A lot was on the line when #9 Oregon
made the bus ride down to Corvallis in November of 2022. The Beavers, who were ranked going into this game for the first time in ten years, were eyeing a birth in the Holiday or Las Vegas Bowl. Oregon, meanwhile, still had hopes of a playoff berth if they could get past their rivals and then win the conference championship game the following week.
First Half
Oregon State opened this rivalry clash with a field goal, as Everett Hayes connected on a 50-yarder to give the underdogs some early momentum. But as they'd been doing all season, the Oregon offense got off to a quick start.
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After a smooth third-down conversion through the air, sophomore halfback Bucky Irving
exploded through a hole on second and long, picking up first-down yardage into OSU territory. Then, one of the Oregon natives in this rivalry affair made a spectacular play.
On first down from the Beaver 44, Bo Nix
launched a risky pass to the end zone intended for South Medford graduate Chase Cota
. Tracking all the way to the goal-line from a man-coverage position, current New Orleans Saints
corner Rejzohn Wright
read the pass' trajectory beautifully, and put himself in good position to make a play on the ball. But just as it appeared that it was going to fall into Wright's hands, Cota leapt into the air with his arms extended, and was able to wrestle the football from the defender's hands in what was a phenomenal touchdown grab for the Ducks
. This got the Oregon fans inside Reser Stadium to their feet, as the #9 ranked team in America had taken a 7-3 lead. Plenty of time remained in the first quarter.
The Beavers answered back, with a long drive that consisted mostly of runs. On second and short from around midfield, Jam Griffin fought through a tackle at the line of scrimmage and scampered down the sideline into Duck territory. A flag was thrown on Oregon for a late hit out of bounds, tacking on 15 more yards to an already big play, getting the Beavers into the red zone. Good carries from Griffin and Damien Martinez
got the offense down inside the five.
Then, the Beavers got stuck in the mud. Oregon's defense had bared down, forcing a fourth and goal from the one. Jonathan Smith
made no hesitation in leaving his offense on the field. In what was a beautifully executed play, Gulbranson took a snap under center and was pushed from behind by TE Jack Velling
, who proved easily strong enough to do the trick. After a nerve-wracking trip to the red zone, Oregon State had finally regained the lead with Gulbranson's successful QB sneak. It was 10-7 Beavers with a couple minutes left in the first quarter.
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The game slowed down in the second quarter, with two strong defenses coming away with stops. Oregon forced a turnover on downs late in the first half and marched down the field with a 95-yard drive, ending in a TD reception by Broncos receiver Troy Franklin
. The Ducks were ahead 14-10 at halftime.
Third Quarter
The second half couldn't have started off any worse for the underdogs. Ben Gulbranson
threw an interception that was returned inside the OSU five, and Jordan James
ran it in on the very next play. The Beavers went three-and-out on their next possession, and the Oregon offense continued to roll, with another TD drive that faced very little resistance. Oregon tacked on a field goal after being stopped inside the red zone, and the Ducks had a commanding 31-10 lead in the third quarter.
At this point, there was very little margin for error. However, the Beaver offense stuck to their identity, and put together a great drive that was kicked off by a long rush from Damien Martinez(who unfortunately got injured on this play). The Beavers then put it in the belly of Deshaun Fenwick
, who took back-to-back carries and scored from four yards out, making it 31-17. It was still a two-score game, but this was the exact spark Jonathan Smith was looking for.
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Fourth Quarter
Oregon moved the ball well on their next drive, but were stopped at the goal line. A 24-yard field goal was a huge outcome for the Ducks, as they now had a 17-point lead with less 15 minutes to play.
However, Oregon now had a serious problem at this point in the game- they couldn't stop the run. After a huge 64-yard kickoff return from Silas Bolden, Jam Griffin stormed up the middle for a 17-yard gain. Then Isaiah Newell showed off his quality with an explosive TD rush, making it a ten-point ball game.
After having given up points on four straight possessions, the Beaver defense came away with a much-needed three-and-out. This is where everything started to fall apart for the top-ten Ducks.
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Standing at his own five, Oregon's punter dropped a perfectly good snap, and then got tackled at his own one yard line by freshman Jeremiah Noga. It was a colossal blunder that set OSU up on the doorstep, where Gulbranson snuck it in two plays later for another Beaver TD. With a potential CFP berth on the line for the Ducks, you could now feel the energy inside Reser Stadium. A 21-point Oregon lead was down to just three.
Desperately needing to get themselves back on track, Dan Lanning's offense faced a huge third down and eight at their own 27 yard line, With everybody covered downfield, Bo Nix checked it down to halfback Noah Whittington
, who made an acrobatic catch at the 34- just a little bit shy of the sticks.
Facing a huge decision, coach Lanning decided to leave his offense on the field, a big roll of the dice. Despite having only half a stadium due to renovations, the Corvallis crowd pumped up the decibel level. It was loud, and the Ducks' offense was facing a pivitol fourth and short. Nix faced a handoff to Irving, and then tried to run it himself over the left side. But Jaydon Grant
was not fooled, staying home on the fake and dropping the Oregon signal caller a yard behind the line of scrimmage. Things had gone from bad to worse for Oregon, as the Beavers now took over in plus territory.
Oregon State kept it on the ground, literally never throwing it. Seven and 12 yard carries from Fenwick and then a TD rush from Newell on first and goal gave Oregon State the lead. They had come all the way back from a 31-10 deficit and now were up by four, still with eight minutes remaining.
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Despite squandering a big lead, Oregon still had time to right the ship. The Ducks' offense, which certainly wasn't hurting for talent, got the ball back with plenty of time left in the fourth. And they were finally able to get something going, as Nix connected with Chase Cota for a big gain on third and seven. The Ducks had a couple of effective running plays with Whittington, before a pass interference call drawn by Troy Franklin got Oregon down to the OSU 20. A few plays later on third down, the same call struck again- pass interference against the defense, drawn by Troy Franklin. Set up with first and goal at the Beaver five, it was looking as if Oregon would regain the lead.
Final Four Minutes
But Oregon's struggles in the red zone continued. They handed it off twice to Jordan James, but this only got them down to the two. On third and goal, Oregon gave it to James again- and he lost a yard. Facing fourth down and goal with three minutes left, Dan Lanning called his final timeout. Everything was on the line with this play. The Beavers had come all the way back against their bitter rival, and now one more stop could potentially win them the game. If Oregon didn't convert right here, there was no guarantee that their offense would even get another chance.
On 4th and goal from the three, Nix rolled out to his right side, giving time for routes to develop. But with solid coverage all around, Nix eventually tried to force a fastball in to Franklin, which was covered perfectly by Alex Austin
. The pass was knocked away by Austin incomplete, and Oregon State had gotten the massive stop they were looking for. They took over, needing to run out the final three minutes.
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Oregon used their final timeout on the plus side of the two-minute warning, before a nice five-yard pickup from Fenwick made it third and short. Getting beaten up by the run all game long, the Ducks needed a stop right here- and couldn't get it. The Beavers fed Fenwick on third and a long one, and he powered up the middle and got past the sticks by a couple feet.
That was it. OSU was able to kneel it down to run out the clock, and after taking the final knee, Gulbranson pitched the ball to the official, and immediately asked for it back as a trophy. For the second time in three years, Jonathan Smith's Beavers had beaten a top-15 Oregon team. The Ducks' playoff chances were crushed, and OSU would get a shot at a ten-win season.
Top 10 Oregon State Football Games Since 2000
#10 - 2013 OT Win At Utah
#9 - 2021 Beavs Outgun USC in Los Angeles
#8 - 2014 Beavers Stun #6 ASU
#7 - 2008 Thriller in the Desert
#6 - Beavs' Comeback in the 2006 Sun Bowl
#5 - James Rodgers' Fly Sweep Downs Ducks
#4 - Beavers Hold Off #3 USC in 2006
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/oregon-state as Top 10 Oregon State Football Games Since 2000: #3 2022's Historic Comeback Against Nix's Ducks
.
