College football: What to know before Cal kicks off vs. Wagner at Memorial Stadium

WAGNER AT CAL

Records: Cal (1-1, 1-0 in ACC); Wagner (1-2, 0-1 in Northeast)

Kickoff: 12:30 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Stadium, Berkeley

TV: ACC Network

Radio: 810-AM

Series history: First meeting

Cal storylines: The Bears seek their first home victory of the season after winning 21-18 at Syracuse in their ACC opener last week . . . Sophomore safety Kingston Lopa intercepted three passes at Syracuse, including a 24-yard pick-6 for the winning touchdown. He was named ACC defensive back of the week and he leads the nation with four picks . . . Cal has a short week coming before next Friday’s home matchup vs. Clemson . . . Unclear is the status of two significant offensive players: TE Dorian Thomas, an all-conference selection last year at New Mexico, sat out the first game after a fall-camp ankle injury and played just two snaps at Syracuse. No. 2 RB Carter Vargas, a transfer from UC Davis, did not play last week after suffering an apparent knee injury in the opener.

Wagner storylines: A tiny private college founded in 1883 and located on Staten Island in New York, Wagner’s FCS-level team is coming off an 87-3 defeat to James Madison, which last season went 12-2 and advanced to the College Football Playoff . . . Wagner hasn’t had a winning season since going 6-5 in 2016, but was projected to finish fourth in the Northeast Conference . . . The Seahawks are 0-8 all-time vs. Power 4 opponents, outscored by an average of 451 to 43 . . . Redshirt freshman QB Benjamin Newman has thrown for 380 yards and three touchdowns since taking over for junior starter Jack Stevens, who was injured in the season opener . . . The top receiver is Zion Fowler-El, a transfer from Pitt, who has 16 catches for 143 yards but no TDs.

Stats that matter: Running back Adam Mohammed is third in the ACC in rushing at 97.0 yards per game, more than Cal’s team average of 93.0 yards . . . Wagner has been outscored by an average margin of 40.7 points to 13.7 in its three games . . . Three Wagner quarterbacks have attempted 91 passes without an interception through three games.

— Jeff Faraudo