Oregon State Outslings Arizona in Desert

Oregon State got off to a hot start, held tough as Arizona turned it into a gunfight at the OK Corral, and in the fourth quarter outslinged Arizona twice to retake the lead and win an undeniable instant classic. OSU’s last score came with 1:09 left and as Arizona attempted their final drive Rashaad Reynolds was able to come away with a huge interception with 43 seconds left to secure an amazing and very hard fought victory. The win also made Mike Riley the winningest coach in OSU Football history with his 75th win with the Orange and Black of the Oregon State Beavers. Mannion threw for a personal best of 433 yards of passing and OSU had its highest offensive total in scholl history with 632 total yards.

Next week’s game against Wazzu should now be guaranteed to be a sellout. I will be there for that one and hope to see a packed Truax for pregame and then be there in person as OSU looks to go 4-0 in front of a pumped up crowd. OSU now looks like it will most likely be in the Vegas Bowl at worse and is much more likely in line for the Sun, Holiday or Alamo Bowl. Those last 2 would be exactly the great turn that the program needs, and at this point playing for a showdown with Oregon and having a shot at the Rose Bowl still is there for the program. Wheaton, Mannion, Woods and Reynolds all came up huge and Cooks also had a very well played and smart performance. The end of the first half almost proved more costly when OSU was unable to capitalize with 1st down near the 6 yard line.

That footnote is far overshadowed by the gutsy OSU win and their true grit to strike back and grab victory in front of a boisterous Arizona crowd that watched OSU outsling them when it mattered most and there could only be one winner. All of the players matured more from a game like this and with Woods running for 161 yards, it looked like OSU has its next great back in the mold of many of Riley’s talented backs of the past. It was truly a great day to be a beaver as OSU now sits at 3-0 and has beaten 3 teams of high quality, including two hard fought road Pac-12 battles. Let’s keep this momentum going, sell out Reser this year, get to the best bowl we possibly can and help make great things happen for OSU Football like Phase 3 of the stadium that will give OSU the amazing football home it deserves for a rising Pac-12 contender.