WARRIOR FOOTBALL
Warrior Replay
Five big plays from Oregon State's 35-32 win over Hawaii
Chosen and described by the
Star-Bulletin's Dave Reardon
1. All the way back
The Setup: Oregon State 7, Hawaii 7; 11:27 remaining, second quarter, Hawaii kicking off from own 35.
The Play: Oregon State's Gerard Lawson, normally the second choice on kickoff returns, fields one 2 yards deep in the end zone. He breaks three tackles between the Oregon State 25 and 45 and then sprints the rest of the way untouched to the Hawaii end zone for a 100-yard runback.
The Impact: Coming right after Nate Ilaoa's 1-yard run for Hawaii's first score, Lawson's score stuns Hawaii's proud kickoff coverage unit, quiets the Aloha Stadium crowd and gives Oregon State the lead and momentum again.
Lawson: "I don't get much time to get the ball in my hands, and when I do it's a thrill. It reminds me of high school, when I played running back."
2. Piscitelli's first pick
The Setup: Oregon State 21, Hawaii 21; Around 6:00 remaining, third quarter, Hawaii ball, third and 5 at Oregon State 14.
The Play: Quarterback Colt Brennan leads Hawaii from its own 1 to the Oregon State 14 in 12 plays, and Hawaii looks like it will take its first lead. But Sabby Piscitelli goes low to intercept a Brennan pass in the end zone and Oregon State takes over at its own 20. Hawaii burns a timeout it could have used later to challenge whether the ball hit the ground before Piscitelli caught it.
The Impact: On the next play, Oregon State quarterback Matt Moore delivers a perfect pass to Sammie Stroughter 40 yards downfield. Stroughter, who had beaten Hawaii cornerback Gerard Lewis, catches the ball and easily finishes the 80-yard scoring play.
Piscitelli: "(Brennan's) a great quarterback. We knew our secondary had to limit him."
3. Momentum shift
The Setup: Oregon State 35, Hawaii 24; around 10:00 remaining, fourth quarter, Oregon State ball, fourth and 8 at Hawaii 42.
The Play: Even though it is forced to punt after Piscitelli's second interception, Oregon State still has complete control. That is, until it botches the snap and punter Kyle Loomis is buried for a 14-yard loss.
The Impact: Hawaii takes over at the Oregon State 44. Brennan drives Hawaii to the goal line in eight plays, scoring with a 5-yard pass to Ryan Grice-Mullins, putting Brennan within one touchdown pass of the NCAA single-season record of 54. Hawaii fails on a 2-point conversion attempt, but it is now a one-score difference.
Oregon State coach Mike Riley: "When we dropped that punt, I thought they don't need any help moving the ball."
4. Big sack
The Setup:Oregon State 35, Hawaii 30; less than 6:30 remaining, fourth quarter, Oregon State ball, second and 10 at own 20.
The Play: Moore drops back to pass and is sacked by Hawaii defensive end Ikaika Alama-Francis, whose father was a star at Oregon State. Moore fumbles, but the Beavers recover for a 6-yard loss.
The Impact: On third down, linebacker Blaze Soares tackles Yvenson Bernard after a 9-yard gain, and Oregon State is forced to punt. Davone Bess' 35-yard return gives Hawaii the ball at the Oregon State 40 and a chance to win a game it has never led.
Alama-Francis: "There was no doubt in my mind we could stop them in that situation."
5. Bounce pass
The Setup: Oregon State 35, Hawaii 30; 2:12 remaining, fourth quarter, Hawaii ball, fourth and 14 at Oregon State 26.
The Play: Brennan looks to his left and sees Jason Rivers open for the first down near the sideline. But Brennan's pass is short and bounces in front of Rivers.
The Impact: Oregon State takes over on downs and tries to get a first down to run out the clock. Hawaii has no timeouts left, but still stops Oregon State, which has Stroughter line up as the punter and run out of his own end zone on fourth down for a safety with 2 seconds left. Hawaii's only hope is to return the free kick all the way, but after three laterals it is stopped at its 28 to end the game.
Brennan: "If I had just thrown a little bit more air on it, we would've gotten the first down and probably would have had a chance to score and maybe win the game."