· The plethora of Ducks on a noose. One muddy and mangled after being
dragged by an SUV, another with its head torn off after being hit too many times
and yet another, a rubber ducky, being carelessly pulled along the ground as
a Beaver fan walks around Reser Stadium.
· Heated pre-game discussions in the bathrooms at Reser. People finally
coming to the conclusion, "As Matt Moore goes, so the game goes."
How true.
· Lots of on-field extra-curricular activities from both teams. Both
teams' emotions were at a high level, as they should be. There was lots of shoving
and woofing, a little extra contact at the end of most plays, but not too many
unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.
· Jason Vandiver making his first ever touchdown catch. Ooooh, I thought
that he was going to get another one in the second quarter.
· Matt Moore's entire game. What more can you say about Matt Moore's
season? He was once again in total control of his game. He saw the field, made
good reads, didn't take unnecessary chances, made accurate throws, provided
leadership…I could go on and on.
· Brady Leaf showing he is a much better runner than most Beaver fans
(including myself) thought he is. He is nifty with ball fakes; admit it; he
fooled you with ball fakes more than once.
· The Duck band being booed when they came on the field and when they
finished playing at halftime. Funny.
· Yvenson Benard's block on the long pass to Ruben Jackson. He flipped
the linebacker completely over with his block giving Moore time to make a perfect
pass. Yvenson is undoubtedly one of the best pass blocking running backs to
ever play at OSU.
· Offensive line pass-blocking. The offensive line blocked well all
game but really came up big on the last drive. Matt Moore had a ton of time
to throw on the last series.
· An olfactory image - someone in our section threw up midway through
the first quarter and the pungent miasma would waft in and out the rest of the
game. Hey, I never said every image would be a good one.
· The secondary covering the Duck receivers for long stretches. Brady
Leaf had way too much time to make throws but the secondary hung in there. The
one pass play that took a full ten seconds just about killed me.
· What a great sight it was. Alexis Serna kicks off after making a field
goal right at the end of the first half. The kick returner breaks past the kick
coverage. Alexis tries to make a diving tackle but misses. He then jumps up
to chase down the runner. I'm not sure what he was going to do if he caught
him but that play shows you what kind of player Alexis is.
· Ben Siegert blocking the point after touchdown.
· Ben Siegert and, seemingly, the entire defensive front busting through
to block the last Duck field goal attempt. Two kick blocks in one game by the
same guy. Inconceivable!
· Gerard Lawson making yet another great special teams play, knocking
Jonathan Stewart out of bounds on the kick-off return. Does the Pac-10 have
a special-teams Player of the Year award? If so, Gerard should win it.
· The last Beaver drive. Was it just me, or was there no doubt in your
mind that the Beaver offense would drive down close enough for a field goal
attempt? It seemed inevitable to me. The pass protection was there, Sammie Stroughter
was open, Matt Moore delivered the ball, the Ducks had to use their last two
timeouts and Alexis Serna put the kick through the uprights. Yeah, it pretty
much went the way most of us thought it would.
· Alexis Serna lining up for the last field goal. The kick didn't exactly
boom off of his foot but it was far enough, and more importantly, accurate.
That is what you call a money performance.
· My most enduring image is students holding Matt Moore aloft after
the game. Fog from the students' breath hovered over the crowd as they celebrated.
Ah, that is what college football is all about!
Who's Your Big Daddy?
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Big Daddy Orange can be reached at
bigdaddyorange@beaverfootball.com