| Third Biggest Overcome Point Spread in College Football History | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conference game | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | October 19, 1985 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 1985 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Husky Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Seattle,Washington | ||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Washington by 38 | ||||||||||||||||||
| National anthem | University of Washington Husky Marching Band | ||||||||||||||||||
| Halftime show | University of Washington Husky Marching Band | ||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 58,771 | ||||||||||||||||||
The1985 Oregon State vs. Washington football game was acollege football game between theOregon State Beavers andWashington Huskies that took place atHusky Stadium inSeattle on October 19,1985. ThePac-10 conference game featured the largest overcomepoint spread in college football history at the time when the Huskies, favored by 38 points at home,[1][2][3] lost 21–20 after the Beavers blocked apunt and recovered the ball in theend zone with 1:29 left to play.[4] It is considered one of the greatest upsets in college football history.[5][6][7]
Since this game, there have been two games in college football history with higher point spread upsets. On October 6,2007,Stanford, a 41-point road underdog, defeatedNo. 2USC24–23. The record was broken again ten years later on September 2,2017, whenUNLV lost toHoward 43–40 as a 45-point home favorite.
During the mid-1980s, the University of Washington Huskies were a powerhouse of American collegiate football, finishing the1984 seasonranked #2 by both theAssociated Press andCoaches Poll.[8] After back-to-back losses to open the 1985 season, the Huskies had rebounded, feeling strong as a result of the four-game win streak that had returned the team to the top of the Pac-10 standings.[5]
In stark contrast, the Beavers were coming off four straight losses including back to back blankings againstUSC andWashington State, where they allowed a total of 97 points. No team in Oregon State history had allowed that many points in back-to-back games. Prior to that, the Beavers lost toDivision I-AA teamGrambling State 23–6 and toFresno State 33–24.[9] To make matters worse for Oregon State, starting quarterbackErik Wilhelm was out for the season, and Pac-10 leading receiverReggie Bynum was also out due to injury.[5] The Beavers had lost the last ten matchups with Washington by an average of 24 points.[10]
The game seemed a clear mismatch, with the Huskies as astounding 38-point favorites to win the game. When the Las Vegas betting odds were published theSeattle media had a field day insulting the mighty Huskies' hapless foes. One reporter went so far as to say that "Oregon State plays football pretty much the wayBarney Fife played a deputy sheriff onMayberry."[5] In a television interview, UW head coachDon James said he expected to give his reserve quarterbackChris Chandler a chance for some playing time.
First-year OSU head coachDave Kragthorpe used the media comments in his pre-game speech to the Beavers in an effort to motivate them to prove critics wrong before they went out on the field.[5]
Washington put the first points up on the board after aJeff Jaegerfield goal put the Huskies up 3–0 in the first quarter. Oregon State backup quarterback Rich Gonzales responded by stunning the Huskies with a 43-yardtouchdown pass to Darvin Malone on the following drive, giving the Beavers the lead. Washington responded with an 80-yard drive and a touchdown of their own, regaining the lead 10–7.[5]
On the next drive, Washington forced Oregon State into a 4th and 20 position on their own 28-yard line. A Husky rush forced the punter to attempt to run for the first down instead of punting the ball, being stopped 10 yards short, turning the ball over on downs to the Huskies on the Beavers' 38 yard line. Washington drove to the 8-yard line, but Husky quarterbackHugh Millen threw aninterception in the end zone to give possession back to the Beavers.[4] Oregon State then capped off an 80-yard drive with a 20-yard scramble for a touchdown by Gonzales, and the Beavers led 14–10 at halftime.[5]
Washington took the lead again the lead in the third quarter, going up 17–14. With 1:32 left in the quarter, Washington had first and goal at the one-yard line, twice trying to run the ball up the middle and failing to get the score. On third down, OSUlinebacker Osia Lewisknocked out Washingtonrunning back Vince Weathersby with his tackle, causing afumble that Oregon State recovered.[5]
With 7:59 left, Washington's Jaeger hit another field goal to extend the lead to 20–14.
With under two minutes remaining, Washington was forced to punt from right outside their own end zone. Oregon State's Andre Todd rushed Husky punter Thane Cleland and blocked the punt, sending the ball flying into Washington's end zone, nearly causing asafety. However, the bounce went Oregon State's way and the ball stayed in the end zone, allowing the Beavers' Lavance Northington to recover it for a touchdown.[4] The extra point was good and the Beavers led 21–20, which was the final score, resulting in the biggest overcome point spread in college football history at the time.[5]
Oregon State players celebrated, shouting "You can blame this one on your media" as they returned to the locker room.[5] The Seattle media did not appear to ask Kragthorpe questions after the game.[5]
The loss had the effect of knocking the Huskies out of theRose Bowl, which was won by conference championUCLA.[8] The Bruins lost their final game of the regular season to rivalUSC and finished with a conference record of 6–2, which would have been the same record of the 5–3 Huskies, had they handled Oregon State (or rivalWashington State; both losses were in Seattle by the same score).[11][12][13] Having defeated UCLA at Husky Stadium in late September,[14] Washington owned the tie-breaker and would have played in Pasadena with a 6–2 record. They finished the regular season at 6–5 overall,[15] then defeatedColorado in theFreedom Bowl inAnaheim on December 30.[16][17]
Oregon State did not win any more games for the rest of the season and ended at ninth place in the Pac-10. Their next win over the Huskies was in2001 and the next win in Husky Stadium came in2004.
While some sports historians believe that theshocking 1921 defeat of mightyHarvard College by unheraldedCentre College ofDanville, Kentucky, constitutes the greatest upset in collegiate football history, the 1985 Oregon State defeat of 38-point favorite Washington constituted at the time the greatest outright loss of a Las Vegas favorite in American college football history.[18][19]
