CORVALLIS — The Ducks only flagged themselves.
“Penalties killed us,” senior wide receiver Keenan Howry said after Oregon’s 45-24 loss to Oregon State.
The flag-fest began early and ended late in the 106th Civil War. Oregon and Oregon State combined for 19 penalties for 172 yards in the first half Saturday, with the Ducks (11 penalties, 95 yards) taking the brunt of the officials’ yellow wrath.
“I told (the Ducks) at halftime that we’d made enough mistakes to last a lifetime,” Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti said. “But we could change that with enough memories to last a lifetime in the second half. Unfortunately, they’re not going to be good memories.”
The Ducks (7-5 overall, 3-5 Pacific-10 Conference) were flagged for three of the four personal foul penalties in the game. Bellotti said the Ducks had more penalties than he’d ever seen.
“We fell victim to the emotion of the game,” Bellotti said. “Some were younger players (who made the fouls), but that’s no excuse.”
Overall, the Ducks committed 13 penalties for 105 yards. Oregon State (8-4, 4-4) was flagged 10 times for 107 yards. Oregon State entered the game as the most penalized team in the Pac-10 with 100.5 penalty yards per game. Oregon averaged 73.7 penalty yards per game, third-most in the conference.
Oregon overcame a 17-3 second-quarter deficit to tie the game at 17 with a little more than three minutes to play in the first half. After an OSU three-and-out, the Ducks got the ball back with less than two minutes remaining in the half, but a 15-yard personal foul penalty pushed them back to their own 16. Two plays later, the Ducks were called for a false start, and couldn’t gain a first down, forcing a punt from their own end zone.
Oregon State took possession with great field position at the Oregon 38, and needed just three plays before scoring the go-ahead touchdown with 28 seconds left in the half.
“To me, that was a big momentum-changer,” Oregon State head coach Dennis Erickson said. “It might have been the biggest in the whole game.”
Penalties weren’t Oregon’s only concerns. Oregon State quarterback Derek Anderson and tailback Steven Jackson, both sophomores, had big games for the Beavers. Anderson completed 21-of-37 attempts for 370 yards and four touchdowns, while Jackson became OSU’s single-season rushing leader by piling up 153 yards and three total touchdowns.
Contact the senior sports reporter
at [email protected].