­­­­­­­STANFORD, Calif. – Yet another gritty performance added to a season full of forward momentum and put the Cal football team in position to re-claim the Axe but a fourth-quarter comeback effort came up short as the visiting Bears fell 17-14 to the No. 20-ranked Cardinal in the 120th Big Game.

Patrick Laird led the way offensively for Cal (5-6, 2-6 Pac-12) with 153 yards and one touchdown on the ground. His rushing yardage output represents the most by a Cal running back in the Big Game since Shane Vereen finished with 193 in 2009. Ross Bowers completed 20-of-29 passes for 182 yards with one interception and Vic Wharton III hauled in seven passes for 58 yards. Stanford narrowly captured the battle of total yardage, 378-337.

Cal got its chance to flip the script in the fourth quarter thanks to a defensive stop that set the table. A pass breakup by Elijah Hicks forced a long field goal attempt and Jet Toner's 41-yard try sailed wide right to give the Bears the ball back with just over 11 minutes left and Cal down 17-14.

The Bears drove into Stanford territory with a pair of big third-down conversions but Stanford used a big play of its own to thwart Cal's attempt for more when Ben Edwards intercepted Bowers deep pass intended for Jeremiah Hawkins inside the Cardinal 10-yard line, giving Stanford the ball back with 7:25 remaining.

Stanford whittled the clock down with a long drive of its own and Cameron Scarlett provided the final big play for the Cardinal with a 2-yard run on 4th and 1 from the Cal 18 yardline. The conversion allowed Stanford to run the clock out and kept Cal from getting one final chance to tie or take the lead.

Stanford held a 10-6 lead at halftime before the teams traded big plays in the third quarterback to keep the score close. Stanford (8-3, 7-2) increased its lead to 17-6 on a 57-yard touchdown run by Bryce Love but the Bears came right back with a big effort from their own running back to re-establish momentum.

After busting loose for a 39-yard run that put the Bears at the Stanford 1-yard line, Laird found pay dirt one play later, spinning away from a quagmire of linemen and into the end zone for a 1-yard touchdown run. Bowers pulled the ball down and rushed for the subsequent 2-point conversion and Cal trailed by just three points after three quarters.

The teams traded first quarter field goals – a 43-yarder for Toner followed by a 44-yarder for Cal's Matt Anderson.

Stanford regained the lead with the only touchdown of the first half, scoring on a 17-yard touchdown pass from K.J. Costello to Kaden Smith early in the second period. Cal responded with points on its next possession as a 26-yard field goal by Anderson came with the help of a little trickery earlier in the drive. Punter Dylan Klumph picked up a critical first down with a 3-yard run on a fake punt, and that allowed the Bears to continue into Stanford territory aided by 30 rushing and 11 receiving yards on the drive from Laird.

The Cardinal got one last chance at a drive late in the half but Cal's defense tightened near midfield, forcing a last-second pass attempt that Darius Allensworth grabbed for his first interception of the season.

Cal brings the curtain down on its 2017 regular season and gets one final chance to become bowl-eligible next Friday when the Bears head to Southern California for a showdown with a UCLA team that is also 5-6 and one win away from bowl eligibility after a 28-23 loss at USC on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 7:30 pm from the Rose Bowl and the game will be telecast live by FS1 and FOX Sports Deportes.