COUGARS

Kind of another lean day, all around the conference. But it's time to get back into a rhythm for the rest of the football season, so we have a morning post for you. Read on.
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• Washington State: Here's to wishing the Cougars had back-to-back bye weeks. I could get used to sleeping later. We'll have our first look at Cal – and after the Bears demolished UCLA last Saturday, many of you might have your hands over your eyes – this afternoon, but for this morning we start with this post about the latest football recruit from CougCenter. ... As a gift to those of you who remember when Robb Akey was at WSU, we offer Bud Wither's column from the Times on Akey and the Idaho Vandals.

• Around the Pac-10: We'll start with the national rankings, with the BCS really different from the polls, thanks to the computers doing a number on USC. ESPN.com's Ted Miller has his conference power rankings, while Nick Daschel at Buster Sports gives out grades. ... Washington: The loss in Tempe dealt a sharp blow to the Huskies' bowl hopes. ... Miller calls out defensive coordinator Nick Holt for his actions late in the game. ... Oregon State: Bye week, no football story. ... Oregon: The Ducks at midseason. ... Cal: Nothing here. ... Stanford: Or here for that matter. ... USC: Pete Carroll isn't a fan of the BCS computers. ...UCLA: The Bruins are in trouble in the Pac-10. ... Arizona State: The better Danny Sullivan plays, the more he will play. ... Arizona: The Wildcats were on target by picking Nick Foles to be their quarterback.

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• That's all for this morning. As we said, we'll be back later this afternoon with more on Cal. Until then …

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