NC State 24-23 California (Oct. 19, 2024) Game Recap

BERKELEY, Calif. — CJ Bailey passed for 306 yards and two touchdowns, including a 41-yarder to the Hollywood Smothers in the fourth quarter, to give North Carolina State a 24-23 victory over California on Saturday.

Bailey had an uneven day and was under a lot of pressure from the Bears defense before leading the Wolfpack on their winning streak. The freshman quarterback completed 25 of 36 passes to help North Carolina State (4-4, 1/3 Atlantic Coast Conference) win in a game in which they were mostly outplayed.

The Wolfpack trailed 23-10 and couldn't find much rhythm in its offense until the final fourth quarter.

After a fumble on a botched punt return set up Bailey's 1-yard touchdown pass to Dacari Collins, cutting Cal's lead to 23-17. NC State's defense held firm and got the ball back after forcing the Bears to punt.

Bailey was at his best on this drive, completing four of seven attempts for 80 yards, including the game-winning attempt to Smothers with 6:32 left.

Cal missed a chance to win when freshman kicker Derek Morris missed a 28-yard attempt to right. Morris, who secured the kicker job in practice earlier this week after Ryan Coe missed a crucial kick in the final two minutes of last Saturday's loss to No. 20 Pittsburgh, had previously made 41, 26 and Converted 24 yards.

The win ended a two-game losing streak for the Wolfpack.

The Bears, on the other hand, remain winless in conference play in their first season in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Cal (3-4, 0-4) has lost all four of its conference games by a total of nine points.

Fernando Mendoza completed 30 of 42 throws for 282 yards for Cal. Jaivian Thomas ran for 78 yards and two touchdowns.

California joined the ACC this summer after the collapse of the Pac-12. The Golden Bears lost their first three conference games by a total of eight points before defeating the Wolfpack in the first meeting between the two schools.

Thomas got Cal off to a fast start when he scored a 49-yard touchdown on the Bears' first running play. As a sophomore starting in place of the injured Jaydn Ott, Thomas added a 7-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.

North Carolina State fell behind early but rallied to take a 10-7 lead on Kanoah Vinesett's 27-yard field goal and KC Concepcion's 2-yard touchdown run in the first half. Concepcion's touchdown came two plays after Bailey threw a 31-yard completion on fourth-and-8.

The takeaway food

North Carolina State: The Wolfpack didn't show much life until the end, but leaving Memorial Stadium with a win was huge for coach Dave Doeren's team in the first-ever meeting between the two schools. They have a bye week to celebrate before attempting to win consecutive games for the first time this season.

California: The fourth consecutive defeat for the Golden Bears leaves Justin Wilcox's team reeling. Cal did almost everything right, but couldn't maintain the momentum for a full 60 minutes and paid the price by fading at the end.

Next

North Carolina State: Hosts Stanford on Nov. 2.

California: Faces Oregon State on Oct. 26 at Memorial Stadium.

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