October 3, 2015; Stanford, CA, USA; Stanford Cardinal quarterback Kevin Hogan (8, right) hands the football off to running back Christian McCaffrey (5) against the Arizona Wildcats during the first quarter at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
PAC-12
UCLA at Stanford – There is no room for either team to stumble after Stanford’s early loss to Northwestern and then Arizona State surprised UCLA in the Rose Bowl. Stanford’s physical offensive game behind Christian McCaffrey in its backfield should be the difference against an decimated UCLA defense, which has a starter out for the season in three levels of the secondary.
CARDINAL 31, BRUINS 20
Arizona State at Utah – The Sun Devils’ minds are prepped properly after rolling over Colorado, 48-23, in Tempe as they ran their record to 4-2 heading into Salt Lake City this weekend. The Utes are that physical Pac-12 South antithesis to Stanford of the Pac-12 North. ASU generally has not handled physical teams well and Utah behind Devontae Booker will be a test. Demario Richard, a key speedster for Todd Graham, left Saturday’s game on crutches with an ankle injury. Utah leads the Pac-12 (11th in the nation) in red zone offense, cashing in on 20-of-21 opportunities and the Utes are third in the Pac-12 in rushing defense, allowing only 133.2 yards per game.
UTES 34, SUN DEVILS 23
USC at Notre Dame – Tough news out of Los Angeles over the weekend as Trojans coach Steve Sarkisian has been fired and entered alcohol rehab after another problem at a team meeting on Saturday. Offensive coordinator Clay Helton takes over as head coach on an interim basis. This game was looked at as an elimination game for the national championship by pundits, early on. Now, with Notre Dame backup quarterback DeShone Kizer proving he can step in and run this team, the intangibles of a more talented USC team going on the road and winning are slim. C.J. Prosise is bourgeoning at running back for Brian Kelly as well.
IRISH 27, TROJANS 14
Oregon at Washington – The Ducks look to be in deep trouble after losing to Washington State in double overtime last week. In Saturday’s loss, Jeff Lockie and Taylor Alie combined for only 123 yards on 13 of 24 passing. The Huskies have developed an athletic defense that stymied USC’s speed on offense last week in a 17-12 win at the Coliseum. Washington looks at its first opportunity to beat Oregon since 2003 as the closest game in the series was a 34-17 Oregon win in 2011.
HUSKIES 41, DUCKS 27
Arizona at Colorado – Mike McIntyre has improved the Buffaloes’ stock, but they are still far behind the curve in this league. The Wildcats needed the 44-7 win over Oregon State after giving up 50-plus in back-to-back losses to Stanford and UCLA. Arizona rolled up 368 yards on the ground against the Beavers, while Arizona State held Colorado to 49 yards. The Wildcats could get this one over early.
WILDCATS 42, BUFFALOES 17
Oregon State at Washington State – The Cougars needed a season-starter and winning against Oregon was just that. The win caused Oregon’s first back-to-back home losses since 2002. Luke Falk threw for 471 yards last season in Wazzu’s 39-32 win over the Beavers. Oregon State does, however, lead the league in pass defense, allowing only 177 yards per game.
COUGARS 45, BEAVERS 27
BIG 12
West Virginia at Baylor – The Mountaineers still do not have the depth of speed on defense that the upper echelon of the Big 12 enjoys. That will be a major issue in this 11 a.m. CST clash on Saturday. Shock Linwood has paced the Baylor running game to a No. 2 rating nationally, with his 143.8 yards per game. WVU has given up only 140 yards per game on the ground. That number will inflate this week.
BEARS 52, MOUNTAINEERS 31
Oklahoma at Kansas State – The Sooners were hammered by the Texas running game as the Longhorns ran for 313 yards on 58 carries and controlled the clock in shocking OU, 24-17, last week. The Wildcats have a balanced attack behind a running quarterback in Joe Hubener. He ran for 111 yards and four touchdowns and threw for 157 in the 52-45 loss to TCU. Oklahoma will be focused and take away Hubener’s running game to edge the Wildcats.
SOONERS 38, WILDCATS 31
Texas Tech at Kansas – The Red Raiders laid 66 points on Iowa State last weekend and that number could inflate against inept Kansas. The Jayhawks are a shell of what the average Big 12 team actually looks like on both sides of the football. Pat Mahomes tagged the Cyclones for 428 yards through the air. He is likely to trump that against a KU pass defense that has given up 299 yards per game and 14 passing touchdowns.
RED RAIDERS 69, JAYHAWKS 17
TCU at Iowa State – The Horned Frogs are living a charmed life after the TD reception that gave them a 55-52 win over Texas Tech and then coming from 18 down at halftime time to nip Kansas State, 52-45. Gary Patterson is known for his defense, but has been eclectic enough to allow Trevone Boykin to take this offense and run with it. He threw for 460 yards last season in a 55-3 win in Fort Worth.
HORNED FROGS 52, CYCLONES 10
Last week: 5-4
Overall: 44-14
