Another banner week for the Pac-10 (ugh). At least we weren't swept by the WAC this week (thank you Stanford....), and no one was expecting much from Arizona State after the egg they laid against UNLV. Oregon's loss was unexpected, only because the Ducks rarely lose in Autzen Stadium. Anyway, here are the rankings:
- USC (2-0 overall, 0-0 Pac-10) - The Trojans had a bye this week, but they need to stay focused as they enter Pac-10 play on Thursday at Oregon State. USC does not have a good history of Pac-10 road openers (2002: L @ Wazzu, 2003: L @ Cal, 2004: W @ Stanford 31-28, 2005: W @ Oregon 45 13, but trailed 13-0, 2006: W @ Wazzu 28-22, 2007: W @ Washington 27-24). USC may be the only team from the Pac-10 ranked when the polls are released tomorrow.
- California (2-1, 1-0) - Why the jump over Oregon? The Ducks showed that they will struggle with their top QBs being injured. Cal had a misstep at Maryland last week, but they should regroup against Colorado State this week, then host a downtrodden Sun Devil squad. THe Golden Bears look to be the second best team in the Pac-10, which isn't saying much...
- Arizona (3-1, 1-0) - A misstep by Arizona on Black Saturday (last Saturday...) prevents them from being #2 in the conference, though beating UCLA isn't something to write home about these days. The Wildcats are in good shape to be 5-1 heading into a key matchup against Cal on October 18th before hosting USC the following weekend. A split of these games would be huge for the program, but becoming bowl-eligible, which they should, would be a giant leap for Arizona and provide some job security for Mike Stoops.
- Oregon (3-1, 1-0) - Leaky defense against Boise State. Down to fourth string QB. Things aren't looking good for the Ducks right now. At least they made the game against the Broncos respectable, but they must avoid any injuries against Washington State next week if they want to have any hope against USC, unless the Trojans are looking ahead to Miami, which they shouldn't, especially after Oregon toppled USC in Eugene last year.
- Arizona State (2-2, 1-0) - The Sun Devils should still compete for the Pac-10 Championship. It's just that right now, they do not look like the 10 win team from a year ago. Big game at Cal in a couple of weeks to help ASU get back on track, but after losing two straight and unable to live up to the hype, the Sun Devils need to refocus, as things get harder (Cal, USC, Oregon) before they get easier.
- Stanford (2-2, 1-1) - Stanford really is the 6th best team in this conference... Ugh. Oregon State is probably better than the Cardinal, but the Beavers need to show something before they can be bumped up here. Sluggish win over San Jose State keeps the Farm in the six spot, but its more by default than anything that they are ranked this high. If Stanford can beat Notre Dame next week, the momentum will be huge for them the rest of the way.
- Oregon State (1-2, 0-1) - Only because UCLA is looking worse by the week. Though the Beavers have two tough tests in the next two weeks against USC and Utah, both Thursday games.
- UCLA (1-2, 0-1) - That Tennessee game is becoming a distant memory. And also a bookmark for the last time UCLA scored an offensive touchdown. Ouch. Good news is that you can get tickets to the next Bruin game for only $10. Odds are the next game will be against their fourth straight ranked OOC opponent (BYU in Las Vegas Bowl, Tennessee, BYU, Fresno State). After a heartbreaking loss to Wisconsin, and a brawl against Toledo tonight, the Bulldogs will probably look to work some kinks out against the poor Bruins. 4-8 looks like the best case scenario for Rick Neuheisel right about now.
- Washington State (1-3, 0-1) - Took care of business against Portland State. Now look for their second win to come somewhere between Hawaii and the end of next year.
- Washington (0-3, 0-1) - The Dawgs need a win over Stanford, cause wins are going to be hard to come by for Washington the rest of the way.
And for the top 25...
- USC (2-0)
- Oklahoma (3-0)
- Florida (3-0)
- Georgia (4-0)
- Louisiana State (3-0)
- Missouri (4-0)
- Texas (3-0)
- Alabama (4-0)
- Wisconsin (3-0)
- Brigham Young (4-0)
- South Florida (4-0)
- Texas Tech (4-0)
- Penn State (4-0)
- Auburn (3-1)
- Ohio State (3-1)
- Wake Forest (3-0)
- Utah (4-0)
- Kansas (3-1)
- Vanderbilt (4-0)
- Texas Christian (4-0)
- Clemson (3-1)
- Boise State (3-0)
- Connecticut (4-0)
- Tulsa (3-0)
- Oregon (3-1)
3 SEC teams in the Top 5? Whoa...
No comments:
Post a Comment