Cal's defense has carried the team through long stretches over the course of the season. Saturday was not one of those days for Peter Sirmon's group. The Bears entered their Week 12 matchup with Syracuse as a double-digit favorite coming off two consecutive wins.

It felt like Cal took a step backwards by the end of the afternoon in front of 33,493 fans at California Memorial Stadium. The Orange dominated the first half and built up a 20-point lead in their first trip to Berkeley since 1968, and the Bears were never able to recover and ultimately fell, 33-25.

Syracuse scored on six consecutive drives to open the game while the Bears had their first two drives end with interceptions for quarterback Fernando Mendoza.

Those giveaways turned into 10 points for the Orange leading to a challenging day overall for the Bears as they worked from behind for the entire afternoon. The 27-7 deficit with 4:06 to play in the first half was the largest of the season for Cal, which had only trailed by as many as 11 this year.

"We had real issues stopping them in the pass game, did not affect the quarterback," Cal head coach Justin Wilcox said. "The teams that had played them the best on defense affected the quarterback consistently. We did not do that. So, when they are running it and throwing it and completing passes and converting third and fourth downs, you can't get off the field. Then, offensively, we turned the ball over twice in the first quarter. So there's two extra possessions."

Things began to unravel early for Cal in Saturday's game as Mendoza had a pair of uncharacteristic mistakes on the first two offensive drives of the game for the Bears.

His first interception came following a field goal for the Orange. A holding call on center Will McDonald put the Bears in a second-and-19 situation around midfield before Mendoza forced a pass to receiver Tobias Merriweather that was hauled in by Syracuse Wax Marlowe.

After Syracuse tacked on another field goal to make it a 6-0 game, Mendoza had his second big miscue when he was intercepted by Orange defensive back Davien Kerr just two plays into the drive while again looking for Merriweather. It was part of a sequence that ultimately ended with a touchdown for Syracuse and a 13-0 hole for the Bears.

"I lost us the game," Mendoza said in the postgame press conference. "We can't turn the ball over like that. We gotta be able to convert on third downs, and those plays start with myself. No way to sugarcoat it, my worst turnover game of the season by. It simply was not my day.

"... It was not my day, and I did not put the team in position to win, and that hurts my heart as a captain, as a teammate, as a player. Now, my all my focus is the next week."

Saturday's game marked the first instance of multiple interceptions for Mendoza this season and only the third time it has happened in his career across 19 appearances. It is the first time he has had consecutive games with an interception in over a month.

He closed out his day with 225 yards passing on 22 completions and 34 attempts against the Orange.

Cal finished its day on offense with 8 conversions on 13 third-down attempts, and it was those same instances that caused problems for the Bears on the other side of the ball.

Syracuse ended up converting 11 of its 22 plays on third an fourth down in Saturday's game including a perfect 4-for-4 performance on fourth down. The Orange were aggressive in those situations early on in the game as they built their 20-point halftime lead with three fourth-down conversations over the opening 30 minutes.

"There's a lot of things that we could've done better," inside linebacker Teddye Buchanan said. "Getting off on third and fourth down I think was the biggest thing. I think if we do that it's a different ballgame, and I don't think we created any turnovers. So, helping the offense out in that way would've made it a lot easier for those guys."

The Bears have been among the best in the nation at taking the ball away, particularly with interceptions, but Cal's defensive failed to generate a turnover in Saturday's game. It is the first time that has happened this season for the Bears.

Though Wilcox failed to find any bright spots for his team in Saturday's game, running back Jaydn Ott was able to have one of his strongest performances in what has been an injury-plagued year for the junior star.

He had a season-best 78 yards rushing on 11 carries including a touchdown run plus he tacked on 26 yards receiving on 3 catches in the loss for Cal. His 53-yard run early in the fourth quarter was the longest of the season for Ott, and it eventually set up a field goal for the Bears.

Ott's running mate in the backfield, Jaivian Thomas, contributed with 80 yards on the ground that was highlighted by a 75-yard touchdown in the second quarter to help get the Bears on the scoreboard for the first time.

In all, Cal finished with 166 yards rushing against Syracuse.

Despite veteran kicker Ryan Coe connecting on two field goals from 54 yards out last week against Wake Forest, Wilcox and the Bears opted to go with freshman Derek Morris on a 48-yard attempt to end the first half. Morris missed the kick to keep the deficit at 20 points.

The Bears later turned to Coe on a 44-yard attempt that he converted with 12:43 to play.

After the game, Wilcox said the staff will evaluate the position to decide whether or not Coe has earned back his starting job. The North Carolina transfer had recently split time with Morris after struggling early in the season.

Cal returns to action next Saturday when it hosts Bay Area rival Stanford in the 127th Big Game at California Memorial Stadium.

All videos recorded by Golden Bear Report staff writer AJ Alany.