Pittsburgh’s Desmond Reid ran 72 yards on a fourth-down play in the second quarter, California’s Ryan Coe missed a potential go-ahead field goal with 1:50 remaining and the Panthers held on for a 17-15 Atlantic Coast Conference victory over the visiting Golden Bears on Saturday afternoon.
Reid finished with a game-high 120 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries, helping No. 22 Pittsburgh (6-0, 2-0) remain unbeaten despite going scoreless in the second half.
Fernando Mendoza threw for 272 yards and a score for Cal (3-3, 0-3), which outgained the Panthers 335-277.
The Golden Bears forced a punt after Coe missed low and wide right from 40 yards out. Cal got the ball back at its own 20-yard line with 41 seconds left but went four-and-out.
The difference in the game turned out to be two missed two-point conversion attempts by the Golden Bears.
The first came after Cal went up 6-0, the second after it closed within 17-15 on Jack Endries’ 19-yard touchdown reception with 10:30 left in the fourth quarter.
Pittsburgh also gambled early on when, up 7-6, it went for a fourth-and-1 at its own 28 on the first play of the second quarter. Reid cashed in for the Panthers with his 72-yard touchdown run to give the hosts a 14-6 lead.
The Golden Bears struck first on their opening possession. Jaivian Thomas’s 21-yard run capped a 10-play, 75-yard drive that left Cal ahead 6-0 after its first failed two-point attempt.
Pitt went ahead for good at 7-6 on Reid’s 5-yard run with 5:08 left in the first quarter.
After Reid’s fourth-down score, the teams exchanged field goals. Ben Sauls was good from 58 yards for the Panthers before Coe converted from 39 yards, drawing the Golden Bears within 17-9 at halftime.
Pittsburgh quarterback Eli Holstein went 14-for-28 for 133 yards with two interceptions, the only two turnovers of the game.
Endries hauled in eight passes for a game-high 119 yards for Cal. The Golden Bears rushed for just 63 yards on 40 carries in the absence of All-American candidate running back Jaydn Ott, who sat out with an ankle injury.
