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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Pac-12 football power rankings

Not too much movement in this week’s rendition of our Pac-12 Power Rankings. There was only one upset in the conference – a road loss by Arizona State that frankly isn’t nearly as big a deal as its being made out to be in some corners. Three Pac-12 teams had byes this week, making them extremely difficult to rank. But rank we did, and if you find these rankings wanting, please remember that they are a snapshot of the conference as it stands today. They are most certainly not a predicted order of finish.

1 Oregon (5-0, 2-0 in Pac-12; last week: 1) On the road against a ranked opponent, an upset still seems unlikely for the Ducks.

2 Stanford (5-0, 3-0 in Pac-12; last week: 2) The Cardinal survived a home scare against a UW team that played exceptionally well.

3 Washington (4-1, 1-1; last week: 3) If you give a team three points for being at home, than UW and Stanford are neck and neck following UW’s 31-28 loss. Seems about right given how close the game truly was.

4 UCLA (4-0, 2-0; last week: 5) Oh, hey! A Pac-12 South team! Cute. I don’t feel great about moving the Bruins up after an ugly win over Utah, but UCLA is undefeated and obviously talented.

5 Arizona St. (3-2, 1-1; last week: 3) I know, ASU didn’t look great last weekend in road loss to Notre Dame. But forgive me for not freaking out.

6 WSU (4-2, 2-1; last week:7) The Cougs were two plays away from making Cal look like an FCS team. This weekend they’ll face a team that has lost to an FCS team.

7 Oregon St. (4-1, 2-0; last week: 6) The Beavers flip with the Cougars despite lying dormant over the weekend. They’ll have a pretty good case for flipping back if they win on Saturday.

8 Utah (3-2, 0-2; last week: 9) The Utes put up a good fight against UCLA despite six picks by QB Travis Wilson.

9 USC (3-2, 0-2; last week: 8) Ed Orgeron will make his debut as USC head coach. How long will his honeymoon period be? Stay tuned …

10 Arizona (3-1, 0-1; last week: 10) Who made better use of their bye week, USC or Arizona? Wildcats hope Lane Kiffin wasn’t the only thing holding USC back.

1 1 Colorado (2-2, 0-2; last week: 12) Buffaloes take lead against Ducks! … For about six minutes. Credit to Colorado for making the effort.

12 Cal (1-4, 0-2) Cal is not going to be very good in Sonny Dykes’ first season.