Cal Football Game Summary: Bears Play Without QB Mendoza, Lose to No. 9 SMU

Cal routed in its final regular-season game. Bears play without Fernando Mendoza and leading rusher, Jaivian Thomas

Cal running back Jaydn Ott / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Playing without starting quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who sat out with an illness, Cal lost to ninth-ranked SMU 38-6 in Dallas on Saturday afternoon. 

Quarterback Chandler Rogers made his first start for Cal and passed for 84 yards. Rogers left the game midway through the third quarter with an injury, and he was replaced by CJ Harris.

Bears running back Jaivian Thomas also sat out the game with an injury.

SMU will play in the ACC championship game on Saturday in Charlotte, North Carolina, against Clemson.

The summary:

SMU 38, CAL 6

RECORDS: CAL (6-6, 2-6 ACC), SMU (11-1, 8-0 ACC)

PLAYER OF THE GAME:  SMU running back Brashard Smith. Smith had one touchdown rushing and one touchdown receiving. He rushed for 68 yards and caught three passes for 66 yards.

STAT OF THE GAME:  For the third game in a row, Cal did not force its opponent to commit any turnovers. Cal commtted the only turnover of the game.

STAT OF THE GAME II: Two minutes into the second quarter, SMU had gained 234 yards of offense compared with 35 yards for Cal. The Mustangs led 21-0 at that point.

STAT OF THE GAME III: SMU committed a school-record-tying 17 penalties for 137 negative yards.

STAT OF THE GAME IV: Cal's six points were the fewest it has scored in a game since it scored just three points in a 2021 loss to Arizona.

TURNING POINT:  On SMU’s second possession, the Mustangs drove 54 yards for a touchdown that gave SMU at 7-0 with 8:36 left in the first quarter. Cal never threated after that.

CAL PLAYER AVAILABILITY:  Cal starting quarterback Fernando Mendoza did not play against SMU because of an illness (flu-like symptoms). Cal running back Jaivian Thomas, the Bears leading rusher, did not play on Saturday because of an injury.  Cal starting offensive tackle Nick Morrow and starting offensive guard Sioape Vatikani did not play because of injuries.  Bears inside linebacker Cade Uluave did not play because of a lower-body injury.

KEY PLAY 1:  On a third-and-9 play from the Cal 34-yard line, SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings completed a 32-yard pass to Brashard Smith to the Cal 2-yard line. Then, after two 5-yard penalties against SMU, Jennings completed an 11-yard touchdown pass to Matthew Hibner, giving SMU a 7-0 lead with 8:36 left in the first quarter.

KEY PLAY 2:  On a second-and-9 play from the Cal 41-yard line, Kevin Jennings completed a 26-yard pass to Jordan Hudson to the 15-yard line.  That led to Brashard Smith’s 5-yard touchdown run, giving SMU a 14-0 lead with 4:04 remaining in the first quarter.

KEY PLAY 3:  SMU’s Derrick McFall scored on an 8-yard touchdown run to complete an 88-yard drive that put SMU ahead 21-0 with 13:02 left in the second quarter.

KEY PLAYS 4:  Cal scored no points after getting a first down at the SMU 3-yard line.  The Bears lost 25 yards after getting that first down before Derrick Morris missed a 38-yard field goal with 9:37 left in the first half, keeping the score at 21-0.

KEY PLAY 5:  Cal quarterback Chandler Rogers is sacked for a 3-yard loss on a fourth-and-7 play from the SMU 30-yard line with 30 seconds left in the first half.

KEY PLAY 6:  On Cal’s fourth-and-2 play from the SMU 49-yard line, Bears quarterback Chandler Rogers is sacked for an 8-yard loss.

KEY PLAY 7:  Cal's Ryan Coe kicked a 40-yard field goal to cut the SMU lead to 21-3 with 5:30 left in the third quarter.

KEY PLAY 8:  Ryan Coe kicked a 53-yard field goal on the first play of the fourth quarter to make the score 21-6. It was set up by CJ Harris' 60-yard completion to Nyziah Hunter that put the ball at the SMU 30-yard line.

KEY PLAY 9: SMU's Collin Rogers kicked a 48-yard field goal to increase the Mustangs' lead to 24-6 with 9:25 left in the fourth quarter.

KEY PLAY 10: Cal's CJ Harris threw a pass that was intercepted by SMU's Jonathan McGill, who returned it 23 yards to the Cal 21-yard line. That led to Kevin Jennings' 23-yard touchdown pass to Brashard Smith, giving SMU a 31-6 lead with 8:28 left in the game.

INDIVIDUAL STAT OF THE GAME:  SMU running back Brashard Smith had 134 yards of total offense (68 yards, 1 TD rushing, 66 yards, 1 TD receiving)

QUARTERBACK STATISTICS: Cal's Chandler Rogers was 8-for-15 for 84 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions. He also ran for 12 yards. Cal's CJ Harris was 6-for-11 for 75 yards, no touchdowns and one interception. He rushed for 26 yards. SMU’s Kevin Jenkins was 20-for-30 for 225 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. He gained 29 yards on the ground. SMU's Preston Stone was 4-for-4 for 75 Yards and a touchdown.

WHAT IT MEANS:  Cal finishes ahead of only one team, Florida State, in the final ACC standings in the Bears’ first season in the ACC. Cal was picked to finish 10th in the 17-team conference in the preseason ACC media poll. Cal winds up tied with Stanford and Wake Forest with 2-6 conference marks.  Also, the Bears will finish with a losing overall record for the fifth straight season unless they win their bowl game to push them to a 7-6 final record.

CAL'S BOWL BAROMETER:  Cal has a 99% chance of playing in a bowl game because they have the six wins needed to become bowl-eligible. The LA Bowl is the most likely postseason destination for the Bears.

NEXT GAME: Cal (6-6, 2-6 ACC) faces an undetermined opponent in an undetermined bowl game.  The best bet is that Cal will play in the December 18 LA Bowl at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, against a Mountain West Conference opponent, possibly UNLV. The LA Bowl game will start at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, December 18, and will be televised on ESPN.

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