FORT WORTH, Texas — Stuck on the sideline for disciplinary reasons, DeSean Jackson and Robert Jordan could do nothing to help as California quickly fell behind by three touchdowns.

"They were chomping at the bit to get in," coach Jeff Tedford said. "They were prancing around on the sideline. And so when they finally got let loose, they were ready to roll."

And they made an immediate impact.

Jackson made an acrobatic 40-yard grab for Cal's first touchdown right after entering the game and Jordan had six catches for 148 yards and a score as the Bears rallied to beat Air Force, 42-36, in the Armed Forces Bowl yesterday.

Ranked No. 2 in the nation in October before losing six of seven games, the comeback gave California (7-6) its sixth straight winning season.

Jackson, Jordan and leading tackler Thomas DeCoud were held out of the starting lineup and didn't play the first quarter because of unspecified violations of team rules that occurred before the team got to Fort Worth for the bowl.

Helped by a botched kickoff, Air Force (9-4) led 21-0 after scoring twice in a 2-minute span early in the second quarter — before Jackson and Jordan even got on the field.

"The hard part about it was the score," Jordan said. "That just made me play harder. I haven't felt all year the way I did today about trying to prove a point and help the team."

Cal's Justin Forsett ran for 140 yards and two TDs on 23 carries.

Meanwhile, Air Force lost four-year starting QB Shaun Carney to a serious right knee injury when his leg buckled while being tackled in the third quarter.

Carney had 15 carries for 108 yards rushing and a TD. He was 5-of-8 passing for 68 yards.

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