By Scott Ratcliffe
Another week, another nailbiter for No. 15 Virginia. The Cavaliers pulled out a 31-21 win at California on Saturday on the first-ever trip to Berkeley, thanks to a decisive pick-six by Kam Robinson in the game’s final minute to seal it.
After squeaking by in each of their previous three games by a combined six points, the Cavaliers (8-1, 5-0 ACC) made it interesting yet again, but emerged victorious for their seventh consecutive win, and they are off to their best start since 1990.
The Wahoos wasted no time Saturday, scoring on their first three possessions and establishing a 10-point halftime advantage. The Golden Bears (5-4, 2-3) fought back and were only trailing by three, 24-21, with a chance to tie or take the lead with time winding down late in the fourth quarter.
Starting from their own 14-yard line after forcing a Virginia turnover on downs, Robinson had other ideas, stepping in front of Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele’s pass on Cal’s very next snap. Not only did the linebacker gain possession back, he was determined to slam the door shut, returning it 35 yards for the game-clinching touchdown with 34 ticks showing, stunning the home crowd in the process.
J’Mari Taylor hit the century mark for the second time as a Cavalier and rushed for a pair of touchdowns in the opening half, while Eli Wood found the end zone from 3 yards out with 1:51 to go in the third quarter to give UVA a 24-14 lead.
When Cal got the ball back, first-year defensive back Corey Costner ripped it away from star receiver Jacob De Jesus’ hands mid-catch as the two fell to the turf on the final play of the period.
Virginia couldn’t get anything going on the ensuing possession and was forced to kick it away, and Daniel Sparks’ punt traveled just 14 yards, giving the Bears excellent field position, starting from the UVA 25-yard line.
It only took two plays — a 24-yard toss to Mason Mini and a 1-yard plunge from Kendrick Raphael — for the home team to cut it to three with 12:57 on the clock. It was Raphael’s third trip to the end zone of the day.
The two teams traded a pair of punts over the next few minutes, and the Hoos got the ball back with 5:20 remaining, forcing Cal to burn all three of its timeouts; the last coming with 2:29 left. Virginia ran the clock down under two minutes and reached the Bears’ 14-yard line, but Morris’ pass intended for Sage Ennis on fourth-and-2 fell incomplete, giving Cal one last crack at it.
Robinson quickly erased those thoughts, giving Virginia its first victory in the Pacific time zone and keeping the hopes of a postseason run alive.
UVA tallied 456 total yards of offense (262 passing, 194 rushing), while limiting the Golden Bears to just 8 net yards rushing and 263 total yards on the afternoon. The Cavaliers went 10 for 19 on third-down conversions, holding Cal to 3 0f 12.
Chandler Morris completed 24 of his 36 attempts for 262 yards through the air (no touchdowns, no interceptions), and also rushed 6 times for 38 yards.
Trell Harris led the receiving corps with 68 yards on five grabs, while Cam Ross returned to the lineup and added another 59 yards on five catches. Taylor led all rushers with 105 yards on 21 carries and the two scores.
UP NEXT
UVA returns to Scott Stadium for a 7-p.m. kickoff next Saturday against Wake Forest (TV to be determined).
Scoring Summary
Virginia 10-7-7-7 — 31
California 0-7-7-7 — 21
First Quarter
UVA (11:58) — Taylor 25-yard run (Bettridge kick). UVA 7, Cal 0.
UVA (5:21) — Bettridge 26-yard field goal. UVA 10, Cal 0.
Second Quarter
Cal (13:01) — Raphael 2-yard run (Meyer kick). UVA 10, Cal 7.
UVA (5:21) — Taylor 5-yard run (Bettridge kick). UVA 17, Cal 7.
Third Quarter
Cal (6:08) — Raphael 42-yard pass from Mini (Meyer kick). UVA 17, Cal 14.
UVA (1:51) — Wood 3-yard run (Bettridge kick). UVA 24, Cal 14.
Fourth Quarter
Cal (12:57) — Raphael 1-yard run (Meyer kick). UVA 24, Cal 21.
UVA (0:34) — Robinson 35-yard interception return (Bettridge kick). UVA 31, Cal 21.
Player Stats
Rushing
UVA — J’Mari Taylor 21-105; Harrison Waylee 14-39; Chandler Morris 6-38; Daniel Sparks 1-5; Noah Vaughn 1-4; Eli Wood 1-3. TOTAL — 44-194. Cal — Kendrick Raphael 13-46; Jacob De Jesus 1-4; Jayden Dixon-Veal 1-2; Mason Mini 1-0; Anthony League 2-(minus-2); Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele 7-(minus-42). TOTAL — 25-8.
Receiving
UVA — Trell Harris 5-68; Cam Ross 5-59; Eli Wood 2-46; Sage Ennis 4-40; J’Mari Taylor 4-17; Jahmal Edrine 2-15; Kameron Courtney 1-12; Harrison Waylee 1-5. TOTAL — 24-262. Cal — Trond Grizzell 8-80; Kendrick Raphael 4-66; Jacob De Jesus 2-49; Mason Mini 2-34; Jordan King 2-20; QuaRon Adams 1-3; Jayden Dixon-Veal 1-3. TOTAL — 20-255.
Passing
UVA — Chandler Morris 24-36-262-0-0. TOTAL — 24-36-262-0-0. Cal — Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele 19-30-213-0-2; Mason Mini 1-1-42-1-0. TOTAL — 20-32-255-1-2.
