58,534 people piled into California Memorial Stadium on October 21 to watch Cal play the Washington Huskies. The Huskies, expected to finish last in the Pac-10 at the beginning of the season, exceeded that prediction, starting the season 4–1. Two straight losses, one a near-upset of the USC Trojans at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and the other a shocker against Oregon State, swayed their momentum a bit, yielding a 4–3 record, 2–2 in the Pac-10. Coach Tyrone Willingham had already doubled the Huskies previous year's win total. The Bears were the clear favorite to win the game, but some predicted that the Huskies could provide a "trap game" for the Bears.