The Stanford Cardinal (8-4, 6-3 Pac-12) defeated the California Golden Bears (7-5, 4-5 Pac-12) 23-13 to claim its ninth consecutive victory, keeping possession of the Stanford Axe in the 121st Big Game Saturday afternoon.
As expected, defense was the name of the game. Much to everyone’s surprise, California’s vaunted defense did not make the scoreline. Instead, it was the Cardinal which relied on its defense.
Sophomore cornerback Paulson Adebo’s two interceptions in the fourth quarter put any chance of a late comeback out of reach for the Bears. Adebo’s second interception — a one-handed pick — set up a three-yard touchdown for senior running back Cameron Scarlett to make it 23-6.