Stanford takes down Oregon in OT
EUGENE, Ore. -- Jordan Williamson hit a 37-yard field goal in overtime and No. 13 Stanford upset No. 2 Oregon, 17-14, last night, denying the Ducks a chance to clinch the Pac-12 North and derailing their shot at the BCS championship game.
Oregon's loss, coupled with No. 1 Kansas State's, means Notre Dame is the lone unbeaten team in the race for the BCS title game. The Fighting Irish now control their national championship destiny and Alabama and a couple of other Southeastern Conference teams are also back in the thick of it.
The loss snapped a 13-game winning streak for the Ducks, which was the longest current streak in the nation. It was Stanford's fifth straight win.
Alejandro Maldanado missed a 41-yard field goal for the Ducks to open overtime.
Redshirt freshman Kevin Hogan threw for 211 yards and a game-tying fourth-quarter touchdown for Stanford, and Stepfan Taylor rushed for 161 yards on 33 carries.
Down 14-7, Stanford went for it on fourth-and-1 on the Oregon 12 with 2:17 left in regulation and Ryan Hewitt ran for the first down, Hogan hit Zach Ertz with a 10-yard scoring pass to tie it at 14 with 1:35 to go. Ertz fought to gain control of the ball with a defender as he fell to the turf on top of a Ducks player. The play was initially ruled incomplete, but a video review overturned it for the tying touchdown.
Despite a pass interference call that gave them a crucial first down, the Ducks were forced to punt on the ensuing series and Stanford took over with 36 seconds to go and the game went to overtime.
If both Stanford and Oregon finish with wins in their final games next weekend, both will finish with one conference loss, which means Stanford will win the head-to-head matchup and go to the Pac-12 championship game for a chance to play in the Rose Bowl.
Stanford (9-2, 7-1) will visit No. 17 UCLA, which defeated No. 18 USC, 38-28, earlier in the day to claim the Pac-12 South. Oregon (10-1, 7-1) will play rival Oregon State in the annual Civil War rivalry game in Corvallis.
Irish breeze to 11-0
Everett Golson threw touchdown passes of 50, 34 and 2 yards, Cierre Wood scored on a 68-yard run and No. 3 Notre Dame beat Wake Forest, 38-0, in South Bend. The Irish improved to 11-0 for the first time since 1989. Notre Dame travels to USC for the regular-season finale next Saturday night. The Irish outgained the Demon Deacons 584 yards to 209.-- AP
