National media predictions for Auburn at Cal
After offensive romps by both teams in Week 1, Auburn faces Cal as part of a cross-country road trip that the Tigers hope will yield their first win in the state of California in program history. Auburn handled UMass at home last Saturday, 59-14, while Cal went on the road and blasted North Texas, 58-21. They now clash in one of the more intriguing nonconference games of the early college football season (9:30 p.m. CDT, ESPN).
For Saturday night's matchup,Auburn Undercover rounded up picks from college football writers across the country. Auburn looks to be closing at around a 5.5-point favorite. Can the Tigers grab some strong early season momentum with a Power Five road victory? Or will Cal carry its big offensive performance from Week 1 into its home opener?
Dive in below for opinions and score predictions from more than 50 media members for Auburn's first-ever matchup against the Golden Bears.
247SPORTS NATIONAL TEAM
Chris Hummer: Auburn 34-28
Brad Crawford: Auburn 35-28
ESPN
Bill Connelly (SP+): Auburn 31-24
ESPN FPI: Cal 54.9% chance to win
LOCAL NEWSPAPERS
Justin Lee (Opelika-Auburn News): Auburn
Adam Cole (Opelika-Auburn News): Auburn
Callie Stanford (Opelika-Auburn News): Auburn
Richard Silva (Montgomery Advertiser): Auburn 31-28
USA TODAY NETWORK
Nick Kelly, Tuscaloosa News:Auburn 31-20
Jackson Fuller, Southwest Times Record:Auburn 28-20
Koki Riley, The Daily Advertiser:Auburn 35-14
Stefan Krajisnik, Clarion Ledger:Auburn 38-27
Marc Weiszer, Athens Banner-Herald:Auburn 42-27
Emily Adams, Greenville News:Auburn 34-24
Adam Sparks, Knoxville News Sentinel:Auburn 38-24
David Eckert, Clarion Ledger:Cal 24-17
Aria Gerson, Tennessean:Auburn 17-10
Ryan Black, The Courier Journal:Auburn 42-28
Calum McAndrew, Columbia Daily Tribune:Auburn 28-24
Kevin Brockway, The Gainesville Sun:Auburn 27-14
DALLAS MORNING NEWS
Scott Bell: Auburn
Corby Davidson: Cal
Jamie Hancock: Auburn
Selby Lopez: Auburn
Newy Scruggs: Auburn
Kevin Sherrington: Auburn
Brett Vito: Auburn
COLLEGE FOOTBALL NEWS
Brooks Austin, DawgsDaily.com: Auburn
Big Red Max, All Huskers: Auburn
Jackson Caudell: Auburn
Bryan Driskell, Irish Breakdown: Cal
Pete Fiutak, CFN: Auburn
Austin Hannon, Bama Central: Auburn
Casey Lundquist, Cougs Daily: Auburn
Jeremy Mauss, MWwire.com: Auburn
Mike McAllister, All Syracuse: Auburn
Stephen Thompson, Inside The Panthers: Auburn
Mark Wogenrich, AllPennState.com: Auburn
FOOTBALL SCOOP
Scott Roussel: Auburn
Doug Samuels:Auburn
Zach Barnett:Auburn
John Brice: Cal
BLEACHER REPORT
David Kenyon: Auburn 31-24
ATHLON SPORTS
Stephen Lassan: Auburn
Joe Vitale: Auburn
Luke Easterling: Auburn
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Ralph Drusso: Cal 33-28
247SPORTS: BEARS TERRITORY
Jackson Moore: Auburn 38-31
AUBURN UNDERCOVER
Jason Caldwell: Auburn 31-27
Nathan King: Auburn 34-31
Phillip Marshall: Auburn 37-31
Chrisitian Clemente: Auburn 30-24
Phillip Dukes: Auburn 41-24
Matthew Wallace: Auburn 38-28
Ronnie Sanders: Auburn 42-31
FINAL TALLY
Auburn picks: 50
Cal picks: 7
Average score prediction: Auburn 33-26
