Cal Football: USC Game Thread - Bears Slash 20-Point Deficit Before Losing 41-35
Cal made is entertaining, scrambling back from a 20-point deficit entering the fourth quarter, but lost 41-35 to No. 9 USC on Saturday night at the L.A. Coliseum.
The Bears (3-6, 1-5 Pac-12) have now dropped five in a row and must win out against Oregon State, Stanford and UCLA in order to become bowl eligible.
USC (8-1, 5-1) got four touchdown passes and scoring run from quarterback Caleb Williams.
Cal's Jack Plummer had his best game of the season, passing for 406 yards and three touchdowns. Jaydn Ott rushed for 50 yards and two TDs and caught seven passes for 70 yards, but he had just 10 rushing yards on his final 11 attempts.
Jeremiah Hunter caught six passes for 102 yards and a touchdown.
Pre-game injury update: Ryan Kartje of the LA Times reports that USC wide receivers Jordan Addison and Mario Williams won't play tonight, the second straight week they're out due to injury. Cal will be without eight defensive players tonight, including LBs Mo Iosefa, Blake Antzoulatos and Braxten Croteau and DBs Lu-Magia Hearns III, Collin Gamble and Raymond Woodie III.
Coin flip: Cal wins the coin toss and defers. Bears will kick off to start the game and get the ball to open the third quarter.
10:29 1st Q: After the Bears forced USC to punt on its first possession, Cal went 76 yards in five plays with freshman Jaydn Ott scoring on a 10-yard run. Ott opened the drive with a 22-yard burst and carried three times for 40 yards. Jack Plummer was 2-for-2 passing, including a 30-yard completion to Jeremiah Hunter that got the ball to the USC 18-yard line. Cal 7, USC 0.
5:58 1st: USC responds with a 10-play, 72-yard drive, capped by Caleb Williams' 1-yard quarterback sneak on a third-down play. Williams was 6-for-7 for 65 yards on the drive. A bad snap on the PAT was recovered by Cal's Daniel Scott, but his attempt to return it was thwarted. Cal 7, USC 6.
END OF 1st Q: Cal faces a third-and-8 from its own 22-yard line as the second quarter begins. USC has a slight statistical edge, for the Bears lead 7-6.
-- Rush: Cal 41 yards, USC 30
-- Pass: USC 102, Cal 72
-- Total: USC 132 yards, Cal 113
-- First downs: USC 7, Cal 4
-- Time of possession: USC 9:55, Cal 5:05
11:44 2nd: USC drives 58 yards in 7 plays, including a fourth-and-5 conversion on a 19-yard pass from Caleb Williams to Terrell Bynum to the Cal 12-yard line. Travis Dye, the former Oregon star, scores from there on the next play and USC has its first lead of the night. USC 13, Cal 7.
0:53 2nd Q: Cal's defense got the ball back with a story inside the final 2 minutes of the half but on first down Jack Plummer was intercepted by Calen Bullock, who returned it 10 yards to the 50. It took the Trojans just 19 seconds to cover 50 yards, including a 39-yard completion to Tahj Washington to the 7. Caleb Williams then threw his 25th TD pass of the season, a 7-yarder to Michael Jackson. USC 20, Cal 7.
HALFTIME: USC 20, Cal 7. The Bears have had their chances. But Jack Plummer was pressured and threw incomplete on fourth-and-2 from the USC 23 with 2:17 left in the half, and barely a minute later -- after defense stopped the Trojans -- Plummer was picked off by Calen Bullock, who returned the ball 10 yards to the 50. That set up a three-play scoring drive that consumed just 19 seconds.
Plummer is 13 for 19 for 143 yards with the INT. Ott rushed three times for 40 yards on Cal's first series, but has minus-1 yard on his past 5 carries. Cal, in fact, gained 98 of its 179 yards on its first six snaps -- just 81 yards on 25 plays since.
Safety Craig Woodson already has 8 tackles at halftime for Cal.
Caleb Williams was 17 for 28 for 203 yards and has 1 TD passing, 1 TD rushing.
USC defensive lineman Tui Tuipulotu has 2.5 tackles for loss, including both of the team's sacks.
Halftime numbers:
-- Rush: USC 49 yards, Cal 36
-- Pass: USC 203 yards, Cal 143
-- Total: USC 253 yards, Cal 179
-- First downs: USC 12, Cal 7
-- Turnovers: USC 0, Cal 1
The Bears will receive the kickoff to open the second half.
11:00 3rd Q: Michael Jackson catches a quick pass from Caleb Williams, puts a move on Oladejo and dashes 59 yards for a TD. USC's drive: 70 yards in five plays. This is just about over. USC 27, Cal 7.
7:27 3rd Q: The Bears suggest they're not done, going 73 yards in six plays with Plummer throwing a 2-yard TD pass to Monroe Young, the senior who caught his first TD a week ago. Two obvious pass interference penalties against the Trojans aided the drive but the key play was Plummer's 58-yard completion to Jeremiah Hunter to the 4-yard line. Plummer is now 18 for 24 for 209 yards. Hunter has 4 catches for 99 yards. USC 27, Cal 14.
1:48 3rd Q: The Trojans keep coming. They go 86 yards in 8 plays with Caleb Williams,s delivering his third TD pass of the game (to go with 1 rushing TD) - an 8-yarder to Michael Jackson. Williams is now 23 for 38 for 313 yards. USC 34, Cal 14.
END OF THIRD QUARTER: USC 34, Cal 14. The Trojans are looking more and more unstoppable as the game progresses.
The numbers:
-- Rush: USC 100, Cal 38 (Bears have minus-2 yards since their first series)
-- Pass: USC 313 yards, Cal 231
-- Total: USC 413 yards, Cal 269
-- First downs: USC 19, Cal 10
12:56 4th Q: Cal comes back again, this time scoring on a 47-yard TD pass from Plummer to Mavin Anderson - perhaps the easiest touchdown of the season for the Bears. The USC defense bit on the play fake and Anderson was all alone as he virtually walked into the end zone. Plummer is 22 for 29 for 278 yards with 2 TDs and the 1 INT. USC 34, Cal 21.
9:00 4th Q: Plummer's third TD of the game was a 3-yarder to Hunter, capping a a 52-yard scoring drive set up by a successful onside kick. Hunter Barth recovered it for the Bears. Plummer is now 29 for 38 for 325 yards with three touchdowns. Cal's point after kick was blocked. USC 34, Cal 27.
5:34 4th Q: Williams throws his fourth TD of the game, a 2-yarder to tight end Lake McRee and the Trojans have stretched the lead again. Williams has 14 TDs and no INTs the past three games. USC 41, Cal 27.
2:31 4th Q: Cal comes back once more, with Ott scoring on a 4-yard run. Plummer then delivered a shovel pass to Monroe Young for a two-point conversion that got the Bears within six points. USC 41, Cal 35.
Cover photo of Cal safety Daniel Scott courtesy of Cal Athletics
Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo
