Cal-Stanford postponed to Dec. 1 due to poor air quality

Cal and Stanford have agreed to postpone the 121st edition of the Big Game to Dec. 1 due to poor air quality caused by the California wildfires.

It's the first time in 55 years that the Big Game has been postponed. The Bears and Cardinal will renew their rivalry a day after the Pac-12 championship game, which neither team had a chance to reach.

"We have been carefully tracking air quality in Berkeley and the Bay Area over the past week, relying on the best data and guidance available to us from medical and environmental experts," Cal athletic director Jim Knowlton said in a statement.

"The forecasts we have received show a minimal chance of the improvement necessary to hold the game on Saturday. While we would have preferred to play the Big Game on its scheduled date, once we realized that air quality would likely not return to acceptable levels, we made the decision to postpone for the health and safety of our student-athletes, coaches, gameday staff, students, band and spirit groups, alumni and fans."

Cal and Stanford, which are separated by about 31 miles, have been battling for supremacy in northern California since 1892.

The Bears, who will host this year's contest, haven't won the Stanford Axe since 2009.