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Big stars light it up, lead Cal past UCLA

California quarterback Aaron Rodgers was on target against UCLA, passing for 260 yards and four touchdowns in a 45-28 Pac-10 victory in Berkeley, Calif. (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
Associated Press
California quarterback Aaron Rodgers was on target against UCLA, passing for 260 yards and four touchdowns in a 45-28 Pac-10 victory in Berkeley, Calif. (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)

Geoff McArthur caught two of Aaron Rodgers’ career-high four touchdown passes, and the eighth-ranked California Bears racked up 550 total yards in a 45-28 Pacific-10 Conference victory over the UCLA Bruins on Saturday in Berkeley, Calif.

J.J. Arrington ran for a career-best 205 yards and two scores for the Golden Bears (4-1, 2-1), who rebounded from last week’s heartbreaking loss to top-ranked Southern California with another near-flawless exhibition of balanced offense.

In Cal’s first home game in five weeks, Rodgers was 19 of 29 for 260 yards — and McArthur, the nation’s second-leading receiver last year behind Pitt’s Larry Fitzgerald, had his biggest game of the season.

McArthur finished with nine receptions for 163 yards, including an early 20-yard TD catch and an 80-yard scoring romp down the UCLA sideline in the fourth quarter.

Drew Olson also threw four touchdown passes, but the Bruins (4-2, 2-1) couldn’t catch up after Cal took a 35-14 lead on McArthur’s long scoring run. Olson finished 20 of 36 for a career-best 299 yards for UCLA, which had its four-game winning streak snapped.

The Bears lost top receiver Chase Lyman for the season last week with a knee injury, but replaced him with a bit of everything. Tight end Garrett Cross and freshman running back Marshawn Lynch both made scoring catches, and McArthur resumed his role as Rodgers’ favorite target in a tough spot.

Cal also ran the ball superbly again, getting 290 yards on the ground — 271 from Arrington, Lynch and Terrell Williams, their three talented tailbacks. The Bears entered the game second in the nation in total offense, and they exceeded their average (510.3) while making three scoring drives in the fourth quarter.

Arrington, who broke several long runs in the final minutes as the Bears held on to their lead, became the first running back in Cal history with five straight 100-yard games, breaking Chuck Muncie’s record.

The game began under cloudy conditions and finished in near-darkness at Memorial Stadium, where temporary lighting was installed for the late start. The stadium was packed with 69,898 fans — the largest Cal crowd for any game not featuring Stanford since 1991.

Cal hadn’t played at home since beating New Mexico State on Sept. 11, but three of the Bears’ next five games are in Berkeley.

Oregon 28, Arizona 14

Terrence Whitehead ran for three touchdowns to give the Ducks a victory over the struggling Wildcats in Eugene, Ore.

Demetrius Williams had nine catches for 153 yards for Oregon (3-3, 2-1 Pac-10), while fullback Dante Rosario caught a 5-yard scoring pass from Kellen Clemens. Whitehead finished with 74 yards.

Clemens completed his first eight passes and finished 21 for 30 for 336 yards and a touchdown.

Arizona (1-5, 0-3) dropped its fifth straight game and hasn’t won since its opener against Northern Arizona.