California scored the go-ahead touchdown on a Kingston Lopa interception return with 4:51 to play and beat Syracuse 21-18 on Saturday at the JMA Wireless Dome.
Syracuse built a 12-0 lead on Tripp Woody field goals of 25 yards at 12:37 of the first quarter and 33 yards at 14:44 of the second, then Steve Angeli's 23-yard touchdown pass to Daunte Bacheyie at 8:50; the two-point run failed. Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele answered with a 14-yard pass to Chase Hendricks at 7:15 to make it 12-7 at halftime.
Sagapolutele's 2-yard throw to Jordan King at 7:15 of the third put Cal ahead 14-12. Ju'Juan Johnson's 2-yard run at 1:38 put Syracuse back in front 18-14 after another failed two-point run. Lopa's interception return, listed in the summary at 0 yards, and Towns McGough's kick made it 21-18.
Angeli threw for 306 yards on 24-of-49 passing with a touchdown and three interceptions. Justus Ross-Simmons caught 6 passes for 105 yards, and Tylik Hill had 56 yards on 2 carries. Syracuse held the ball for 34:10, had 27 first downs and outgained Cal 436 yards to 249, but turned it over three times and was penalized 15 times for 132 yards. Sagapolutele finished 21 of 34 for 182 yards and two touchdowns; Ian Strong caught 3 passes for 64 yards, and Adam Mohammed ran 19 times for 74 yards. Jayden Wayne had 1.5 sacks. Cal converted 3 of 12 third downs and did not turn the ball over. Attendance was 36,031.
Reporting source: ESPN public site API (game summary) Captured Sep 14, 2026, 3:19 AM UTC