On the first drive of the game Oregon linebacker Jeffrey Bassa wrested a bobbled ball away from Buckeye tight end Will Kacmarek at the Oregon 21. Bassa's athletic play would have ended the OSU threat, and replays showed Kacmarek never caught the ball. It was bouncing free on his chest when Bassa snatched it away, but the play was never reviewed, the visitors awarded a first down and a 32-yard gain.
In that moment it felt like this might be another night of advancing dread, lost opportunities, unfairness, regrettable decisions, another of the same old heartbreaks that plagued Duck fans in two dozen other big games, games of coming so close, games of might-have-beens and lost momentum.
This one didn't turn out that way. Instead, the Ducks answered every challenge and took back the lead five times, the last on a 74-yard field goal drive late in the fourth quarter, the third time this year that Dillon Gabriel and the offense have won a game with a poised drive on the last full possession of the game.
Longtime Oregon coach Mike Bellotti used to have a saying he resorted to in moments of frustration and defeat. He would tell the press, "We didn't lose; we just ran out of time."
This time it was the opponent that ran out of time. With six seconds to play Ohio State quarterback Will Howard looked for a receiver, couldn't find one, scrambled for big yardage up the middle of the field but time ran out as he slid to a stop. The clock in his head failed him, the blunder of a quarterback who's 1-5 in close games.
It felt like a result that balanced the scales and shattered an invisible ceiling. Dan Lanning won a big game. A correct and crucial pass interference penalty got the Ducks down to the opponent's 9 on their winning field goal drive, then a rare but accurate call of offensive pass interference pushed Ohio State out of field goal range on their last series.
Now 6-0, Oregon is one of three remaining undefeated teams in the Big Ten, with wins over the current #2 team in the nation and #17 Boise State. Indiana and Penn State are the others. They have a clear path to the Big Ten Championship and the first 12-team playoff. This win puts them in a position to focus on improving and achieving their full potential as they get ready for that playoff. Lanning talks often about a commitment to the process, an idea he got from his time working for Nick Saban.
If the Ducks get some of their injured players back, offensive linemen Matthew Bedford and Dave Iuli, cornerbacks Jahlil Florence and Dakoda Fields, perhaps edge rusher Jordan Burch, they could be even stronger for that playoff drive. But the next challenge is to quickly shift their attention to a road game at Purdue on Friday night. Long road trips have plagued the visiting teams in this first year of the realigned Big Ten.
What a win. What a time to be alive. I hope you shared it with someone you loved. I watched with my wife, my brother, my sister, my sister-in-law and my nephew. It was jubilant and glorious, hugs all around. Isn't it wonderful how sports can bring us together, witnessing all that courage and grace under pressure?
Oregon 32, Ohio State 31, before the largest and loudest crowd in Autzen history, 60,129, 128 on the decibel meter.
In his game story Zachary Neel of DucksWire called it a new era in Eugene. Dan Lanning told him and the other members of the media, "In moments like this, where you want to be filled with complete joy, relief is one of the biggest feelings."
Hang on to the joy. It can inspire you to feel it more often in other contexts.
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