BERKELEY —The Cal Golden Bears will play the Air Force Academy in the 5th Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl.  The game will be played at the Amon G. Carter Stadium on the Texas Christian University campus.

This college football season has been more interesting and exciting than most.  Schools that were expected to be top contenders were surprisingly upset.  After USC lost to Stanford, the schools in the top 2 spots changed almost every week.

In this unpredictable season, the Golden Bears were no exception.

The Golden Bear’s season started pretty well.  Ranked no.12 preseason, the Bears rose in the rankings with wins in the first 5 games.  They reached the no.2 spot during a bye week as USC lost to Stanford and dropped in the polls.  

However, like many teams this season, they were unable to stay in their no.2 spot, dropping to no.10 after a loss to Oregon State .  Their only win the rest of the season was against Washington State .  

The Bears finished the season 6-6.  They are 3-6 in the Pac-10.  Very hard to believe, considering how well the team started the season.

The Air Force Academy finished their season 9-3 overall.  They are 6-2 in the Mountain West.

Both teams defeated Colorado State , the only team that they both played.

Regarding the Armed Forces Bowl, Jeff Tedford, head coach for Cal football has said, “It's a great opportunity to go play in another game. I've heard great things about the Armed Forces Bowl. Some other teams that have been there have told me it's done right and it's a first-class deal. We're excited about having the opportunity to go play in another football game. Air Force, in our experience, is always a very disciplined football team that plays very, very hard. With the option they used to run, it's very difficult to stop the run. I don't know what they do schematically yet, offense or defense, but going 9-3, they have obviously done something right."

The Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl will be played December 31 at 9:30 am PST .