Still not a bad day for Hartley

September 17, 2006 01:06 am

— EUGENE, Ore. — Garrett Hartley was in dreamland Saturday. He’d already connected on four straight field goals, but he had something bigger on his plate.
He was 44 yards away from giving Oklahoma one of its most euphoric wins in school history.
Sure, the Sooners had blown a 13-point lead in the final 3 minutes. But one last field goal would erase the memories. Hartley was dying for the opportunity.
“That’s what all kickers want to have,” he said. “You want the game to come down to you.”
Essentially, it did in No. 15 OU’s 34-33 loss to No. 18 Oregon at Autzen Stadium.
Reggie Smith’s kickoff return to the Ducks’ 27 set the wheels in motion. OU handed the ball to Adrian Peterson to move it to the middle of field for the climax in a drama-filled afternoon.
He laughed with Peterson before jogging out on the field. The pressure was what made the moment worth savoring.
But Hartley will never know for sure what would have been able to achieve the dream.
His 44-yard field goal as time expired was blocked by the Ducks’ Blair Phillips sending a raucous crowd into euphoria. Oregon’s fans rushed the field and celebrated like the Ducks had just won a national title.
“They got a good push up front and I was able to get my hand on it,” Phillips said.
But Hartley, whose four field goals tied a school record, will be haunted by the last one, because he’ll never know for sure if he would have been able to go 5-for-5.
“It felt like a solid connection and a couple guys in the locker room said they felt like it was going to be good,” Hartley said. “Honestly, I wish I could have missed it wide left, then I would know for sure. This way, I thought it was going to be good and it got batted down.”
OU coach Bob Stoops certainly wasn’t critical. He thought the protection might have broken down.
That gave little solace to Hartley. The question is always going to haunt him.
“This is my job on the team,” he said. “I’m here to make field goals. I would have much rather missed knowing it was my fault than not know for sure.”