Miller, Ohio State recover just in time

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Braxton Miller lofted a 72-yard touchdown pass to an all-alone Devin Smith with 3:26 left and Christian Bryant snuffed out the Golden Bears' last chance with an interception to power the 12th-ranked Buckeyes to a 35-28 win Saturday.

The Golden Bears (1-2) missed three field goals and had a touchdown called back by a penalty, and the Buckeyes (3-0) gave up 512 yards.

Taking over at the OSU 25 with the score knotted, it took just three plays until on third-and-7, defensive back Alex Logan saw Miller start to scramble and ran toward him. The quarterback instead threw deep to a wide-open Smith.

Miller was 16-for-30 passing for 249 yards and a career-high four touchdowns with one interception.

Down by seven, the Bears still had a shot to tie. But Zach Maynard, who was 26-for-37 passing for 280 yards and a touchdown, overthrew a receiver with 1:09 left and Bryant picked it off and returned it 38 yards.

Ohio State built a 20-7 lead at the half.

Cal backup tailback Brendan Bigelow raced 81 yards on his first carry of the game -- the longest run by an opposing back in 90-year-old Ohio Stadium. Maynard then kept on a 1-yard sneak to give Cal a 21-20 lead early in the fourth quarter.

Miller capped a long drive by running a stop-and-pop pass to Jake Stoneburner for a 3-yard touchdown, and Miller ran for the two-point conversion for a 28-21 lead.

Just two plays later, Bigelow, who had 160 yards on only four carries, had a 16-yard run and topped that on the next play with a 59-yarder to tie the game at 28.-- AP