Cal finally found a way to win an Atlantic Coast Conference game that it seemed determined to let slip away.

Ryan Coe kicked two 54-yard field goals and linebacker Liam Johnson, transfer from Princeton, intercepted a pass with 1:54 left and the Bears held on for a 46-36 victory at Wake Forest on Friday night.

In their first year in their new league, the Bears (5-4, 1-4) had lost four straight ACC games by a total of nine points. This one seemed to be going that way in the fourth quarter after Cal led 29-14 at halftime.

Coe kicked his second 54-yard field goal for a 39-29 lead with 6:39 left, and the Bears needed all three points.

Wake responded with a 12-play, 84-yard drive to pull within 39-36 with 3:57 left, scoring on a 2-yard plunge by Tate Carney.

The Wake defense forced a three-and-out to get the ball back at their own 17-yard line with 2:16 left. Then, just when the Demon Deacons (4-5, 2-3) appeared positioned to come back, Johnson stepped in front of a Hank Bachmeier pass and scooped it up.

The Bears tried to buy time, and on third-and-5 from the Wake 11-yard line, Jaivian Thomas rushed around the left end in the end zone with 44 seconds left to give a little of respite.

Fernando Mendoza completed 40 of 56 passes for a career-high 385 yards with two touchdowns.

“It wasn’t pretty, certainly in the second half,” Cal coach Justin Wilcox said in an on-court television interview. “But I’m really proud of our team for finding a way in the end.”

Wake, which was outgained 350 yards to 130 in the first half, pulled within 29-21 when Bachmeier fired a 45-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Donovan Greene with 7:43 left in the third quarter.

The Demon Deacons forced Cal to punt and got in range for a long field goal. But Cal’s TJ Bollers blocked it and Nohl Williams recovered at the Wake 28-yard line with 2:38 left in the third. Earlier, Williams earned his NCAA-leading seventh interception.

On second-and-goal from the 5, Cal faked a jet sweep and Mendoza rushed up the middle untouched for the TD with 18 seconds left in the third for a 36-21 lead.

However, it wasn’t over. Wake responded with an 11-play, 84-yard drive and trailed only 36-29 when Bachmeier scored on a 4-yard keeper, then passed to Harry Lodge for the two-point conversation with 11:46 to play in the fourth quarter.

Cal led 29-14 at halftime of an extremely entertaining game, but the Bears settling for field goals three times kept the door open for Wake.

Mendoza completed 30 of 40 passes for 289 yards in the first half, becoming the fourth quarterback in 10 years to complete 30 passes in a half against an FBS opponent.

It connected with 10 different receivers. Among them were the two long-awaited transfers, who made their first appearance all season due to injuries.

Kyion Grayes (Ohio State) caught two passes for 22 yards and Tobias Merriweather (Notre Dame) caught five for 45 yards. Merriweather’s catches included a 5-yard touchdown run that made the score 26-14 with 1:30 left in the half. Cal then failed on a two-point conversion attempt.

The Bears defense forced a punt and the offense started at its current 24 with 52 seconds and a timeout remaining. Mendoza completed five straight passes before Coe kicked a season-ending 54-yard field goal – sliding it barely over the crossbar and just inside the right upright – as time expired .

Coe lost his position to freshman Derek Morris three weeks ago, but he will be used on long field goals. Morris made field goals of 29 and 38 yards, giving him seven in the last two games.

The first of these gave the Bears a 3-0 lead on their first drive and that margin grew to 10-0 when Hunter Barth recovered the ball from the Demond Claiborne kick returner and Miles Williams the recovered and ran 15 yards to the end zone. and the Bears led 10-0 at 9:54 after scoring 10 points in nine seconds.