Pac-12 Predictions Week 6

Gotta make it quick this week with USC and Utah kicking off in less than three hours. My goal is not to overthink anything here given that I'm 27-16 on my picks this season.

USC 31 Utah 17
USC's got a veeeeery tricky game here. Thursday night games are prone to some wackiness and this could be a potential upset with Utah's stout interior line and ability to get after opposing quarterbacks. But Utah's defense has also been exposed in lacking speed defensively on the outside, and that could spell trouble with USC's speedy playmakers at both the wideout and TE spots. For as much as USC's defense has shown to be far from elite, they'll have more than enough to handle Utah's struggling offense. Jon Hayes is trying but still just a mediocre QB and Jon White IV is struggling to move the chains with Utah's offensive line.

Arizona 24 Stanford 31
Interesting matchup which will tell a whole lot about both teams. I'll be paying particular attention to how Arizona's struggling defense matches up against Stanford's offense which needs to show they can move the ball even when defenses are stacking the box. It will also be interesting to watch how Stanford's secondary does against a Wildcat offense that is putting up videogame like numbers right now. Few forget that Stanford was 2 or 3 defensive plays away from completely shutting out the Huskies. I think Stanford's defense does enough to hold down Arizona, while QB Josh Nunes does enough to hold off critics for another week. Plus, Stanford's a different squad at home.

Washington State 20 Oregon State 31
It's a battle of the State schools up north! Both are headed in opposite directions however. Beaver fans would be remiss to completely dismiss a Wazzu team that played a good half against the Ducks. But Sean Mannion is playing out of his mind right now and Washington State's offense is about as one-dimensional as it gets. Throw in the Corvallis home crowd, and you've got the Beavers holding on for a win, though the Cougars will certainly make it interesting.

Oregon 42 Washington 23
I can't see how it doesn't come crashing down to earth for the Huskies. They were fortunate to get an inspired defensive performance against 9th ranked Stanford, but they were also playing against a one-dimensional offense. That won't be the case here with the Ducks having weapons at every position. Plus, Oregon's defense might quietly be one of the best in the conference.