California Edges Stanford 24-21 in Week 13 Thriller
California defeated Stanford 24-21 in Week 13, with the Bears mounting a fourth-quarter comeback to secure the victory. Stanford jumped out to an early lead, scoring 14 points in the first quarter behind quarterback Ashton Daniels, who connected with Emmett Mosley V for a 29-yard gain. However, California's Fernando Mendoza led the Bears' offensive charge, finishing with 299 passing yards and orchestrating key scoring drives throughout the contest.
The game remained competitive, with Stanford covering the 14.5-point spread despite the loss. Mendoza's performance was critical down the stretch, including a 30-yard touchdown pass to Jonathan Brady in the fourth quarter and another touchdown to Brady shortly after. California's receiving corps also contributed significantly, with Trond Grizzell posting 70 receiving yards and hauling in a crucial 30-yard completion in the third quarter.
The Bears' defense generated several high-impact plays, particularly in the second and fourth quarters, helping stall Stanford's offense when it mattered most. The game finished under the 53.5 over-under, with California's 24-21 victory capping an intense back-and-forth contest.
AI-generated recap · Sep 2, 2026
| Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Stanford | 14 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
 California | 0 | 7 | 3 | 14 | 24 |
Scoring Timeline
Drive Chart
Box Score
| Statistic | Stanford | California |
|---|---|---|
| Passing | 15-29 | 25-38 |
| Pass Yards | 141 | 299 |
| Rush Yards | 120 | 75 |
| Total Yards | 261 | 374 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 1 |
| 3rd Down | 5-15 | 9-17 |
| Penalties | 5-55 | 4-27 |
| Possession | 33:01 | 26:59 |
Player Leaders
Player Leaders
Play-by-Play
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Sam Roush for 3 yds to the STAN 28
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Sam Roush for 4 yds to the STAN 32
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Emmett Mosley V for 29 yds to the CAL 39 for a 1ST down
Micah Ford run for 7 yds to the CAL 32
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Sam Roush for 6 yds to the CAL 26 for a 1ST down
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Elic Ayomanor for 7 yds to the CAL 19
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Emmett Mosley V for 5 yds to the CAL 14 for a 1ST down
Ashton Daniels run for 6 yds to the CAL 8
Ashton Daniels run for 4 yds to the CAL 4 for a 1ST down
(09:36) Shotgun Ford,Micah rush right for 1 yard gain to the CAL03 (Harris,Marcus), out of bounds PENALTY CAL Offside (Carlton,Xavier) 2 yards from CAL04 to CAL02. NO PLAY.
Justin Lamson run for no gain to the CAL 2
Justin Lamson run for 1 yd to the CAL 1
Justin Lamson run for 1 yd for a TD (Emmet Kenney KICK)
Emmet Kenney kickoff for 64 yds , Nohl Williams return for 20 yds to the CAL 21
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Jonathan Brady for 7 yds to the CAL 28
Jaydn Ott run for 6 yds to the CAL 34 for a 1ST down
Jaydn Ott run for a loss of 1 yard to the CAL 33
Fernando Mendoza pass incomplete to Nyziah Hunter
Fernando Mendoza run for 6 yds to the CAL 39
Lachlan Wilson punt for 50 yds , Tiger Bachmeier returns for 35 yds to the STAN 46
Ashton Daniels run for 3 yds to the STAN 49
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Elic Ayomanor for 15 yds to the CAL 36 for a 1ST down
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Emmett Mosley V for no gain to the CAL 36
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Emmett Mosley V for 18 yds to the CAL 18 for a 1ST down
Micah Ford run for 5 yds to the CAL 13
Micah Ford run for 11 yds to the CAL 2 for a 1ST down
Justin Lamson pass incomplete to Emmett Mosley V
Justin Lamson run for 2 yds for a TD (Emmet Kenney KICK)
Emmet Kenney kickoff for 57 yds , Nohl Williams return for 32 yds to the CAL 40
Fernando Mendoza run for 4 yds to the CAL 44
Jaydn Ott run for 1 yd to the CAL 45
Fernando Mendoza pass incomplete to Mikey Matthews
Lachlan Wilson punt for 55 yds for a touchback
Ashton Daniels run for 9 yds to the STAN 29
Micah Ford run for 4 yds to the STAN 33 for a 1ST down
Ashton Daniels pass incomplete to Tiger Bachmeier
Ashton Daniels pass incomplete to Elic Ayomanor
Ashton Daniels run for 7 yds to the STAN 40
Aidan Flintoft punt for 42 yds, fair catch by Mikey Matthews at the CAL 18
Fernando Mendoza run for 50 yds to the STAN 32 for a 1ST down Stanford Penalty, Defensive Holding (Collin Wright) to the STAN 22 for a 1ST down
Jaivian Thomas run for 5 yds to the STAN 17
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Jonathan Brady for 1 yd to the STAN 16
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Trond Grizzell for 16 yds for a TD (Derek Morris KICK)
Chris Davis Jr. run for 6 yds to the STAN 31
Ashton Daniels pass incomplete
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Sam Roush for 3 yds to the STAN 34
Justin Lamson run for 2 yds to the STAN 36 for a 1ST down
Ashton Daniels run for 2 yds to the STAN 38 Stanford Penalty, Offensive Holding (Sam Roush) to the STAN 28
Ashton Daniels run for 1 yd to the STAN 29
Ashton Daniels sacked by David Reese for a loss of 4 yards to the STAN 25 Ashton Daniels fumbled, recovered by STAN Ashton Daniels , return for 0 yards
Ashton Daniels run for 4 yds to the STAN 29
PENALTY STA Personal Foul (Pale,Simione) 15 yards from STA29 to STA14. NO PLAY.
Aidan Flintoft punt for 54 yds, punt out-of-bounds at the CAL 42 , Mikey Matthews returns for 10 yds to the CAL 42
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Corey Dyches for 3 yds to the CAL 45
Fernando Mendoza pass incomplete to Corey Dyches
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Corey Dyches for 8 yds to the STAN 47 for a 1ST down
Fernando Mendoza sacked by Zach Buckey for a loss of 4 yards to the CAL 49
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Mikey Matthews for 13 yds to the STAN 38
Jaivian Thomas run for a loss of 1 yard to the STAN 39
Fernando Mendoza sacked by Tristan Sinclair for a loss of 8 yards to the STAN 47
Chris Davis Jr. run for 7 yds to the CAL 46
Chris Davis Jr. run for no gain to the CAL 46
Ashton Daniels run for no gain to the CAL 46
Ashton Daniels run for 12 yds to the CAL 34 for a 1ST down
Ashton Daniels run for no gain to the CAL 34
Ashton Daniels sacked for a loss of 4 yards to the CAL 38
Micah Ford run for a loss of 1 yard to the CAL 35
Emmet Kenney 53 yd FG MISSED
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Jack Endries for 9 yds to the CAL 44
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Tobias Merriweather for 5 yds to the CAL 49 for a 1ST down
Fernando Mendoza pass incomplete to Trond Grizzell
Jaydn Ott run for 5 yds to the STAN 46
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Trond Grizzell for 15 yds to the STAN 31 for a 1ST down
Fernando Mendoza sacked by Zach Buckey for a loss of 1 yard to the STAN 32
Fernando Mendoza pass incomplete to Jonathan Brady
Fernando Mendoza pass incomplete to Mikey Matthews
Ryan Coe 50 yd FG MISSED
End of 2nd Quarter
A. Daniels takes a knee
Emmet Kenney kickoff for 64 yds , Nohl Williams return for 18 yds to the CAL 19
Jaydn Ott run for a loss of 1 yard to the CAL 18
Jaydn Ott run for 1 yd to the CAL 19
Fernando Mendoza pass incomplete to Trond Grizzell
Lachlan Wilson punt for 38 yds, fair catch by Tiger Bachmeier at the STAN 43
Lachlan Wilson punt for 38 yds, fair catch by Tiger Bachmeier at the STAN 48
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Elic Ayomanor for 13 yds to the CAL 39 for a 1ST down
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Emmett Mosley V for 9 yds to the CAL 30
Ashton Daniels run for no gain to the CAL 30
Justin Lamson run for 8 yds to the CAL 22 for a 1ST down
Micah Ford run for 3 yds to the CAL 19
Chris Davis Jr. run for 3 yds to the CAL 16
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Elic Ayomanor for 8 yds to the CAL 8 for a 1ST down
Ashton Daniels run for 2 yds to the CAL 6
Bryce Farrell run for no gain to the CAL 6
Ashton Daniels run for 4 yds to the CAL 2
Micah Ford pass complete to Emmett Mosley V for 2 yds for a TD (Emmet Kenney KICK)
Emmet Kenney kickoff for 63 yds , Nohl Williams return for 18 yds to the CAL 20 Nohl Williams fumbled, recovered by STAN Jayson Raines
Ashton Daniels run for 2 yds to the CAL 18
Ashton Daniels pass incomplete to Elic Ayomanor
Ashton Daniels pass incomplete to Sam Roush
Connor Weselman pass incomplete to Sam Roush
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Jack Endries for 21 yds to the CAL 39 for a 1ST down
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Jack Endries for 5 yds to the CAL 44
Jaydn Ott run for 3 yds to the CAL 47
Fernando Mendoza pass incomplete to Tobias Merriweather
Fernando Mendoza run for 3 yds to the 50 yard line for a 1ST down
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Jack Endries for 5 yds to the STAN 45
California Penalty, Offensive Holding (-10 Yards) to the CAL 46
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Trond Grizzell for 30 yds to the STAN 24 for a 1ST down
Chandler Rogers pass incomplete to Tobias Merriweather
Fernando Mendoza sacked by Zach Buckey for a loss of 9 yards to the STAN 33
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Jaydn Ott for 5 yds to the STAN 28
Ryan Coe 46 yd FG GOOD
Micah Ford run for a loss of 2 yards to the STAN 23
Ashton Daniels run for 5 yds to the STAN 28
Ashton Daniels pass incomplete to Emmett Mosley V
Aidan Flintoft punt for 51 yds, punt out-of-bounds at the CAL 29 , Mikey Matthews returns for 8 yds to the CAL 29
Fernando Mendoza pass incomplete to Tobias Merriweather
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Nyziah Hunter for 16 yds to the CAL 45 for a 1ST down
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Nyziah Hunter for 9 yds to the STAN 46
Fernando Mendoza pass incomplete to Nyziah Hunter
Jaivian Thomas run for 1 yd to the STAN 45 for a 1ST down
Jaivian Thomas run for 7 yds to the STAN 38
Mikey Matthews pass incomplete to Corey Dyches
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Mikey Matthews for 4 yds to the STAN 34 for a 1ST down
Jaivian Thomas run for 3 yds to the STAN 31
(11:06) No Huddle-Shotgun Mendoza,Fernando pass complete short left to Endries,Jack caught at STA29, for 5 yards to the STA26 (Nicholson,Brandon; Sumlin,Jaylen'Dai) PENALTY CAL Holding (Morrow,Nick) 10 yards from STA31 to STA41. NO PLAY.
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Corey Dyches for 11 yds to the STAN 30
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Jonathan Brady for 30 yds for a TD (Two-Point Conversion failed)
Ashton Daniels pass incomplete to Elic Ayomanor
Ashton Daniels run for 6 yds to the STAN 31 Ashton Daniels fumbled, recovered by STAN Ashton Daniels
Ashton Daniels pass complete to Elic Ayomanor for 19 yds to the 50 yard line for a 1ST down
Ashton Daniels run for no gain to the 50 yard line
Ashton Daniels run for 5 yds to the CAL 45
Ashton Daniels pass incomplete to Micah Ford
Aidan Flintoft punt for 43 yds
(07:45) Shotgun Mendoza,Fernando pass incomplete deep right to Hunter,Nyziah thrown to CAL35 PENALTY STA Pass Interference (Nicholson,Brandon) 15 yards from CAL02 to CAL17, 1ST DOWN. NO PLAY.
(07:39) Shotgun Mendoza,Fernando pass incomplete short middle to Hunter,Nyziah thrown to CAL35 PENALTY STA Pass Interference offsetting CAL Ineligible Downfield on Pass offsetting. NO PLAY.
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Trond Grizzell for 9 yds to the CAL 26
Jaydn Ott run for a loss of 2 yards to the CAL 24
Fernando Mendoza run for 6 yds to the CAL 30 for a 1ST down
(06:11) Shotgun Mendoza,Fernando pass complete short right to Hunter,Nyziah caught at CAL34, for 4 yards to the CAL34, out of bounds at CAL34 PENALTY STA Illegal Substitution 5 yards from CAL30 to CAL35. NO PLAY.
Fernando Mendoza sacked by Tobin Phillips for a loss of 7 yards to the CAL 28
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Mikey Matthews for 10 yds to the CAL 38
Fernando Mendoza pass incomplete to Tobias Merriweather
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Jack Endries for 5 yds to the CAL 43 for a 1ST down
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Nyziah Hunter for 36 yds to the STAN 21 for a 1ST down
Fernando Mendoza sacked by Gaethan Bernadel for a loss of 5 yards to the STAN 26
Fernando Mendoza pass complete to Jonathan Brady for 4 yds to the STAN 22
Jonathan Brady 22 Yd pass from Fernando Mendoza (Fernando Mendoza Pass to Jaydn Ott for Two-Point Conversion)
Ashton Daniels sacked for a loss of 5 yards to the STAN 20
Ashton Daniels pass incomplete
Ashton Daniels pass incomplete to Tiger Bachmeier
Ashton Daniels pass incomplete to Tiger Bachmeier
Jaydn Ott run for 6 yds to the STAN 14
Jaydn Ott run for a loss of 1 yard to the STAN 15
Chandler Rogers run for 7 yds to the STAN 8 for a 1ST down
F. Mendoza takes a knee
F. Mendoza takes a knee