Jackson Arnold Accounts for Five Scores as UNLV Beats Cal
California had the bigger passing numbers, the longer touchdown and, for about two minutes in the fourth quarter, the lead. UNLV had Jackson Arnold, and it won 39-31.
Cal opened with a 91-yard touchdown pass from Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele to Taimane Purcell, and UNLV tied it on a 70-yard Arnold throw to Kayden McGee. Then Arnold ran 55 yards for a score, UNLV added a field goal, and Arnold hit Taz Reddicks for 36 more with 51 seconds left in the half. That was 24-7 at the break. Cal clawed back with a 53-yard touchdown pass from Jackson Brousseau to Carson Perry-Smith (plus a two-point conversion), a 38-yard field goal, and a 7-yard run by Ashten Emory with 11:38 to go that put the Golden Bears up 25-24.
It lasted until 9:31, when Arnold found Keyan Burnett from 10 yards and ran in the two-point try himself to make it 32-25. Arnold added a 2-yard run with 3:25 left for 39-25. Brousseau threw a 10-yard touchdown to Ian Strong with 28 seconds left, but the two-point pass failed, and that was the margin.
The stat sheet looks backwards. Cal threw for 395 yards and totaled 464, against UNLV's 172 passing and 349 overall, yet UNLV scored eight more points. Arnold was only 11 of 22 and still had three touchdown passes, and he ran 15 times for 110 yards and two more scores. UNLV (3-2) turned the ball over twice, an interception and a fumble, to Cal's one interception, and it did not matter. Cal falls to 2-3. Arnold's 47.9 points were a season high, so if you started him, you are having a good week.