BERKELEY, Calif. — The Sacramento State football team amassed 467 yards of total offense, including 408 through the air, but could not overcome a handful of mistakes in a 42-30 loss at California on Saturday at Memorial Stadium.

The Hornets set several records in a game against an FBS opponent including most total yards, and tied for most points and most passing yards. Invdividually, Jake Dunniway threw for 370 yards which is the most against an FBS foe in school history and tied for the 15th most against any opponent. Pierre Williams was the favorite target, catching eight passes for 121 yards which is also the most against an FBS team by a Hornet.

The Golden Bear offense was equally as impressive, averaging 8.09 yards per play with a balanced attack that concluded the game with 246 rushing yards and 288 passing yards for 534 total yards. Chase Garbers commanded the offense by completing 22-of-34 passes for 288 yards and two scores. Garbers also rushed for 68 yards and a touchdown.

"We played hard the whole way," Sacramento State head coach Troy Taylor said. "It was disappointing to give up 14 points on special teams - two missed field goals, a missed 2-point conversion and a Cal kickoff return for a touchdown - and we lose by 12. You just can't do that against good teams. I'm really proud of our quarterbacks. I thought they battled hard and kept their composure."

Cal got off to a strong start, forcing the Hornets to a 3-and-out on the opening drive of the game and then traveling 85 yards on eight plays to take a 7-0 lead. Garbers completed all six of his pass attempts during the series for 74 yards and the drive was capped by a 4-yard rush from Damien Moore.

Sacramento State responded with an eight-play drive of its own and got on the scoreboard with a 7-yard keeper from Asher O'Hara. The quarterback took off from outside the 4-yard line and then rode the pile into the end zone before landing on his feet. The touchdown was his first rushing score as a Hornet. Sacramento State attempted a two-point conversion following the score, but Kaiden Bennett's rush attempt was stopped short of the goal line, preserving Cal's one point lead.

The offensive fireworks continued as Cal needed only six plays to march 69 yards for a touchdown and 14-6 lead. Moore again did the honors with a 4-yard rush around the left end.

The Hornet defense steadied itself in the second quarter, intercepting Garbers and forcing a pair of punts on the first three Cal drives of the period. Munchie Filer III recorded his first pick as a Hornet after jumping a route along the right sideline. Sacramento State ended up taking the ball inside the Cal 20 but was unable to score after missing a 37-yard field goal.

The Golden Bears stopped the scoring drought with two big plays. Garbers first connected with Jake Tonges for 39 yards and then found Jeremiah Hunter for a 45-yard touchdown pass. On the play, the Hornets nearly got to Garbers but he stepped into the pocket and then hit Hunter who was able to beat single coverage.

The half came to a close with the Hornets driving to the Cal 10 but, again, were unable to score. Williams had three catches during the drive for 40 yards before the team attempted a 27-yard field goal which was missed.

Already leading, 21-6, at halftime, the Bears seized control of the game when Nikko Remigio returned the opening kickoff of the second half for a 99-yard touchdown. The score was the first allowed on a kickoff by Sacramento State since Judd Cockett also scored on a 99-yard return for Southern Utah in 2018.

The Hornet offense matched the score with a 9-play, 75-yard series which was capped by O'Hara's second rushing touchdown of the game. O'Hara found Parker Clayton for a 13-yard completion on 3rd-and-7 and the two connected for a 17-yard gain on the next play to move the ball to the Cal 32. Jared Gipson made an over-the-shoulder catch for 26 just outside the goal line (his first career reception) setting up O'Hara's 2-yard rushing TD.

The back-and-forth exchange continued with Garbers tossing a 12-yard pass to Trevon Clark to extend Cal's lead to 35-13. Dunniway responded with a 34-yard touchdown pass to Marshel Martin on the ensuing drive. Martin caught the ball in the middle of the hashes and pulled away from the defense untouched for his third score of the season.

Sacramento State had a chance to make it a one-score game late in the third quarter after the defense made a fourth-down stop. The offense drove to the Cal 20 and then jumped offsides on 3rd-and-4. Forced to pass on 3rd-and-9, Dunniway was intercepted in the end zone by Daniel Scott for a touchback. The Bears then rallied behind a 32-yard rush up the middle from Moore to end the period. Cal continued the drive into the fourth quarter which was culminated with a 16-yard scramble from Garbers for a touchdown.

The Hornet offense was able to move the ball on its first drive of the fourth quarter. The team took advantage of two pass interference penalties against Cal and also saw Martin catch three balls during the drive which ended with a career-long 43-yard field goal from Kyle Sentkowksi.

Sacramento State capped the high-scoring affair with a 9-yard pass from Dunniway to Williams with 1:28 remaining. Down by 12, the Hornets attempted an onside kick which was recovered by Cal ending the game.

O'Hara was the team's leading rusher, finishing the game with 49 yards on top of his two touchdowns. He also threw for 29 yards while completing 3-of-10 passes and caught a 9-yard pass from Bennett. Martin ranked second on the team behind Williams with six receptions for a career high 97 yards.

Linebackers Marcus Hawkins and Taylor Powell combined for 20 tackles. Hawkins led the team with a career-high 11 for his fourth game with double digit stops at Sacramento State. Powell had a season high nine.

Sacramento State will next turn its attention to Big Sky Conference play as the team opens the league season at Idaho State next Saturday. The game starts at 12 p.m. PT and can be heard on ESPN 1320 and streamed on ESPN+.

"The Big Sky is a great league and we will have our challenges, but I love our team," Taylor said. "We are going to continue to play good football teams, and we made a step in the right direction today, but we are going to have to continue to make steps if we want to win the Big Sky."

NOTES

• Sacramento State had four players throw at least one pass in the game comprised of Dunniway, O'Hara, Bennett and wide receiver Lucas Triplett. The team also had 10 players catch a pass and six credited with a rush.
• Garbers completed his first 11 pass attempts of the game for 139 yards before short hopping a receiver in the middle of the field early in the second quarter.
• Williams continued his streak of catching at least one pass in every game in which he's played during his career. Williams had a 6-yard grab in the second quarter to extend his streak to 25 games.
• Sam Clark placed each of his four punts inside the Cal 20-yard line and averaged 46.5 yards per punt with a long of 57.
• Elijah Dotson had a 12-yard reception late in the second quarter to extend his streak to 24-straight games with a catch.
• The Hornets are now 0-3 all-time against Cal, but the 12-point margin of defeat was the closes of the three.
• Taylor returned to Memorial Stadium for the first time on the opposing team in his career. Taylor played and coached at Cal and was also a member of the team's radio broadcast team. He never faced the Bears while coaching at Utah.