Down 25, No. 8 Miami storms back to shock Cal

Kyle Bonagura, ESPN Staff WriterOct 6, 2024, 02:49 AM ET

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• Covers college football.Joined ESPN in 2014. Attended Washington State University.BERKELEY, Calif.– For the second straight week, Miami avoided a near-certain

defeat to stay unbeaten, this time rallying from a 25-point second-half deficit to beat California 39-38. Miami quarterback Cam Ward played a fantastic 4th quarter as the Hurricanes scored the final 21 points, connecting with Elijah Arroyo on a 5-yard game-winning goal with 26 seconds left.”No one played their finest ball, so we just can’t put ourselves in these situations to have to come back,”Ward said.”That’s two games directly we needed to do that. We got to secure. … It’s excellent to get a win. We’re not going to complain. Awful wins are much better than great losses. “Ward led 4 straight touchdown drives to end the game and spoil what looked like the most significant day in years for the Golden Bears (3-2, 0-2 ACC), who hosted ESPN’s”College GameDay”for the first time and were on the brink of their second win over a top-10 group in the previous 21 seasons.Editor’s Picks 2 Associated Rather, Ward made certain the rare sellout crowd at Memorial Arena went home unhappy after conquering a 35-10 deficit in the 3rd quarter. That gave the Hurricanes(6-0, 2-0) a second straight dramatic triumph after needing a replay review to hold back Virginia Tech 38-34 last week.Cal coach Justin Wilcox, when asked later about his group’s state of mind in the locker space, said,”It’s as bad as you can think of.” “Football is a humbling game,”he said.”We had every chance to win that game, clearly. We didn’t get it done. So every individual has to own it. I believe this is a pivotal moment for the group. I hope that all coaches, players, administrators, everyone involved will take pride in how they reacted in a month or two months or 6 months and even a year in this minute right now. “With 1:50 remaining, the ACC officiating team evaluated a possible targeting hit to Cal quarterback Fernando Mendoza that would have set the Bears up with an essential first down, however the crew upheld the decision on the field, requiring a punt.”

I’m not going to talk about that,” Wilcox said. “You can compose whatever you want.”It was the 2nd straight week the Hurricanes took advantage of an officiating decision that likely would have swung the result of the game. Against Virginia Tech last week, authorities overturned a Hail Mary goal that would have given the Hokies the victory.Over the previous twenty years, ACC groups were 1-401 when facing a 25-plus point deficit at any point, with NC State conquering a 27-point deficit in 2011, according to ESPN Research study. This was Miami’s biggest comeback since 1999 and the largest in FBS this season.Ward struggled early, consisting of throwing a pick-six that put Cal ahead

28-10 in the 2nd quarter, but his belief never ever fluctuated.”Just keep playing,”he said.”Can’t come back from 25 trying to get it in one drive. So simply take it play by play, have belief, and when you got the right guys on the team like we do, you can do some great things.”Ward finished 35 of 53 passes for 437 backyards with a set of goals. He likewise scored on a 24-yard run with 4:04 left that cut Cal’s lead to 38-32.”I have actually said it a million times,”Miami coach Mario Cristobal said.”I’ve got total and utter faith in that guy and everything he represents and means.”The Associated Press contributed to this report.