Cal Football: USC Game Thread - Bears Collapse in 50-49 Loss After 14-Point Lead

Here goes . . .

CAL PRE-GAME PERSONNEL UPDATE: Backup QB Sam Jackson V was in street clothes during warmups. Also not dressed are S Raymond Woodie III, ILB Sergio Allen and DL Derek Wilkins.

COIN TOSS: USC wins the coin toss and elects to receive the opening kickoff.

PROTESTERS: The start of the game was delayed about 12 minutes by a dozen protesters sitting at midfield. They were cuffed and quietly escorted from the field.

8:24 1st Q: Denis Lynch kicks a 23-yard field goal, capping a 14-play, 69-yard drive. USC 3, Cal 0.

8:00 1st Q: On second-and-1 from the Cal 44, QB Fernando Mendoza and RB Jaydn Ott mishandle a handoff and defensive end Solomon Byrd recovers for the Trojans at the 42. USC 3, Cal 0.

5:23 1st Q: MarShawn Lloyd scores on a 2-yard run after a five-play, 42-yard drive started by the Cal turnover. Caleb Williams got things started with a 25-yard pass to WR Tahj Washington to the 17, then Williams ran 11 yards to the 6 for another first down. USC 10, Cal 0.

3:55 1st Q: Jaydn Ott dashes through a nice hole in the middle of the line and goes 43 yards untouched for a touchdown. He had 3 carries for 56 yards on the drive and Mendoza completed passes of 10 yards to Jeremiah Hunter and 14 yards to Trond Grizzell during a six-play, 75-yard drive. Cal averaging 10.9 yards per play for the game so far, but the one turnover was costly. USC 10, Cal 7.

1:02 1st Q: Williams passes 6 yards to RB Austin Jones for a touchdown, capping a six-play, 80-yard drive. The big play: Williams completes a 56-yard pass to Tahj Washington to the Cal 20. USC 17, Cal 7.

0:12 1st Q: Cal strikes back quickly with Ott sprinting 61 yards for a touchdown, his second of the game. He has six carries for 131 yards - in just the first quarter. Cal went 74 yards in three plays. USC 17, Cal 14.

11:55 2nd Q: Cal forces a USC punt, Jeremiah Hunter returns it 13 yards to the 34, and the Bears go 66 yards in eight plays. Ott scores his third TD on a 4-yard run to put Cal in front. Mendoza scrambled 12 yards on a fourth-and-4 play from the 34, then dashed 16 yards on a keeper to the 6. Mendoza also had a 26-yard completion to Grizzell. Cal 21, USC 17.

8:58 2nd Q: It's not all Jaydn Ott. Mendoza throws a 17-yard TD pass to Trond Grizzell and Cal extends its lead. Mendoza is 7 for 9 for 92 yards with a TD. Cal 28, USC 17.

HALFTIME: Cal 28, USC 17. The Bears outgained the Trojans 318 yards to 309 in the half. Cal had 177 on the ground, sparked by Ott who rushed 13 times for 153 yards Mendoza was 11 for 15 for 41 yards with 1 TD and no INTs for a passer rating of 174.3.Trond Grizzell has 4 catches for 62 yards and a TD while Jack Endries and Jeremiah Hunter have 3 catches each.

Williams, the Heisman Trophy winner, was 16 for 27 for 225 yards with 1 TD and 0 INTs for a rating of 141.5. Tahj Washington has 5 receptions for 102 yards.

Neither defense has a sack but Cal has four QB hurries, which kept Williams on the run at times.

HALFTIME 2.0: Game officials gathered on the field with coaches Justin Wilcox and Lincoln Riley for about 10 minutes while the Cal band its performing at halftime show, finally determining that there was 1 seconds left on the block when Caleb Williams completed his 29-yard pass to tight end Lake McRee on what we thought was the final play of the half. Originally it was ruled time had run out, but the reversal will give the Trojans one more play from the Cal 16-yard line . . . to be run after the teams returning from intermission but before the third quarter officially begins. We are presuming USC goes for a field goal of about 33 yards. Cal 28, USC 17 . . . for now.

Final play of 2nd Q: Lynch missed his attempt at a 33-yard field goal wide left, so the score remained the same as the first half finally ended . . . about a half-hour later. Cal 28, USC 17.

11:59 3rd Q: Caleb Williams scores on a 6-yard keeper, capping a four-play, 45-yard drive. Williams dropped a beautiful pass into Kyron Hudson for a 33-yard gain to the 8. USC got the good field position after Cal failed to convert fourth and inches, with Isaiah Ifanse held for no gain from the 45. USC's pass attempt for the 2-point conversion was incomplete. Cal 28, USC 23.

8:12 3rd Q: Williams fires a 22-yard TD pass to Brenden Rice -- Jerry's kid -- and the Trojans take the lead back. The one-play scoring drive was set up by linebacker Eric Gentry's interception of Fernando Mendoza. The Trojans went for the 2-point conversion but Williams' pass was nullified by a holding penalty. Instead, Lynch came on to kick the extra point, but he missed it. USC 29, Cal 28.

4:42 3rd Q: Mendoza runs right on a keeper and hits the pylon for a 2-yard TD, capping a 10-play, 75-yard drive that was aided by two clear-cut pass interference penalties against the Trojans Mendoza also had a 13-yard run on a fourth-and-4 play to the USC 13. Coolest 2-point play you'll ever see: Mendoza shifted to his right, Ott stepped into the shotgun QB spot, took the snap, lateraled the back to Mendoza, who was rolling right, then completed the 2-point pass to Trond Grizzell. Cal 36, USC 29.

14:06 4th Q: Mendoza scores on a quarterback sneak from less than a yard and the Bears have a two-TD lead. Mendoza completed passes of 21 yards to Grizzell and 25 yards to Hunter (to the 1-yard line) during the five-play, 54-yard drive. Cal 43, USC 29.

11:15 4th Q: Williams scores on a 1-yard sneak to complete a 75-yard drive fueled by his 53-yard completion to MarShawn Lloyd. Cal 43, USC 36.

6:11 4th Q: Lloyd scores on a 9-yard run to tie the score after Hunter fumbles the ball away on a punt return, giving the Trojans possession at the Cal 18. Cal 43, USC 43.

3:33 4th Q: Austin Jones scores on a 6-yard run and USC converts the PAT. USC 50, Cal 43.

0:58 4th Q: Mendoza passes 13 yards to freshman Jaivian Thomas for the TD but the Bears fail to complete a two-point pass. USC 50, Cal 49.

Pre-game reading:

Wide receiver Jeremiah Hunter says Cal’s bye week has done wonders for a team that will try to snap a two-game losing streak today when it takes on No. 24 USC for perhaps the last time at Memorial Stadium.

“It’s very exciting. We’ve watched film on them, we feel confident in what we can do,” said the junior from Fresno. “Now it’s all about going out there and executing. We feel good, we feel refreshed. We’re just ready to go.”

Cal (3-4, 1-3 Pac-12) and USC (6-2, 4-1) are meeting for the 110th time (1 p.m. kickoff), but we don’t know if they’ll ever cross paths again. The Bears are headed to the Atlantic Coast Conference next fall, the Trojans to the Big Ten.

USC began the season with College Football Playoff dreams, but back-to-back losses to Notre Dame and Utah has ended those. The Trojans feature Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams at quarterback but also a defense that has allowed an average of 41 points the past four games.

Hunter said a Cl victory today could rescue their season.

“It would just turn the whole momentum of the season around. We kind of went on a little losing streak these last couple games and we now how important this game is and how big this game is, especially them just coming off a loss,” he said.

“We watched the film — we know they’re beatable.”

— TARGETING HUNTER: Hunter has been one of the Bears’ most consistent producers with at least five catches in 10 straight games over two seasons before being held to three against Oregon State. Then he was shut out in the 34-14 loss at Utah two weeks ago.

He received exrtra defensive attention in both games, especially at Utah, which double-teamed him the entire game.

“You look at what Utah did. Their whole plan was to take Jeremiah out of the game,” Cal offensive coordinator Jake Spavital said. “We’ve got to be more creative and find ways to get Jeremiah touches . . . because he is a dynamic player and we need to get him his targets and his touches.”

“It’s just a different feeling for me because I haven’t really got the much attention since high school,” said Hunter, who leads the Bears with 30 catches for 333 yards and four touchdowns. “I’ve got to stay focused and don’t try to do nothing out of the ordinary. I’ve just got to stay to the program and do my job.”

— EMBRACING MENDOZA: Hunter said the entire team in on board with redshirt freshman quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who has thrown two touchdown passes in each of two games since being installed as starter.

“When Nando came in, his energy was high and he really picked up the tempo,” Hunter said. “That was one of the things the coaches were talking about. They wanted to see more quick tempo and Nando has really pushed that for us and everybody feels that energy and I think that’s why people are more attracted to him. We like him.”

Hunter said Mendoza’s relentless positivity is genuine.

“What you all see is what you all get. Nando doesn’t turn off for the cameras or turn it on — that’s who he is,” Hunter said. “He doesn’t do anything fake. He’s just a very positive person. He tries to do the best he can on every play. He’s just a good guy and a very positive dude.”

-- Our comprehensive game preview

-- Breaking tradition, today will not be the Joe Roth Memorial Game

-- LA Times beat writer Ryan Kartje answers 5 Questions about the Trojans

-- Fernando Mendoza endorses sending plays in to QBs through helmets

-- Mendoza says he's a better player than 3 weeks ago

-- Six games in the Pac-12 today and we make picks on all of them.

-- The ACC announces its 2024 football schedule on Monday.

Cover photo of Cal wide receiver Jeremiah Hunter by Robert Edwards, USA Today

Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo