With last weekend’s win, Oregon State is on the doorstep of Bowl eligibility

It was less than two years when the Oregon State Beavers found themselves riding a 10-game losing streak through the end of Thanksgiving weekend, and finishing completely winless against Pac-12 rivals. When former Oregon State quarterback Jonathan Smith accepted the head coach job towards the end of said 2017 season, he was well aware of the challenge at hand, especially within an increasingly difficult conference.

Fast forward to just a few days before Thanksgiving, and Smith has not only led the Beavers to more wins than Oregon State had in the previous two seasons combined, but with two games remaining on Oregon State’s 2019 slate, they only need to win one of those remaining games to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2013.

Their current fortune comes after rebounding from a tough loss against the University of Washington, and escaping with a 35-34 win over the Arizona State Sun Devils.

The Sun Devils overcame a two-touchdown deficit late in the third quarter, scoring a touchdown with 1:40 left in the game to bring the game within one point. But instead of going for the tie and forcing overtime, Arizona State head coach Herm Edwards elected to attempt the two-point conversion and go for the win. However, Sun Devils’ running back Eno Benjamin found himself with nowhere to run on the conversion, and heaved a desperation pass into the end zone that ended up intercepted by Oregon State cornerback Nahshon Wright.

Senior quarterback Jake Luton had himself a day on Senior Day, throwing for 288 yards and four touchdowns in the win. It marks the third time this season that Luton had a game with at least four touchdown passes. Luton spread the wealth among four different receivers on those touchdown passes, though star wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins again led the team with 93 yards receiving on six receptions.

Three of Luton’s touchdown passes came in the first 21 minutes of game time, with the Beavers scoring touchdowns on three of their first four drives of the game. Running back Jermar Jefferson ran for a score just before halftime, giving the Beavers a 28-21 lead at halftime.

Oregon State defeated Arizona State for the first time since 2014, dealing the Sun Devils their fourth-straight loss, putting a substantial damper on their previous 5-1 start to the season. Meanwhile, the Beavers have won four of their past six games, with all four of those wins coming against Pac-12 opponents.

Even having been mathematically eliminated from winning the Pac-12 North and earning a spot in the Pac-12 championship game, there’s still plenty which Oregon State has left to achieve this year. For one, a win against this weekend’s opponent – the Washington State Cougars – would put the Beavers at the coveted six-win threshold, making them eligible for a postseason spot. Even though the Cougars are favorites to win, Oregon State has fared better in conference play this season.

And, of course, the Beavers still have the chance to pick up arguably the most important win of any Oregon State season on Thanksgiving weekend, if they were to somehow pull off the seemingly improbable win over the University of Oregon in the annual “Civil War” game.