In the Wildcats most topsy-turvy game to date, Arizona fell short in a 38-35 loss to the Beavers.

There were six lead changes in the game, the last one coming with 1:09 remaining on a 9-yard touchdown pass from OSU’s Sean Mannion to tight end Connor Hamlett.

Arizona got the ball back with a little more than a minute remaining and 75-yards to go. The drive opened with two incompletions before a 17-yard catch by Ka’Deem Carey with 49 seconds remaining.

“We knew what they were doing,” linebacker Marquis Flowers said. “They just executed better. We gotta do a better job tackling. But you gotta tip your hats off to them.”

The game, for all intents and purposes, ended on the next play when Scott threw an interception on a pass intended for Tyler Slavin to the Beavers’ Rashaad Reynolds.

“Losing is losing,” head coach Rich Rodriguez said after the game. “The kids are battling and they’re going to be all right. Just not right now.”

After struggling against Oregon in last week’s 49-0 loss to the Ducks, quarterback Matt Scott bounced back, at least prior to the game-ending interception, against the Beavers, completing 31-of-53 passes for 403 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. He had to leave the game for a play in the fourth quarter after being tackled awkwardly onto his shoulder.

“Matt’s a competitor,” receiver Dan Buckner. “He’s a warrior, he’s our general of the offense. He fights through adversity. We talk about hard edge, and nobody represented better than that.”

Mannion had a career day for OSU, completing 29-of-45 passes for 433 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions.

Wildcats came out firing in the second half, as Scott completed seven straight passes on a quick 10-play, 91 yard scoring drive in 3:31. Scott had to leave for a play after he ran for 21 yards and was tackled awkwardly onto his left shoulder. Receiver Richard Morrison subbed in for a play and rushed for no gain before Scott finished the drive out with a 3-yard touchdown pass to Austin Hill.

In the drive’s 10 plays, Hill had four catches including one 21-yard catch.

The next drive was an even quicker one with the Wildcats covering 53 yards in one minute for a touchdown, giving the UA a 21-17 advantage. Running back Ka’Deem Carey scored on the drive after bursting through the middle of the line for a 24-yard touchdown, dragging a Beavers defender with him into the end zone.

Carey had a stellar game, gaining a combined 183 yards — including 115 on the ground — and rushing for two touchdowns

The quick first two drives, and three-and-outs from Oregon State, didn’t leave the UA unscathed though, as center Kyle Quinn was injured and replaced by backup Addison Bachman. Quinn and safety Jared Tevis both missed much of the game due to injury.

“It hurt us when he went down,” Rodriguez said of Tevis. “He’s one of our best defensive player and he makes plays. We don’t have a lot of bodies, but whoever we have out there, those guys need to make plays.”

Patrick Onwuasor replaced Tevis and recorded eight tackles.

“Patrick came in and did a great job,” Flowers said. “Losing a guy like Tevis, that hurts. But you gotta keep playing.”

The Wildcats turned the ball over on their next drive after Beavers corner Jordan Poyer tipped the ball on a pass to Richard Morrison, who then juggled the ball only to have Poyer snare it back by the sideline for a wild interception. The turnover led to a Storm Woods rushing touchdown to put Oregon State back on top 24-21.

The Beavers brought the ball to the 40-yard line before Tra’Mayne Bondurant stripped the ball from Woods and recovered by Jourdon Grandon.

That turnover led to a 16-yard touchdown pass from Scott to Buckner. Scott perfectly placed the ball in the corner of the end zone, Buckner grabbed it and kept his feet in bounds to give the Wildcats a 28-24 advantage.

Then, Arizona shot itself in the foot. Or, safety Jourdon Grandon shot the UA in the foot.

Two straight penalties of 15 yards a piece for Jourdon Grandon brought Oregon State to Arizonas 28-yard line with less than nine minutes remaining in the game. A few plays later, Mannion found receiver Markus Wheaton for a 20-yard score, giving OSU a 31-28 lead with 8:35 remaining.

Wheaton finished the game with a game-high 10 receptions for 166 yards and two touchdowns and was complemented by OSU receiver Brandin Cooks, who had nine receptions for 149 yards.

Arizona responded quickly, though. Scott lobbed a pass up for Buckner for a 31-yard gain, and followed that up with an errant throw that was caught by Bachman — the backup center, who grabbed the ball on a deflection. After a defensive holding call, the Wildcats brought the ball within the 10-yard line and finished the drive out with a 7-yard passing touchdown to Hill, bringing the score to 35-31.

The defense was unable to make a stop in the end, and the UA dropped its second straight game, falling to 0-2 in the Pac-12 and 3-2 overall.