Cal vs. Oregon over/under of 89.5 highest ever

Good news everyone! Cal football is setting records even before the game has started!

As you’d expect, there should be plenty of fireworks in Memorial Stadium tonight. And the oddsmakers are recognizing how unlikely either team will be at registering defensive stops. The Cal-Oregon over/under of 89.5 points is the highest ever recorded in the last 36 years. The previous record was held by Baylor and Texas Tech last year at 88.5, a game that went over.

More from SB Nation:

So when Oregon and Cal play each other in Berkeley on Friday night, it won't be for the faint of heart. Points will be in tall supply, and there won't be much defense at all. The over/under in Las Vegas for this game is 89 or 89.5 points at most books, the highest over/under ever tracked by OddsShark.com's database, which goes back to 1980.

The New York Times has more.

Both teams have offensive punch: Cal is averaging 42 points a game, and Oregon 37. But their porous defenses may be an even bigger factor, said Jon Campbell, sports analyst at Oddsshark. Oregon has allowed 42 points a game, and Cal 40. That makes them the fourth and sixth worst defenses of the 128 in the N.C.A.A.’s Football Bowl Subdivision.

It is nice to see that for the first time in a long time, Cal and Oregon have similar statistical offensive profiles, although the Ducks have been trending downwards. Both the Bears and Ducks appear to be near the top in the nation in terms of generating yards and points. What is concerning is both Cal and Oregon are garnering a relatively negative reputation for defense. That is a situation the Bears have to reverse very soon, or it’ll be difficult for Sonny Dykes to shed the ‘bad defense’ moniker, particularly on the recruiting trail.