#go bears

[bearterritory]

Golden Bears Beat Demon Deacons

Cal Moves Closer to Bowl with 46-36 Win

Fernando Mendoza passes for 385 yards, 2 TDs

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The California football team forced four turnovers and quarterback Fernando Mendoza threw for a career-high 385 yards and accounted for three touchdowns, and the Golden Bears registered their first Atlantic Coast Conference victory in program history with a 46-36 triumph over host Wake Forest on Friday night at Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium.

Placekicker Ryan Coe booted a pair of 54-yard field goals and wide receiver Mikey Matthews notched career-highs of eight catches and 83 yards, as Cal led wire-to-wire and inched closer to bowl eligibility for the second year in a row. The Bears (5-4) need to win one of their final three games of the regular season to become eligible for the post season.

Cal picked off three passes, including a game-clinching interception by linebacker Liam Johnson with 1:54 to play.

"It's really impressive," Head Football Coach Justin Wilcox said. "It's hard to win in this conference. We have a ton of respect for Wake Forest. I'm proud of our players."

Mendoza threw touchdown passes to Matthews and fellow wide receiver Tobias Merriweather, a highly touted transfer from Notre Dame who made his Cal debut Friday after missing the first eight games of the season with an injury. Fellow transfer wide receiver Kyion Grayes, a widely heralded athlete from Ohio State, also played his first game for Cal after recovering from injury.

Merriweather had six catches for 52 yards while Grayes added a pair of receptions for 22 yards. Eleven different players caught at least one pass for the Bears. It's clear the Bears will have a lot more offensive weapons late in the season.

"It was great to have (Merriweather) and Kyion Grayes back in the rotation, throwing passes to them and getting back our chemistry," Mendoza said. "Those are two guys I'm going to get the ball to."

Mendoza added a 5-yard touchdown run near the end of the third quarter.

Cornerback Nohl Williams recorded another interception to extend his national lead to seven this season while safety Craig Woodson also had a pick during the game's waning seconds to polish off the win. The Bears scored their first touchdown of the game on a 16-yard fumble return by Miles Williams on a kickoff.

Coe, who made just 7 of 14 field goal attempts through the first six games and was eventually replaced by Derek Morris as Cal's primary placekicker, maintained his role as the Bears' choice for longer field goals and responded by twice falling 1 yard shy of tying the program record for longest field goal.

"I'm just proud of that guy for continuing to stick with it through some tough times," Wilcox said. "For Ryan to come in and hit two 54-yarders, that's big time. We knew he could do it. We've seen it. It's not surprising. It's really a testament to him."

The Bears got off to a strong start, taking the opening kickoff and registering five first downs on a 64-yard drive that ended with a 29-yard field goal by Morris. Williams pushed Cal's lead to 10-0 on the ensuing kickoff after Hunter Barth forced a fumble during the return. The Bears led 29-14 at the half and never looked back.

The teams traded scores throughout the second half, and the Demon Deacons started a possession from their own 17 trailing 39-36 with 2:17 to play. Johnson registered his interception on the second play of the drive, and running back Jaivian Thomas provided a cushion with an 11-yard touchdown run with 1:10 remaining.

Johnson and Barth split time at inside linebacker after Cade Uluave left the game with an injury in the second quarter. Barth finished with a career-high seven tackles, including a pair of sacks. Xavier Carlton and David Reese also had a pair of sacks for the Bears, who recorded seven overall.

"I just had to be ready when my number was called," Barth said. "That takes watching all the film, taking all the practice reps and paying attention to detail. It felt good to go out there and execute and leave it all out on the field."

Cal returns home next week to host Syracuse on Nov. 16 at Noon. The game will air on the CW.

[blackmensuited]

[nintendoteuthis]

[afternoonapocalypse]

That’s what we like to see!

[barelyatouch]

<33

[daminouspurity]

New England Patriots vs. Chicago Bears | 2024 NFL Season Week 10 | Predictions Madden NFL 25

SUBSCRIBE! & TURN ON NOTIFICATIONS!

[bearterritory]

Cal Upsets #1 Pitt on the Road

Bears Earn First ACC Win

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Nonso Adimabua scored a first-half goal and Marco Brougher made eight clutch saves to power the California men's soccer team to a 1-0 upset of top-ranked Pittsburgh and to the Golden Bears' first ACC victory on Friday night at Ambrose Urbanic Field.

Cal weathered a tough stretch where many of their starters went down for one reason or another (injuries, illness) and they lost three out of five games. With this win, the Bears improved to 4-5-2 (1-3-2 ACC). Pitt – which suffered its first ACC loss and first home loss of the season – is 10-2-0 (4-1-0).

"I felt the energy from the group, and they were excited," Cal head coach Leonard Griffin said. "I knew this would be a challenge to try to beat such a strong team, which has been playing wonderful soccer all year long. Did I forecast this? No. But did I feel we were capable? One hundred percent. They've shown grit and passion in every game, and we have a belief in the group that we could play with anyone. We didn't shy away from it. Thankfully we could grind out the result tonight." Adimabua, a fifth-year senior forward, pounced on a defensive miscue in the Panthers' box to score in the 21st minute. Brougher, a junior goalkeeper, made a crucial 80th-minute save of a Panthers' penalty kick taken by their leading scorer, Luis Sahmkow, to preserve the shutout win. The night included Wyatt Meyer's 2024 debut. The senior co-captain and 2023 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year – who missed action this season due to injury – entered the game in the first half and played 28 minutes.

[barelyatouch]

<33

Tomoko Konoike, Moon Bear, Hunter Gatherer Tableau (2018). Plywood, water-based stain, carving, 900 x 900.

[ieatcardinalsfansforbreakfast]

Two more games left in the season...

[atalana]

but seriously i do find it so funny that ford was like OH GOD MY PRECIOUS REPUTATION after bill possessed him around other people for all of one night

and then he gets back to this dimension after thirty years and this is now the photo the press associates with his name

[afternoonapocalypse]

Oversleeping and waking up to see the Bears beating the Raiders is nice.

[barelyatouch]

<33

Vintage wind-up toy bear (USSR, 1920s-30s)

[prettybearbutch]

butches/studs/mascs of Tumblr planning Halloween costumes: we can't possibly all be werewolves,it's not mathematically possible

[trashy-greyjoy]

sometimes, it's not so much about the romance as it is about the devotion. the adoration.

[sincerelystesichorus]

i have spent so long trying to place who astarion reminds me of

his dry little sarcastic bits gets me every time and like it's automatically funny but it felt so familiar...

this bastard.

and some more similar comparisons i think

thank you for coming to my ted talk

[barelyatouch]

<33

they’re living the dream