Fernando Mendoza threw for 233 yards and two touchdowns as California won 21-14 on the road at Auburn on Saturday. This was their first of many trips across the country this season.
Mendoza completed 19 out of 21 passes before halftime. Last September, Auburn had come from behind to beat Cal. In the first half of this game, redshirt freshman wide receiver Nyziah Hunter caught both of Cal’s touchdowns.
“Last night, the team leaders came together and just said it was Cal versus the world — 80,000-plus fans, a white out (crowd), all that,” Mendoza said. “But we knew if we could just execute play-by-play, we could have a great result.”
Auburn scored the first touchdown of the game with a 15-yard pass from Payton Thorne to KeAndre Lambert-Smith. However, Auburn struggled after that drive and ended up with five turnovers, while Cal had none.
”(This win) creates confidence and validates the work you put in in the offseason,” Cal head coach Justin Wilcox said. “There will be lessons to be learned, but we came out with a big win against a really talented team in a hostile environment.”
Thorne threw four interceptions, one of which led to Cal’s go-ahead touchdown early in the second quarter. After a scoreless third quarter, Jaivian Thomas scored a 32-yard touchdown for Cal following a fumble by Auburn running back Jarquez Hunter.
Auburn managed to close the lead to 21-14 with a rushing touchdown from Thorne, thanks to several Cal penalties. The Tigers had two late chances to tie the game, but Thorne threw two quick interceptions that sealed the win for the Golden Bears.
“This is disappointing,” Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze said. “I had hoped we were further along. … You can’t turn the ball over five times and expect to beat anybody.”
