1. Oregon (Overall: 8-0, Conference: 5-0, Last Week: 1)
2. Stanford (7-1, 5-1, LW: 2)
Both teams had last week in preparation for one of the most highly anticipated Pac-8/10/12 games ever and arguably the biggest midweek regular season game in college football history. Come next week, the top of these rankings while either be permanently entrenched (at least until next season) or they will be thrown into flux. We'll find out tonight.
3. UCLA (6-2, 3-2, LW: 3)
It wasn't pretty at times and the Bruins let an inferior Colorado team hang around but a win is all that matters for a banged up team that looked tired and reeling following consecutive losses to the Cardinal and Ducks. We'll see if slogging through an inconsistent game with the Buffs was exactly what UCLA needed to recover and get back to form for a huge showdown with Arizona.
4. Arizona State (6-2, 4-1, LW: 5)
The Sun Devils are definitely peaking as a team right now and absolutely obliterated Washington State on the road in a match up that sure looked losable earlier this season. ASU's defensive line is back too after struggling for much of the season. The Sun Devils have been dominant up front for three straight games.
5. Washington (5-3, 2-3, LW: 6)
After finally righting the ship with a win over Cal the Huskies took last week off and finally got a chance to rest and forever bury the toll of that brutal three game stretch against Stanford, Oregon, and Arizona State. The Huskies emerge from their bye with a likely win against Colorado before a separation game in the middle of the Pac-12 North with Oregon State next week.
6. USC (6-3, 3-2, LW: 9)
Once left for dead, the Trojans have risen and won three straight conference games that has flipped the outlook of their season from bottom feeder to potentially winning the Pac-12 South. The Trojans will need a lot of help particularly from Arizona State's opponents but the Trojans' skies are suddenly much sunnier with key players like Marqise Lee on the mend.
7. Arizona (6-2, 3-2, LW: 7)
The Wildcats have been a patchwork team all year, one that has defied what a Rich Rodriguez team traditionally looks like and their tattered sails almost came crashing down on them against California. Arizona might be the best example of a good bad team in college football this year. The Wildcats have built a nice record with wins over mostly bad teams and have done it with a great running back, competent but not dominant defense, and a very limited but mostly mistake free quarterback. The back end of the Wildcats' schedule is one built to expose them however. The 'Cat's face refocused and re-energized UCLA this week and then get a slight reprieve with Washington State followed by grueling match ups with Oregon and at Arizona State. 7-5 would be an accomplishment for an Arizona team whose fans looked at this season as a rebuilding year but seven wins may also be their ceiling.
8. Oregon State (6-3, 4-2, LW: 4)
After rising from the dead to become a fringe contender, the Beavers have fallen back to earth and can't get up. The "most productive passing offense in college football" struggled again and was largely shut down scoring only one offensive touchdown. Sean Mannion was under pressure all night from USC defensive line and Brandin Cooks once again couldn't shake free from coverage. Amazing what can happen after a team feasts on inferior opponents for two months and suddenly gets ripped apart once the difficult stretch of its schedule begins. Surely, no one could have seen this coming.
9. Washington State (4-5, 2-4, LW: 8)
Speaking of free fall, the Cougars know all too well how it feels as the men from Wazzou have lost three in a row and suddenly look like a team that could go from 4-2 to missing a bowl game. The Cougars are down with being slaughtered by the likes of Oregon, Stanford, and Arizona State but the Cougars will still definitely be heavy underdogs against Arizona and Washington on the road. There is hope for the Cougars against Utah at home Nov.23 but that only gets the Cougars to five wins and makes this once promising season a huge disappointment.
10. Utah (4-4, 1-4, LW: 10)
Every time you think about Utah knocking off Stanford it gets more and more perplexing. The Utes got their validation as a legit Pac-12 program with that huge win but so far they have parlayed that into a season highlight instead of a stepping stone to greater things. Utah had a bye last week which was a big deal for them as it gave QB Travis Wilson a chance to rest his injured index finger and resume throwing the ball without any pain. Utah has been a great home team and that certainly gives them a chance against the Sun Devils on Saturday the Utes' offensive line and defensive secondary will have to have collective out of body experiences to make it happen.
11. Colorado (3-5, 0-5, LW: 11)
It is really sad to talk about 22 point losses as being encouraging but that is what the Colorado football program has been reduced to over the course of the best eight years or so. The Buffs fought hard and did not give UCLA anything easy.
12. California (1-8, 0-6, LW: 12)
The Bears cashed in the opening possession of the game for their first lead since Sept.7 (let that set in for a moment) and hung tough against Arizona all game in a five point loss. Jared Goff had his best game at quarterback in over month but the scrappy effort wasn't enough to overtake the Wildcats. Cal's only hope for a conference win this season still appears to be limited to the next week at Colorado.
The Award Tracker:
Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year:
1. QB Marcus Mariota, So., Oregon (LW: 1)
2. RB Ka'Deem Carey, Jr., Arizona (LW: 2)
3. RB Marion Grice, Sr., Arizona State (LW: NR)
Honorable Mentions:
WR Brandin Cooks, Jr., Oregon State
QB Sean Mannion, Jr., Oregon State
RB Marion Grice, Sr., Arizona State
Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year:
1. LB Anthony Barr, Sr., UCLA (LW: 1)
2. LB Trent Murphy, Sr., Stanford (LW: 2)
3. DE Scott Crichton, Jr., Oregon State (LW: 3)
Honorable Mentions:
LB Shayne Skov, Sr., Stanford
LB Addison Gillam, Fr., Colorado
CB Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, Jr., Oregon
Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year:
1. RB Thomas Tyner, Oregon (LW: 1)
Bye week spent being more talented than Jared Goff.
2. QB Jared Goff, California (LW: 2)
3. RB Michael Adkins, Colorado (LW: 3)
Honorable Mentions:
RB Paul Perkins, UCLA
QB Sefo Liufau, Colorado
RB Khalfani Muhammad, California
Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year:
1. LB Addison Gilliam, Colorado (LW: 1)
2. LB Myles Jack, UCLA (LW: 2)
3. LB Scooby Wright, Arizona (LW: 3)
Honorable Mentions:
DB Daquawn Brown, Washington State
DL Eddie Vanderdoes, UCLA
LB Torrodney Prevot, Oregon
Pac-12 Coach of the Year:
1. Mark Helfrich, Oregon (LW: 1)
2. Jim Mora, UCLA (LW: 2)
3. Todd Graham, Arizona State (LW: NR)
Athletes in Space is named after ESPN/ABC's Kirk Herbstreit and his favorite saying that has spawned many drinking games. It is the most spectacularly mediocre Pac-12 Football and Men's Basketball blog on the internet and is filled with all the player analysis, game breakdowns, predictions, gambling advice, and news your pretty brain can handle. Owned and operated by Cam Stuerle, a lifelong Oregon fan, non-partisan writer, and an exiled college football lover living in Kelowna, BC, Canada.
Thursday, 7 November 2013
Saturday, 2 November 2013
The Post That Takes Your Money: Week 10
Double digits already? College football is going by too fast and we can't afford to waste these precious last few weeks of the regular season on bad slates of games. Unfortunately, that's what is happening in the Pac-12 with four teams on a bye and four teams getting their games out of the way on weeknights leaving only two Pac-12 games for today. In case you were wondering or possibly deceived into thinking this is somehow a good thing, it is not because one of the games involves California and the other prominently features Colorado. Since the Pac-12 schedule makers clearly decided to take this week off, I will as well by not posting Pac-12 Journey articles for either of these games. Sue me. If you really are a degenerate gambler and you need to wager money on Pac-12 football, here are my picks for today's games.
Arizona (-14.5) over California
I said last week to take Cal's opponents minus anything for the rest of the season and although I got burned by a back door cover last week, I'm sticking to it. California's defense is hopelessly bad against the run and Ka'Deem Carey and B.J. Denker should be able to gash them for big plays on the ground. Arizona's defense has rounded back into form these last couple weeks and should take advantage of a turnover prone QB (whoever it ends up being) and an anemic offense that cannot block in any situation.
The Pick: Arizona 42, California 14
UCLA (-29) over Colorado
The Buffs looked a lot better last week against Arizona but now is not the time to cash in on that improvement. The Bruins are angry and motivated after losing two straight despite being in the game late against Stanford and Oregon and are excited to be back at home for the first time in three weeks. Colorado simply can't match UCLA's athleticism on either side of the ball so even if the Buffs play disciplined and mistake free, they can't match up with the Bruins.
The Pick: UCLA 52, Colorado 20
Last Week Against the Spread: 3-2
Last Week Straight Up: 4-1
This Season Against the Spread: 37-31 (includes Thursday and Friday)
This Season Straight up: 54-14
Arizona (-14.5) over California
I said last week to take Cal's opponents minus anything for the rest of the season and although I got burned by a back door cover last week, I'm sticking to it. California's defense is hopelessly bad against the run and Ka'Deem Carey and B.J. Denker should be able to gash them for big plays on the ground. Arizona's defense has rounded back into form these last couple weeks and should take advantage of a turnover prone QB (whoever it ends up being) and an anemic offense that cannot block in any situation.
The Pick: Arizona 42, California 14
UCLA (-29) over Colorado
The Buffs looked a lot better last week against Arizona but now is not the time to cash in on that improvement. The Bruins are angry and motivated after losing two straight despite being in the game late against Stanford and Oregon and are excited to be back at home for the first time in three weeks. Colorado simply can't match UCLA's athleticism on either side of the ball so even if the Buffs play disciplined and mistake free, they can't match up with the Bruins.
The Pick: UCLA 52, Colorado 20
Last Week Against the Spread: 3-2
Last Week Straight Up: 4-1
This Season Against the Spread: 37-31 (includes Thursday and Friday)
This Season Straight up: 54-14
Friday, 1 November 2013
The 2013 Pac-12 Journey Game 68: Can USC Block Scott Crichton? Like At All?
Who is playing in this game?
The USC Trojans and the Oregon State Beavers.
Where is this game being played?
Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Oregon.
What time does this game start and where can I find it on my television?
6:00 PM (PT) on ESPN2
What is the point spread?
Oregon State is favored by five points (-5). The line opened at -2.
What should I watch for when USC has the ball?
How is USC going to account for Scott Crichton? Crichton, a two time All-Pac-12 selection well on his way to a third, has been a tremendously disruptive force both against the run and the pass and USC's offensive line is in flux. The Trojans have struggled to block all season and will probably be without starting right tackle Kevin Graf who was carted off the field last week and possibly left tackle Aundrey Walker who missed most of USC's practices this week. The Trojans are also depleted at tight end and running back, the two positions that need to help against pass rushers.
If USC can account for Crichton, they may be able to run the ball against the Beavers. While Utah and Stanford are both schematically different than the Trojans, both run the ball with power and that's what USC always tries to establish. Lost in the hoopla about how bad USC's offense has been all season is how well the Trojans have produced on the ground. Prior to last week, the Trojans had averaged four yards per carry in five of seven games and scored at least one touchdown on the ground in every game. Than last week came around and the Trojans ran for 30 yards on 30 attempts (that includes yards lost to sacks) with no touchdowns. Cody Kessler is averaging only 7.2 yards per pass attempt with three touchdowns and four interceptions so USC can't afford to put the game on his shoulders. USC's success on offense will be determined by the play off their offensive line. If the big boys play like they did against Utah, then they will be swallowed up. If USC can run block they way they did in most of its other games, then the Trojans will be able to put a few drives together.
What should I watch for when Oregon State has the ball?
A lot has been made this week of Oregon State being"exposed" by Stanford. It's true that the Beavers went into their game against Stanford leading the nation in passing yards and passing touchdowns and were shut down by the Cardinal but, can USC really replicate Stanford's formula? They can definitely do at least half of it. Stanford had success against Oregon State because they were able to get pressure by rushing only four men. OSU QB Sean Mannion loves seeing opposing teams blitz him because it leaves his receivers in one on one match ups and he can make a quick read and get rid of the ball within a couple seconds of the snap. What Mannion hates is holding onto the ball and waiting for a receiver to break open. As Stanford showed, if you can collapse the pocket with only your front four, then you can stop the Beavers' offense. The Trojans certainly do have the weapons in their front four to cause problems with stars like Leonard Williams and Devon Kennard but doubts linger in the USC secondary.
It's ideal to force Mannion to hold on to the ball and frustrate him but it won't do you much good if your defensive backs can't cover. Just because you drop seven defensive backs against five receivers does not mean you will automatically keep any one from getting open. This is the critical difference between what Stanford did and what USC can do. Stanford's defensive backs were immaculate against the Beavers while USC has struggled in the back end all year and is banged up to boot. starting corner back Anthony Brown will be out for a third straight game and starting safety Su'a Cravens is doubtful after being carted off last week. If the Trojans can hold up in their secondary, they will be able to slow the Beavers down to match the slow pace of their own offense. If the Trojans can't find a Stanford-like remedy for Brandin Cooks and friends, the Beavers will roll.
Which team should I bet on and which team will win?
With its starting offensive tackles and top three tight ends all either out or playing hurt, USC just can't run the ball tonight especially not with Crichton staring them down on the other side. USC should get to Mannion and take him down a few times but they just don't have the personnel to put a lid on Cooks the way Stanford did. Lay the points and take Oregon State to win, 27-20.
The USC Trojans and the Oregon State Beavers.
Where is this game being played?
Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Oregon.
What time does this game start and where can I find it on my television?
6:00 PM (PT) on ESPN2
What is the point spread?
Oregon State is favored by five points (-5). The line opened at -2.
What should I watch for when USC has the ball?
 |
| Christopher Hanwinckel/USA Today Sports |
How is USC going to account for Scott Crichton? Crichton, a two time All-Pac-12 selection well on his way to a third, has been a tremendously disruptive force both against the run and the pass and USC's offensive line is in flux. The Trojans have struggled to block all season and will probably be without starting right tackle Kevin Graf who was carted off the field last week and possibly left tackle Aundrey Walker who missed most of USC's practices this week. The Trojans are also depleted at tight end and running back, the two positions that need to help against pass rushers.
If USC can account for Crichton, they may be able to run the ball against the Beavers. While Utah and Stanford are both schematically different than the Trojans, both run the ball with power and that's what USC always tries to establish. Lost in the hoopla about how bad USC's offense has been all season is how well the Trojans have produced on the ground. Prior to last week, the Trojans had averaged four yards per carry in five of seven games and scored at least one touchdown on the ground in every game. Than last week came around and the Trojans ran for 30 yards on 30 attempts (that includes yards lost to sacks) with no touchdowns. Cody Kessler is averaging only 7.2 yards per pass attempt with three touchdowns and four interceptions so USC can't afford to put the game on his shoulders. USC's success on offense will be determined by the play off their offensive line. If the big boys play like they did against Utah, then they will be swallowed up. If USC can run block they way they did in most of its other games, then the Trojans will be able to put a few drives together.
What should I watch for when Oregon State has the ball?
 |
| Gus Ruelas/Associated Press |
A lot has been made this week of Oregon State being"exposed" by Stanford. It's true that the Beavers went into their game against Stanford leading the nation in passing yards and passing touchdowns and were shut down by the Cardinal but, can USC really replicate Stanford's formula? They can definitely do at least half of it. Stanford had success against Oregon State because they were able to get pressure by rushing only four men. OSU QB Sean Mannion loves seeing opposing teams blitz him because it leaves his receivers in one on one match ups and he can make a quick read and get rid of the ball within a couple seconds of the snap. What Mannion hates is holding onto the ball and waiting for a receiver to break open. As Stanford showed, if you can collapse the pocket with only your front four, then you can stop the Beavers' offense. The Trojans certainly do have the weapons in their front four to cause problems with stars like Leonard Williams and Devon Kennard but doubts linger in the USC secondary.
It's ideal to force Mannion to hold on to the ball and frustrate him but it won't do you much good if your defensive backs can't cover. Just because you drop seven defensive backs against five receivers does not mean you will automatically keep any one from getting open. This is the critical difference between what Stanford did and what USC can do. Stanford's defensive backs were immaculate against the Beavers while USC has struggled in the back end all year and is banged up to boot. starting corner back Anthony Brown will be out for a third straight game and starting safety Su'a Cravens is doubtful after being carted off last week. If the Trojans can hold up in their secondary, they will be able to slow the Beavers down to match the slow pace of their own offense. If the Trojans can't find a Stanford-like remedy for Brandin Cooks and friends, the Beavers will roll.
Which team should I bet on and which team will win?
With its starting offensive tackles and top three tight ends all either out or playing hurt, USC just can't run the ball tonight especially not with Crichton staring them down on the other side. USC should get to Mannion and take him down a few times but they just don't have the personnel to put a lid on Cooks the way Stanford did. Lay the points and take Oregon State to win, 27-20.
Thursday, 31 October 2013
The 2013 Pac-12 Journey Game 67: Halloween in Pullman
What teams are playing?
The Arizona State Sun Devils and the Washington State Cougars.
Where is this game being played?
Martin Stadium in Pullman, Washington.
What time does the game start and where can I find it on my television?
7:30 PM (PT)/8:30 PM (MT) on ESPN.
What is the point spread?
Arizona State is favoured by 11 points (-11). The line opened at -13.5.
What should I watch for when Arizona State has the ball?
ASU probably stands to have a good chance at moving the ball well by both land and air so it will be interesting to see how Mike Norvell balances the play calling for the ASU offense. Running Back Marion Grice has seen his yards per carry average drop from 6.59 to a still respectable 4.98 but has 18 total touchdowns, more than 15 entire teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision. Grice is going to be a heck of a challenge for Washington State, a team that has allowed 15 rushing touchdowns in eight games and is giving up an average of 173.5 rushing yards per game. The Cougars have been particularly exposed by spread offenses that feature a lot of zone read and the added threat of a running quarterback. Auburn amassed 295 yards against Cougars while the Ducks ripped them for 383 yards and six (!) touchdowns on the ground. Arizona State is not Oregon but their talent level is easily on par with Auburn and Grice in particular is more outstanding than any tailback who plays for the Tigers. Look for Grice to have an outstanding game tonight.
ASU could run the ball on every down and probably still win but when Norvell gets an itch to throw the ball, Taylor Kelly has proven himself to be an accurate passer and Jaelen Strong presents a darn near impossible challenge for the WSU corners with his combination of size and speed. Unless Washington State can get creative on defense and find a way to contain Grice and Strong, they'll be in for a long night.
What should I watch for when Washington State has the ball?
This may finally be Conner Halliday's last stand. Halliday has already thrown 17 interceptions this season, the most in the FBS. In addition to those many turnovers, a fair number of which came on bad throws and/or bad decisions, Halliday has been battered around and forced to play on one leg at times this season. Washington State finally had its first bye week of the season last week and that gave Halliday a 12 day reprieve to get healthy, work on his mechanics, and watch film. If Halliday can't keep it together tonight, he'll be done because he's already lost the fan base and he'll lose the coaching staff with another clunker.
Arizona State can definitely expedite Halliday's doom with a fine defensive performance. The Sun Devils' defense has been a disappointment of sorts this season based on their overall team play versus the number of All-Conference athletes they had returning from last year's stingy unit. Despite that, the Sun Devils have been scorching on defense lately, racking up 10 sacks and five takeaways in their last two games while holding both opponents (Colorado and Washington) to under 300 yards of total offense. ASU's tough start on defense can be epitomized by the play of its two biggest defensive stars, Carl Bradford and Will Sutton. Bradford and Sutton combined for 45 tackles for loss last season but struggled out of the gate this year. But against the Huskies they combined for five tackles for loss and both looked like their vintage selves for the first time all season. If Washington State can't hold up against ASU's defensive line, Halliday's decision making won't matter.
Which team should I bet on and which team will win?
There really isn't any legitimate reason to pick Washington State here. The Cougars do not possess a distinct advantage in any personnel match up against the Sun Devils but they may yet have a chance in this game for illogical reasons. It's Halloween night where weird things happen in a town like Pullman that is weird all year round. Furthermore Arizona State has shown penchants for struggling on the road, playing down to the level of its opposition, and failing to string together win streaks. My heart is rooting for Washington State because it would be nice to see them get to six wins and give their long suffering fans a bowl game experience for the first time in over a decade. However, my head does not see how the Cougars can stop Grice while protecting Halliday. I don't feel great trusting the Sun Devils because they've bit me in spots like these before but I will go ahead and lay the 11 points and take Arizona State to win, 38-24.
The Arizona State Sun Devils and the Washington State Cougars.
Where is this game being played?
Martin Stadium in Pullman, Washington.
What time does the game start and where can I find it on my television?
7:30 PM (PT)/8:30 PM (MT) on ESPN.
What is the point spread?
Arizona State is favoured by 11 points (-11). The line opened at -13.5.
What should I watch for when Arizona State has the ball?
ASU probably stands to have a good chance at moving the ball well by both land and air so it will be interesting to see how Mike Norvell balances the play calling for the ASU offense. Running Back Marion Grice has seen his yards per carry average drop from 6.59 to a still respectable 4.98 but has 18 total touchdowns, more than 15 entire teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision. Grice is going to be a heck of a challenge for Washington State, a team that has allowed 15 rushing touchdowns in eight games and is giving up an average of 173.5 rushing yards per game. The Cougars have been particularly exposed by spread offenses that feature a lot of zone read and the added threat of a running quarterback. Auburn amassed 295 yards against Cougars while the Ducks ripped them for 383 yards and six (!) touchdowns on the ground. Arizona State is not Oregon but their talent level is easily on par with Auburn and Grice in particular is more outstanding than any tailback who plays for the Tigers. Look for Grice to have an outstanding game tonight.
ASU could run the ball on every down and probably still win but when Norvell gets an itch to throw the ball, Taylor Kelly has proven himself to be an accurate passer and Jaelen Strong presents a darn near impossible challenge for the WSU corners with his combination of size and speed. Unless Washington State can get creative on defense and find a way to contain Grice and Strong, they'll be in for a long night.
What should I watch for when Washington State has the ball?
 |
| Christian Petersen/Getty Images |
This may finally be Conner Halliday's last stand. Halliday has already thrown 17 interceptions this season, the most in the FBS. In addition to those many turnovers, a fair number of which came on bad throws and/or bad decisions, Halliday has been battered around and forced to play on one leg at times this season. Washington State finally had its first bye week of the season last week and that gave Halliday a 12 day reprieve to get healthy, work on his mechanics, and watch film. If Halliday can't keep it together tonight, he'll be done because he's already lost the fan base and he'll lose the coaching staff with another clunker.
Arizona State can definitely expedite Halliday's doom with a fine defensive performance. The Sun Devils' defense has been a disappointment of sorts this season based on their overall team play versus the number of All-Conference athletes they had returning from last year's stingy unit. Despite that, the Sun Devils have been scorching on defense lately, racking up 10 sacks and five takeaways in their last two games while holding both opponents (Colorado and Washington) to under 300 yards of total offense. ASU's tough start on defense can be epitomized by the play of its two biggest defensive stars, Carl Bradford and Will Sutton. Bradford and Sutton combined for 45 tackles for loss last season but struggled out of the gate this year. But against the Huskies they combined for five tackles for loss and both looked like their vintage selves for the first time all season. If Washington State can't hold up against ASU's defensive line, Halliday's decision making won't matter.
Which team should I bet on and which team will win?
 |
| Thomas Boyd/The Oregonian |
There really isn't any legitimate reason to pick Washington State here. The Cougars do not possess a distinct advantage in any personnel match up against the Sun Devils but they may yet have a chance in this game for illogical reasons. It's Halloween night where weird things happen in a town like Pullman that is weird all year round. Furthermore Arizona State has shown penchants for struggling on the road, playing down to the level of its opposition, and failing to string together win streaks. My heart is rooting for Washington State because it would be nice to see them get to six wins and give their long suffering fans a bowl game experience for the first time in over a decade. However, my head does not see how the Cougars can stop Grice while protecting Halliday. I don't feel great trusting the Sun Devils because they've bit me in spots like these before but I will go ahead and lay the 11 points and take Arizona State to win, 38-24.
Wednesday, 30 October 2013
The 2013 Pac-12 Power rankings: Post Week Nine
1. Oregon (Overall: 8-0, Conference: 5-0, Last Week: 1)
Oregon's offense did everything it could for two and a half quarters to keep UCLA in the game. For a little while it seemed as though UCLA was getting into position to pull an upset but Oregon in a flash turned the game into a signature blowout victory. Oregon played a C grade quality game and beat a top 15 quality team by four touchdowns.
2. Stanford (7-1, 5-1, LW: 2)
Concerns about the offense specifically with quarterback Kevin Hogan not only remain but are being amplified but the Stanford defense is just filthy.
3. UCLA (5-2, 2-2, LW: 4)
Lose by 28 points and move up one spot? Yes, when you give the best team outside the SEC since 2005 a real run for its money for almost three full quarters. The middle of the conference struggling certainly helps.
4. Oregon State (6-2, 4-1, LW: 3)
The Beavers' once dominant offense was exposed by Stanford but that's not all bad. The Beavers did look great on defense and there aren't a lot of Stanfords remaining on the schedule to copy the blueprint that Cardinal just established.
5. Arizona State (5-2, 3-1, LW: 5)
On a night when the Pac-12's "next best teams" got beat by the two powers, it was probably a good time for Arizona State to have its second bye week.
6. Washington (5-3, 2-3, LW: 8)
The Huskies were better against California and snapped their three game losing streak but the Huskies' passing game is still pretty hit or miss and let's face it, it's only Cal.
7. Arizona (5-2, 2-2, LW: 6)
B.J. Denker has been legitimately good at QB for three straight weeks now and the Wildcats' defense is rounding back into form as well. After Arizona gets through lowly Cal this week, the Wildcats should be 6-2 heading into a huge showdown with UCLA with significant Pac-12 South implications.
8. Washington State (4-4, 2-3, LW: 9)
Spent the bye week preparing all the wackiness and absurdities that are sure to come from a Mike Leach coached team playing in Pullman on Halloween night.
9. USC (5-3, 2-2, LW: 10)
A valiant effort by the USC defense went unspoiled by a competent and largely mistake-free offense against Utah. The Trojans won over the Utes despite having almost half as many scholarship players at the ready.
10. Utah (4-4, 1-4, LW: 7)
Utah's program defining win over Stanford is looking more fluky by the day. The Utes have struggled to run the ball all year but the hope was that the Utah tailbacks would rise to the challenge and pick up their ailing quarterback Travis Wilson. That makes the health of Wilson all the more important. If Wilson can;t get back to gripping and throwing the ball properly and pain free, Utah won`t get to six wins.
11. Colorado (3-4, 0-4, LW: 11)
Colorado was reasonably competitive in a conference game for the first time in over a calender year but there is still a very long way to go for this young, fledgling Buffalo program. The Buffs brought their best effort and still lost by 24 at home, a sign of how truly down the Colorado talent pool really is.
12. California (1-7, 0-5, LW: 12)
I started this last week without explaining it but here is the gist of what is happening underneath California`s name from now on: I`m sick of talking about how awful Cal is so I`m just going to post a picture of a sad bear in this space from here on out. What happened to you Cal? You used to be so much fun.
The Award Tracker:
Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year:
1. QB Marcus Mariota, So., Oregon (LW: 1)
Mariota's streak of consecutive games with at least one passing touchdown and one rushing touchdown ended at nine but he did account for one TD with his arm raising his season total to 29. His numbers may not show it but he was efficient and mistake free; he didn't give us as many dynamic plays as we have come to expect from him but he gave the Ducks everything they needed to beat a good team.
2. RB Ka'Deem Carey, Jr., Arizona (LW: 3)
Carey ran for 121 yards and four touchdowns against Colorado and did most of his damage early and was later rotated in and out of the game in the interest of saving his legs. Four players lead the conference with 12 rushing touchdowns but three of those plays have played eight games and the other has played seven. Carey has 10 rushing touchdowns in only six games played.
3. WR Brandin Cooks, Jr., Oregon State (LW: 2)
Cooks had easily his worst game of the season to date so far but still managed a decent stat line against the great Stanford defense. Cooks' performance against Stanford was a hallmark of a truly great player, we all saw he wasn't at his best but he still managed a respectable out put of eight catches for 90 yards and a touchdown.
Honorable Mentions:
RB Bishop Sankey, Jr., Washington
QB Sean Mannion, Jr., Oregon State
RB Marion Grice, Sr., Arizona State
Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year:
1. LB Anthony Barr, Sr., UCLA (LW: 1)
Barr was a beast again against Oregon as he blew right past Oregon left tackle Tyler Johnstone for a strip sack early in the game and finished with four solo tackles, two for a loss, a sack, and a forced fumble.
2. LB Trent Murphy, Sr., Stanford (LW: 3)
Murphy had a career day against Oregon State, tallying eight tackles, three and a half tackles for loss, two and a half sacks, and although he was only credited with one pass break up, he got his hands on at least three passes. Murphy now leads the Pac-12 in tackles for loss and sacks which tempted me to move him to first, but Murphy has an extra game played over Barr and I still prefer Barr`s body of work to date despite the stats. The gap between Murphy and Barr has narrowed to a finite margin though.
3. DE Scott Crichton, Jr., Oregon State (LW: 2)
Crichton had a very quiet day against Stanford's offensive tackles with the exception of one play where he absolutely blew up Dallas Loyd to force a fumble, recovered said fumble, and returned it 36 yards. No surprise though that Oregon State wasted that great play by punting five plays later.
Honorable Mentions:
LB Shayne Skov, Sr., Stanford
LB Addison Gillam, Fr., Colorado
CB Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, Jr., Oregon
Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year:
1. RB Thomas Tyner, Oregon (LW: 2)
Tyner returned to being the third string tailback against UCLA but rushed for 77 yards and his eighth touchdown of the season on 14 carries. 66 of those yards came on Oregon's final drive and although the margin was 21 points at the time, the Ducks have looked to players like LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner to get that final kill shot late in the game. The fact that Tyner was able to get out there and push the Ducks over 40 points shows the Oregon coaches are building their trust in him.
2. QB Jared Goff, California (LW: 1)
Tyner's promotion to the top spot has less to do with Tyner's own performance (although he has been very good) and more to do with me having an epiphany over Goff and getting sick of him. He is a startign quarterback and therefore impacting his team more than any other offensive freshman but that doesn't mean he is playing will. Goff has been inefficient and turnover prone and has been benched twice already this season. Tyner doesn't play such a big role on his team but he is a far better player playing at a much higher level.
3. RB Michael Adkins, Colorado (LW: 3)
I'm keeping three candidates for this award strictly for the sake of continuity at this point. The crop of offensive freshman in the conference this season outside of Tyner has been very disappointing.
Honorable Mentions:
RB Paul Perkins, UCLA
QB Sefo Liufau, Colorado
RB Khalfani Muhammad, California
Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year:
1. LB Addison Gilliam, Colorado (LW: 1)
Gillam's numbers won't suggest it but he did everything he could to stop Denker and Carey from running all over Colorado. He wasn't credited with as many tackles as he should have and he wasn't always the first man to make contact but he was always around the ball and did well to track ball carriers. Unfortunately, the rest of Colorado's defense couldn't follow his lead.
2. LB Myles Jack, UCLA (LW: 2)
Jack had a great game against oregon as he made the big play on defense to set up both of UCLA's short touchdown drives. He made a great effort play to punch the ball away from Keanon Lowe to force a fumble from behind to set up UCLA's first touchdown. In the second quarter, Jack showed his athleticism by runnign around two Oregon blockers to swallow up a punt and set up another quick, short touchdown drive.
3. LB Scooby Wright, Arizona (LW: 3)
Another solid game with nine tackles for Wright against Colorado. Wright has gone from an under the radar recruit, to winning a starting job early in the season, to entering the top 20 in the Pac-12 in tackles.
Honorable Mentions:
DB Daquawn Brown, Washington State
DL Eddie Vanderdoes, UCLA
LB Torrodney Prevot, Oregon
Pac-12 Coach of the Year:
1. Mark Helfrich, Oregon (LW: 2)
I'm starting to wonder if Helfrich may actually be better as Oregon head coach than Chip Kelly, we'll have to wait at least three more years when Helfrich has his own players to pass a true judgement but Oregon's performance last week in contrast to last year was telling. Last year, the Ducks made mistakes and let Stanford hang around but they kept making mistakes, allowed the game to go all the way to the end, and lost. This year against UCLA, Oregon recovered from its mistakes, soffocated UCLA on defense and found the kill switch on offense soon enough to still win by four touchdowns.
2. Jim Mora, UCLA (LW: 1)
Mora should be pleased by seeing his team slow down the Oregon death machine but I love his attitude after the loss. Mora said emphatically that he's "sick of being close, close is not good enough. We need to start winning these games." His players will respond to that and won't be happy to settle for being close but not good enough against top teams. Of his team responds the way I think they will, UCLA will get a second chance to win one of "these" games against either Oregon or Stanford in the Pac-12 title game.
3. Mike Riley, Oregon State (LW: 3)
Riley's 4th down decisions against Stanford were highly questionable and they may well have cost his team the game. That being said, Riley's body of work this season is still greater than all but two coaches in the Pac-12.
Oregon's offense did everything it could for two and a half quarters to keep UCLA in the game. For a little while it seemed as though UCLA was getting into position to pull an upset but Oregon in a flash turned the game into a signature blowout victory. Oregon played a C grade quality game and beat a top 15 quality team by four touchdowns.
2. Stanford (7-1, 5-1, LW: 2)
Concerns about the offense specifically with quarterback Kevin Hogan not only remain but are being amplified but the Stanford defense is just filthy.
3. UCLA (5-2, 2-2, LW: 4)
Lose by 28 points and move up one spot? Yes, when you give the best team outside the SEC since 2005 a real run for its money for almost three full quarters. The middle of the conference struggling certainly helps.
4. Oregon State (6-2, 4-1, LW: 3)
The Beavers' once dominant offense was exposed by Stanford but that's not all bad. The Beavers did look great on defense and there aren't a lot of Stanfords remaining on the schedule to copy the blueprint that Cardinal just established.
5. Arizona State (5-2, 3-1, LW: 5)
On a night when the Pac-12's "next best teams" got beat by the two powers, it was probably a good time for Arizona State to have its second bye week.
6. Washington (5-3, 2-3, LW: 8)
The Huskies were better against California and snapped their three game losing streak but the Huskies' passing game is still pretty hit or miss and let's face it, it's only Cal.
7. Arizona (5-2, 2-2, LW: 6)
B.J. Denker has been legitimately good at QB for three straight weeks now and the Wildcats' defense is rounding back into form as well. After Arizona gets through lowly Cal this week, the Wildcats should be 6-2 heading into a huge showdown with UCLA with significant Pac-12 South implications.
8. Washington State (4-4, 2-3, LW: 9)
Spent the bye week preparing all the wackiness and absurdities that are sure to come from a Mike Leach coached team playing in Pullman on Halloween night.
9. USC (5-3, 2-2, LW: 10)
A valiant effort by the USC defense went unspoiled by a competent and largely mistake-free offense against Utah. The Trojans won over the Utes despite having almost half as many scholarship players at the ready.
10. Utah (4-4, 1-4, LW: 7)
Utah's program defining win over Stanford is looking more fluky by the day. The Utes have struggled to run the ball all year but the hope was that the Utah tailbacks would rise to the challenge and pick up their ailing quarterback Travis Wilson. That makes the health of Wilson all the more important. If Wilson can;t get back to gripping and throwing the ball properly and pain free, Utah won`t get to six wins.
11. Colorado (3-4, 0-4, LW: 11)
Colorado was reasonably competitive in a conference game for the first time in over a calender year but there is still a very long way to go for this young, fledgling Buffalo program. The Buffs brought their best effort and still lost by 24 at home, a sign of how truly down the Colorado talent pool really is.
12. California (1-7, 0-5, LW: 12)
I started this last week without explaining it but here is the gist of what is happening underneath California`s name from now on: I`m sick of talking about how awful Cal is so I`m just going to post a picture of a sad bear in this space from here on out. What happened to you Cal? You used to be so much fun.
The Award Tracker:
Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year:
1. QB Marcus Mariota, So., Oregon (LW: 1)
Mariota's streak of consecutive games with at least one passing touchdown and one rushing touchdown ended at nine but he did account for one TD with his arm raising his season total to 29. His numbers may not show it but he was efficient and mistake free; he didn't give us as many dynamic plays as we have come to expect from him but he gave the Ducks everything they needed to beat a good team.
2. RB Ka'Deem Carey, Jr., Arizona (LW: 3)
Carey ran for 121 yards and four touchdowns against Colorado and did most of his damage early and was later rotated in and out of the game in the interest of saving his legs. Four players lead the conference with 12 rushing touchdowns but three of those plays have played eight games and the other has played seven. Carey has 10 rushing touchdowns in only six games played.
3. WR Brandin Cooks, Jr., Oregon State (LW: 2)
Cooks had easily his worst game of the season to date so far but still managed a decent stat line against the great Stanford defense. Cooks' performance against Stanford was a hallmark of a truly great player, we all saw he wasn't at his best but he still managed a respectable out put of eight catches for 90 yards and a touchdown.
Honorable Mentions:
RB Bishop Sankey, Jr., Washington
QB Sean Mannion, Jr., Oregon State
RB Marion Grice, Sr., Arizona State
Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year:
1. LB Anthony Barr, Sr., UCLA (LW: 1)
Barr was a beast again against Oregon as he blew right past Oregon left tackle Tyler Johnstone for a strip sack early in the game and finished with four solo tackles, two for a loss, a sack, and a forced fumble.
2. LB Trent Murphy, Sr., Stanford (LW: 3)
Murphy had a career day against Oregon State, tallying eight tackles, three and a half tackles for loss, two and a half sacks, and although he was only credited with one pass break up, he got his hands on at least three passes. Murphy now leads the Pac-12 in tackles for loss and sacks which tempted me to move him to first, but Murphy has an extra game played over Barr and I still prefer Barr`s body of work to date despite the stats. The gap between Murphy and Barr has narrowed to a finite margin though.
3. DE Scott Crichton, Jr., Oregon State (LW: 2)
Crichton had a very quiet day against Stanford's offensive tackles with the exception of one play where he absolutely blew up Dallas Loyd to force a fumble, recovered said fumble, and returned it 36 yards. No surprise though that Oregon State wasted that great play by punting five plays later.
Honorable Mentions:
LB Shayne Skov, Sr., Stanford
LB Addison Gillam, Fr., Colorado
CB Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, Jr., Oregon
Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year:
1. RB Thomas Tyner, Oregon (LW: 2)
Tyner returned to being the third string tailback against UCLA but rushed for 77 yards and his eighth touchdown of the season on 14 carries. 66 of those yards came on Oregon's final drive and although the margin was 21 points at the time, the Ducks have looked to players like LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner to get that final kill shot late in the game. The fact that Tyner was able to get out there and push the Ducks over 40 points shows the Oregon coaches are building their trust in him.
2. QB Jared Goff, California (LW: 1)
Tyner's promotion to the top spot has less to do with Tyner's own performance (although he has been very good) and more to do with me having an epiphany over Goff and getting sick of him. He is a startign quarterback and therefore impacting his team more than any other offensive freshman but that doesn't mean he is playing will. Goff has been inefficient and turnover prone and has been benched twice already this season. Tyner doesn't play such a big role on his team but he is a far better player playing at a much higher level.
3. RB Michael Adkins, Colorado (LW: 3)
I'm keeping three candidates for this award strictly for the sake of continuity at this point. The crop of offensive freshman in the conference this season outside of Tyner has been very disappointing.
Honorable Mentions:
RB Paul Perkins, UCLA
QB Sefo Liufau, Colorado
RB Khalfani Muhammad, California
Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year:
1. LB Addison Gilliam, Colorado (LW: 1)
Gillam's numbers won't suggest it but he did everything he could to stop Denker and Carey from running all over Colorado. He wasn't credited with as many tackles as he should have and he wasn't always the first man to make contact but he was always around the ball and did well to track ball carriers. Unfortunately, the rest of Colorado's defense couldn't follow his lead.
2. LB Myles Jack, UCLA (LW: 2)
Jack had a great game against oregon as he made the big play on defense to set up both of UCLA's short touchdown drives. He made a great effort play to punch the ball away from Keanon Lowe to force a fumble from behind to set up UCLA's first touchdown. In the second quarter, Jack showed his athleticism by runnign around two Oregon blockers to swallow up a punt and set up another quick, short touchdown drive.
3. LB Scooby Wright, Arizona (LW: 3)
Another solid game with nine tackles for Wright against Colorado. Wright has gone from an under the radar recruit, to winning a starting job early in the season, to entering the top 20 in the Pac-12 in tackles.
Honorable Mentions:
DB Daquawn Brown, Washington State
DL Eddie Vanderdoes, UCLA
LB Torrodney Prevot, Oregon
Pac-12 Coach of the Year:
1. Mark Helfrich, Oregon (LW: 2)
I'm starting to wonder if Helfrich may actually be better as Oregon head coach than Chip Kelly, we'll have to wait at least three more years when Helfrich has his own players to pass a true judgement but Oregon's performance last week in contrast to last year was telling. Last year, the Ducks made mistakes and let Stanford hang around but they kept making mistakes, allowed the game to go all the way to the end, and lost. This year against UCLA, Oregon recovered from its mistakes, soffocated UCLA on defense and found the kill switch on offense soon enough to still win by four touchdowns.
2. Jim Mora, UCLA (LW: 1)
Mora should be pleased by seeing his team slow down the Oregon death machine but I love his attitude after the loss. Mora said emphatically that he's "sick of being close, close is not good enough. We need to start winning these games." His players will respond to that and won't be happy to settle for being close but not good enough against top teams. Of his team responds the way I think they will, UCLA will get a second chance to win one of "these" games against either Oregon or Stanford in the Pac-12 title game.
3. Mike Riley, Oregon State (LW: 3)
Riley's 4th down decisions against Stanford were highly questionable and they may well have cost his team the game. That being said, Riley's body of work this season is still greater than all but two coaches in the Pac-12.
Tuesday, 29 October 2013
The Pac-12 Weekend Roundup: Week Nine
USC 19, Utah 3
All year I've been saying that Utah belongs in the Pac-12 and had been showing themselves to be a team that could legitimately compete with anyone in the conference. That pretty much went out the window last Saturday. I know Utah has been a poor road team recently but there is no excuse for losing to such a depleted USC team at an empty L.A. Coliseum. Travis Wilson promised to "suck it up and play" for Utah at quarterback but the Utes fans probably wish he hadn't after he completed 5/14 passes with a pair of interceptions before mercifully being pulled for Adam Schultz who did not fare much better.
As for USC, it was encouraging for them to beat and display competent offense after last week's ugly showing against Notre Dame. It's hard to be impressed with Utah's defense forcing field goal after field goal when put on the field in their own territory throughout the afternoon thanks to the Utes' offensive ineptitude. The Utes held USC to 4.1 yards per play and gave their offense a chance to win all the way into the fourth but a handful of long passing plays from USC and a raging dumpster fire from the Utah offense did them in.
Thankfully for Utah, the second bye week is coming at a perfect time as Wilson will finally have some time to rest his hand and heal his broken index finger. Utah will return to the field in two weeks at home against Arizona State, a game Utah may very well need to win in order to reach bowl eligibility. The hits keep coming for USC though as they play on short week this Friday at Oregon State. The Trojans haven't won in Corvallis since 2004 and will have a more short-handed roster than at any other point during this road losing streak to the Beavers.
Oregon 42, UCLA 14
For about 42 minutes of game time, it looked like UCLA had replicated the Stanford formula and was going to take Oregon all the way down to the wire. Then Oregon stopped making mistakes and allowing the Bruins to hang around and simply pummeled UCLA out of the building over the final 18 minutes of the game. The Ducks were very sloppy from the get go handing UCLA the ball on a short field following a fumble on the second play from scrimmage and later gifted UCLA another short touchdown drive on a blocked punt. Anthony Barr was dominating Tyler Johnstone, Myles Jack was having a coming out party on national television and UCLA was rolling with confidence...on defense.
The reason UCLA let this game get away from them and allowed it to get out of hand was because the Bruins offense was totally ineffective and the defense could only keep them in the game for so long. The Ducks held UCLA to 3.99 yards per play (for sake of context, Stanford held UCLA to 4.03 YPP the week before) and although UCLA ran the ball effectively for awhile it was almost by design of the Oregon defense. The Ducks kept small numbers in the box and encouraged the Bruins to run the ball. The Bruins made hay for awhile but if they had one bad play that knocked them off track, the Bruins could not recover thanks to their anemic passing game.
Banged up offensive line or not, UCLA fans may have to face an unfortunate reality about their quarterback, Brett Hundley. Hundley is an amazing athlete and a great play maker. He made several very nice plays against the Ducks to extend plays and run for first downs. Both on his short touchdown run early in the game and on his conversion of a 3rd and 14 later on, Hundley dodged multiple tacklers in the backfield and did a tremendous job to create a big play when the Ducks had him and the rest of the UCLA offense dead to rights. Hundley is a great football player and exciting raw talent but a merely average quarterback who hasn't gotten better since last year.
Hundley made a number of poor reads in the passing game especially on the first play of the 4th quarter with UCLA trailing by a touchdown and facing a 3rd and 20 from midfield. Hundley had an open check down for five to 10 yards but forced a pass deep into coverage to try to get the first down and hit Oregon safety Avery Patterson right between the two and the one on his jersey. Had he taken the check down, UCLA could have set up a make-able 4th down or played field position and pinned Oregon inside their own 10. Instead, he threw a bad interception that was returned to the UCLA 39 yard line and a few plays later the Ducks were up 28-14, pretty much an insurmountable lead in Autzen Stadium.
I don't want to rag on Hundley because he isn't getting any help from his offensive line right now and I also don't like Noel Mazzone's offensive system that has him throwing so many useless swing passes that never work against fast defenses like Oregon. Hundley's slow development and lack of improvement is as much UCLA's fault as it is Hundley since he does possess a great arm and terrific natural passing ability but the Bruins' system allows for very few routes down field and it seems like Mazzone and perhaps head coach Jim Mora as well aren't showing enough faith in Hundley to make big throws and lead the team. I just hope Hundley is wise enough to come back for one more year in college and the UCLA coaches will reward him by tweaking the offense to allow Hundley to develop into a better down field passer.
These two teams were co-favorites for the conference two weeks ago but are headed in very different directions now. The Ducks will get a bye week to prepare for their massive showdown with Stanford that will likely decide the Pac-12 North. Meanwhile, UCLA will get no rest as they are back in action on Saturday but at least they get to return to the Rose Bowl and face lowly Colorado.
Arizona 44, Colorado 20
Speaking of poor ole Colorado, the Buffs showed their first real signs of encouragement in over a month (I know they won last week but what can you really take from beating Charleston Southern?), but didn't have the gas to hang with Arizona. True Freshman Sefo Liufau was okay in his first conference start at QB for Colorado. He made a few nice throws and coupled them with inaccuracy. He never really built much momentum one way or the other while Arizona's B.J. Denker continued to play well. He still isn't a threat to go deep and he will always be limited for a variety of reasons but he was efficient and (motsly) mistake free and did major damage on the ground.
Colorado has gotten better but once again they lack the athletes to compete. This is going to sound awfully simplistic but this game really came down to Arizona having Denker and Ka'Deem Carey while Colorado did not. Carey was great again scoring four touchdowns and averaging better than five yards per carry while Denker added 192 rushing yards of his own. Colorado seemed to have a large portion of Arizona's offense reasonably well defended but they were simply outrun and outflanked by Arizona's superior athletes. I like that Mike MacIntyre was upset in his post game press conference saying that this one hurt more than the others because he felt his team could win this one but unfortunately, Colorado just does not have the players right now. The Buffs gave a great effort and hung in for a long time with the Wildcats and still ended up losing by 24 at home. A game like this can really set in the reality of what MacIntyre is facing in his effort to rebuild this program.
Stanford 20, Oregon State 12
Stanford has built a reputation for making great offenses look ordinary and Oregon State looked very ordinary against the Cardinal. Oregon State came into the game with the nation's leading passing offense both in terms of yards and touchdowns. Using raw yardage totals as a basis for the assessment of an offense is flawed for a number of reasons but the Beavers had been impressive throwing the ball regardless. The problem for Oregon State was not using unfiltered numbers to make themselves artificially look better than they actually were. The real problem was the Beavers doing all their work against inferior competition, never facing a defense ranked better than 76th in the nation in pass efficiency defense before this past weekend.
All year we waited for the Beavers to struggle to throw the ball. On Saturday, they struggled and they had nothing else to fall back on. As it turns out, you can only survive for so long without the ability to run the ball and the Beavers' 2.43 yards per rush average caught up to them. Stanford's secondary had a sublime performance in pass coverage which led to Sean Mannion holding onto the ball for way too long. Unlike Brett Hundley for UCLA against Oregon, Mannion is a statue in the pocket and was unable to extend plays under pressure. Stanford sacked Mannion eight times and put a blanket on national leading receiver Brandin Cooks. Cooks had a reasonable game with 80 yards and his 13th touchdown of the season on nine catches but the real key was that he could not break away and get yards after the catch. Cooks had been great all season as much for his ability to turn short passes up field as his ability to haul in bombs deep in the secondary. Cooks was not able to get separation all night and Stanford did a great job as they always do rallying to the ball and tackling in space.
The Beavers' offense was in reverse all night and that made Mike Riley's coaching performance all the more frustrating. Riley twice passed up make-able field goals to go for it on fourth down in 4th down and came up short both times. The Beavers could have an probably should have been up either 6-0 or 9-0 at halftime. Off the second of those two missed 4th downs, the Stanford offense that had been dormant in the first half suddenly reeled off a long touchdown drive buoyed by plays of 27 and 37 yards (Stanford had zero plays longer than 20 yards up until that point) and took a 7-3 lead into the half. After Oregon State fumbled the opening kickoff of the second half, Stanford quickly cashed in to go up 13-3 following a missed extra point and suddenly Stanford was in full control.
As Oregon State sputtered on offense and the clock started rolling, I never felt at any point in the second half that Oregon State had any chance to win. Yet as I'm sure everyone else did, I kept looking down at the scoreboard and seeing Stanford not pull away and thinking, "Oregon State is two lucky bounces away from flipping this game." And it almost happened when a Tyler Gaffney fumble set up a field goal to cut the Stanford lead to 20-12 and a quick three and out gave Oregon State the ball with a chance to tie. This illustrates what caused Stanford's undoing against Utah and what will, at this point, be their undoing in nine days against Oregon. The Cardinal are so one-dimensional on offense without the consistent threat of the pass and are so predictable and conservative with their run game that they keep opponents in the game even when they are dominating.
Kevin Hogan is not a gifted passer and is not effective throwing from the pocket but he is a very good athlete who operates well outside the pocket. Where are the zone reads? Where are the option plays? Where are the roll outs? Stanford was good offensively last year after Hogan took over because they tailored the offense to his strengths and they had a very good supporting talent around him at the skill positions. Stanford has not been able to replace the talent they lost at tight end and although Ty Montgomery has emerged at wide receiver, he is not a reliable every down player. Last year Stanford was able to line up Zach Ertz anywhere on the field and he would use his size, hands, and route running to create an opening and move the sticks on third down just about any time they needed him to. Montgomery is a great player but he doesn't work in the same way that Ertz did and Stanford hasn't developed anyone who can. Tyler Gaffney is as good as Stepfan Taylor was and has replaced everything he gave them but the offense is sputtering because the passing game has regressed and they are not tailoring the offense to get the most out of Hogan's skill set.
Stanford eventually stood tall and got the stop they needed late to survive but they won't be playing from the same position of strength next Thursday when Oregon comes to town. The challenge of stopping the Ducks two years in a row got even stiffer during the OSU game when standout defensive end Ben Gardner suffered a season ending injury. Gardner tore his left pectoral against the Beavers and is out for the year leaving the Cardinal woefully thin at defensive end. Henry Anderson, who was second team All-Pac-12 last year, will try to make his season debut against Oregon but will definitely be rusty and probably won't be entirely 100% either. More concerning is that when asked what the plan was if Anderson couldn't go either, head coach David Shaw simply said, "that's a good question." Yikes. If there is one thing Oregon does well it is test your depth on defense and force you to use players you are unsure of a lot more than you would like. We'll see if the Ducks just found the crack in Stanford's armor that they needed.
Washington 41, California 17
I told anyone who would listen to take Cal's opponents minus anything for the rest of the year and up until the 5:03 mark of the 4th quarter that was holding until Khalfani Muhammad ripped off a 73 yard run against Washington's second string defense for a frustrating back door cover. Keith Price played without a wrap on his right thumb for the first time since the Arizona game one month ago and although he still didn't look as good throwing the ball as he did early in the year, he was unquestionably better. Bishop Sankey got back on track in a big way with 241 yards on 27 carries (a very tidy 8.9 yards per carry average) and a pair of touchdowns. It was not all good news on offense for the Huskies though as Kasen Williams, he of the team leading 77 receptions and 878 yards a year ago, is likely done for the rest of the season with a broken foot. Williams has been a major disappointment this season as he has scored exactly one touchdown and his receptions per game are down from 5.9 to 3.6. Williams has had an up and down college career but he was a five star recruit who had his eyes on the NFL from the beginning. We may very well have seen Williams in a Huskies uniform for the last time.
As for the Golden Bears, they were atrocious again on defense allowing 8.23 yards per play which raises their season average to 7.04 yards allowed per play, worse than every other team in college football save for five unfortunate programs. Quarterback Jared Goff was unimpressive but was at least able to avoid the bench long enough to attempt 54 passes and account for 336 passing yards. Once the game was out of hand, Sonny Dykes did remove Goff but instead of bring out redshirt freshman Zach Kline who competed neck and neck with Goff for playing time all summer, came off the bench to replace him against Oregon, and battled him again this past week, Dykes brought out junior Austin Hinder.
Cal football everyone:
All year I've been saying that Utah belongs in the Pac-12 and had been showing themselves to be a team that could legitimately compete with anyone in the conference. That pretty much went out the window last Saturday. I know Utah has been a poor road team recently but there is no excuse for losing to such a depleted USC team at an empty L.A. Coliseum. Travis Wilson promised to "suck it up and play" for Utah at quarterback but the Utes fans probably wish he hadn't after he completed 5/14 passes with a pair of interceptions before mercifully being pulled for Adam Schultz who did not fare much better.
As for USC, it was encouraging for them to beat and display competent offense after last week's ugly showing against Notre Dame. It's hard to be impressed with Utah's defense forcing field goal after field goal when put on the field in their own territory throughout the afternoon thanks to the Utes' offensive ineptitude. The Utes held USC to 4.1 yards per play and gave their offense a chance to win all the way into the fourth but a handful of long passing plays from USC and a raging dumpster fire from the Utah offense did them in.
Thankfully for Utah, the second bye week is coming at a perfect time as Wilson will finally have some time to rest his hand and heal his broken index finger. Utah will return to the field in two weeks at home against Arizona State, a game Utah may very well need to win in order to reach bowl eligibility. The hits keep coming for USC though as they play on short week this Friday at Oregon State. The Trojans haven't won in Corvallis since 2004 and will have a more short-handed roster than at any other point during this road losing streak to the Beavers.
Oregon 42, UCLA 14
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| Bruce Ely/The Oregonian |
For about 42 minutes of game time, it looked like UCLA had replicated the Stanford formula and was going to take Oregon all the way down to the wire. Then Oregon stopped making mistakes and allowing the Bruins to hang around and simply pummeled UCLA out of the building over the final 18 minutes of the game. The Ducks were very sloppy from the get go handing UCLA the ball on a short field following a fumble on the second play from scrimmage and later gifted UCLA another short touchdown drive on a blocked punt. Anthony Barr was dominating Tyler Johnstone, Myles Jack was having a coming out party on national television and UCLA was rolling with confidence...on defense.
The reason UCLA let this game get away from them and allowed it to get out of hand was because the Bruins offense was totally ineffective and the defense could only keep them in the game for so long. The Ducks held UCLA to 3.99 yards per play (for sake of context, Stanford held UCLA to 4.03 YPP the week before) and although UCLA ran the ball effectively for awhile it was almost by design of the Oregon defense. The Ducks kept small numbers in the box and encouraged the Bruins to run the ball. The Bruins made hay for awhile but if they had one bad play that knocked them off track, the Bruins could not recover thanks to their anemic passing game.
Banged up offensive line or not, UCLA fans may have to face an unfortunate reality about their quarterback, Brett Hundley. Hundley is an amazing athlete and a great play maker. He made several very nice plays against the Ducks to extend plays and run for first downs. Both on his short touchdown run early in the game and on his conversion of a 3rd and 14 later on, Hundley dodged multiple tacklers in the backfield and did a tremendous job to create a big play when the Ducks had him and the rest of the UCLA offense dead to rights. Hundley is a great football player and exciting raw talent but a merely average quarterback who hasn't gotten better since last year.
Hundley made a number of poor reads in the passing game especially on the first play of the 4th quarter with UCLA trailing by a touchdown and facing a 3rd and 20 from midfield. Hundley had an open check down for five to 10 yards but forced a pass deep into coverage to try to get the first down and hit Oregon safety Avery Patterson right between the two and the one on his jersey. Had he taken the check down, UCLA could have set up a make-able 4th down or played field position and pinned Oregon inside their own 10. Instead, he threw a bad interception that was returned to the UCLA 39 yard line and a few plays later the Ducks were up 28-14, pretty much an insurmountable lead in Autzen Stadium.
I don't want to rag on Hundley because he isn't getting any help from his offensive line right now and I also don't like Noel Mazzone's offensive system that has him throwing so many useless swing passes that never work against fast defenses like Oregon. Hundley's slow development and lack of improvement is as much UCLA's fault as it is Hundley since he does possess a great arm and terrific natural passing ability but the Bruins' system allows for very few routes down field and it seems like Mazzone and perhaps head coach Jim Mora as well aren't showing enough faith in Hundley to make big throws and lead the team. I just hope Hundley is wise enough to come back for one more year in college and the UCLA coaches will reward him by tweaking the offense to allow Hundley to develop into a better down field passer.
These two teams were co-favorites for the conference two weeks ago but are headed in very different directions now. The Ducks will get a bye week to prepare for their massive showdown with Stanford that will likely decide the Pac-12 North. Meanwhile, UCLA will get no rest as they are back in action on Saturday but at least they get to return to the Rose Bowl and face lowly Colorado.
Arizona 44, Colorado 20
Speaking of poor ole Colorado, the Buffs showed their first real signs of encouragement in over a month (I know they won last week but what can you really take from beating Charleston Southern?), but didn't have the gas to hang with Arizona. True Freshman Sefo Liufau was okay in his first conference start at QB for Colorado. He made a few nice throws and coupled them with inaccuracy. He never really built much momentum one way or the other while Arizona's B.J. Denker continued to play well. He still isn't a threat to go deep and he will always be limited for a variety of reasons but he was efficient and (motsly) mistake free and did major damage on the ground.
Colorado has gotten better but once again they lack the athletes to compete. This is going to sound awfully simplistic but this game really came down to Arizona having Denker and Ka'Deem Carey while Colorado did not. Carey was great again scoring four touchdowns and averaging better than five yards per carry while Denker added 192 rushing yards of his own. Colorado seemed to have a large portion of Arizona's offense reasonably well defended but they were simply outrun and outflanked by Arizona's superior athletes. I like that Mike MacIntyre was upset in his post game press conference saying that this one hurt more than the others because he felt his team could win this one but unfortunately, Colorado just does not have the players right now. The Buffs gave a great effort and hung in for a long time with the Wildcats and still ended up losing by 24 at home. A game like this can really set in the reality of what MacIntyre is facing in his effort to rebuild this program.
Stanford 20, Oregon State 12
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| Steve Dykes/Getty Images |
Stanford has built a reputation for making great offenses look ordinary and Oregon State looked very ordinary against the Cardinal. Oregon State came into the game with the nation's leading passing offense both in terms of yards and touchdowns. Using raw yardage totals as a basis for the assessment of an offense is flawed for a number of reasons but the Beavers had been impressive throwing the ball regardless. The problem for Oregon State was not using unfiltered numbers to make themselves artificially look better than they actually were. The real problem was the Beavers doing all their work against inferior competition, never facing a defense ranked better than 76th in the nation in pass efficiency defense before this past weekend.
All year we waited for the Beavers to struggle to throw the ball. On Saturday, they struggled and they had nothing else to fall back on. As it turns out, you can only survive for so long without the ability to run the ball and the Beavers' 2.43 yards per rush average caught up to them. Stanford's secondary had a sublime performance in pass coverage which led to Sean Mannion holding onto the ball for way too long. Unlike Brett Hundley for UCLA against Oregon, Mannion is a statue in the pocket and was unable to extend plays under pressure. Stanford sacked Mannion eight times and put a blanket on national leading receiver Brandin Cooks. Cooks had a reasonable game with 80 yards and his 13th touchdown of the season on nine catches but the real key was that he could not break away and get yards after the catch. Cooks had been great all season as much for his ability to turn short passes up field as his ability to haul in bombs deep in the secondary. Cooks was not able to get separation all night and Stanford did a great job as they always do rallying to the ball and tackling in space.
The Beavers' offense was in reverse all night and that made Mike Riley's coaching performance all the more frustrating. Riley twice passed up make-able field goals to go for it on fourth down in 4th down and came up short both times. The Beavers could have an probably should have been up either 6-0 or 9-0 at halftime. Off the second of those two missed 4th downs, the Stanford offense that had been dormant in the first half suddenly reeled off a long touchdown drive buoyed by plays of 27 and 37 yards (Stanford had zero plays longer than 20 yards up until that point) and took a 7-3 lead into the half. After Oregon State fumbled the opening kickoff of the second half, Stanford quickly cashed in to go up 13-3 following a missed extra point and suddenly Stanford was in full control.
As Oregon State sputtered on offense and the clock started rolling, I never felt at any point in the second half that Oregon State had any chance to win. Yet as I'm sure everyone else did, I kept looking down at the scoreboard and seeing Stanford not pull away and thinking, "Oregon State is two lucky bounces away from flipping this game." And it almost happened when a Tyler Gaffney fumble set up a field goal to cut the Stanford lead to 20-12 and a quick three and out gave Oregon State the ball with a chance to tie. This illustrates what caused Stanford's undoing against Utah and what will, at this point, be their undoing in nine days against Oregon. The Cardinal are so one-dimensional on offense without the consistent threat of the pass and are so predictable and conservative with their run game that they keep opponents in the game even when they are dominating.
Kevin Hogan is not a gifted passer and is not effective throwing from the pocket but he is a very good athlete who operates well outside the pocket. Where are the zone reads? Where are the option plays? Where are the roll outs? Stanford was good offensively last year after Hogan took over because they tailored the offense to his strengths and they had a very good supporting talent around him at the skill positions. Stanford has not been able to replace the talent they lost at tight end and although Ty Montgomery has emerged at wide receiver, he is not a reliable every down player. Last year Stanford was able to line up Zach Ertz anywhere on the field and he would use his size, hands, and route running to create an opening and move the sticks on third down just about any time they needed him to. Montgomery is a great player but he doesn't work in the same way that Ertz did and Stanford hasn't developed anyone who can. Tyler Gaffney is as good as Stepfan Taylor was and has replaced everything he gave them but the offense is sputtering because the passing game has regressed and they are not tailoring the offense to get the most out of Hogan's skill set.
Stanford eventually stood tall and got the stop they needed late to survive but they won't be playing from the same position of strength next Thursday when Oregon comes to town. The challenge of stopping the Ducks two years in a row got even stiffer during the OSU game when standout defensive end Ben Gardner suffered a season ending injury. Gardner tore his left pectoral against the Beavers and is out for the year leaving the Cardinal woefully thin at defensive end. Henry Anderson, who was second team All-Pac-12 last year, will try to make his season debut against Oregon but will definitely be rusty and probably won't be entirely 100% either. More concerning is that when asked what the plan was if Anderson couldn't go either, head coach David Shaw simply said, "that's a good question." Yikes. If there is one thing Oregon does well it is test your depth on defense and force you to use players you are unsure of a lot more than you would like. We'll see if the Ducks just found the crack in Stanford's armor that they needed.
Washington 41, California 17
I told anyone who would listen to take Cal's opponents minus anything for the rest of the year and up until the 5:03 mark of the 4th quarter that was holding until Khalfani Muhammad ripped off a 73 yard run against Washington's second string defense for a frustrating back door cover. Keith Price played without a wrap on his right thumb for the first time since the Arizona game one month ago and although he still didn't look as good throwing the ball as he did early in the year, he was unquestionably better. Bishop Sankey got back on track in a big way with 241 yards on 27 carries (a very tidy 8.9 yards per carry average) and a pair of touchdowns. It was not all good news on offense for the Huskies though as Kasen Williams, he of the team leading 77 receptions and 878 yards a year ago, is likely done for the rest of the season with a broken foot. Williams has been a major disappointment this season as he has scored exactly one touchdown and his receptions per game are down from 5.9 to 3.6. Williams has had an up and down college career but he was a five star recruit who had his eyes on the NFL from the beginning. We may very well have seen Williams in a Huskies uniform for the last time.
As for the Golden Bears, they were atrocious again on defense allowing 8.23 yards per play which raises their season average to 7.04 yards allowed per play, worse than every other team in college football save for five unfortunate programs. Quarterback Jared Goff was unimpressive but was at least able to avoid the bench long enough to attempt 54 passes and account for 336 passing yards. Once the game was out of hand, Sonny Dykes did remove Goff but instead of bring out redshirt freshman Zach Kline who competed neck and neck with Goff for playing time all summer, came off the bench to replace him against Oregon, and battled him again this past week, Dykes brought out junior Austin Hinder.
Cal football everyone:
Saturday, 26 October 2013
The Post That Takes Your Money: Week Nine
Utah (+4.5) wins outright over USC
I know Travis Wilson is banged up but a dead crowd at the coliseum won't be able to affect him or his backup Adam Schultz and USC has simply run out of players. The Trojans only had 53 scholarship players available for last week's game against Notre Dame and five of those players have been pronounced out of this game due to injuries. USC got excited for one game without Lane Kiffin but that has disappeared. Look for Utah's defense to overwhelm USC's depleted offense and for Wilson to play well enough through pain to win on the road and put Utah on the brink of bowl eligibility.
The Pick: Utah 27, USC 17
Oregon (-23.5) over UCLA
Oregon should be energized by getting De'Anthony Thomas back and they will be looking to land a statement win over a good UCLA team to prove they belong ahead of Florida State in the chase for the BCS championship game. The best and perhaps only reason you need to pick Oregon is UCLA starting three freshman offensive linemen on the road in the loudest and most hostile stadium on the West Coast. Oregon's big, athletic defensive line should overwhelm the young Bruins like Stanford did last week and the Ducks offense is good enough to score on anybody, even a defense as good as UCLA. I hope you jumped on this line when Oregon opened as a 17 point favorite but even at 23.5, I still like the Ducks
The Pick: Oregon 45, UCLA 20
Arizona (-13) over Colorado
I expect Colorado to get a few encouraging plays from Sefo Luifau and Michael Adkins on offense but a better core of linebackers and a change of venue is not nearly enough to slow down Ka'Deem Carey and keep this score close.
The Pick: Arizona 49, Colorado 24
Stanford (-4) over Oregon State
Stanford consumes one dimensional offenses and the Beavers haven't faced a pass defense better than 76th ranked Utah. Stanford is hurting a bit on offense without Devin Cajuste but I think The Cardinal can grind this one out on the ground and slow down Sean Mannion and Brandin Cooks.
The Pick: Stanford 31, Oregon State 24
Washington (-28) over California
Just take Cal's opponent minus anything for the rest of the season (except for maybe the Colorado game) and thank me later.
The Pick: Washington 52, California 17
Last Week Against the Spread: 2-5
Last Week Straight Up: 4-3
This Season Against the Spread: 33-28
This Season Straight up: 49-12
I know Travis Wilson is banged up but a dead crowd at the coliseum won't be able to affect him or his backup Adam Schultz and USC has simply run out of players. The Trojans only had 53 scholarship players available for last week's game against Notre Dame and five of those players have been pronounced out of this game due to injuries. USC got excited for one game without Lane Kiffin but that has disappeared. Look for Utah's defense to overwhelm USC's depleted offense and for Wilson to play well enough through pain to win on the road and put Utah on the brink of bowl eligibility.
The Pick: Utah 27, USC 17
Oregon (-23.5) over UCLA
Oregon should be energized by getting De'Anthony Thomas back and they will be looking to land a statement win over a good UCLA team to prove they belong ahead of Florida State in the chase for the BCS championship game. The best and perhaps only reason you need to pick Oregon is UCLA starting three freshman offensive linemen on the road in the loudest and most hostile stadium on the West Coast. Oregon's big, athletic defensive line should overwhelm the young Bruins like Stanford did last week and the Ducks offense is good enough to score on anybody, even a defense as good as UCLA. I hope you jumped on this line when Oregon opened as a 17 point favorite but even at 23.5, I still like the Ducks
The Pick: Oregon 45, UCLA 20
Arizona (-13) over Colorado
I expect Colorado to get a few encouraging plays from Sefo Luifau and Michael Adkins on offense but a better core of linebackers and a change of venue is not nearly enough to slow down Ka'Deem Carey and keep this score close.
The Pick: Arizona 49, Colorado 24
Stanford (-4) over Oregon State
Stanford consumes one dimensional offenses and the Beavers haven't faced a pass defense better than 76th ranked Utah. Stanford is hurting a bit on offense without Devin Cajuste but I think The Cardinal can grind this one out on the ground and slow down Sean Mannion and Brandin Cooks.
The Pick: Stanford 31, Oregon State 24
Washington (-28) over California
Just take Cal's opponent minus anything for the rest of the season (except for maybe the Colorado game) and thank me later.
The Pick: Washington 52, California 17
Last Week Against the Spread: 2-5
Last Week Straight Up: 4-3
This Season Against the Spread: 33-28
This Season Straight up: 49-12
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