Pac-12 Pickings: Conference’s top teams underwhelm in week three

(Photo: Brett Deckert/WCSN)

The Pac-12 could do no wrong in the season’s first two weeks.

This past Saturday, the conference could do little right.

Two of the league’s five ranked teams lost to Group of 5 schools. Its highest ranked member came narrowly close to falling to an unranked opponent at home. Three of its school’s have lost consecutive games.

It has become much tougher to sell the Pac-12 as the top-heavy, depth-rich conference it was billed as prior to this weekend. No real playoff contenders were knocked out, but the league’s rising reputation suffered a setback.

UCLA couldn’t repeat the come-from-behind magic displayed against Texas A&M, instead falling 48-45 at Memphis. Quarterback Josh Rosen tossed two second half picks, while the Bruins defense looked shaky again, failing to contain a Tigers offense coached by ex-ASU offensive coordinator Mike Norvell.

San Diego State meanwhile now leads the country in wins over Pac-12 teams this year, going two for two after upsetting Stanford with a late touchdown pass this week. There is a case to be made that the Aztecs are one of the best teams on the West Coast; they’ve looked it against their two Power 5 opponents so far.

In Los Angeles, USC was facing a Texas team with a true freshman quarterback, a defense that had been shredded by mediocre Maryland two weeks earlier, and a head coach in just his third game at the school. Yet, the Trojans almost spurned their chance to avenge the 2006 Rose Bowl in Saturday night’s prime time game, relying on a check down hail mary, UT fumble, and pair of clutch field goals to knock off the Longhorns in double overtime. The pregame betting line favored USC by more than two touchdowns, but it took two extra periods of football for USC to finally prevail.

Not every team played poorly this week. Washington was dominant over Fresno State, as was Oregon in their trip to Wyoming. Even California continued their undefeated start to the year with a surprise win over Ole Miss.

But, the national narrative has fixated on what the Pac-12 didn’t do in its final full week of non-conference games. It could mean nothing in the long run. But, if the College Football Playoff selection committee is split on whether to put a Pac-12 school in the postseason tournament at year’s end, this week’s underwhelming results certainly won’t help the conference’s case.

 

Weekly Awards

GOAT of the Week: Jake Browning (QB, Washington)

While other schools stumbled on Saturday, Jake Browning’s Washington Huskies breezed past Fresno State at home. Browning was nearly perfect, completing 19 of 22 passes for 255 yards, 4 touchdowns, and no interceptions.

Under his steady leadership, the Huskies have been the only Pac-12 team to avoid any near-upsets in their opening trio of games. A slow start at Rutgers is the only complaint that can be pinned on the defending Pac-12 North champions.

He also had one of the week’s more touching moments off the field after Saturday’s win.

USC and UCLA quarterbacks Sam Darnold and Josh Rosen have stolen the headlines in the first month. But Browning has quitely continued to impress after his breakout season last year and has Washington looking like the most reliable team entering conference play.

Painted against the backdrop of a hectic Pac-12 weekend, Browning’s predictably solid showing looks that much better, and helps continue to build Washington’s case as a repeat Playoff participant.

 

Scape-GOAT of the Week: Josh Rosen (QB, UCLA)

 

When Josh Rosen hit receiver Darren Andrews on a 65-yard bomb in the third quarter of UCLA’s trip to Memphis, it felt like deja vu. The Bruins entered the second half trailing, and looking unimpressive against a Group of 5 Tigers squad. The big play appeared to be the beginning of an encore comeback for UCLA, following their miracle win against Texas A&M two weeks ago. It trimmed Memphis’ lead to 3, and sucked the life out of the raucous Liberty Bowl.

Everything is not what it seems.

The next time UCLA had the ball, Rosen lost his composure. The junior quarterback tried to force a pass over the middle of the field. His run of luck was up.

UCLA made one more late push, getting back within a field goal in the final minutes of the afternoon. The Bruins put the ball in Rosen’s hands again; it led to a different, more recent, deja vu memory.

Rosen had manufactured magic against the Aggies. But when facing a lesser Memphis team, and trailing by a much more manageable deficit, the highly touted draft prospect failed to deliver.

He got little help from his defense, and was a de facto one-man show on offense. But these are the moments top quarterbacks live up to.

In the loss to Memphis, the only thing Rosen lived up to was his reputation for inconsistency.

 

Play of the Week: USC’s “Hail Mary”

The Trojans were big favorites in their meeting with fledging Texas.

But if not for a unique hail mary at the stroke of half time, the Trojans would have been tied with Texas at the break. They could have very easily gone on to lose to the unranked Longhorns from there. Good thing they had Ronald Jones to turn to.

Maybe “hail mary” is the wrong name for the stunning 56-yard catch-and-run score. “Hail Ronald” seems more accurate.

Outside of Jones’ heroics, the mistake-plagued Trojans offense was moving the ball, but failing to score. Turnovers and failed fourth down tries summed up USC’s offensive output for most of the evening. Losing to Texas would have been a massive let down, especially after dominating Stanford a week ago.

The Trojans are barely undefeated, but have done enough to keep themselves at the right end of the polls. Their play-making junior running back deserves a bulk of the credit.

 

Pac-12 Power Rankings

1. WASHINGTON (Last week: 2) – The Huskies are now the only team to in the conference to avoid any serious scares. Behind Browning, their offense looks potent. Defensively, the loss of several NFL-bound play makers from last year’s roster has yet to be an issue. Chris Petersen has his school rolling again, right to the top of the conference.

2. USC (Last week: 1) – They are 3-0, but the Trojans have been shaky against inferior opponents twice now. The win against Stanford looks less impressive, and the offense keeps shooting itself in the foot. Talent-wise, no one else in the West stacks up with Clay Helton’s team. But if they keep playing with fire, they will inevitably get burned. They were lucky to not get hooked by Texas this week.

3. OREGON (Last week: 4) – Oregon has flown somewhat under the radar so far. The Ducks have dispatched Southern Utah and Wyoming with ease, while the Nebraska win was closer than it should of been. Now ranked, Willie Taggart will take his team to Tempe, where they can feast on a struggling Arizona State defense. They aren’t yet all the way back, but Oregon looks stronger every week. They are once again the team to watch out for in the Pac-12 North.

4. STANFORD (Last week: 3) – It’s not yet time to hit the panic button in Palo Alto. The Cardinal were dominate in their opener, and their two losses have come on the road to solid teams. No, they probably won’t be conference contenders this year. Stanford has bigger offensive issues than in years past, which has led to a 1-2 start for the first time since 2008. But that doesn’t mean they are spiraling to a losing record, or watching their steadily successful program begin to unravel.

5. WASHINGTON STATE (Last week: 5) – Washington State bounced back from last week’s scare against Boise State, blowing out Oregon State 52-23 to win its Pac-12 opener. Quarterback Luke Falk looked steady after a down performance last week, throwing for nearly 400 yards and 6 touchdowns in the rout of the Beavers.

6. UTAH (Last week: 6) – Utah is ranked No. 23 after an easy win against San Jose State. Through three games, the Utes have been solid. But, tough tests at USC and at Oregon await them in October. It will be after those games that the real caliber of Kyle Whittingham’s team is tested.

7. COLORADO (Last week: 8) – The Buffaloes offense came to life this week, leading CU past Northern Colorado 41-21. Quarterback Steven Montez had his best performance of the young season, while running back Phillip Lindsay rushed for 151 yards. Colorado did surrender their first touchdown of the year, but the defense was again impressive, holding UNC to under 300 yards of total offense.

8. UCLA (Last week: 6) – The Bruins magic has run out. The flames of optimism were extinguished by another subpar defensive showing, and a couple critical mistakes from Rosen; most of the good will created by the comeback against Texas A&M is gone. The Bruins now go to Stanford, in what will be a crossroads game for both programs. UCLA will have to be much better away from home to avoid a second straight loss.

9. CALIFORNIA (Last week: 9) – Cal did it again on Saturday, improving to 3-0 with another surprising win against a Power 5 team. Ole Miss was the victim this time, as the Golden Bears used another big fourth quarter to seal a third straight victory. Cal has now outscored their opponents 40-6 in the final quarter of its games, and is half way to bowl eligibility by the middle of September.

10. ARIZONA (Last week: 11) – The Wildcats kicked off the week three slate of games with a dominant victory at UTEP on Friday night. Brandon Dawkins had 6 total touchdowns, Shun Brown returned a punt for a touchdown, and Arizona eclipsed the 60-point mark for the second time this season.

11. ARIZONA STATE (Last week: 10) – Arizona State lost again in week three, its comeback bid falling short at Texas Tech. The Sun Devils have now lost 8 of their last 9 contests dating back to last season, and will face four ranked opponents in their next five games, starting with a home date against Oregon next Saturday.

12. OREGON STATE (Last week: 12) – Oregon State was blown out again this week, standing no chance against high-scoring Washington State. The Beaver’s week two nail-bitter against Portland State is beginning to look more and more important with each passing game. It might stand to be OSU’s only victory of 2017.

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