Give Justin Wilcox, head coach of Cal credit. He took his chance to beat USC on Saturday in Berkeley.
The 2-point conversion attempt with 58 seconds left didn’t work and the Golden Bears endured a 50-49 loss to the Trojans in a wild Pac-12 game.
The Trojans trailed by 11 at the half and 14 in the fourth quarter before scoring 21 straight points to take a 50-43 lead.
Cal turnovers helped the USC cause immensely.
Still, the Golden Bears rallied one last time. They went 79 yards in 9 plays over 2:30 and scored when Fernando Mendoza connected with Justin Williams-Thomas for a 13-yard TD play.
.@qb_fernando ➡️ @JaivianThomas
THE JET ✈️
📺 Pac-12 Network#GoBears pic.twitter.com/UScS7bqiPr
— Cal Football (@CalFootball) October 29, 2023
That set the stage for the decision by Wilcox.
He went for a 2-point conversion and the pass was incomplete.
Cal’s failed 2 point conversion pic.twitter.com/6ZRpy23tGo
— C. J. Lowe (@Big12CJL) October 29, 2023
USC improved to 7-2 and 4-1 in the conference. Cal is 3-5 and 1-4 in the Pac-12.
Reigning Heisman winner Williams threw for 369 yards in the victory.
