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With the Oregon State football team (9-3, 6-3 Pac-12) defeating Oregon 38-34 on Saturday afternoon, BeaversEdge gives five important takeaways from the win!
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1. Oregon State Completes All-Time Comeback
You may not see an Oregon-Oregon State game like that for years…
To say that Oregon State’s chances were bleak trailing 31-10 following an Oregon field goal with 4:46 left in the third quarter would be an understatement…
But to better understand the comeback, you first have to realize the situation that the Pac-12 officials put the Beavers in…
Leading 10-7 late in the second quarter and driving to add more, the Beavers were the unfortunate recipients of two huge, momentum-changing spot calls that prevented OSU from having a first and goal and the opportunity to go up 13-7 or 17-7.
The first came on a third and two when Damien Martinez clearly made the line to gain, but was marked a yard short. Head coach Jonathan Smith opted for a review and the officials didn’t choose to change the spot. Then Martinez took the carry on fourth down and was perhaps inches short, but if the spot had been proper the play before, likely would have let to a first down.
Following that letdown of momentum, Oregon State seemed to lose a step as they allowed Oregon to race out to a 21-point advantage before waking back up and realizing there was a whole lot of game left to be played.
Running the ball on essentially every play they could, the Beavers responded with four second-half touchdowns and outscored the Ducks 28-3 over the final quarter and change.
There were times when OSU’s body language and energy were zapped as a result of the officials’ call in the first half and if the Beavers hadn’t found a way to win, we’d be talking about that situation in a vastly different context.
But the Beavers did find a way, and that’s what counts. They perhaps allowed themselves to get down following that play and didn’t really find their mojo again until midway through the third quarter, but once they did, it was like a runaway freight train downhill steaming right at the Oregon sideline.
Oregon didn’t look like they knew what hit them late in this one as they likely expected the Beavers to simply roll over trailing by several scores, but the Beavers wouldn’t quit and that’s what’s most admirable about this squad.
Whether it was the comeback against Fresno State or the miracle at Stanford, the Beavers never quit and that’s starkly different from where this program was when some of these graduating seniors were younger classmen.
These upperclassmen will certainly keep their heads high for a long time as they helped build something special with Jonathan Smith here in Corvallis. It’s still an ongoing improvement and build on the daily, but make no mistake, Smith and these seniors showing a performance like this shows what they’re really made of on the inside…
2. Defense Puts The Clamps Down When It Mattered Most
One of the weaknesses of the Beaver defense this season, especially in the game against Washington, is generating stops of third down, specifically when in third-and-long situations.
One of the primary statistics that stand out as to why OSU was able to complete the comeback and come out on top was due to their gritty performance on third-down situations. The Beavers were able to hold the Ducks to 5-of-14 on third down (3-of-9 in the second half), and even more impressively they held Oregon to 0-of-5 on their fourth-down conversions.
Perhaps one of the most important game-changing plays occurred when Jaydon Grant was responsible for stopping Bo Nix on a fourth and short scramble play that would end up giving the Beavers excellent field position deep in Oregon’s territory.
At one point the Beaver defense allowed scores on four straight drives by the Ducks in the third quarter (TD, TD, FG, FG). Things did not look good for OSU and you could tell that fans were starting to lose hope that a comeback was possible.
Following those scoring drives by Oregon, the Beaver defense flipped the script dramatically in the fourth quarter, clamping down and forcing Oregon into three drives that ended on downs, including on what would become their last possession of the game. OSU’s defense once again stepped up to the task when it was most needed and the senior leadership was showcased at all levels.
Even when the Beavers were down by 21 points, the defense did not quit. Their level of effort is a significant reason why OSU was able to remain even competitive in the game, let alone work on mounting a significant comeback.
3. Turnovers & Quarterback Play Nearly Cost OSU
While Oregon State was able to mount one of the most impressive comebacks in school history against Oregon, the margin for error in this one was razor-thin…
After having arguably his best showing under center in the win over Arizona State a week ago, Ben Gulbranson had arguably his worst passing game of the season as he went 6-of-13 for 60 yards and two interceptions.
Credit has to be given to Ben for coming up with a couple of big-time rushing scores that were absolutely the difference, but 60 yards passing isn’t going to consistently get it done unless you’re one of the service academies.
To put into perspective how much confidence Oregon State had throwing the ball in the second half, Gulbranson attempted just four passes, including zero in the fourth quarter.
Again, OSU’s ground attack was so sensational against the Ducks that you wouldn’t necessarily want to do anything else, but it was the lack of a passing threat once again that glaringly stood out.
OSU’s bread and butter and identity on offense is the ground game, but make no mistake, the Beavers want to achieve a better offensive balance and that aspect has been hit and miss since the injury to Chance Nolan earlier this season.
The Beavers were ultimately able to overcome the lack of a passing game and two interceptions from Gulbranson and a fumble from Tre’Shaun Harrison, but there’s no question moving forward that the team is going to need far better production under center and out wide to really open up this ever-growing one-dimensional offense.
