WSU drops second straight, falling 41-38 to Oregon State

Maybe we are who we thought we were.

In their lone conference game of the season, the Washington State Cougars fell to the Oregon State Beavers thanks to a go-ahead field goal in the final 30 seconds of the game to make it a 41-38 finish.

Tied at 38-38 with under two minutes to play, a rare Kyle Williams fumble gave OSU (5-6) the football just inside WSU (8-3) territory. The Beavers would get just inside field goal range to drill a go-ahead 55-yard field goal to down WSU and keep OSU’s bowl hopes alive.

On November 12th, the WSU rose to 18th in the second week of the College Football Playoff poll. Sitting at 8-1 with three games remaining, all against teams with win percentages below .500, the Cougars seemed to be at least a lock for double-digit wins. If they could just take care of business and win out, maybe they get some dominoes to fall and end up in the College Football Playoff?

Sure.

This all seemed in the realm of possibility. I mean, look what happened this week in college football. Down went the fifth, seventh, ninth, 14th, 15th, 16th, and 19th teams ranked in this week’s poll.

But instead, WSU has now dropped two in a row and proven to be nowhere worthy of being in the CFP conversation. They also may have removed themselves from the highest bowl possible, the Alamo Bowl, outside of the CFP.

It’s the first time OSU has broken 40 points all season long. This includes games against FCS Idaho State and a double overtime game against Colorado State. For WSU, it’s the third time they’ve given up 40+ and the fifth time they’ve allowed up 30+.

I know it’s easy to ask in hindsight after WSU has dropped two in a row, but ask yourself, did you really believe this team was really one of the top 20 teams in the country two weeks ago? Even though they were 8-1, was this WSU team better than nearly 90 other college football teams? Were they even better than some of the other WSU teams who may not have ever hit that mark? Do we really believe this 2024 WSU squad could best the 2016 and 2017 teams?

It’s easy to buy in and drink the crimson Kool-Aid when the team just wins, no matter the opponent. Who can blame the ones who bought the hype? After all WSU has been through over the last two years, it’s much more fun to dream big and be hopeful than to doom and gloom. Especially when you’re being proven right.

Ultimately, we have to face the truth. This WSU team is who we thought they were. A very average college football team that will finish with eight or nine wins thanks in part to a schedule that lobbed them a handful of mediocre opponents.

With 1:08 remaining in the first half, WSU capped off a 13-play, 75-yard, and over six-minute drive on a three-yard John Mateer keeper to put the Cougs up 17-14.

All the WSU defense needed to do was hold the Beaver offense for 78 seconds to take a lead into half. The Beavers instead only needed five plays to carve the Cougar defense for a momentum-altering touchdown drive to reclaim the lead just before half.

OSU rolled the momentum into the second half, taking the halve’s initial drive with a field goal to push their lead up to 24-17.

On the next drive, Williams continued his historically hot past two weeks with an unbelivable 57-yard catch and run touchdown to tie the game.

After trading touchdown drives to set the score at 24 each, WSU seemed to finally seize all momentum early in the fourth quarter when Buddah Al-Uqdah jumped a pass for an interception that he’d trot into the east end zone for a go-ahead pick-six.

Finally, this is where it felt like WSU could just seize control of this game. All they needed was a stop and to get the ball back in the hands of their offense to get one last score to put this game out of reach. The Beavers instead refused to get off the field. OSU tied the game on a four-yard touchdown pass after 16 plays, 75 yards, and eating up over eight and a half minutes of game clock to tie the game at 38 all.

Now, despite eating up all that clock, OSU still left John Mateer and the WSU offense with over two minutes to get down the field and at least get into field goal range.

Coming out of the two-minute warning, Mateer hit Williams on a slant across the middle for a first down out to the WSU 42. But, as Williams was being dragged to the ground, Williams was stripped of the football, and the Beavers would jump on the loose ball.

The Cougar defense would stand tall and hold the Beavers to a four-yard rush and back-to-back incompletions that seemed to give their offense one more shot before regulation or, at the very least, send this game to overtime. OSU opted to put everything on the line and go for it on a 4th and 6 from the WSU 45. With the game in the balance, OSU would convert with a seven-yard reception by Trent Walker to keep the drive alive. While OSU would only get a yard closer on the next three plays, it proved to be enough for Everett Hayes to cash a 55-yard field goal to end up giving the Beavers the victory.

WSU will conclude their season against the Wyoming Cowboys in Pullman on Saturday.