Everything was lined up for one of those strange Pac-12 after dark games.
Stanford, ranked No. 20 in the country, was visiting Reser stadium. On a Thursday night. In late October. Oregon State was coming off an inspiring effort in interim head coach Cory Hall's debut. Stanford's incredible running back (and Heisman candidate) Bryce Love was sitting this one out.
And then a defensive battle began. A scoreless first quarter. A long drive that resulted in Stanford settling for a field goal to go up 3-0 followed by a long drive by the Beavers that resulted in an Oregon State touchdown to take the lead at 7-3.