in the spotlight as the freshman most likely to be a threat in its first year, but Cal could be a dream-killer for a couple of ACC title contenders. – Patterson
All eight CBS sports experts also predicted the order of seeding. Four predicted Miami to win the conference title, three picked Clemson and one named defending conference champion Florida State as the likely winner.
None of the eight players predicted Cal would finish higher than ninth. One predicted the Bears to finish ninth, one predicted 11th, one predicted 12th, two predicted Cal to finish 13th, two predicted the Golden Bears to finish 15th, and one – Dennis Dodd – predicted the Bears to finish 17th, dead last.
The biggest uncertainty at Cal is the quarterback position. While the ACC boasts a number of highly rated quarterbacks this season, the Golden Bears have yet to name a starter at the position. Fernando Mendoza, Chandler Rogers and CJ Harris are vying for the starting spot, but none of them have proven to be elite quarterbacks at the Power Four level.
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