FanPost

Connor's Thoughts From the USC Game

Going into last Saturday's game, let's just say that my expectations were about as low as they have ever been before an Oregon State football game. That’s what made Saturday’s 36-7 thrashing over the 20th ranked Trojans so great. So instead of going through the stats and performances of everyone, I’d rather take you through the Game day atmosphere in Corvallis. Enjoy!

Pre-Game

We arrived in Corvallis a lot later than usual, so when we pulled up to our parking spot everything was in full swing. The buzz of a night game, ABC, and a ranked opponent in Corvallis had everyone pumped up for another Beaver game, especially to erase the memories of last week. When we finally walked into Reser, the atmosphere was unlike anything I've seen since the 2008 Civil War.

One of the greatest pre-game rituals is our entrance video. And especially this week, since they added highlights of our upsets over USC, including some vintage Terry Baker stuff. By the time the team comes roaring out of the tunnel, everyone is on their feet screaming at the top of their lungs, and it is impossible not to get goose bumps. No matter what happened last Saturday and what has been said about our play-calling or bad defense, everything goes away.

Game Time

As the Trojan Kicker placed the ball on the tee, everyone is still standing and bouncing up and down. Reser is as loud as it's ever been, and it's finall time to start the game. It had been 169 long and painful hours since last Saturday, and it was time to get rid of those memories and start new ones.

Throughout the entire game, the noise level stayed the same. Loud and raucous. Despite being the smallest crowd of the season, it was by far the loudest. The USC O-Line did a good job of only having one False Start, but you could see that Barkley and Kiffen were having trouble with the noise as the Trojans had to take a time-out early on.

As the game wore on, it became more and more obvious that the Beavers were in control and nothing was going to stop them. But I think I speak for everyone when I was a little nervous when the Beavers only took a two possesion lead into the fourth quarter.

However, that all changed when the entire Beaver bench huddled up on the sideline and started jumping around and screaming. The traditional TNT song was interreupted by the entire stadium getting into the act. It was the single coolest thing I have ever seen at a Beaver game. From that point on, you knew that nothing was going to get in front of the Beavers on a cold Saturday night.

As the fourth quarter wound down to the final minutes with Oregon State leading 29-7, and then 36-7, the thoughts of earlier became reality. Oregon State was going to beat the 20th ranked team in the nation: By 29 points. Of course, only one thing remained. Were the fans going to rush the field?

 

The Field Rush

Normally, I'd say it was pretty silly to rush the field after beating a team ranked #20. But this was different. This was an Oregon State program who just went through the lowest of lows, and the fans needed something to celebrate.

With two minutes remaining, I made my way down from the 36th row to the first row, and as was the case in 2006 and 2008, the first couple seats were available. I watched from there for the final minute, scoping out the scene. Luckilly, there were two CMS people giving me about a five foot gap to rush through. Luckilly as in, they weren't police officers.

Where_is_connor_medium

Where's Connor?

As the clock it 0:00, I saw the corner of the Beaver Dam begin to spill out onto the field and I went for it. I planted one foot on the bleachers, the other on the wall, and split the gap like Jacquizz had all night. The two CMS people called out "Hey, you can't go down there", but I was already on the SC sideline, making my way to the mosh pit.

The field was chaos, as usual. Almost every thing imaginable was chanted, including "Beat the Ducks" and O-S-U. Most players had the common sense to get out before someone got hurt, but I did get to high five Halahuni. After about ten minutes of craziness, it was time to make our way back to the car. It was a day I won't forget for a while, and I'm hoping we can repeat it on December 4th.

Go Beavers! 

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of SB Nation or the Building the Dam staff. FanPost opinions are valued expressions of opinion by passionate and knowledgeable Oregon State fans.

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