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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Backup QB guides Stanford

Associated Press

STANFORD, Calif. – Toby Gerhart dived across the goal line for a 1-yard score with 25 seconds left, capping an improbable last-minute drive led by third-string quarterback Alex Loukas in Stanford’s 24-23 victory over Arizona on Saturday.

Aaron Zagory’s extra point was the decisive margin for the Cardinal (4-3, 3-1 Pac-10), who got their third victory in four games. The comeback was led by Loukas, a junior who was 1 for 7 with an interception this season in the only action of his Stanford career before he replaced Jason Forcier in the fourth quarter.

Loukas threw just one pass on his 12 snaps, but was effective running the ball. He gained 32 yards on four rushes during Stanford’s 65-yard winning drive, which began with 5:42 to play after Jason Bondzio’s second field goal of the fourth quarter for Arizona (4-2, 2-1).

After throwing a 21-yard pass to Ryan Whalen and running for 16 yards, Loukas gained 8 yards up the middle for a key first down at the Arizona 1 with about 90 seconds left. Gerhart, who rushed for 116 yards, scored two plays later.

Terrell Turner set career highs with 10 catches for 175 yards for Arizona, which made two strong fourth-quarter drives that stalled inside the Stanford 5.