(Gif by Benjamin Margiott)The third College Football Playoff rankings will be released Tuesday, but in the rankings that don't matter (the AP Top 25 and the Coaches Poll), the Pac-12 has five teams ranked. Oregon moved up to No. 3 in the AP poll, with no other teams from the Pac-12 North joining it.
The Ducks clinched the North division over the weekend, beating Utah to take a 2.5-game lead over Stanford. The Cardinal could tie the division (though that would mean Colorado beats Oregon, so...), but the Ducks hold the tiebreaker.
In other news, Colorado isn't last for the first time since Week 3. Onto the rankings!
Seemingly every game, Oregon's opponent pulls within a score or takes the lead in the third or fourth quarter. Don't blink, or else you'll miss the Ducks pull away by 20 by the end of the game. It's a mystery how it happens almost every game the Ducks play, but they are masters of putting teams away. It happened again — this time to Utah. The Utes hung with the Ducks for much of the game, even into the fourth quarter, which started as just a seven-point deficit for the Utes. But a 24-7 fourth quarter changed that real fast. It turned a 27-20 game into a 51-27 one.
So, this might be for real. For the first time since 1986, the Sun Devils hosted a top-10 matchup. It was the first time ASU has played since a 2007 loss at No. 4 Oregon, when ASU was No. 6. The win over No. 10 Notre Dame was the first over a top-10 opponent since 2002, in another matchup of ASU and Oregon. It's hard to believe this is the same team that lost at home by 35 to UCLA. But in a way, it's not, and the new-and-improved Sun Devils are 4-0 with wins versus No. 10 Notre Dame, No. 17 Utah, Stanford and at Washington. That old Sun Devil team has some wins it can contribute, too.
Somehow, the Bruins have shot their way back up the rankings and come in at No. 3. It feels like forever ago when UCLA was in the discussion for the College Football Playoff. Since then, the Bruins have lost to Utah and Oregon and barely skated past Cal and Colorado. The two close wins look worse than the Bruins' two losses. But overall, UCLA is compiling an underrated résumé, at least on paper. It's on a four-game winning streak and coming off wins over then-No. 12 UA and Washington on the road.
On a bye, the Trojans get hopped by their crosstown rivals. The Jael Mary could end up hurting USC more than originally thought — it could end up being the deciding factor in the Pac-12 South. It's unlikely — ASU would have to lose another conference game — but those implications weren't discussed much at the time. To win the Pac-12 South, the Trojans have to win out and ASU has to drop two of its last three games. Although they haven't played like it at times, the Trojans are only 13 points away from being undefeated (4.3-point average margin of defeat).
It's rare that a team will lose and keep its spot in the power rankings over a team directly below it that won. But quite frankly, the Utes played better than UA did. The 51-27 final of the Utah-Oregon game is misleading. That's what a 24-7 fourth quarter does. Sure, Utah would have loved to have avoided Oregon's weekly fourth-quarter massacre, but it doesn't change what the game was: a closely contested battle between No. 17 and No. 4.
The Wildcats, on the other hand, played a closely contested battle with arguably the worst team in the Pac-12. Again, a blowout fourth quarter makes the final score a bit deceiving. This was a 24-20 game through three quarters, but Colorado's offense turned stagnant in the fourth, and UA pulled away. It's just another underwhelming performance in what has been a streak of them since the win over Oregon. Since then, UA is 2-2, and those two wins have come against Colorado and Washington State. Washington should provide for a slightly harder test this week. It will be interesting to see how the Wildcats respond and close the season.
The Cardinal is not bowl eligible yet, and it isn't a forgone conclusion that it will be by the end of the season. With five wins and three games to play, Stanford needs to win just one of its remaining games. But there's not a guaranteed 'W' on the schedule. Stanford's final three games include a home showdown against Utah this week, then two road games against Cal and UCLA to close the season. Obviously, the Cal game presents the best opportunity for a win, but after five years of losing to its rival, Cal is surely fed up. There is enough talent disparity between the two this season that it might be the year for the Golden Bears.
For weeks, nobody could figure out the identity of this Washington team. At times, it would have an explosive offense. At times, its defense would dominate. But at other times, the offense would become inept and its defense would give up 52 points to Eastern Washington. It seems to be clear now, though. The Huskies aren't good. Somehow, they scored 30 points, which would seem to be enough with that much talent on the defense. But they gave up 44 to UCLA. Luckily for the Huskies, their first season under Chris Petersen shouldn't go down as a total failure. There are two likely wins left on their schedule, which will give them eight on the season and make them bowl eligible.
What a turn around the Golden Bears have had in the second year of the Sonny Dykes era. Jared Goff has matured into one of the better quarterbacks in the Pac-12, and the Bears already have four more wins than last season. There aren't any easy games left on the Bears' schedule, with USC, Stanford and BYU left to play. But it would be a shame for the Bears not to see the postseason after such an impressive regular season. (This is what low expectations do for you. It's weird how much love a 5-4 team is getting).
It's not as if anyone was fooled into thinking Martin Stadium gave the Cougars much of a homefield advantage, but the Cougars now have more road wins than home wins this season. Washington State would love to change that stat in the last week of the season, when it hosts the Huskies in a battle for the Apple Cup. But for now, Mike Leach can grab the rum from his pirate ship and celebrate the Cougs' third win of the season and moving out of the No. 11 spot in the power rankings.
Congratulations, Colorado! Out of the cellar for the first time since Week 3! Unfortunately, it's not because of a win. No, the Buffaloes are still winless in conference play, despite only trailing UA 24-20 going into the fourth quarter Saturday. But when the No. 10 and 11 teams play, the loser has to fall to last place.
Making their debut at the bottom of the power rankings are the Oregon State Beavers. If the Beavers need some help dealing with the pain, Colorado and Washington State should be familiar with the feeling, so hopefully they'll reach out. A "get well" card at least seems appropriate. The Sun Devils will sign the card in-person on Saturday, in a game where they're favored by eight.
Reach the reporter at ewebeck@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @EvanWebeck
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