By Josh Green
Different week, same mistakes. Different week, same feeling of disappointment. Different week, same results. The Arizona State Sun Devils lost their third game in a row, as penalties and miscues once again cost them, this time against the Oregon State Beavers.
The Sun Devils fell to 2-3, including 0-2 in Pac-10 play, after their 31-28 loss to the Beavs, and now face the daunting task of having to win five of their last seven games to be bowl eligible. Four of those games are on the road, and three of them are against teams that are currently ranked in the top 25.
Both teams came into the contest desparate for a win. The Beavers (2-2) had lost two of its first three games, while the Sun Devils were trying to forget about close losses to No. 4 Oregon and No. 11 Wisconsin.
ASU started off strong, as Steven Threet led the offense down field 68 yards in two minutes, capped off by a 39-yard touchdown pass to Gerell Robinson.
But the Sun Devils could not hold onto the lead. OSU responded with 17 unanswered points to take a 10-point lead early in the second quarter.
ASU got back in it when freshman running back Deantre Lewis punched it in from 4-yards, cutting the Beavers’ lead to three.
But OSU got a huge boost near the end of the first half. After ASU went three-and-out with under two minutes left, the Beavers needed just three plays to score a touchdown, taking a 24-14 lead into the locker room.
Perhaps the biggest momentum swing came late in the third quarter, when ASU had a chance to tie the game at 24. The Sun Devils had six plays inside the OSU five-yard line, but had to settle for a field goal after Steven Threet dropped a snap on third and goal.
On the Beavers’ ensuing drive, Jaquizz Rodgers took the first play 74-yards for a touchdown, giving OSU a 31-20 lead, and sending the capacity crowd at Reser Stadium into a frenzy.
The game seemed out of reach after Threet threw his second interception of the game late in the fourth quarter, but Mike Callaghan gave the Devils life after he blocked a punt. Cameron Marshall took the next play from scrimmage into the end zone, and ASU completed the two-point conversion, making it a 31-28 game with 2:51 left.
The ASU defense forced the Beavers into a three-and-out, giving the offense one final shot to tie the game with a field goal,or a win with a touchdown, but James Dockery intercepted a Threet pass to seal the game for OSU.
Threet finished 14-of-29 for 203 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions.
OSU was without star receiver James Rodgers, who suffered a concussion in last week’s game against Boise State, but his brother, Jaquizz, picked up the slack, as he rushed for 146 yards and two touchdowns.
OSU quarterback Ryan Katz finished 19-of-29 for 260 yards and two touchdowns.
The Sun Devils travel to Seattle next weekend to take on the Washington Huskies, who beat USC in Los Angeles last night.
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