Notable Games
1924: Both teams came into the game unbeaten with a berth in the 1925 Rose Bowl on the line. With its star Ernie Nevers sidelined due to injuries, Stanford trailed 20–6 with under 5 minutes to go, but rallied to score twice to force a 20–20 tie and earn the Rose Bowl bid.
1947: In the 50th Big Game, winless Stanford led the 8–1 Bears with less than three minutes left in the game, but Cal scored on an 80-yard touchdown pass to clinch a 21–18 victory.
1959: Stanford quarterback Dick Norman threw for 401 yards (then an NCAA record, and still a Big Game record), but it was not enough to hold off the Bears, who won 20–17.
1972: Cal drove 62 yards in the final 1:13, culminating in a Vince Ferragamo touchdown pass to Steve Sweeney for a last-second 24–22 Cal victory.
1974: Mike Langford nailed a 50-yard field goal on the final play for a 22–20 Stanford triumph over the 19th-ranked Bears.
1982: See below and The Play.
1988: Stanford's Tuan Van Le blocked a 21-yard Cal field goal attempt on the game's final play to preserve a 19–19 tie.
1990: In a game that echoed "The Play" eight years earlier, Stanford trailed 25–18 late. Quarterback Jason Palumbis threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to Ed McCaffrey to make the score 25–24, but the team failed to convert the a two-point conversion. Thinking the game to be all but over, Cal fans rushed the field, resulting in a 15-yard delay of game penalty. Stanford's Dan Byers then recovered the ensuing onside kick at the Cal 37. Palumbis's pass to McCaffrey to set up a field goal fell short, but a Cal defender was called for roughing Palumbis. Stanford kicker John Hopkins then connected on a 39-yard field goal as time expired, giving Stanford a 27–25 victory.
2000: Stanford's Casey Moore caught the winning touchdown on the final play of the first-ever Big Game to go into overtime.
2009: Cal's Michael Mohamed intercepted a pass at the Cal 3-yard line with 1:36 left to preserve a Cal win over #14 Stanford, 34–28.
2010: #6 Stanford ties a 1975 Cal record for most points scored in a 48–14 victory.
Read more about this topic: Big Game (American Football)
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