Cal-Syracuse Thread: Kingston Lopa's 3 Picks Clinch 21-18 Victory

Safety Kingston Lopa's third interception of the game, with 54 seconds left, allowed Cal to clinch a 21-18 victory at Syracuse on Saturday afternoon.

The Bears (1-1, 1-0 ACC) got new coach Tosh Lupoi his first career victory and took away some of the sting from a 45-24 loss to UCLA a week a

Coin flip: Cal wins the toss. The Bears will defer and kick off to start the game.

12:37 1st Q: Not the opening series the Cal defense wanted. Tylik Hill dashes 55 yards through a gap hole in the middle of the line to the Cal 8 on the second play from scrimmage before he finally was shoved out of bounds by Daniel Harris. The defense then tightened, forcing Syracuse to settle for a 25-yard field. Syracuse 3, Cal 0.

END OF 1ST Q: Syracuse has a second-and-9 at the Cal 15 after a drive that included a trick play on fourth down, a fake punt that went for a 12-yard completion and a first down at the Cal 41. Stats at the end of he quarter: Syracuse 127 yards to 30 for Cal. Syracuse 6 first downs to 2 for Cal. Syracuse 3, Cal 0.

14:44 2nd Q:Woody converts a 33-yard field goal after Cal forces an incompete pass by Steve Angeli on third-and-9 from the 15 with pressure from Nate Burrell. the FG caps a 12-play, 45-yard drive. Syracuse 6, Cal 0.

11:16 2nd Q: Towns McGough is wide left on a 46-yard field goal try after the Bears got to the Syracuse 28, thanks in good part to defensive holding and offsides penalties against the Orange. Cal still has just 35 yards of total offense on 17 snaps -- barely 2 yards per play. Syracuse 6, Cal 0

8:50 2nd Q: Angeli passes to wide open TE Daunte Bacheyie for a 23-yard touchdown, capping a five-play, 72-yard drove. Defensive back Michael Hurst Jr. let Bacheyie run free, perhaps convinced a running play was evolving. On the previous play, Bacheyie beat Hurst for a 38-yard gain to the 23. Angeli also had a 20-yard completion to Umari Hatcher during the drive. The Orange tried for a two-point conversation, but Angeli was sacked. Syracuse 12, Cal 0

7:15 2nd Q: It takes Cal just 95 seconds to cut the margin to five points, Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele fires a 14-yard TD pass to Chase Hendricks three plays after connecting deep with Ian Strong for 43 yards to the Syracuse 33. The Bears also get a pass interference call on Syracuse on the way to a four-play, 75-yard scoring drive. Syracuse 12, Cal 7

0:01 2nd Q: Cal dodges a major bullet when an illegal block penalty against Syracuse erases a 71-yard punt return by Davien Kerr, which would have up the Orange at the Cal 26-yard line with 1 second left. Instead, Syracuse has the ball at its own 20 and takes a knee. Syracuse 12, Cal 7

HALFTIME SUMMARY: No statistic in the first half was bigger than Syracuse's penalty yardage total -- 88 yards on nine infractions. That undermined the home team's potential ability to stretch out to a much bigger lead.

Syracuse outgained Cal 214 yards to 141 in the half, including 86-43 via the rush. Sagapolutele was 14 for 20 for 98 yards and a touchdown with no turnovers. Syracuse's Steve Angeli was just 7 for 18 but for 116 yards and no INTs. Adam Mohammed rushed 8 times for 43 yards (5.4). Defensively, Daniel Harris was busy, collecting six tackles, including a sack, and adding a pass breakup D-lineman Nate Burrell had two QB hurries.

Cal will get the ball first to start the third quarter. Syracuse 12, Cal 7

7:15 3rd Q: Cal takes its first lead of the afternoon on a 2-yard TD pass from JKS to Jordan King. The six-play, 29-yard scoring drive was set up by safety Kingston Lopa's second interception in as many weeks and a 53-yard return to the Syracuse 29-yard line. JSK then passed 15 yards to Ian Strong to the 14 and later hit Chase Hendricks with a 12-yarder to the 5. Cal 14, Syracuse 12

1:38 3rd Q: Angeli responds emphatically after his costly pick, completing six of seven passes for 51 ytards on a 13-play, 75-yard drive that was capped by Ju'Juan Johnson's 2-yard TD plunge. For the second time, Syracuse attempted a two-point conversion. And for the second time, they Orange could not convert. Syracuse 18, Cal 14

END OF 3rd Q: Syracuse again sabotages itself, this time with two illegal blocks that erase a would-be 85-yard punt return to the end zone by Demetres Samuel. Instead, the Orange will begin the fourthg quarter with a first-and-10 from its own 25-yard line. That's 109 yards in penalties for Syracuse.

Three-quarter numbers: Syracuse has 317 yards to 203 for Cal. JKS is 20 for 32 for 144 yards and two TDs. Angeli is 16 for 31 for 197 yards witrh 1 TD and 1 INT. Mohammed has run 13 times for 55 yards. Syracuse 18, Cal 14

9:30 4th Q: Another escape act for Cal as Syracuse's Woody hits the left upright with a 31-yard FG try. Earlier, Cal's Quimario Shemwell apparently grabbed an interception, but the play was nullified by a roughing the passer penalty. Then, Isaiah Crosby knocked the ball loose from Johnson and linebacker JD McKinley recovered for Cal. But the Bears were flagged for having 12 men on the field. On the very next snap, Shemwell missed an interception with a clear field ahead of him. Despite all that, the Bears came out of the drive unscathed. Syracuse 18, Cal 14

4:51 4th Q: Lopa picks off Angeli and races 24 yards untouched into the end zone to the lead back to Cal. Cal 21, Syracuse 18

Pre-game reading:

-- Our comprehensive game preview

-- Injury report: Who's likely out this week?

-- We ask a Syracuse beat writer 5 Questions about Cal's opponent

-- Cal's coaching braintrust self-critical of their opening-game performance

-- The significant difference between starting 0-2 and 1-1

-- Syracuse QB has been a barometer for team's success

-- How PFF graded Cal's players in opener

-- Cal's approach to moving forward: So what, what now?

-- Syracuse coach Fran Brown's comments on the Bears

-- Cal RB Adam Mohammed's record-setting debut

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