Arizona lost to Oregon State 37-27 in a game that featured another Arizona second-half rally. Believe it or not there was some good, but the good was like sprinkles on a big cupcake of bad.

Good News
Arizona did not give up 500 yards of offense to the Beavers. Just 403 yards. Arizona had given up over 500 yards of total offense in four straight games.

Bad News
Well, if you were playing The 1290 am Rob Lantz Crappy Special Teams Bingo at home, you had almost every category checked, save for a return for score. For those playing along, the Wildcats missed an extra point, missed a field goal, gave up a first down on a fake punt, had a punt blocked and returned for a score, muffed a kickoff, fumbled a kickoff and either called a fake punt that was snuffed out or had your cannon legged punter roll out for a rugby punt that went 30 yards.

Arizona failed to register a sack and only pressured Sean Mannion on a few occasions. One of those was an interception. HOWEVER, the Wildcats get the pick at the 28 yard line, and do not throw deep. When you have a chance to steal momentum, you have to take it. One thing Pete Carroll would do is go for the endzone to try and steal the momentum from a team that had yet to win. Instead Arizona runs the ball, throws short twice and settles for a missed field goal, no points, and gives the Beavers the momentum back. (more…)

Cal at Oregon
Cal is a solid 3-1 on the season, but have not faced anyone as good as Oregon. Oregon is also 3-1, but their lone loss is to No. 1 LSU. Supposedly the Ducks are going with a “throwback” jersey, but with their 4,345,267,195 uniform combinations, it could be a throwback to the last quarter. The Swoosh have had some scares Thursday in October, but this wont be one.
Oregon 48, Cal 24

Arizona State at Utah
I really don’t believe ASU is that great and looked ordinary in a road loss to Illinois. Utah is never an easy place to play, but if Washington can win there, so can the Poseidons. Then again, can anyone trust Brock Osweiler on the road? I keep going back and forth on this one, and can make a good argument with both.
Arizona State 33, Utah 28

Colorado at Stanford
Colorado went to Ohio State and were thumped. Palo Alto is not as tough an environment as Columbus, but the Cardinal are much better than the Buckeyes.
Stanford 45, Colorado 10

Washington State at UCLA
Washington State has played well, but a lot of that is due to the schedule. The Cougs have only played one team with a winning record, and that team, San Diego State, beat them 42-24. They did just earn a really nice road win at a mediocre Colorado team and although UCLA is a little bit better, they aren’t that superior to the Buffs. UCLA has two wins, but those two teams are a combined 2-7.
WSU 27, UCLA 20

Arizona at Oregon State
Arizona has played awful against really good teams, while Oregon State has just played awful. Oregon State usually plays better in October, but will it be enough? I think the Cats get the win, but it will be ugly.
Arizona 41, Oregon State 34

On a related note:
Arizona missed tackles 56, Arizona Points 41

Last Week: 4-1
Season: 36-5

The 2011 football season is already 1/3 of the way complete and it has not been the start the Arizona football team was looking for. We take a position-by-position look at the 1-3 Wildcats.

QUARTERBACK
Nick Foles has been excellent. The only knock on him may be the lack of overall scoring, but that is about it. Foles has thrown for over 1,400 yards, completing 70.5% of his passes. Most impressive is his 10 touchdown passes without throwing an interception. He could have even more touchdown tosses if it was not for three or four drops the past two games.

RUNNING BACK
The Arizona running backs have yet to have a breakout game. Local product Ka’Deem Carey has become a fan favorite and has shown flashes of being a breakaway runner, but has yet to supplant senior Keola Antolin. The duo averages 4.5 yards a carry but is combining to rush for just 82 yards a game.

WIDE RECEIVERS
The Wildcats have the deepest crop of receivers in school history and have the most talented group in the Pac-12. Juron Criner has played like an NFL player, but missed the Oklahoma State game due to an appendectomy. He returned to action a week later and put up big numbers, but did have a few uncharacteristic drops, including a few that appeared to be sure scores. Dan Buckner has shown flashes of being a big time complement to Criner, while freshman Austin Hill shows that the future is bright.

OFFENSIVE LINE
The preseason fears about the inexperienced line have come true. The Cats have yet to establish the run and dominate the line of scrimmage. They have also been inconsistent in pass blocking, allowing to many shots on Foles. Realistically, a lot of these players would be backing up junior and senior players, but holes in recruiting have led to three underclassmen being thrust into the starting line-up. The good news is the group has some real talent and are getting great experience that will make them better a year or two from now when their strength and experience catches up to their raw athleticism.

DEFENSIVE LINE
The defensive line has struggled this year. The Wildcats are rotating five underclassmen at defensive tackle and have gotten pushed around at times. Returning starter Justin Washington has not had the big tackles for loss that were his forte a year ago. The trio of redshirt freshmen are all talented, but not as strong of savvy as they need to be. The defensive ends have yet to put great pressure on opposing quarterbacks and have had mental lapses on their contain responsibilities against the run. Injuries have actually caused the coaches to slide Washington and fellow DT Sione Tuihalamaka out to DE.

LINEBACKER
Inconsistency has been the norm. The entire unit has struggled with responsibilities, especially in covering the tight end. Stanford exploited this throughout the second half of their win against the Cats. Paul Vassallo has been a tackle machine, but true freshmen Rob Hankins and Hank Hobson have been pressed into duty before they are physically ready.

DEFENSIVE BACKS
Injuries have really hurt this group. Losing Jonathan McKnight right before the start of the season really hurt. Shaq Richardson was better the past two games, but really struggled the first two games. The safeties have also missed some coverages and zone help, but Trevin Wade is having a terrific senior season.

SPECIAL TEAMS
Kyle Dugandzic has had a great start to the season as the team’s punter. His inconsistencies during fall camp seem to be behind him. The same cannot be said of the place kickers. Jaime Salazar beat out incumbent Alex Zendejas in fall camp, but gave the job right back by missing three of his four field goal attempts and an extra point. Zendejas returned to the spot for the Oregon game, but missed one of his first three extra point attempts.

So I had a winning record last week, but 3-2 is just not going to cut it. Who would have known that the LA team to get a road win last week would have been the one with the gold helmets, not the ones with the maroon helmets and the fight song that never ends?

I vow to do better this week.

Washington State at Colorado
The Cougs don’t suck. I mean they aren’t “good” but they do not suck. Their road loss to San Diego State stings as the Aztecs are not a top-25 team, but before that they were 2-0 with lopsided wins over awful football teams. Colorado may indeed suck. Certainly they are not good and could be awful. Somehow they lost to Hawaii by the same score as they did to Ohio State (that may not bode well Buckeye fans). Colorado is better at home, but it is not enough.
Washington State 28, Colorado 24

Washington at Utah
Washington is feisty, while Utah may actually be pretty good. I think these two teams are fairly even, so I’ll take the home team.
Utah 24, Washington 21

Oregon State at Arizona State
I know Oregon State gets better in October, but they are playing like Jerry Pettibone is their coach. I still don’t think ASU is great, but they are proving to be solid and capable. Arizona State wore black helmets when Mizzou game to town, maroon helmets when USC came to town, does this mean they go back to the black this week? Regardless, the Poseidons  move to 4-1 after this one.
ASU 31, Oregon State 20.

UCLA at Stanford
I have nothing to say about this game. At least the Bruins have the better looking uniforms and slightly more time for social lives.
Stanford 45, UCLA 14

Arizona at USC
USC is clearly a step down in competition after the gauntlet of Oklahoma State, Stanford and Oregon. However, they are still better than the Wildcats. Expect this one to be like the last three or four, close but the better team making enough plays for the win.
USC 27, Arizona 20

Last Week: 3-2
Season: 32-5

It was a really busy week in the Allis household, so I am tired. But not to tired to make my picks Can I stay hot?

Colorado @ Ohio State
CU is not very good, but have been playing tough. Ohio State has also looked suspect in the post Tressel era. Winning in Columbus is too much to ask of the Buffs.
Ohio State 28, Colorado 14

UCLA @ Oregon State
Seriously, how does UCLA not have a good QB? How long has it been since they had a good QB? Both teams have looked awful so far, give the Beavers the edge at home.
OSU 12, UCLA 7

California @ Washington
I actually think Cal is better, but I like the fight UW showed on the road last week at Nebraska. I give the Huskies the edge in Seattle.
Washington 31, Cal 28

(23) USC @ Arizona State

Neither team can stay focused for a full 60 minutes, but Matt Barkley > Brock Osweiler.
USC 21, ASU 17

(10) Oregon @ Arizona

The Ducks are just better. I think the Cats put up a fight and get their offense on track, but Oregon will pull away.
Oregon 45, Arizona 24

Last Week: 9-1
Season Record: 29-3