Not Losing Is Next Best Thing to Win : Cal: At least it can be late in the season, when candidates for bowls strive to keep their records looking good.

A tie is as good as a victory.

That is what California players and coaches said after the Bears’ 31-31 tie with USC Saturday at the Coliseum. Despite having two opportunities to win the game in the last 90 seconds, the Bears considered their effort a moral victory.

“I’d be happier if we had won,” said California wideout Brian Treggs, who caught the game-tying touchdown pass with 1:22 to play. “But I guess a tie is always better than a loss.”

After Treggs’ touchdown, the Bears had a chance to go for a two-point conversion. Coach Bruce Snyder decided to play it safe and Robbie Keen kicked the extra point.

The Bears, who entered the game with a 5-3 record, knew that a loss would hurt any chances they had for a bowl bid, which is what Snyder was thinking about when he made his decision.

“A tie is a hell of a lot better to ‘sell’ than a loss,” Snyder said of the Bears’ bowl market value. “You start a ballgame to win, so a tie is bitter.”

California had one more chance to win after a hard-rushing defensive stand forced USC to punt with 25 seconds remaining. After starting on USC’s 39-yard line, California moved 13 yards on two completions from quarterback Mike Pawlawski to the Trojans’ 26. However, Keen missed a 43-yard field goal on the game’s final play.

Freshman tailback Russell White played a major role in the game’s outcome. The former standout at Crespi High in Encino accounted for 258 yards in total offense, including a 41-yard kickoff return average. White also ran for one touchdown and passed for another.

Did White feel that the Bears should have gone for two points after their last touchdown?

“I can’t answer that because I am not the head coach,” he said. “We wanted to win. Look at ‘SC, they’ve got tradition. Any time we can tie them, that’s an accomplishment.”

Pawlawski, who completed 19 of 29 passes for 205 yards and two touchdowns, said the Bears were confident that they would get the ball back and still win after their last score.

“I think that we made the right decision,” Pawlawski said, who also caught a 14-yard touchdown pass from White. “We thought that we would come back again after we got good field possession.

“Everyone is a little upset, but we don’t question a coach’s decision on this team and you can print that.”

USC appeared to have the game in control with a 31-24 lead with four minutes left in the game. However, an errant Todd Marinovich pass was intercepted by cornerback David Wilson, which gave the Bears new life.

“I thought that I was going to tie the game when I first caught it,” said Wilson, who returned the pass 28 yards to the Trojans’ 43-yard line. “I tried to cut back inside of Marinovich and then got tackled.

“Everyone wanted to go for two (points) after we scored at first, but in the end it is better that we tied because we now have a good chance for a bowl.”

Said Snyder: “We’re a fun team to watch. We’re an exciting football team. We might make a pretty good show (in a bowl game).”

With a victory at home over Oregon next week, Cal would be in good position to gain a bowl bid, which has been a goal for the Bears all season.

“It was a wise decision on (Snyder’s) part,” said Keen, who made one of three field goal attempts. “I wasn’t surprised. We had to get a tie because it was a league game.”

However, another goal for the Bears was to beat UCLA, which they did, 38-31, in October, and USC in the same season. Now they will have to wait until next season.

“I feel in my heart that we are a better team than ‘SC,” White said. “I know people always say this, but if you take away a couple of plays, we would have won.”