Cal lastly discovered a solution to win an Atlantic Coast Convention recreation it appeared decided to let slip away.
Ryan Coe kicked a pair of 54-yard discipline objectives and linebacker Liam Johnson, a switch from Princeton, intercepted a go with 1:54 to play and the Bears held on for a 46-36 victory at Wake Forest on Friday evening.
Of their first 12 months of their new league, the Bears (5-4, 1-4) had misplaced 4 straight ACC video games by a complete of 9 factors. This one appeared headed in that course within the fourth quarter after Cal led 29-14 at halftime.
Coe kicked his second 54-yard discipline objective for a 39-29 lead with 6:39 left, and the Bears wanted all three factors.
Wake answered with a 12-play, 84-yard drive to drag inside 39-36 with 3:57 to play, scoring on a 2-yard plunge by Tate Carney.
The Wake protection compelled a three-and-out to get the ball again at its personal 17-yard line with 2:16 left. Then, simply because the Demon Deacons (4-5, 2-3) appeared positioned to return again, Johnson stepped in entrance of a go by Hank Bachmeier and picked it off.
The Bears tried to run the clock out and, on third-and-5 from the Wake 11-yard line, Jaivian Thomas dashed round left finish into the top zone with 44 seconds left to offer some respiration room.
Fernando Mendoza accomplished 40 of 56 passes for a career-high 385 yards with two touchdowns.
“It wasn’t pretty, certainly in the second half,” Cal coach Justin Wilcox stated in an on-field TV interview. “But Im really proud of our team for finding a way at the end.”
Wake, which was outgained 350 yards to 130 within the first half, pulled inside 29-21 when Bachmeier fired a 45-yard landing go to broad receiver Donovan Greene with 7:43 left within the third quarter.
The Demon Deacons compelled Cal to punt and drove into vary for an extended discipline objective. However Cal’s TJ Bollers blocked it and Nohl Williams recovered on the Wake 28-yard line with 2:38 left within the third. Earlier, Williams secured his NCAA-leading seventh interception.
On second-and objective from the 5, Cal faked a jet sweep and Mendoza dashed up the center untouched for the TD with 18 seconds left within the third for a 36-21 lead.
Nonetheless it wasn’t over. Wake answered with an 11-play, 84-yard drive and trailed simply 36-29 when Bachmeier scored on a 4-yard keeper then handed to Harry Lodge for the two-point dialog with 11:46 left within the fourth quarter.
Cal led 29-14 at halftime of a wildly entertaining recreation, however the Bears settling for discipline objectives thrice stored the door open for Wake.
Mendoza accomplished 30 of 40 passes for 289 yards within the first half, changing into simply the fourth quarterback in 10 years to finish 30 passes in a half towards an FBS opponent.
He linked with 10 totally different receivers. Amongst them have been the 2 long-awaited transfers, making their first appearances all season resulting from accidents.
Kyion Grayes (Ohio State) caught two passes for 22 yards and Tobias Merriweather (Notre Dame) caught 5 for 45 yards. Included in Merriweather’s catches was a 5-yard landing that made it 26-14 with 1:30 left within the half. Cal then failed on a two-point conversion strive.
The Bears’ protection compelled a punt and the offense began at its now 24 with 52 seconds and one timeout remaining. Mendoza accomplished 5 straight passes earlier than Coe got here on to kick a season-long 54-yard discipline objective — slipping it barely over the crossbar and simply inside the suitable upright — as time expired.
Coe had misplaced his placekicking job to freshman Derek Morris three weeks in the past however might be used on lengthy discipline objectives. Morris made discipline objectives of 29 and 38 yards, giving him seven over the previous two video games.
The primary of these supplied the Bears a 3-0 lead on their first drive and that margin jumped to 10-0 when Hunter Barth wrestled the ball from kick return man Demond Claiborne and Miles Williams scooped it up and ran 15 yards into the top zone and the Bears led 10-0 at 9:54 after placing up 10 factors in a span of 9 seconds.
Wake closed to 10-7 after Mendoza’s first interception in 4 video games. The Demon Deacons went 30 yards in 5 performs earlier than Claiborne piled in from the 1 with 3:49 left within the first quarter.
Mendoza’s 11-yard landing go to Mikey Matthews push the Cal lead again to 17-7 with 13:26 left within the second quarter and a discipline objective by Morris made it 20-7 with 9:21 left.
Wake Forest used some trickery to get nearer, with Bachmeier taking a lateral after a wildcat snap and delivering a 44-yard TD go to Claiborne with 3:50 left within the half.
