– Cal tailback Jahvid Best slammed to the ground after a terrifying fall into the end zone and the Golden Bears never recovered from losing their star.
Sean Canfield and Oregon State were too much for stunned Cal.
Canfield threw for 342 yards and two touchdowns and ran for a score Saturday night in Oregon State's 31-14 victory over No. 23 Cal, which lost Best to a concussion in the second quarter.
The Bears, who had won three in a row to get back in the Top 25, tried to regroup after watching Best land on his head in the end zone following a leaping touchdown over a defender.
But they looked out of sync and lost their fifth in a row at home to the Beavers. Oregon State became bowl eligible.
"It's a great win to beat Cal down here again," Canfield said. "I've never lost down here, and it's nice to go out that way."
Best briefly lost consciousness. He was carted off the field and taken to the emergency room. He had movement in all of his extremities, something coach Jeff Tedford quickly told his players. Tedford said results of an initial exam came out normal.
"It's very sobering when that happens," Tedford said. "When it happened, it was unbelievably scary. He was out of it pretty good."
Canfield got everybody involved. He completed 29 of 39 passes with nine to Jacquizz Rodgers and six each to James Rodgers and Joe Halahuni. It was the third consecutive game Cal gave up more than 300 yards in the air.
Jacquizz Rodgers was held to 67 yards rushing on 25 carries but had a late 24-yard touchdown run.
Cal, meanwhile, struggled to get anything going offensively – and that only became worse after Best's injury. The Bears were held to one first down and 45 yards in the first quarter, 37 of those coming on one pass play.
Best's helmet came off on impact. He vaulted into the air over Oregon State safety Cameron Collins and was at least 5 feet off the ground. Best's jersey was removed, and he was wearing an oxygen mask when taken away.
Best missed practice Tuesday and Wednesday with a slight concussion sustained at Arizona State last Saturday.
The latest injury – with 6:07 before halftime – silenced Memorial Stadium, where fans chanted "Jahvid! Jahvid!" before everything went quiet to see what happened with the 20-year-old junior.
"I was standing right there. You knew right when he landed it was something," Cal quarterback Kevin Riley said. "His eyes were blank and he was trying to breathe."
Riley, who was helped off the field just before halftime after a hard hit, was 19 of 34 for 200 yards and one touchdown, a late three-yarder to Verran Tucker.
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