Washington State prevented San Jose State from scoring a two-point tying goal in the second overtime to secure a narrow 54-52 victory in Pullman, Washington, on Friday.

After Washington State’s Dylan Paine ran for a 7-yard touchdown early in the second overtime and quarterback John Mateer ran the ball into the two-point conversion, San Jose State’s Emmett Brown scored a 4-yard touchdown on a hit from Nick Nash.

Brown threw an incomplete attempt on a two-point attempt under pressure.

In the first overtime, passes from both quarterbacks were intercepted.

Dean Janikowski scored a 52-yard field goal for Washington State (4-0) as time expired, forcing overtime.

San Jose State (3-1) took a 46-43 lead with 26 seconds left when Brown found Trey Shun Hurry for a 20-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-10. Nash caught Brown’s two-point conversion.

Mateer, who threw for 390 yards and four touchdowns and ran for 111 yards and a score, then managed a four-play, 40-yard drive to set up Janikowski, who botched an early extra-point attempt with 6:11 left.

With just over five minutes left in regulation, Kyle Thornton intercepted a pass from Brown and gave Washington State the ball at the San Jose State 32-yard line. Two plays later, Paine scored a 1-yard touchdown with 4:56 left to give them a 43-38 lead. The two-point conversion failed.

San Jose State began the fourth quarter with a 38-24 lead after outscoring Washington State 21-0 in the third quarter. In the fourth, Mateer threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Kyle Williams and then a 36-yard touchdown pass to Josh Meredith to bring the Cougars within one point.

Like Mateer, Brown had a great game, completing 35 of 54 passes for 375 yards and four touchdowns. He also ran for a touchdown. Mateer finished the game 26 of 46 passing and two interceptions.

Floyd Chalk IV ran for two touchdowns for the Spartans.

Trailing 21-10 in the second quarter, San Jose State managed to change the momentum with a successful fake punt on fourth and 1 from its own 33-yard line. With 1:40 minutes left before halftime, Brown threw a 4-yard touchdown to Jacob Stewart.

Early in the second half, he threw a 19-yard pass to Nash to tie the score at 24-24. Brown later completed a 1-yard pass to the quarterback keeper, set up by a Jordan Cobbs interception, and a 55-yard return to the Washington State 20.

The Cougars led 24-17 at halftime. Janikowski’s 36-yard field goal with two seconds left capped a wild first half in which both teams combined for seven goals, 460 yards of offense and trickery.

–Field level media