Top 10 Oregon State Football Games Since 2000: #7

With hopes of a Rose Bowl berth hanging in the balance, Mike Riley took his Oregon State Beavers down to Tucson for a crucial late-November matchup with the 6-4 Wildcats.

Coming into the matchup with only one conference loss, OSU were still in contention for a Rose Bowl berth. The Beavers had survived scares against #1 USC and ASU earlier in the season, and were looking to keep a great season rolling.

First Half

With two very good defenses in the mix, this contest was a bit of a slog in the first half. The game started out with six straight punts. Neither team found their way into opponent territory in the first quarter.

Arizona finally got something going in the second quarter. Riding halfback Keola Antolin, the Cats put together a long, time-consuming possession. After a first-down completion to Rob Gronkowski and a couple of big runs from Antolin, Arizona set up shop first-and-goal at the Beavers' six-yard line. However, Oregon State's defense stood tall. After stuffing the run on two straight plays, defensive linemen Victor Butler sacked Willie Tuitoma on third-and-goal, holding Zona to a field goal.

An injury to star halfback Jacquizz Rogers further complicated matters for an Oregon State offense that had already been struggling in the Desert. However, the Beavers were able to find some rhythm late in the second quarter. After two long runs from older brother James Rogers and a nice completion to Sammie Stroughter, they got to the outskirts of field goal range. Clackamas native Justin Kahut drilled a 47-yarder, and it went into the halftime locker room tied up at 3-3.

Third Quarter

The Beaver defense continued to shut things down early in the third quarter. After back-to-back tackles for loss on the halfback, Arizona was forced to punt on their opening drive of the half. Mike Riley's offense then got something going with Ryan McCants, who got the drive started with consecutive nine-yard runs.

A second-and-10 completion to backup RB Jeremy Francis out of the backfield then got OSU into Wildcat territory. From here, James Rodgers did the rest. After breaking off a 20-yard HB dive to set up first and goal, the future All-American took a sneaky end-around play seven yards for a score on second-and-goal. It was the game's first TD, giving OSU a 10-3 lead in Tucson.

But after being forced into three straight punts, Arizona's offense finally came to life in the third. The Cats orchestrated a seven-minute, 76-yard drive that culminated in a Tuitama TD pass to future NFL legend Rob Gronkowski. It was all tied at 10-10 heading into the fourth quarter.

Fourth Quarter

The Beavers rolled the dice on their next possession, converting on fourth-and-two from their own 41-yard line with a Sean Canfield QB scramble. But the Beavers decided to gamble again a few plays later, and this time the risk didn't pay off. A McCants rush was stuffed for a turnover on downs, giving the Wildcats excellent starting position at midfield.

Arizona did not waste the opportunity. Using a drive consisting almost entirely of runs, the Wildcats pounded it down the throat of Mark Banker's defense, and Keola Antolin ran it in to give Zona their first lead of the night. The Beavers found themselves trailing 17-10 with eight minutes left.

With their Rose Bowl hopes on the line, Oregon State was not going to back down in the face of adversity. Giving Arizona a taste of their own medicine, the Beavers ran the ball effectively to get into Wildcat territory.

Then, facing a huge 3rd and long, Canfield got the ball out quickly to Sammie Stroughter after recognizing a safeties' blitz. The future Tampa Bay Buccaneer scampered all the way down inside the ten yard line to set up first and goal. Sammie came through again a couple plays later, when Canfield found him in the end zone on a roll-out play. Justin Kahut came onto the field, simply needing to make the extra point to tie the game....And he missed it.

After a phenomenal 80-yard drive, the Beavers were now on the ropes with under four minutes left, trailing by a point because of the missed PAT. With only one timeout remaining for Oregon State, a first down for the Cats would practically end the football game (and OSU's Rose Bowl hopes along with it).

However, inside linebacker Slade Norris made a great chase-down tackle on a third-down run play, forcing Arizona to punt. Keenyn Crier got a phenomenal boot away, but it didn't take the right bounce for him, and trickled into the end zone for a touchback. This meant that Oregon State's offense would start from their own 20-yard line, with a potential BCS berth on the line.

What followed was one of the most exciting drives of the entire 2008 college football season.

With only 1:18 left on the clock and zero timeouts, the OSU offense didn't waste any time. The drive started with a perfectly-executed halfback dump-off pass to Jeremy Francis, who scampered out of bounds after picking up 20.

Directly following this was one of the most iconic plays of the entire season. After a play-action fake, Canfield floated a slightly-underthrown ball downfield to his star receiver, who had gotten completely behind the defense. Stroughter hauled it in while falling on his back at the Arizona seven-yard line, sending the traveling Beaver fans into a frenzy. With only 30 seconds remaining in the game, Arizona's only hope now was another missed chip shot.

Despite the blunder which occurred less than ten minutes earlier, Mike Riley showed complete faith in his kicker. After a two-yard run from Ryan McCants got them a little bit closer, Canfield spiked it with three seconds remaining. Everything now rested on the leg of Justin Kahut.

Making his way onto the field with more than 50,000 Arizona fans screaming at him to miss, Oregon State's junior kicker did not part from his normal procedure. He picked up a fistful of grass and let it drop to test the wind, and then stepped back into his unique stance.

With the weight of the night resting on his shoulders, Kahut made no mistake this time. His kick from 24 yards out was perfect, and Oregon State's Rose Bowl hopes remained alive. The Beavers had won in Tucson by a final score of 19-17.

Top 10 Oregon State Football Games Since 2000

#10 - 2013 OT Win At Utah
#9 - 2021 Beavs Outgun USC in Los Angeles
#8 - Top 10 Oregon State Football Games Since 2000

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