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Against a team that puts up a lot of points and gives up almost as many, it's a little hard to know what to expect. But No. 18 Utah is looking to replicate, if not improve upon, the 30-24 win last year against http://bit.ly/2dBRxDr";>a then-touted Cal offense.

But the truth is that the Golden Bears are nothe the same team: new coordinators, http://bit.ly/2dElL82";>new quarterback, new receivers and new defensive playmakers. What differences should Utah fans be attuned for, and what is going on at Cal behind the scenes?

This week, I've turned to Ryan Gorcey from Scout site Bear Territory to help answer some questions about Cal. http://www.scout.com/college/california";>You can find Ryan's stories on his website, and follow him onhttps://twitter.com/RGBearTerritory?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor"> Twitter @RGBearTerritory. Ryan got in-depth in Cal's background here:

1. Davis Webb has been incredibly productive through four games, outperforming Jared Goff's 2015 start by some measures. How was Cal able to swoop in late and get the Texas Tech transfer, and how is he performing relative to expectations?

Ryan Gorcey: Jake Spavital, Cal's new offensive coordinator, was vital to Webb flipping from Colorado to Cal – that, and the fact that the Bears' offensive line is a veteran bunch, and there is a lot of talent at receiver, starting with Chad Hansen, and including Melquise Stovall and Demetris Robertson. The fact that Spavital came up under Kliff Kingsbury – Webb's former head coach at Tech – means that these two offenses are very similar. The learning curve for Webb was nil. He came in knowing this offense inside and out, and his relationship with Spavital has been crucial to his success so far. When Cal pursued Webb, the thought was that the current, young quarterbacks on the roster weren't quite ready. With Chase Forrest at the helm, the ceiling was maybe four wins. With Webb at the helm, that doubles, and while he's a bit of a gunslinger – trying to make things happen with his arm – he's going to make the right call more often than not.

2. Are you surprised that Chad Hansen has become the No. 1 receiver in the country after being way back on the depth chart last year? What changes has he made to his game, or is it simply opportunity knocking?

RG: Not at all. I stood on the sideline this summer with Sonny Dykes during a prospect camp, and we were chatting about the current roster. He told me that the best pro prospect on this team was Chad Hansen. We saw a bit of it come through at the end of last season, but the work he's put in, getting up to 205 pounds, and the fact that he's as fast as anyone on the roster, gives him a rare combination of work ethic, size and speed, and that's not even mentioning the insane body control that's allowed him to make two leaping, twisting sideline catches the last two weeks. He was raw when he came in, but he's been polished, and his natural abilities are starting to shine through.

3. In its first three games, Cal allowed more than 200 yards rushing in each contest. Last week, ASU was less productive, but still rushed for three touchdowns. What about the defense makes them prone to the run game, and are there enough playmakers to turn things around?

RG: It's been second-level fits, not to put too fine a point on it. Cal's defensive line was exceptional last week against Arizona State, keeping a rush-happy team to 100 yards below its season average. That said, the lack of linebackers on the roster – a combination of injury retirements and graduate transfers – has hurt, especially in the run game. Cal is a base 4-3 defense, but for the past year now, the Bears have been almost exclusively a nickel team, and part of that has been the lack of personnel at the linebacker spots. With safety Evan Rambo likely on the shelf, I think we'll see more of Jaylinn Hawkins at the center field spot, but he's more of a cover guy than a run support guy. I can see Derron Brown and Jordan Kunaszyk helping to fill the gaps up front, as both of them have come along nicely this year.

4. From a gameplan perspective, have Cal coaches said they've taken anything away from last year's 30-24 game in Salt Lake City, and is the offense equipped to handle Utah's secondary differently than last year?

RG: They've learned that Utah has a very aggressive, very active secondary. I believe two of Jared Goff's picks last year came on tipped balls, and through four games, we haven't seen anything like that this season, in terms of balls going up in the air. If balls are muffed, they're not being popped up into the air, so, that's one thing. Given Webb's propensity to take some risks, and the fact that Goff wasn't nearly the gambler that Webb is, I can see Cal going heavy with the run early, especially if Khalfani Muhammad is 100 percent (he rushed for 76 yards on nine carries in the first half against Arizona State, before a second half hit limited him to just three carries after the break). Then, I suspect they'll go for the middle of the field to take advantage of the young linebacking corps to try to suck the safeties in, and then go over the top to Hansen and Demetris Robertson, but they shouldn't push that up-top and outside game too much, too early, especially if Utah rolls a safety to Hansen's side.

5. There was some publicized tension between Sonny Dykes and the Cal administration in the last few years, not unlike what happened to Kyle Whittingham at Utah circa 2014 in the offseason. What is the state of the Sonny Dykes era, and does he seem firmly planted in Berkeley?

RG: I think he looked around last winter because the Cal administration is so heavily tilted towards the academics, many of whom are hostile to athletics. All one has to do is read the pieces in the San Francisco Chronicle that have been focused on every out-of-place detail from a two-year old investigation, prompted by longtime critics of the program from within the faculty to see how toxic an environment Berkeley can be for intercollegiate athletics. That, plus the academic restrictions on recruiting, it's no wonder that Dykes or his representatives were turning over a few rocks to see what else was out there. After he signed his extension (with more money for assistants, which was a huge point of emphasis for him), though, all that talk settled down, and with a new baby on the way and a group of players he says is the most fun he's ever coached – such a 180-degree turn from the bunch he arrived to – and I think things have settled down, at least for now.

*****

Thanks, Ryan.

Catch you all tomorrow on game day.

kgoon@sltrib.com
Twitter: @kylegoon