Down 25, No. 8 Miami storms back in epic comeback vs. Cal - ESPN

BERKELEY, Calif. — For the second straight week, Miami avoided a near-certain defeat to remain unbeaten, this time rallying from a 25-point second-half deficit to beat California 39-38.

Miami quarterback Cam Ward played a brilliant fourth quarter as the Hurricanes scored the final 21 points, connecting with Elijah Arroyo on a 5-yard game-winning touchdown with 26 seconds left.

«Nobody played their best ball, so we just can't put ourselves in these situations to have to come back,» Ward said. «That's two games straight we had to do that. We got to lock in.… It's good to get a win. We're not going to complain. Ugly wins are better than good losses.»

Ward led four straight touchdown drives to end the game and spoil what looked like the most monumental day in years for the Golden Bears (3-2, 0-2 ACC), who hosted ESPN's «College GameDay» for the first time and were on the verge of their second win over a top-10 team in the past 21 seasons.

Instead, Ward made sure the rare sellout crowd at Memorial Stadium went home unhappy after overcoming a 35-10 deficit in the third quarter. That gave the Hurricanes (6-0, 2-0) a second straight dramatic victory after needing a replay review to hold off Virginia Tech 38-34 last week.

Cal coach Justin Wilcox, when asked afterward about his team's mood in the locker room, said, «It's as bad as you can imagine.»

«Football is a humbling game,» he said. «We had every opportunity to win that game, obviously. We didn't get it done. So every individual has to own it. I think this is a pivotal moment for the team. I hope that all coaches, players, administrators, everybody involved will be proud of how they responded in a month or two months or six months or even a year in this moment right now.»

Wit