Vince Grippi’s Pac-10 picks

Remember those old cartoons where a guy has a little devil on one shoulder and a small angel on the other? That guy was me last week. After making my picks, I heard a little voice keep saying, “you’re wrong, the Ducks won’t cover.” I thought it was the angel talking, so I dropped 10 points off Oregon’s total and sent my picks off. It wasn’t until Saturday I realized the whispers were coming from the devil side. Now he’s laughing at me. Just like all of you. As always, the listed line is for your entertainment purposes only. All games Saturday. UCLA at California (Cal by 7.5): The Bears had an extra week to prepare for the pistol. It won’t make any difference. UCLA, 35-28. Oregon State at Arizona (Arizona by 7.5): The Wildcats had an extra week to prepare for … what exactly? The OSU team that lost to Boise State and TCU? Or the one that beat ASU? The latter. OSU, 31-28. USC at Stanford (Stanford by 9.5): The Trojans profess last year’s game means nothing. Yes, it does. But, ultimately, it doesn’t matter. Stanford, 42-14. Arizona State at Washington (Washington by 2.5): The Huskies are once again the hardest team to decipher in the Pac-10. If it isn’t ASU. Washington, 28-27. Oregon at Washington State (Oregon by 36): If there is one thing I’m sure of, the Cougar defense has trouble with fast teams. Wait, spread offenses too. And power running attacks. Shoot, the Ducks are all three. Oregon, 59-21. Last week: 3-1 overall, 2-2 vs. spread; Season: 32-6 overall, 18-13 vs. spread.