Beavers knock off Hawaii

[stomperrob]

In another upset today, Oregon State beat #24 Hawaii 35-32:

Hawaii's comeback attempt falls short; Brennan one TD shy of record
Dec. 3, 2006
CBS SportsLine.com wire reports


HONOLULU -- Matt Moore passed for three touchdowns and Sabby Piscitelli had two interceptions as Oregon State upset No. 24 Hawaii 35-32 on Saturday night.

The Beavers (9-4) snapped the Warriors' winning streak at nine and became the first team to beat Hawaii (10-3) since Boise State on Sept. 23.

Moore was 11-of-17 for 245 yards and outshone Hawaii's Colt Brennan, who finished one TD pass shy of tying the NCAA single-season mark of 54 set by Houston David Klingler in 1990.

Brennan finished 37-of-50 for 401 yards and two TDs but his pass attempt on fourth-and-14 from Oregon State's 26 fell short and so did Hawaii's comeback.

Oregon State had an 11-point lead and seemed to have control of the game on Piscitelli's second interception that gave them the ball on Hawaii's 44 with 11 minutes left.

But punter Kyle Loomis mishandled the snap and was dropped on Oregon State's 44.

Hawaii scored eight plays later on Brennan's 4-yard pass to Ryan Grice-Mullen, cutting the lead to 35-30 after failing to convert a 2-point conversion.

Yvenson Bernard carried 20 times for 108 yards and a touchdown. His 1-yard TD run early in the fourth quarter gave Oregon State a 35-24 lead, its largest of the game, and capped a 75-yard drive.

The Beavers used blitzes and stunts to forced Brennan out of the pocket on several plays. They sacked him six times.

Piscitelli intercepted an errant pass by Brennan in the end zone, setting up an 80-yard pass play from Moore to Sammie Stroughter to give Oregon State a 28-21 lead.

Stroughter made a stutter move, blowing past the cornerback. He caught the ball in step and sprinted untouched down the right sideline.

He had three catches for 108 yards.

Hawaii scored three TDs in the second quarter to tie the game at 21 at the half.

Oregon State led 21-14 on Moore's 30-yard lob pass over two defenders to Ruben Jackson right in front of the orange-clad Beavers' section. Hawaii came right back to tie the game with 20 seconds left before halftime on Brennan's 11-yard TD pass to Bess.

Brennan's 4-yard TD run tied the game at 14. The score was set up by a 19-yard run by Brennan on fourth-and-1.

Gerard Lawson scored on a 100-yard kick return, putting the Beavers up by a touchdown. Lawson caught the ball a couple yards deep in the end zone, cut left near the 20, shed a defender and sprinted the rest of the way for the score.

It was Oregon State's first kickoff return for a score this season.

Tight end Joe Newton caught a 21-yard scoring pass at the end of the first quarter, giving the Beavers a 7-0 lead and stunning the crowd.

Hawaii easily drove deep into Oregon State territory in the first quarter, but came up empty with Dan Kelly missing field goals of 50 and 38 yards. It was the first time the Warriors were shut out in the opening quarter their loss to Boise State.

The Warriors will play another Pac-10 opponent, Arizona State, in the Dec. 24 Hawaii Bowl. The Beavers play in the Sun Bowl Dec. 29 against a yet-to-be determined team.

AP NEWS
The Associated Press News Service

[A Fleshner Fantasy]

Hmmm...Oregan St. beat USC and now Hawaii...they really aren't bad.

[BritSox]

Weren't the two of them ranked #24 and #25 going into the game? Hardly a huge shock.

[NittanyLions]

Hawaii is decent, but they really haven't beaten anyone good, and have lost to any respectable team they've faced (Alabama, Boise State, and now OSU). Hopefully this will throw Hawaii below PSU and boost us up

[Cowboys 4 life]

Weren't the two of them ranked #24 and #25 going into the game? Hardly a huge shock.

Exactly. They were very close in the rankings.

Brennan was too focused on the TD record. There was one drive in particular that he was throwing in the redzone when the run was working for them and he threw an int. Then OSU throws an 80 yard bomb to go up 28-21.

Now USC doesn't look as bad because OSU will be ranked.

[eman]

Brennan played really well with the exception of 4 plays. Problem was these 4 throws were basically the entire difference in the game. They were:
1. First int
2. Second int
3. Overthrow on a 50 yard bomb that would have been a td
4. Shortarmed throw on the 4th down attempt, if he had just thrown it instead of aiming it he would've had the first and they likely would have scored to go ahead.

Aside from that, he had a great game, but the bottom line is a couple mistakes can be the difference maker, and in this case I think Brennan came up short. Here's to hoping he can pick it up to lay a beatdown on ASU.

[Free Bagel]

I don't understand why they played this game so late. I understand it's Hawaii so the timezone is completely shifted, but it was nighttime in Hawaii so it was a late start even there. Why not make it a 3:30 game there and at least start it at 10 or so here? I watched through the 3rd quarter but by then it was almost 3am and with heavy drinking during the Gator game it was tough to go any further.

[eman]

Every Hawaii home game is played at 9pm PST/12 EST, due to the time difference and travel issues for away teams. I'm sure it would be possible for them to start earlier, but per convenience they start late. (For us, it's 5pm in Hawaii )

[Sandrock]

Well, I predicted my Beavers would get dominated. But the D stepped up when they needed too and got a couple of lucky breaks at the same time. Still, nice road win for us. Hopefully my Beavs are a good matchup for Missouri in the Sun Bowl.

[CC]

Well, I predicted my Beavers would get dominated. But the D stepped up when they needed too and got a couple of lucky breaks at the same time. Still, nice road win for us. Hopefully my Beavs are a good matchup for Missouri in the Sun Bowl.

I think the Beavers will beat Missou. Bernard is underrated.