TEMPE, Ariz. — Jacquizz Rodgers ran for two touchdowns, Sean Canfield threw for two more scores and Oregon State beat Arizona State 28-17 on Saturday for its first road win over the Sun Devils in 40 years.
James Rodgers and Damola Adeniji each caught a touchdown pass for the Beavers (3-2, 1-1 Pac-10), who had lost 16 straight to the Sun Devils (2-2, 0-1) in Tempe. Oregon State bounced back into contention in the Rose Bowl race after losing its conference opener to Arizona last week.
Oregon State’s last win over ASU in Tempe came on Sept. 27, 1969, before the Sun Devils joined the Pac-10. The Beavers have struggled in the desert, but they made themselves at home in Sun Devil Stadium, which was barely half-filled on an 88-degree afternoon.
The Beavers took the crowd out of the game early by jumping out to a 21-3 halftime lead and coasting the rest of the way.
Chris McGaha caught 15 passes for 165 yards, both career highs, for the Sun Devils, who have dropped two in a row.
The Beavers’ first touchdown came on a blunder by ASU punter Trevor Hankins, who dropped a snap to set Oregon State up at the Arizona State 18. Three plays later, Jacquizz Rodgers scored from a yard out to put the Beavers ahead 7-0 early in the first quarter.
Two minutes later, Oregon State turned another big special-teams play into a touchdown. James Rodgers returned a punt 33 yards to the ASU 41, and two plays later his brother, Jacquizz Rodgers, sped 32 yards around left end to give Oregon State a 14-0 lead.
The Sun Devils cut it to 14-3 on a field goal by Bobby Wenzig, a freshman filling in for injured starter Thomas Weber.
The Beavers answered with a nine-play, 77-yard drive. The Beavers scored when Canfield hit James Rodgers for a 25-yard score, with Rodgers bobbling the ball before pulling it in as he tumbled over the end line.
Fans began booing as the Sun Devils’ offense sputtered. Late in the second quarter, a chant of “We want Brock” went up in the student section — a plea for coach Dennis Erickson to put in freshman quarterback Brock Osweiler.
The boos didn’t seem to bother Danny Sullivan, who directed a 10-play, 77-yard drive to open the second half, completing 4 of 5 passes for 54 yards. Dimitri Nance scored from a yard out to cut ASU’s deficit to 21-10.
ASU leads the nation in turnover margin, and its ballhawking defense got the ball back right away. Free safety Jarrell Holman batted a deep Canfield pass to himself for an interception — his third in two weeks.
But the Beavers held the Sun Devils on the next possession, and they put the game away on a 2-yard pass from Canfield to Adeniji midway through the fourth quarter.
Canfield completed 18 of 30 passes for 216 yards and two TDS, and he threw an interception.
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