It was improbable.
It was edge-of-your-seat drama.
It was also a spectacular win for the ages.
Oregon simply doesn’t win these types of games, especially on the road in a tough environment like Martin Stadium.
But these Ducks flipped the odds on the house at Martin Stadium and miraculously stole one on the Palouse.
With just under seven minutes to play in the fourth quarter, Oregon found itself down 34-22 with all of the momentum on the sideline of Washington State.
The Ducks could have easily packed it up and decided today just wasn’t their day, head back to Eugene and hunker down in practice and get ready for Stanford.
Instead, Bo Nix led the Ducks on two scoring drives, the last one ending with just 1:21 left, a 50-yard strike to Troy Franklin, to take a 37-34 lead.
Add in a late Pick-6 and a literal last-second WSU score, Oregon gets to return home with a huge 44-41 win to open Pac-12 play.
Now at 3-1 and 1-0 in league play, next Saturday’s home game against Stanford just became a lot more important.
But one certainly has to give credit to the Cougars because they came to play from the outset to show they to should be nationally ranked and prove they’re one of the top teams the Pac-12.
Their quarterback, Cameron Ward, is the real deal and for much of the game, had the Duck defense on their heels.
Oregon coach Dan Lanning was certainly impressed by what he saw.
“They came out ready to compete and they caught us off-guard early,” said Lanning after the game.
“In a lot of ways, they outperformed us a lot of the day. But there was enough time left on the clock.”
Ward finished the game 37-of-48 for 375 yards and two touchdowns, but also had two very key interceptions which turned the tide in favor of the Ducks.
The final pick with under:90 seconds to play was costly to the Cougars because it occurred on the first play of the ensuing drive after Franklin’s touchdown.
Linebacker Mase Funa stepped in front of a Cougar receiver in the slot, grabbing the soft touch pass, and took it 27-yards to the house for the 44-34 lead with under a minute left.
Oregon facing adversity might be a bit of an understatement on this day.
They were the victims of more than a few questionable calls, including a targeting call on DJ Johnson that was dubious at best.
They also saw the Pac-12 referees rewind the game two entire plays because they got the downs wrong on a Cameron Ward intentional grounding call.
Despite all of that, Oregon found itself down 34-22 in the middle of the fourth quarter.
Nix started the rally with an 11-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a Cam McCormick touchdown reception with 2:46 left.
Then WSU’s first three-and-out drive came at a perfect time that used up just 59 seconds of the clock. It was the first time the Oregon defense played up its capability.
“Everybody was gathering together and feeding off each other,” Oregon linebacker Noah Sewell said.
“When your back’s against the well, what are you going to do? Are you going to fight back or are you going to let the other team keep hitting you, and just take it?”
The Ducks fought back.
Oregon didn’t waste time as the Ducks took just a minute to score on Franklin’s 50-yard touchdown. The sophomore ended the game with a career-high 137 yards.
According to Franklin, it was Nix that kept the peace on the sideline and just wait for his chance.
“He (Nix) basically told us this was a situation we work on in practice every week, so we know what to do. And we executed,” Franklin said.
Improbable?
Definitely.
But somehow, someway, this Oregon team came out on top and they’re headed back home to Eugene with an impressive conference win.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS; No. 15 Oregon Defeats Washington State 44-41