Syracuse intercepted two passes from Fernando Mendoza and shut down California’s offense, using a strong ground game to secure a 33-25 win on Saturday.
Kyle McCord, who leads the nation in completions, threw for 323 yards, completing 29 of 46 passes. LeQuint Allen ran for 109 yards and two touchdowns, while Jackson Kennedy made all four of his field goal attempts, staying perfect for the season.
“To start fast and get them early, that was big, and I think both sides of the ball did that,” McCord said. “The defense created some takeaways, and then the offense putting up 27 first-half points was big.”
Syracuse built a three-score lead after Mendoza threw two early interceptions.
“The sideline said ‘Ball,’ and I looked — and I high-pointed it,” said Davien Kerr, who made the second Syracuse interception.
Syracuse is known for its strong passing offense, led by McCord, but they focused on the run against Cal’s defense.
The Orange rushed for 103 yards and two touchdowns in the first half, which was a big improvement after they only gained 39 rushing yards against Boston College the previous week.
“We haven’t done anything good on defense,” Cal head coach Justin Wilcox said as his team headed to the locker room at halftime.
Even though Jaivian Thomas had a 75-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and Mendoza threw a touchdown to Jonathan Brady with one minute left, Cal’s offense struggled. The Bears only managed two red zone attempts against Syracuse, and they’ve had trouble in the red zone all season, completing just 21 of 40 red zone pass attempts.
“Mendoza, he’s very crafty,” Syracuse head coach Fran Brown said. “He’s got a strong arm and a quick trigger finger, so we knew we had to switch the picture up a lot for him.”
McCord and the Syracuse offense did not turn the ball over, even though Cal leads the nation in interceptions with 54.
