Stanford survives scare from much-improved Washington State
Washington State kicker Eric Powell turned his back on Saturday’s potential game-winning kick before it sailed to the outside of the right upright.
After making five other kicks in the game, he seemed to know that when he hit the sixth it wasn’t going through the uprights. The result was Washington State losing a 30-28 heartbreaker to Stanford.
As Stanford players rushed the field, there was definitely a sense of relief. Washington State had the Cardinal on the ropes. For the first time since 2007 — the last time the Cougars defeated Stanford — the two teams actually went toe-to-toe and traded blows like equal competition.
The seven games prior to this were equal parts blowouts by the Stanford offense and suffocation by the Stanford defense. But this was a different, more determined Washington State team. And though it took a little while for the offense to get going — the first five Cougars scores were field goals — it dominated Stanford on both sides of the ball and frustrated an offense that had beaten its last four conference opponents by an average of 23.5 points per game.
Stanford scored the first field goal of the game, but then it was all Washington State, which took a 15-3 lead in the third quarter. However, the Cougars inefficiency in the red zone created an opening for Stanford, which scored the first touchdown of the game with 9:15 remaining in the third quarter.
Washington State seemed unfazed by the score and responded with a touchdown of its own.
But then, on its seventh possession, Washington had to punt the ball and that’s when the game changed. Stanford got a touchdown, and then turnover, and then added two more touchdowns to take a 27-22 lead early in the fourth quarter. It was stunning, but the kind of response expected from a playoff-contending senior-laden team.
Washington State gained its bearings and scored a touchdown to go back on top. It forced a stop and was driving toward what could have been the game-sealing score when quarterback Luke Falk threw an interception on a screen pass. Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey used a 30-yard scamper to put the Cardinal in field goal position and coach David Shaw seemed content with three points as he whittled clock before a 19-yard chip shot with 1:54 remaining.
Washington State had one final chance to not only erase seven seasons of miserable losses at the hands of the Cardinal, but to challenge them in the Pac-12 North standings.
The final drive wasn’t pretty. Twice Falk had the ball come out of his hand after being hit and both were ruled incomplete passes. However, Falk also converted two fourth down passes, including a 23-yard bullet to Dom Williams that put the Cougars in field goal range.
But it was not to be.
While Washington State will be lamenting this loss, it actually should use it as a measuring stick for how far this program has come. This is a Stanford team that is in the hunt for not only a Pac-12 title, but also a spot in the College Football Playoff.
Washington State is 5-3 and hasn’t had a winning season since 2003. This is not a Washington State team that has had a lot of success, but there’s no doubt a game like this, even a loss, will makes this team better moving forward.
For more Washington State news, visit WazzouWatch.com.
For more Stanford news, visit CardinalSportsReport.com.
– – – – – – –
Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter! Follow @YahooDrSaturday
And don’t forget to keep up with all of Graham’s thoughts, witty comments and college football discussions on Facebook
