Teams visiting Reser Stadium beware: Beaver Nation is a component of the game, and they proved it for the sixth and final time last night against the Arizona State University Sun Devils.

Following a hard fought victory to become bowl eligible against the Stanford Cardinals, Oregon State University’s defense saw its second outing with new defensive coordinator Trent Bray achieve even more success with help from the crowd.

Starting strong right out the gate, the Oregon State redshirt-freshman defensive back Alex Austin intercepted a thrown short pass from Sun Devil quarterback Jayden Daniels.

Put into the hands of redshirt-sophomore quarterback Chance Nolan, Oregon State’s offense had a bit of a slower start, and ended up having to punt the ball with their first possession. However, Oregon State redshirt-junior punter Luke Loecher, aided by the help of Oregon State junior defensive back Rejzohn Wright, landed the ball at the Sun Devil’s one-yard line.

After another three and out for the Sun Devils, the next drive for the Beavers would go on to bear fruit for the team, as a 52-yard field goal made by Oregon State sophomore kicker Everett Hayes gave the advantage to the Beavers, 3-0.

Arizona State’s next offensive drive would start to show some trends for the team as Daniels slowly starts strapping the team on his back, becoming both rusher and passer to get his team into a prime position to score. Unfortunately for them, the Sun Devils had their first of what would become many false starts to force a field goal rather than the much more preferred touchdown.

Backup kicker Logan Tyler would try to get the first points for the Sun Devils, but missed the 32-yard field goal attempt.

Starting the second quarter from their own 34-yard line, an amazing 15-yard run by Oregon State redshirt-junior B.J. Baylor gets Oregon State just short of halfway to another score. Fast forward to six minutes into the quarter, and a touchdown pass by Nolan to Oregon State junior wide receiver Tre’Shaun Harrison, Nolan was able to give the Beavers a 10-0 lead to start the second quarter.

After another three and out for the Sun Devils, a Oregon State redshirt-junior inside linebacker Jack Colletto option play in addition to a run up the middle by QB Nolan was enough to get into the endzone for the second time for Oregon State. With insufficient pressure from the Sun Devil defense, Hayes went on to make the field goal, bringing the score to 17-0.

Showing signs of improvement, the Sun Devils made steady progress within their first few plays of the drive. But after all the work done by the offense as a whole, it would be yet another false start for ASU that would force the team to attempt a field goal. With just seconds left in the first half, Tyler went out for what would become his second missed kick, leaving the score at 17-0 halftime.

By this point, two things had become clear: the new defensive look for Oregon State is more than effective, and that penalties on the Arizona State offense were really starting to hurt their chances of winning the game.

Despite valiant efforts from both Baylor and Oregon State redshirt-junior wide receiver Tyjon Lindsey, and the whole of the offensive line, the first drive for Oregon State in the second half was stopped. In the end, the Beavers was forced to punt.

On his first drive of the half, Daniels found success using one of the best running backs, Rashad White, who rushed for 15 yards in the opening drive alone. Despite an assault into the depths of Oregon State territory, the Beaver defense held strong as the field goal was forced instead. Opting to use kicker Christian Zendejas, the attempt was good, giving the Sun Devils their first points of the game with six minutes left in the third quarter.

Oregon State’s next drive would prove to be as unsuccessful as the last one, ending with a punt to the ASU 15 yard line. From the first to the second half of the game, Arizona State’s defense has clearly adjusted to be much more successful than before.

Not to be one upped, the Beaver defense held fast to their territory. Of course, the three false starts by the Sun Devil offense during this drive can’t go unnoticed, especially as the crowd roared with oppressive jeering at the offense. Pass coverage from Wright and redshirt-junior defensive back Jaydon Grant prevented any attempts to recover the lost ground that those penalties wrought.

Entering into the fourth quarter, both teams showed near perfect performances from their respective defensive fronts. As a matter of fact, all it took was one blocked punt from the Sun Devils to give them a chance to score that they capitalized on. This coupled with a good kick, brought the Sun Devil’s much closer in score to the Beavers at 17-10.

Seeking to recreate the gap that was built in the first half, Baylor in the first play of the drive took the ball from the starting point of 25 yards all the way to just short of the 50 yard line. Finishing what Baylor started, Colletto went on to run the rest of the way in for another Beaver touchdown, rushing for 47 yards. Another field goal from Hayes would bring the once close game to a score of 24-10.

With only about 10 minutes left in the game, the Sun Devils were once again on their heels as the racking up of false start penalties continued on. Culminating in a forced punt yet again, Oregon State wasn’t able to capitalize on the relatively good positioning of their 40 yard line.

Once again, Baylor would lead a drive up the middle of the Sun Devil defense, and like the beginning of the game, Oregon State would be forced to make a field goal. Just once in the entire game, Hayes would miss the kick leaving the score at 24-10, with less than five minutes left in the game.

The last drive of Arizona State would see the same problems riddled throughout their 3 minute drive, which included a poor offensive line and a few false starts here and there. By the time Oregon State would get the turnover, there would only be 2 minutes left in the game.

Having no particular sense of urgency to score or lose possession of the ball, the Beavers left it to Baylor to make his signature run up the middle of the field to get them win position to kneel the rest of the game out.

This game of the season at Reser Stadium would also be the first time that OSU has won every home game of the season since 2000.

“Beaver Nation has supported us through a lot of tough years,” said Bradford. “So being able to take care of business in front of them means a lot. We know what we were playing for. This was a big one we had to get, and like I said, it feels good to take care of business on senior night to send these guys out on a positive note.”

Head Oregon State football coach Jonathan Smith also shared the same thoughts about how business was handled with the Beavers.

“I’m proud of the guys, it was a special night” stated Smith, “I can’t say enough about our defensive effort and performance. Those guys came to play— create some havoc. That’s a good offense we’re playing. The only touchdown [we] they gave up was one we practically gave them on the punt. Can’t give those guys enough props.”

“The crowd made a difference throughout the night,especially on defense,” Smith said. “I’m excited for our seniors to finish this way. It sets us up for another game next week.”