LOVELESS CARDINAL GETS AWAY WITH ONE
No. 20 Stanford revealed before kickoff they’d be without star RB Bryce Love because of an injury, and struggled until scoring the winning TD with 20 seconds remaining
CORVALLIS, ORE. » Bryce Love’s Heisman Trophy campaign went on hiatus, but No. 20 Stanford’s kept its Pac-12 championship hopes alive with a gutty 15-14 victory over Oregon State in front of a sparse crowd of 30,912 on Thursday night at Reser Stadium.
Quarterback Keller Chryst, who struggled without the nation’s leading rusher behind him, threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to JJ Arcega-Whiteside with 20 seconds remaining to extend the Cardinal (62, 5-1) winning streak to five games.
Defensive tackle Harrison Phillips gave Stanford one last chance to steal the win by forcing and recovering a fumble by Ryan Nall at the Oregon State 40-yard line with 2:30 remaining.
“Obviously Bryce is unbelievable,” Phillips, who also recovered a fumble late in the second quarter to set up a field goal, said after Stanford’s offense was held to 12 first downs and 222 total yards. “He’s going to win the Heisman this year. He should, no questions asked. So not having that player in there we’re not
at our 100 percent best. He was missed, and we’re very thankful we’re going to get him back soon.”
Chryst was 16-for-33 passing for 141 yards with one interception, although Oregon State defenders let several other errant passes slip through their hands. But on fourth-and-10 on Stanford’s final drive, Chryst connected with tight end Kaden Smith for 25 yards to set up the decisive touchdown.
After two passinterference calls, Stanford’s third attempt at the two-point conversion failed. Oregon State quarterback Darell Garretson’s Hail Mary on the final snap was intercepted by safety Brandon Simmons.
“Through all of the ups and downs offensively, we went down and put the ball in the end zone,” Stanford coach David Shaw said. “There were things that happened that were not Keller’s fault and there were things he could have done better.”
Through seven games, Love led the FBS with 1,387 yards (10.27 per carry) and 11 touchdowns. He made the trip but did not play due to an ankle injury suffered on Oct. 14 during a 49-7 romp over Oregon.
Cameron Scarlett, a junior from Portland, started in Love’s place but only rushed for 72 yards on 17 carries.
The Cardinal trailed 14-6 in the third quarter after an 18-yard touchdown run by Thomas Tyner. Safety Ben Edwards kept Oregon State’s drive alive with an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, and linebacker
Joey Alfieri was ejected for targeting. Stanford was flagged for eight accepted penalties totaling 81 yards, including a roughing the punter call on safety Justin Reid to help the Beavers move the chains again.
“We allowed them to extend two drives. Inexcusable,” Shaw lamented. “Far too many penalties on our team tonight.”
Jet Toner made field goals of 40, 33 and 40 yards to keep Stanford within reach.
OSU had a chance to take a 7-3 lead into halftime, but Garretson lost a fumble on a botched handoff exchange with Nall, which Phillips recovered at the Oregon State 16-yard line with 51 seconds remaining until halftime. Stanford’s offense sputtered, but Toner’s field goal to cut the deficit to 7-6 with 27 seconds remaining in the first half. Toner’s third field goal drew Stanford to within 14-9 with 24 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
The Beavers (1-7, 0-5), who watched head coach Gary Andersen walk away from Oregon State and the $12.4 remaining on his contract, nearly picked up their first victory for interim coach Cory Hall.
“Everyone had us as big favorites, but Oregon State came out and fought,” Stanford cornerback Quenton Meeks said.
“We never held our heads down. We kept fighting, kept clawing and made the plays when they counted most.”