Another week and another round of mayhem for the Pacific 10 Conference. Some teams showed up, some didn’t. Blowouts, close games and upsets — it was all there. Where your team is ranked here? Save the page, because it’s likely to change by next week.
1. USC 4-1 (2-1 Pac-10) Last week: No. 1
The bye week must’ve been nice. The Trojans got to rest that physical defense of theirs and who knows, maybe they figured out how to score again. Huge test this week going to Notre Dame, and USC is not a lock to win the game by any stretch. Notre Dame can score with the best of ‘em.
2. Oregon 5-1 (3-0 Pac-10) Last Week: No. 3
If that Boise State debacle never happened, Oregon would be in the top 5 in the country right now. They are just a good team. Quarterback Jeremiah Masoli didn’t even suit up against UCLA, yet the Ducks won with ease. They have a bye this week, giving them some time to prepare for a trip to Washington that will surely be one of the most exciting games of the season.
3. Stanford 4-2 (3-1 Pac-10) Last Week: No. 3
They’re probably the slowest team in the conference not named Washington State, and that was exposed big time in the loss to Oregon State. That being said, they’re a smart football team that plays hard, and as long as they don’t fall behind early in the game they can win every time.
4. Arizona 3-2 (1-1 Pac-10) Last Week: No. 4
The Wildcats should not have lost to Washington. They were the better team in that game for about 59 of the 60 minutes. The talent is there for Arizona to be an elite team and win the Pac-10, they just need to do the little things right — like, say, scoring touchdowns in the red zone. The issues can be fixed, but they have to be done this week in a must-win game against Stanford.
5. Washington 3-3 (2-2 Pac-10) Last Week: No. 5
There are a lot of holes in this team. Their defense is suspect and the wide receivers leave a lot of plays in the field. If Jake Locker was playing at USC he would be out of this world. All that being said, they play hard and are a great story this year. The win over Arizona was more of a reflection of luck and momentum from their ridiculously loud home crowd, though.
6. Oregon State 4-2 (2-1 Pac-10) Last Week: No. 6
Figuring out whether the Beavers will be good or bad in a given week is like how fans of “”The Office”” felt about whether or not Jim and Pam would get together in the first four seasons. Will they? Won’t they? This week they did. Bye next week, then a date with the Trojans. Guess here is that “”they won’t”” week.
7. California 3-2 (0-2 Pac-10) Last Week: No. 8
No team in the entire country needed a bye more than Cal did. They’ve always had high preseason hype only to let it slip away with bad losses, but this year has already been worse than ever. They have a chance to make a statement this week against UCLA on national TV.
8. Arizona State 3-2 (1-1 Pac-10) Last Week: No. 9
The Sun Devils can apparently play some pretty tough defense, but the offense is still a little shaky. You would’ve liked to see a more dominating victory over Washington State than 27-14, but a win is a win. They’ll need to score more this week against Washington.
9. UCLA 3-2 (0-2 Pac-10) Last Week: No. 7
The Bruins are making me look stupid. Head coach Rick Neuheisel and offensive coordinator Norm Chow have so much talent and brain power going into planning that offense but why can’t they score? They’ll be fantastic in a year or two, but this year will be rough. They’re going to fall victim to some hungry Bears this weekend and continue the season 0-3 in the Pac-10.
10. WSU 1-5 (0-3 Pac-10) Last Week: No. 10
They aren’t very good, but they play hard. In their five losses, the Cougars have really only been blown out twice. I would not be surprised if they upset a Pac-10 team somewhere along the way this season.
