Bears Stun #21 SMU in 38-35 Thriller

BERKELEY - Nobody ever said it was easy and tonight was no exception as the Bears took a big lead over #21 SMU, gave it up and fell behind only to rally for the game-clinching touchdown in the final minute to pull off the upset win in interim head coach Nick Rolovich’s first day at the helm at Cal, winning 38-35 in a chilly evening at Memorial Stadium.

"What a football game - both teams," Rolovich said after the game. "It's a mutual resilience coming back. We talked about it. Talked about getting ready for dogfight, expecting the win, knowing there's going to be a time in this game where it may feel impossible to win, and that's when they started making those drives, that was starting to have starting to happen. They were closing the gap, and then winning the game in the fourth quarter. Jaron had wonderful game, Kendrick, the O-Line. I mean, offensively, there was some real production, and credit to the offensive staff putting that thing together."

Frosh quarterback Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele‍ had the game of his life, completing 31-of-40 passes (78%) for 330 yards and 4 TDs with no interceptions in leading the Bears to the win. Running back Kendrick Raphael‍ was a workhorse, carrying the ball 33 times for 116 yards and a touchdown along with 5 catches for 53 yards, including 47 yards after catch, earning every yard. 

The defense was led by frosh safety Aiden Manutai‍ with 8 tackles, 1 interception and a pass breakup in the final SMU drive as well as edge Chris Victor‍ with 7 tackles, 2 sacks and 3 TFL in his best game as a Bear.

SMU came into the game leading the conference in sacks with 34 and the Bears’ offensive line allowed none. They led the conference in turnovers by a mile with 28 as well as turnover margin with +15 but the Bears also allowed none in the win.

The Bears were up against the wall coming into the game, with six defensive starters out and not a single tight end available, with frosh OLB John Tofi Jr‍ seeing his first reps of the season on the other side of the ball as a starter at tight end. Former DE and current offensive guard Akhili Calhoun also saw time there as well.

Cal drew first blood on the scoreboard in their second possession of the game, driving to the SMU 12 where Sagapolutele hit receiver Trond Grizzell for a back shoulder TD but the play was called back by a holding flag on guard Jordan Moko‍. The Bears settled for a 40-yard Chase Meyer‍ field goal to go up 3-0 with 3:23 left in the quarter.

SMU answered back in their next possession, aided by a controversial PI call on cornerback Hezekiah Masses‍ later followed by a blatant holding no-call against Cade Uluave that sprung speedy SMU running back Chris Johnson, Jr for a 54-yard TD run to put the Mustangs up, 7-3 with 1:37 left in the quarter.

The Bears responded quickly, moving to midfield before a personal foul call on the Mustangs gave them 1st-and-10 at the SMU 35. The Bears took advantage as Sagapolutele hit receiver Jaiven Plummer with a perfect strike in the end zone to give the Bears a 10-7 lead after the PAT with 13:33 left in the half. The catch was Plummer’s second of the season, giving him a sterling 45 yards per catch average on the season.

On the second play of SMU’s possession, the Bears caught a break as safety Aiden Manutai‍ hauled in a tipped ball and returned it to the SMU 17. Three plays later, Sagapolutele hit receiver Jacob De Jesus in the flat and the speedy receiver split a pair of SMU defenders as he raced to the end zone for a 7-yard TD that put the Bears up 17-7 with 10:29 left in the half - a lead that held up till the halftime break. The senior led the Bears once again with 12 receptions for 97 yards and a TD.

After forcing a 3-and-out to start the half, the Bears went back to work, taking 12 plays to drive to the SMU 15. Facing 3rd-and-goal, the frosh QB eluded the rush and hit a leaping Cole Boscia for an incredible TD to put the Bears up with a stunning 24-7 margin with 8:25 left in the third quarter.

"I was thankful, thankful that we got a score in a critical moment and to give our to give our team a position to move forward and keep going, keep the momentum,” Boscia said after the game. 

“I'm super excited for Cole and the night that he had, because he's one of those guys that come to practice - I don't think he's missed a practice all season,” De Jesus said. “And he's just one of those guys that’s a super hard worker, plays on special teams, can do a lot of things on the field, different places, like today, he's really playing like a tight end, so I'm just super happy for him and the night that he had.”

In danger of the game getting out of hand and seeing their conference championship hopes dashed, the Mustangs put together their best drive of the game, going 75-yards in 9 plays, with a 6-yard Kevin Jennings TD pass to tight end Matthew Hibner to narrow the deficit to 24-14 with 4:56 left in the quarter.

The Bears continued to stay aggressive, quickly driving to the SMU 32 where the super frosh QB unleashed a 32-yard laser to receiver Quaron Adams‍ who slipped behind the Mustangs’ defense in the end zone to push the Bears’ lead to 31-14 to open the fourth quarter.

Knowing their season was hanging in the balance, SMU put together a quick 7-play, 75-yard drive, with most of the damage coming on a 35-yard run by Johnson featuring multiple missed tackles to set up a 3-yard Jennings keeper for the score. The PAT narrowed the Cal lead to 31-21 with 12:58 remaining.

The Bears were unable to burn much clock as SMU forced a quick 3-and-out, giving them plenty of time to try and draw closer to the upstart Bears.

Facing 4th-and-1 at midfield, the Mustangs were able to pick up the critical first down and continued their drive. Four plays later, Jennings hit receiver Jordan Hudson for a 20-yard TD catch, cutting the Bears’ lead to 31-28 with 7:59 remaining.

Unable to burn much clock, the Bears were forced to punt, giving SMU the ball with 4:46 left at the Mustangs’ 27. With a 32-yard completion to Hibner and a 26-yard Jennings run, SMU scored two plays later on a 1-yard TJ Harden run up the middle to give the Mustangs the lead at 35-31 with 2:22 remaining.

It was in the Bears’ hands now and a field goal wouldn’t get it done. They’d need their freshman quarterback to put the team on his young shoulders and drive them to victory and that’s exactly what he did. 

Taking over at their 25, Sagapolutele hit De Jesus for 9 then Adams for 12 and the first down. A pass interference penalty moved the ball 9 yards to the Cal 46. Next came a 4-yarder to De Jesus and a 13-yard first down catch and run by Raphael, moving the ball to the SMU 28. With just over a minute left, the frosh QB then hit Boscia for a critical 23-yard gain to the SMU 5 and two plays later, Raphael carried it in to give the Bears the lead again at 38-35.

There was no time to breathe after the go-ahead score as SMU quickly drove to the Cal 33 but a false start penalty pushed the Mustangs back to their 38. After a 3-yard gain, the clock ticked down to 8 seconds remaining. Lacking any more timeouts, SMU elected to attempt a 52-yard field goal from the right hash mark, not the easiest of kicks. Kicker Sam Keltner’s kick sailed wide right, giving the Bears the win and their first non-losing conference record in an astounding 16 years of Pac-10, Pac-12 and ACC play, finishing the regular season 7-5 (4-4), good for a 5-way tie for 7^th place.

The Bears will next await the announcement of their bowl game opponent and location and attempt to win 8 games for the first time since 2019.