No. 21 Wake Forest Beat California 41-7 as Lopez Throws Four Touchdown Passes

No. 21 Wake Forest beat California 41 to 7 at California Memorial Stadium in Berkeley on Saturday night, October 17, 2026. Quarterback Gio Lopez threw four touchdown passes, three of them in the first half, and tight end Dominick Barry caught three of them. Wake Forest led 34 to 0 at halftime and 41 to 0 in the third quarter before California scored its only touchdown in the fourth. The win takes Wake Forest to 6 and 1 this season. California started backup quarterback Jackson Brosseau for the second straight game.

Wake Forest score on their first two drives

Wake Forest found the end zone on its first two possessions. Lopez hit Barry twice with long passes on the opening drive, and Barry finished it with a touchdown catch. California then tried to go for it on fourth and 1 in its own territory and failed. Lopez made the Bears pay at once, finding wide receiver Jack Foley wide open for a touchdown pass of more than 20 air yards. Wake Forest led 14 to 0 with just over six minutes left in the first quarter, and California never got back into the game.

Four touchdowns turn it into a rout before halftime

The second quarter opened with Wake Forest at midfield. A long Lopez pass to Kam Shanks took the ball inside the California 5 yard line, and Jamar Searcy ran it in two plays later for a 21 to 0 lead with more than 12 minutes left in the half. Shanks came up with another long catch on the next scoring drive. Lopez ran for one first down himself, and running back Ty Clark III scored the fourth Wake Forest touchdown with 8 minutes and 54 seconds left in the half. Wake Forest tried a trick two point play and failed, so the score stayed 27 to 0.

California reached scoring range once in the half and came away with nothing. The Bears failed on fourth and goal from the 4 yard line with under two minutes left. Wake Forest took over and scored again before the break. Barry caught his second touchdown pass of the night with 9 seconds left in the half, and the extra point made it 34 to 0.

Barry finishes his night, California score late

Wake Forest used about six minutes on a long drive to open the third quarter without scoring. On its next drive, Barry caught his third touchdown pass of the night, and Wake Forest led 41 to 0. That was the last score for the Demon Deacons, who had the game won long before the end.

California changed quarterbacks late in the third quarter. Jaron Keawe-Sagapolutele came in for Brosseau and led the Bears on their best drive of the night early in the fourth. He found Mason Mini for a 28 yard touchdown pass, which made the final score 41 to 7. California played the game in special helmets marking 60 years of the Grateful Dead link with Berkeley, but the night belonged to Wake Forest and to Lopez, whose four touchdown passes matched the story of the game from the first drive to the last Wake Forest score.