California Golden Bears vs North Carolina Tar Heels Point Spread Picks

Justin Wilcox's first season as head coach marked some improvement for the Bears, but came up just short of a possible Bowl bid finishing at 5-7. The offense returns just about everyone, but the improvement is going to rely on Ross Bowers, or South Carolina transfer Brandon McIlwain. Remember, South Carolina's offense has not been good, and McIlwain wasn't the answer there, so just the fact he is challenging Bowers for the job doesn't have a good ring to it for the Cal offense as the QB is what makes it go. North Carolina won just three games last season - the fewest since '06. If that is going to improve this season, the pathetic 19.3 points per game production is going to have to take a huge leap. The QB woes from last year appear to be unsettled, so any immediate rise seems unlikely. North Carolina has always struggled against the run, but that could change this year. They return eight of their top nine defensive linemen, so quality and depth offer hope for a dramatic improvement. Defense seems to be ahead of the offense, but there are question marks on both sides. Back the UNDER.