Stanford pulls out Big Game, stays alive in Pac-12 North

Palo Alto, CA – "So, you're telling me there's a chance."

The line uttered by Jim Carrey's character Lloyd Christmas in the movie Dumb and Dumber surely applies to the eighth-ranked Stanford Cardinal, who kept their hopes of a Pac-12 North Division title alive with a hard-fought 31-28 victory over California in the 114th Big Game.

Andrew Luck ended with 257 yards and two touchdowns on 20-of-30 passing for Stanford (10-1, 8-1 Pac-12), which rebound from last week's home loss to Oregon.

The only way a berth in the inaugural conference championship game can happen now is if the Ducks lose their final game against Oregon State. The Cardinal received help on Saturday from Southern California, which emerged with a 38-35 win after Oregon's kicker missed a last-second field goal.

Stanford hosts Notre Dame next week to close out the regular season.