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Cal upsets No. 15 Louisville with gutsy OT call, continues ACC's College Football Playoff rankings shakeup

Chandler Vesselsby: Chandler Vessels11/09/25ChandlerVessels
louisville cal
Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

The ACC continues to be a conference of chaos this college football season. No. 15 Louisville was the latest victim, falling 29-26 against California in overtime Saturday.

After the scored was tied 23 at the end of regulation, the Cardinals got the ball first in the extra period and kicked a field goal to go up 26-23. That meant the Golden Bears could win the game by scoring a touchdown on their next possession.

Eventually, they found themselves facing a fourth-and-goal situation and with a decision to make. A field goal could of course tie the game and force another overtime, but they went for the win. Quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele stepped back and threw a short pass to Jacob De Jesus, who rumbled his way into the end zone for the three-yard score to seal the victory.

Louisville wasn’t the only top 15 team from the ACC to fall this weekend. No. 14 Virginia lost 16-9 against Wake Forest after starting quarterback Chandler Morris went down due to injury. That means the conference’s top two teams in the College Football Playoff rankings both lost this week.

Somebody from the ACC still has to make the 12-team field, though, and Miami and Georgia Tech should be poised to move up this week as a result of these losses. No. 24 Pittsburgh was the only other team from the ACC ranked in the top 25 this week.

Things were close the entire way, with Cal holding a narrow 23-20 lead on Louisville entering the fourth quarter. The Cardinals quickly tied things up with a field goal, and both teams’ defenses held out the rest of regulation to force OT.

With the win, Cal improved to 6-4 (3-3 ACC) to achieve bowl eligibility. Sagapolutele finished 30-of-47 passing for 323 yards and a pair of touchdowns, including the gutsy game-winner.

The loss severely diminishes Louisville’s chances of making the ACC Championship, as it is now behind five other teams in the conference standings. The Cardinals only have two more conference games remaining, so they’ll have to rely on a lot of luck for things to fall their way.

Next up, Louisville takes on Clemson in a Week 12 matchup that it absolutely must win to keep its season alive. Kickoff for that contest is set for 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium.