Postgame Interviews

Boxscore PDF | HTM

Portland, OR - Sacramento State quarterback Garrett Safron threw a four-yard touchdown pass to Cole Hikutini with 30 seconds left to cap a 43-42 come-from-behind victory over the Portland State Vikings at JELD-WEN Field.

The TD was the fourth passing score for Safron and wiped away an 11-point PSU lead with 9:25 to play. The Vikings led almost the entire game and were up by 11 on three occasions in the second half. When DJ Adams broke away for a 66-yard touchdown with 9:25 to go, PSU looked comfortable with a 42-31 advantage.

But Safron, who accounted for six total touchdowns by running for two scores, led the comeback. He ran a quick six-play, 77-yard drive to close the score to 42-37. Safron hit Austin Dotson on a 26-yard touchdown, but failed on a two-point conversion attempt, with 7:38 to play. 

Portland State was close to victory, running a 14-play, 60-yard drive on the ensuing possession. The Vikings chewed up six minutes on the clock, but on fourth-and-one at the Hornets 15-yard line, Adams was stopped by a defensive line surge from Sacramento State.

The Hornets took over with 1:39 left to play. Safron then reeled off eight plays in just over a minute, driving his team 85 yards for the winning score.

PSU had 26 seconds left, but quarterback Collin Ramirez threw an interception on the second play to end the Viking hopes.

Safron was brilliant, completing 34-50 passes for 554 yards and four scores with one interception. After the Vikings held Safron to just 116 passing yards in the first half, he aired it out for 438 second-half yards. 

The Hornets totaled 628 yards of offense overall and Safron had three receivers with over 100 yards each.

"I wish I had an answer, because we didn't call anything extravagant or do anything we hadn't done the last seven, eight, nine weeks (on defense). All of a sudden guys got uncharacteristically undisciplined in the back, weren't paying attention and weren't ready for the situation. It was unfortunate," said Viking Coach Nigel Burton.

Portland State churned out one of the best offensive games in school history with 713 total yards. Adams had career-highs of 249 rushing yards and five touchdowns in the game. Ramirez threw for 272 yards and a score. However, the Vikings were stopped twice on downs deep in Hornet territory - once at the SAC 3 with 14:52 to play in the game, then again at the 15 with 1:39 to play. PSU also missed two first-half field goals.

The loss ended a three-game winning streak for Portland State and spoiled Senior Day for the Vikings. PSU dropped to 6-5 on the season, 3-4 in Big Sky play. The Hornets are now 5-6, 4-3.

GAME NOTES: SR S David Edgerson made his Big Sky-leading fifth interception of the season in the first half… SR LB Jaycob Shoemaker led the Vikings with 11 tackles… PSU's 713 yards of offense ranks as seventh-most in school history... Adams' 249 rushing yards ranks as 10th-most by an individual in PSU history... Portland State finishes its home schedule at 4-2… the Vikings travel to Eastern Washington next Saturday for their season finale. The game kicks off at 2:45 p.m. and can be seen on Root Sports.