Cal’s winning touchdown came with 18 seconds left Saturday, 57 seconds after Virginia Tech had taken the lead. The 25–20 loss dropped the Hokies to 4–2 and 1–2 in the ACC, and it came against a team starting its backup quarterback. A few Hokies did enough to win. More of the roster didn’t.

Winners

Aycen Stevens

The senior defensive lineman was in on two tackles for loss and made the play that kept Tech in front heading into the fourth quarter.

In the second quarter, he blew up a third-and-2 option for a 3-yard loss to force a punt, then dropped Ashten Emory for a 5-yard loss on Cal’s next drive. In the third, with Cal at third-and-goal from the 4 and Tech up 14–10, he got to Jackson Brousseau and forced a throwaway. Cal kicked a field goal instead of taking the lead.

The asterisk: he was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct after the Emory tackle, and Cal scored two plays later. He also went without a sack for the first time this season. He finished with three tackles and a quarterback hurry.

Jeffrey Overton Jr.

The sophomore touched the ball 16 times and gained 113 yards: 73 on 12 carries and 40 on four catches, including a 27-yarder on the go-ahead drive.

Ten of those 12 carries came before halftime, with the other two coming on the opening drive of the third quarter. He didn’t get another carry the rest of the game, despite Tech staying within one score throughout the second half. It’s difficult to justify giving him just two touches over the final 30 minutes in a game that remained competitive until the final play.

Que'Sean Brown

Brown led Tech with seven catches for 63 yards. Two of them, for 16 and 24 yards, dug Tech out from its own 5 in the third quarter. He also made the tackle on Cal’s 29-yard fake punt, and Cal settled for a field goal on that drive.

Losers

John Love and Tech’s special teams

Love missed from 55 and 39 yards, both wide left. Add the 36-yarder at the end of the Pitt game, and he has missed three in a row. He hadn’t missed all season before that.

It wasn’t only the kicker. Cal converted a fourth-and-7 fake punt for 29 yards in the third quarter and turned it into three points. On the other sideline, Towns McGough came in 2-for-4 this season and made both of his kicks.

Six points left on the field by the kicking game, three handed over on the fake. Tech lost by five.

Tech's pass defense

Kemari Copeland sacked Brousseau on Cal’s third snap. That was Tech’s only sack. This is a front that entered the game leading the ACC in sacks.

With time to throw, Brousseau went 29-of-43 for 321 yards and hit five passes of 20-plus yards.

Cal’s last three possessions: 31 plays, 217 yards, 14 minutes of clock and 15 points.

Tech's pass protection

Cal came in with 10 sacks in five games. It got to Ethan Grunkemeyer five times Saturday. Three counted, and two more were erased by penalties, one of them Tech’s own holding call.

Tech also didn’t score in the third quarter, when its two full drives covered 52 yards.

Penalty problems continue

Tech was flagged 11 times for 93 yards in its opener against VMI. The Monday after, coach James Franklin said he was disappointed in “the pre-snap penalties and the post-whistle penalties.” Six games in, both kinds are still showing up.

Tech was penalized seven times for 88 yards Saturday, after eight for 82 against Pitt. That’s 15 flags for 170 yards in two losses decided by a combined seven points.

Timing made it worse. Four of the seven came in the fourth quarter. A false start turned fourth-and-1 at the Cal 16 into Love’s 39-yard miss. Pass interference on Jaquez White gave Cal 15 yards on its go-ahead touchdown drive. Then, on back-to-back snaps of the winning drive, roughing the passer on Kaleb Spencer and pass interference on Cam Chadwick Jr. handed Cal 30 more.

The post-whistle kind showed up earlier. The unsportsmanlike conduct flag on Stevens came two plays before Cal’s first touchdown, and freshman Zaevion Cleveland drew 15 yards for unnecessary roughness on a punt return.

Cal was flagged more often, 10 times for 99 yards. Tech’s came at worse moments.

Georgia Tech visits Lane Stadium next week, fresh off a 28–25 win over an unbeaten Duke team on Saturday.