The Oregon Ducks entered the game against Cal on a four game losing streak(three of those in the Pac-12). To get out of it they would need to run some tempo on Offense and get back to the ground game with Royce Freeman. On Defense, Troy Dye was on the travel squad to play in his first road game and Jalen Jelks returned as well after recovering from injury during the bye week.
The first Oregon Drive ended in a punt, but a long run by Tony Brooks-James was called back as he stepped out of bounds. Running Back Royce Freeman saw time on the first drive and saw minimal yardage.