Oregon was in control and riding to a fourth consecutive Pac-12 title game, leading by as many as three touchdowns in the third quarter. And then it was crushed by an unrelenting orange wave.

The 21st-ranked Oregon State Beavers (9-3, 6-3 Pac-12) completed an improbable second-half comeback to stun the ninth-ranked Oregon Ducks (9-3, 7-2 Pac-12) and win 38-34. The Beavers have a shot at 10 wins for the first time since 2006. The Ducks — who need Washington State to beat Washington now to make the title game — have now lost to Washington and Oregon State in the same season for the first time since 2016.

Here are three takeaways from the game:

The ‘Middle Eight’ was emphatically green

As it has done all season long, Oregon won the ‘Middle Eight’ — last four minutes of the first half, first four of the second half.

There was a stretch early on in Corvallis where it looked like Oregon State was going to go punch-for-punch with Oregon. The Beavers bully-balled their way to a 10-7 lead in the first quarter, stuffed a fourth-down run from Oregon early in the second quarter, and blocked an Oregon punt.

The blow that left Oregon State on the mat for a spell came from the officiating crew. Running back Damien Martinez was stopped a yard short on third-and-2 with 4:18 to play until halftime. The spot was contested. A chorus of boos rained down from the stands at Reser Stadium as social media lit the officiating crew up for what looked to be a pro-Oregon spot.

Instead of a first-and-goal from the 4, Oregon State went for it on fourth-and-1 and was turned away by the Ducks.

Quarterback Bo Nix and Co. then mounted a 13-play, 95-yard scoring drive to take a 14-10 lead. It left 14 seconds on the clock, which Oregon State let run off to go into halftime and regroup.

The Ducks got the ball to start the second half and went three-and-out. Another momentum swing?

Jeff Bassa got it right back on the very next play.

Jordan James ran it in for a touchdown on the very next play, Oregon State went three-and-out on the ensuing possession, and then the Ducks drove for another score.

In a blink, Oregon was up 28-10. From then on, the game was the Ducks’ to control. Oregon State is not a team constructed to mount major comebacks. That seemed particularly true with Ben Gulbranson at quarterback. The Ducks have been the best ‘Middle Eight’ team in college football this season. The coaching staff harps on it. Oregon puts a premium on winning those minutes.

It proved influential on Saturday in an emotional rivalry contest. Coach Jonathan Smith could have kicked a field goal on fourth down after the controversial spot. The Beavers could have stopped the Ducks’ ensuing drive. Gulbranson could have been more careful with the ball. The officiating fiasco is going to steal headlines, but make no mistake, Oregon looked like it had stolen the game in the ‘Middle Eight.’

Special teams disasters bury the Ducks

Keyword: looked.

Oregon was in control, up 31-10 going into the closing minutes of the third. With 8:11 to play in the fourth quarter, Oregon State took a 38-34 lead.

Ben Gulbranson completed six passes for Oregon State all game. His last pass attempt came with 8:24 on the clock in the third quarter. It was a fumble that gifted Oregon a field goal.

Let’s be clear. A completely one-dimensional offense on the Beaver sideline didn’t claw Oregon State back into the game. Nope. Oregon State made plays late that it needed to make — a third-and-1 run to ice the game on the final possession — but Oregon simply blew it.

The Ducks had zero confidence in their field goal unit. The Ducks had a blocked punt. The Ducks had a botched punt that gave Oregon State the ball 2 yards from paydirt. The Ducks gave up a 48-yard kickoff return and added 15 yards at the end because of a facemask penalty. The Ducks had a kickoff return that set them up at their own 10 when Kris Hutson got caught in no man’s land.

Oregon State had four fourth-quarter possessions. Three of them started inside the Oregon 40. You only need one chance to guess how those drives ended.

Lanning went for it on fourth-and-1 at his own 29, just two weeks after doing something eerily similar in a loss to Washington and admitting after the game he got too selfish. The same thing happened on Saturday. Oregon failed to convert. Oregon State scored the go-ahead touchdown four plays later.

The decision to go for it against the Beavers was statistically a wash…

… and you can almost understand why Lanning would be leery of putting his punt team back on the field. Nix kept a read option and didn’t reach the line to gain. That was the offensive theme of the second half. Oregon was completely unable to get push in short-yardage situations.

The Ducks had a complete and utter collapse for the second time in three weeks. There’s no reason a team allergic to throwing the football should have been able to complete a 21-point second-half comeback. Oregon’s coaches made questionable decision after questionable decision in the second half. The Ducks went for it on fourth down five times. They didn’t convert a single one.

The inability to play even competent ball on special teams sticks out as a major reason for the loss.

Oregon State took the game at the line

The Beavers had three turnovers, lost the time of possession battle, and fell down in a major second-half hole. They played the exact kind of game they didn’t want to play.

And what did they do about it?

They did what they know they do best. Oregon State threw the football four times in the second half. FOUR TIMES! There was absolutely no panic from coach Jonathan Smith and his team. Everyone knew what was coming and no one in green could stop the Beavers.

In the game’s most important moments — on both sides of the football — Oregon State imposed its will on Oregon.

The Beavers ran for 269 yards as a team (adjusted for sacks). Martinez went for 103 yards on 15 carries. Jam Griffin went for 75 yards on eight carries. Deshaun Fenwick had 53 yards on eight carries. Freshman Isaiah Newell had two touches for 21 yards and two touchdowns. The Beavers averaged 6 yards a carry.

They held Oregon — the fourth-best rushing offense in all of college football — to 3.7 yards a carry.

That was a statement performance from Oregon State and a sign of what this program is under Smith.