SportsDirect Inc. staff
Oct 27, 2013
No. 8 Stanford 20, Oregon State 12: Tyler Gaffney rushed for 145 yards and three touchdowns as the visiting Cardinal held off Sean Mannion, Brandin Cooks and the high-powered Beavers' passing attack.
Stanford (7-1, 5-1 Pac-12) held Mannion to 271 yards - 88 in the first half - on 41-of-57 passing with a touchdown to Cooks and sacked him eight times. Mannion leads the nation in touchdown passes (30) and yards (3,263) while Cooks, who paces the country with 13 TD catches and 1,256 yards, was held to 80.
Oregon State (6-2, 4-1) had a final chance when Cooks returned a punt 28 yards to the Stanford 43 with 1:43 remaining. The Beavers advanced to the Cardinal 7 before Mannion threw four consecutive incomplete passes into the end zone - the last intended for Kevin Cummings and broken up by Ed Reynolds.
Gaffney put Stanford ahead for good in the opening period when he bounced off the line, regained his balance and found a clear path to the end zone for a 4-yard score. After Joe Hemschoot recovered Victor Bolden's fumble on the second half kickoff at the Oregon State 12, Gaffney scored from the 9 two plays later.
Mannion passed for 111 yards in the third quarter, including an 8-yard touchdown pass to Cooks to make it 13-9 with 46 seconds left in the period. Gaffney answered when he capped an eight-play 73-yard drive with a 32-yard run to put Stanford ahead 20-9 with 12:01 remaining.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Oregon State, which had its six-game winning streak snapped, had allowed nine sacks in its first seven games. ... Mannion set a school record for touchdown passes in a season, while Cooks set school records for TD catches in a season and career (21). ... Each team failed to convert an extra point, with Stanford's Conrad Ukropina missing in the third quarter while Romaine's extra point attempt was blocked. Romaine kicked a career-long 50-yard field goal in the first quarter and his 39-yarder with three minutes left were the final points.