No. 2 Oregon Ducks (7-0, 4-0 Pac-10)
If Oregon wanted to prove it deserved the No. 1 ranking in the AP and Coaches polls and the national media attention, it needed to make a statement against UCLA. I think the Ducks’ 60-13 victory speaks for itself.
Time to see if Oregon can break the AP No. 1 curse and keep its record intact when it visits the Coliseum this weekend.
No. 15 Arizona Wildcats (6-1, 3-1)
It wasn’t that Matt Scott’s performance wasn’t appreciated, it just wasn’t expected. Scott and the rest of the Wildcats turned in their most complete game of the season at a critical tipping point in the season. It isn’t clear when starter Nick Foles will return, but with UCLA next weekend and Scott playing as well as he could, don’t be surprised if Foles comes in only if something seriously goes wrong in Pasadena.
No. 13 Stanford Cardinal (6-1, 3-1)
The Washington State Cougars gave the Cardinal a scare this weekend, nearly completing a fourth quarter comeback with 21 points scored in the fourth quarter on Saturday. Luckily, Stanford’s quarterback notched three touchdowns and kept the game just out of reach for the Cougars, leading the Cardinal to its best start in 40 years.
The Cardinal goes to Washington this week, but with Huskies quarterback Jake Locker hurt, this matchup may go easily in favor of Stanford.
Southern California Trojans (5-2, 2-2)
This weekend hosting Oregon might as well be the biggest game the Trojans will play this season. College GameDay is stopping by, and the atmosphere will be as close as USC will get to a bowl game all year. Don’t think it will be easy for the Trojans to play the AP No. 1 spoiler. Oregon has shown no signs of weakness so far, but you can bet that Lane Kiffin would like nothing more than to dethrone another No. 1 for the fourth week in a row.
Would it be as good as a bowl game? No, but it would certainly be a band-aid for the skid marks when Oregon ran over USC to take control of the conference last season.
California Golden Bears (4-3, 2-2)
Cal may be the most fickle team in the conference, playing relentless at home, but struggling away from Berkeley. If the Golden Bears can successfully get a win in Corvallis, Ore., they might round out the top half of the conference in 2010. Not to mention a win would put them on the fast track to make a bowl game for the eighth straight year.
Oregon State Beavers (3-3, 2-1)
Oregon State is still trying to prove that it belongs among the top of the Pac-10, and a win against Cal this weekend could be the perfect way to prove that. Although it will depend on which Bears team shows up, the Beavers still need to keep the conference losses down before it can go into cruise control. If they set their sights on the “”easy”” games against UCLA and Washington State after Cal, the Bears might finally get that elusive road conference win.
Washington Huskies (3-4, 2-2)
Jake Locker being hurt is a serious problem for the Huskies. He reportedly said that he was about 90 percent against Arizona last weekend, but on the field, his efficiency looked much lower than that. Locker, normally a threat to go deep and run the ball, had -23 rushing yards against a stingy Arizona defense. And it doesn’t get easier for Locker or the Huskies, After they host Stanford this week, they play at Oregon, possibly the roughest back-to-back opponents in the Pac-10.
Arizona State Sun Devils (3-4, 1-3)
Any hope ASU had in the beginning of the season of being a surprise team may have just gone out the window. With quarterback Steven Threet out with a concussion, the Sun Devils may be the first team to fall to a Washington State team that is inching closer and closer to its first conference win since 2008.
UCLA Bruins (3-4, 1-3)
The Bruins are in a very similar situation with ASU. With quarterback Kevin Prince done for the year, UCLA’s offensive chances look even bleaker, if that’s possible. The Bruins are ninth in the conference in scoring, and with Arizona leading the Pac-10 in total defense, it may be another disappointing loss for Bruins fans even if the Wildcats don’t let Foles on the field.
Washington State Cougars (1-7, 0-5)
It’s looking like Washington State will finally get a conference win in 2010. No, don’t laugh, it’s true. WSU is consistently hanging around with teams in the fourth quarter, and eventually, it will play spoiler.
The fight the Cougars put up against Stanford and Arizona in the last two weeks would push them ahead of both ASU and UCLA if only they could pull off a conference win.
