2008 Civil War Oregon at Oregon State, Part III: The Best Beaver Game Ever

Author's Note: This is Part III of IV. Part I looked at the 112-year running history of the Civil War between the University of Oregon and Oregon State University. While not intended as the definitive authority on the history, it is intended to provide greater details and an overview of this great rivalry between two of the State of Oregon's oldest public institutions of higher ed. 

Part II recounted the greatest Civil War game played by Oregon to date. Part III focuses on the greatest Civil War win by the Beavers. Part IV will provide the author's breakdown of the upcoming game and his prediction of the outcome.

The Civil War is upon us. There is no neutral ground. Duck or Beaver—those are the only choices available.

It is at this time in November each year that Ducks and Beavers recall with fond memories past victories in the Great Civil War rivalry. While any win in this annual ritual is hard-fought and deserving of bragging rights for at least the coming year, there are some wins that are more equal than others.

While 2005 ended up being all about Green and Yellow, the next year was very different in just about every respect.

First, the game was played on Friday, Nov. 24, at Reser Stadium in Corvallis. Unlike the previous year at Autzen in Eugene, the weather was almost perfect for a football game, with one notable exception—it was pouring down rain. The temperature recorded a high of 53.6 degrees Fahrenheit for the day. Visibility was about nine miles with an average wind speed of about 11 mph.

Going into the game, Oregon was ranked 24th in the BCS Standings but not ranked in the AP Top 25 or the USA Today Poll. Oregon State was listed in the Others Receiving Votes for that week by the AP Top 25 and the USA Today Poll. The Polls and Rankings were once again very confused that November.

Oregon was 7-4, 4-4, coming off a 37-10 loss to Arizona 6-5, 4-4, the previous week, while OSU 7-4, 5-3, chalked up a 30-7 win over Stanford 1-10, 1-7, that same Saturday. Winning the Civil War would determine the invitation to a better, bigger, warmer bowl.

The following were the Oregon State seniors playing their last game at Reser Stadium in 2006. Each was recognized prior to kickoff:

Joel Cohen, LS, Bartlett, IL                    Zach Harris, OL, Portland, OR 
Rickey Herrod, CB, Sacramento, CA         Ruben Jackson, WR, Stockton, CA
Adam Koets, OT, Santa Ana, California   Joe Lemma, DE, Westlake Village, CA
Josh Linehan, OT, Banks, OR                 Kellen Marshall, CB, Las Vegas, Nevada
Matt Moore, QB, Valencia, CA                Joe Newton, TE, Roseburg, OR
Sabby Piscitelli, SS, Boca Raton, FL       Ben Siegert, DT, Glendale, Arizona
Jason Vandiver, TE, Whittier, CA

Here's the AP wire service story, courtesy of the ESPN web site archive (copyright 2006).

CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP)—In the pouring rain, Alexis Serna hit his 40-yard field goal and began leaping all over the field in victory, pumping his fists.

Serna has made some tough, pressure-packed kicks before, and he was last season's Lou Groza Award winner for the nation's best kicker.

But this was the Civil War.

Less than a minute later, Oregon State's defense came through and blocked a potential game-winning field goal by the Ducks. The Beavers won the 110th edition of the Civil War 30-28.

"We're certainly proud of our kicker. I can't say enough about him," Oregon State coach Mike Riley said. "He's a part of our great story through the years."

Oregon's Matt Evensen, put in after kicker Paul Martinez was ineffective, attempted a 44-yard field goal with 20 seconds left, but Ben Siegert knocked it down and the home team won this in-state rivalry for the 10th straight season.

"That's a difficult one to swallow in that we came back and gave ourselves an opportunity to win and our kicking game let us down," Oregon coach Mike Bellotti said.

Bellotti started quarterback Brady Leaf after a week of speculation on whether he would stick with Dennis Dixon, who had struggled of late. It was Leaf's first start for the Ducks.

Dixon did not play.

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