CORVALLIS, Ore. — Vernon Adams passed for 411 yards and ran for 107 and the go-ahead score with 18 seconds left as Eastern Washington upset No. 25 Oregon State 49-46 on Saturday to become the third FCS team to beat a ranked FBS team.
Adams overwhelmed the Beavers in a performance in sure to attract attention around the nation. He threw for four touchdowns and ran for two, completing 23 of 30 passes despite leaving the game twice — once with cramping and a second time after taking a hard hit near the sideline.
Adams returned, though, and scored on a 2-yard run to put the Eagles up 49-46. It was the first time a team from the Football Championship Subdivision has defeated a ranked team from the Football Bowl Subdivision since James Madison beat Virginia Tech in September 2010.
Sean Mannion threw for 422 yards and Brandin Cooks had 13 catches for 196 yards for the Beavers.
Getting the ball back in the final seconds, Mannion led the Beavers down the field, completing two quick passes to give Oregon State a chance to tie, but Trevor Romaine’s 52-yard field goal attempt was wide right.
Heritage High grad Ashton Clark had 155 yards receiving and Cooper Kupp had 119 yards and two touchdowns for the Eagles (1-0), who are ranked fourth in the preseason FCS poll and third in the coaches poll. It was the school’s first win over a Pac-12 opponent. Eastern Washington went 11-3 last season and was the Big Sky Co-Champions before losing in the semifinals of the FBS playoffs.
The Beavers went 9-4 in 2012 and played in the Alamo Bowl. It was the second time Oregon State has lost to a FBS opponent in three seasons. Sacramento State beat the Beavers 29-28 in overtime in 2011.
The Eagles rolled up 625 yards of offense as Oregon State was powerless to deal with the mobile Adams. Eastern Washington scored on every possession except for one in the third quarter when Adams left briefly with cramping.
The Beavers led 7-6 after the first quarter as Eastern Washington’s first two scores were a pair of Kevin Miller field goals, but Adams threw a touchdowns to Clark and two to Cupp as the Eagles took a 29-17 lead into halftime.
Oregon State got back on top briefly in the third, with a 7-yard TD reception by Cooks and a 3-yard scoring run for Woods. The 2-point conversion made it 32-29 Beavers.
From there the teams traded scores. Oregon State led 46-43 after a 3-yard TD run by Storm Woods with 4:50 left. However, Adams orchestrated an 11-play, 75-yard drive, which he fitting capped with his final touchdown run.
