The noise sounded like a jet engine, loud enough to damage your hearing, loud enough to throw an entire game off its hinges. Whatever the decibel reading at Scott Stadium was, it was loud enough to bother AJ Vaipulu, the Washington State right guard who couldn't focus for the life of him.
With a colossal upset hanging in the balance, the type that could define this WSU season and launch this team to heights it was never expected to reach, Vaipulu cost his group. Late in Saturday's fourth quarter, Vaipulu committed three straight penalties, handing No. 18 Virginia the keys to the turning tide: False start. False start. Holding.
Scott Stadium sounded like a spaceship launching.
The Cougars, up just one score, needed to move down the field to hang on. Instead, they blew a 10-point lead because they collapsed in the second half of a 22-20 defeat to the Cavaliers, who took the lead with a safety in the final moments. Leading by 10 for much of the game, WSU collapsed when it mattered most, allowing Virginia to end the game on a 12-0 flourish for the win.
If it's fair to call this a meltdown — Virginia was favored to win by three scores — WSU turned in an epic one. The Cougars looked excellent early on, taking a two-score lead. Their rushing offense looked the most energized it ever had. Zevi Eckhaus looked magical at quarterback. WSU's defense made Virginia's offense look lifeless.
How things change. The Cavaliers drew within a touchdown in the opening minutes of the third quarter, only for the Cougars to push their lead back to 10 with a field goal from Jack Stevens. But that's when things went south for WSU, which surrendered a short rushing touchdown to Virginia running back Harrison Waylee, who shaved seven points off the Cougars' lead.
After that, Virginia turned one of Eckhaus' two interceptions on the night into a field goal, knotting things at 20-all. Then, disaster struck for the Cougars, who couldn't move out of the shadow of their own goalposts. Penalties. Short gains. Then the safety, which came when WSU running back Kirby Vorhees was tackled in his own end zone.
It's a massive disappointment for the Cougs, who came close to upsetting top-five Ole Miss last weekend. They looked capable of finishing the job against Virginia, which entered 5-1. But WSU's offense looked incapable in the second half.
WSU drew first blood in the first quarter. Eckhaus dropped back and tossed what looked like a risky pass, throwing into double coverage to target senior receiver Josh Meredith, who hung on in the end zone. With that 32-yard touchdown completion, the Cougars took a 7-0 lead on their first drive, an excellent series.
Later in the second quarter, the Cougs opened up a 10-point lead on a field goal from Stevens. That was made possible by their defense, which looked excellent early on. That trend didn't keep up.
