Pac-12 Roundup Week 6

Beavers and Wildcats: "PILLOW FIGHT!"

Oregon State 37 Arizona 27
Lowdown: In a Desperation Bowl Part Deux (from ESPN’s Ted Miller), the Beavers held off the the Wildcats to notch their first win of the season. They used a big first half in which they took a 27-6 lead, before Nick Foles and company made it a game as only their passing attacks knows how to do. A critical goal line stop kept the Beavers from going 0-5 on the season. Both teams now have a "win," and are a combined 2-9 on the season.

Up Next:
Despite Arizona’s dangerous passing attack, they’re looking like one of the worst teams in the conference this season. They’ve lost five straight and their lone win this year is over Northern Arizona. It’d take a miracle for them to be bowl eligible at this point, though wins over upcoming UCLA and Washington would be a starter. But first off, they have to be beat BYE this upcoming weekend, and that’s no lock either.

Oh and for the record, this is the one year Cal doesn’t face the Wildcats, and their win over lowly Colorado is a non-conference win. Greeeeaaat.

As for Oregon State, this officially marks their second half revival. I’m only half joking here. Anyone else see them possibly winning their next three against BYU, WSU, Utah, playing Stanford close, and then rolling the Bears at ATT? Anyone? *Looks for hands.*


Arizona State 35 Utah 14
Lowdown: The Sun Devils kept it close with the Utes, before capitalizing on (to the Subway five dollar footlong tune) “five, five, five Utah turnooooovers, many many many...”

Utah struggled without starting QB Jordan Wynn and lost a critical third quarter (Cal fans know the pain of 3rd quarters all too well) and let the game slip away from them. At one point, I believe the Utes had 3 turnovers in 7 plays. Egads!

Up Next: Will somebody from the Pac-12 South please stand up? We all knew that the Pac-12 North was going to be markedly better than the South division heading into the season, but I didn’t think it would be this bad. ASU and USC are the only teams with winning records in the South, and with a win over both USC and Utah, the Sun Devils are basically shoe-ins for the conference title game this season. While the Sun Devils aren’t quite an elite team, they’re more than quality enough of a squad to be heads and shoulders above the rest. Just picture ASU Brock Osweiller towering over Matt Barkley and you get the idea.

If the Sun Devils get knock off Oregon next week, they’ll prove to everyone that they’re not just the best team in the South, they may be one of the best in the conference. But I actually wouldn’t bet on it.

As for Utah, even in down year, they’ve affirmed the difficulties of playing in an AQ conference and how challenging it is to go through the grind of playing competitive teams week in and week out. Utah fans who thought they’d come in and walk into a division title are likely seeing the error of their ways. The Utes head East to face Pittsburgh and travel to Cal the week after.

UCLA 28 Washington 25
Lowdown: Both teams really needed a win. UCLA to salvage their season and WSU to declare that they had fully arrived out of the Pac-12 basement. In the end, UCLA ended up making more plays when it counted, and showed signs of life that they are still planning on making it a season. The Bruins still likely lost their starting QB Richard Brehaut for the year to a broken left leg (a Bruin QB injured? Get out!) and rode the arm of Kevin Prince (straight face) to victory. WSU’s Marshall Lobbestael still played well enough, but threw a critical interception on WSU’s final drive.

Up Next: The Bruins have a chance to tout a winning record for the first time this season, as they face hapless Arizona in two weeks. Then comes a critical matchup against the Bears in the Rose Bowl the week after. Suddenly, bowl eligibility looks like a real possibility again.

The Cougars have to gather themselves as they host Stanford this weekend. As improved as they are, they don’t have much of a chance here and can only hope to stay healthy enough to get the much needed win over Oregon State the week after. Despite WSU’s impressive start to the season, they’re going to hover around the .500 mark all season and will need to kick it p a notch if they’re going to fight for bowl eligibility as their second half of the season is pretty darned tough.

Stanford 48 Colorado 7
Lowdown: The Cardinal unsurprisingly rolled poor, poor Colorado, as CU Coach Jon Embree can only shake his head. The Buffaloes suspended players from their already weak secondary, and Andrew Luck and Tight End U relentlessly dismantled the Buffaloes. In even worse news for CU, they lost their best playmaker in WR Paul Richardson to a few weeks to injury. Poor, poor Colorado.

Up Next: As I’ve been saying, the Cardinal will likely be 7-0 when they face USC at the end of this month, and quite realistically 9-0 when they face the Ducks next month. The conference is just that weak right now, and Stanford has benefited from a soft early schedule and consistency in every phase of the game. Those hoping for David Shaw’s early downfall have to be griping about Stanford’s weak non-conference schedule, missing both Utah and ASU this year, and oh, Andrew Luck.

As for Colorado, thanks for playing and we’ll see you next year. Seriously. I don’t see a possible win on their schedule until Nov. 12 at the earliest when they face Arizona. It wold take a miraculous run for bowl eligibility, and most signs are pointing to a possible two or three win season for the Buffaloes. Welcome to the Pac-12.