The Week 1 showdown versus the Cal Bears will not only be a meeting of two former Pac-12 schools, it’ll also be a showdown between two first-year head coaches that have spent all offseason building hype for the next era of their program.
Bob Chesney has established a level of hope that DeShaun Foster wasn’t able to do with the UCLA Bruins. New Cal head coach Tosh Lupoi has done much of the same with the Bears, making it a perfect showcase to begin the 2026 season for each side.
Longtime NFL coach Ron Rivera is entering his second season as the general manager for Cal football. Rivera, the former Cal linebacker, spoke about the Week 1 showdown versus the Bruins.
“Just the fact that we’re just playing UCLA again, I think that’s huge for both universities.
They’re one of our natural rivals,” Rivera said. “We’re going to rekindle that, and hopefully we can keep it going, kind of like we do with Stanford.”
If the UCLA-Cal rivalry is going to be like Cal-Stanford, then that would mean a yearly nonconfernece matchup between the two schools, as Cal and Stanford have played every year since World War II.
“It’s one of those natural things that you want to see,” Rivera said of UCLA-Cal. “It’s a big deal for a lot of our L.A. kids that come up here and play.”
Ron Rivera on setting the stage for Cal vs UCLA
— Thomas Dunn (@Thomasdunn24) August 26, 2026
Mentioned elsewhere in his presser he’s open to facing USC too
“I think it’s huge for both universities. One of our natural rivals. We’re going rekindle that and hopefully keep it going. It’s a big deal for a lot of LA kids that… pic.twitter.com/DdmmCeCgRu
Rivera played with Cal from 1980-1983 before getting drafted in the second round by the Chicago Bears. The Super Bowl champion went 0-4 against UCLA in his time with the Bears.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: Could UCLA football face the Cal Bears on an annual basis?
