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

Colorado State @ Colorado:
This used to be a pretty good rivalry, but now both teams kind of suck. The bad news for both squads is the best team in the state resides in Colorado Springs and is a service academy.
Colorado 31, CSU 14

(24) Texas @ UCLA:
Last year UCLA stunned Texas in Austin, so you know the Longhorns want revenge. Texas is still not a top-10 team, but they will beat the Bruins.
Texas 24, UCLA 10

Washington @ (10) Nebraska:
To paraphrase Rick Pitino: Jake Locker is not walking in through that door. Let’s re-cap. Nebraska went to Seattle and dismantled the Huskies. A few months later the Huskies blew out the Huskers in the Holiday Bowl rematch. Take the home Huskers in this one.
Nebraska 44, Washington 20

(more…)

I hate Colorado. Not the team, but how they play. I have incorrectly picked 13 games this season and four have involved the Buffs when I expanded this column to include the two new teams in the Pac-12. I can’t prove it, but I have reason to believe this fact was one of the reasons that Dan Hawkins was fired.

Washington State at Oregon State

Did you know that Washington State has much better academics than Oregon State? In fact, Oregon State is the only team in the Pac-12 not to be a Tier 1 school according to U.S. News and World Report. That is the only advantage the Cougars have over the Beavers. Oregon State 38, Washington State 13

Stanford at Arizona State

Thanks to two games against Big Sky opponents, the Sun Devils have to win seven games to be bowl eligible. That means they have to win out to make the postseason. Stanford is still playing for the BCS. The Cardinal’s dream is still alive after this one, the Devils, not so much. Stanford 45, ASU 20

Oregon at Cal

Cal is a much, much better team at home. They are 4-0 in Berkeley and have scored 50 points in three of the four games. That won’t help today. Oh, the Bears will play the Ducks tough for a few quarters. Maybe even lead at the half, but in the end it will be too much Gang Green. Oregon 48, Cal 38

Utah at Notre Dame

If this was 1990, the thought of a Mountain West team heading to South Bend and being a favorite would have seem unfathomable. Of course in 1990 there was no Mountain West, but you know what I mean. Utah’s loss to TCU last week ended the hopes of a Oregon vs. Utah Pac-12 National Championship game, but they are still a very good team. Utah 31, Notre Dame 21

Note: I began writing this after Colorado kicked off against Iowa State and did not include it with the picks. For the record, I would have taken the Cyclones, which pains me because both teams are bad.

USC at Arizona

Both teams have good QBs and suspect secondaries. Both teams have talented running backs but can’t always establish the run. I think this one is very even, but if I was a betting man I’d take the over. Arizona 44, USC 41

Last Week: 4-3

Season 43-13

There were not a ton of shockers in week five of the Pac-10. Washington’s upset of USC was the real head turner, as was the comeback by Oregon. All we really learned was that Washington still has some life and the Ducks are very, very good.

Oh, yeah, and apparently Jim Harbaugh is “friends” with the officials, at least that is what Chip Kelly thinks.

UCLA 42, Washington State 28

Should we congratulate Wazzu for hanging tough for three quarters or condemn the Bruins for not putting the lowly Cougs away? How about a little of both. Let’s face it, UCLA is not as good as the team that beat Texas the week before, but they are good enough to best WSU in the Rose Bowl. The “Pistol” was working in Pasadena and if UCLA can hang onto the football, then they have  a chance in every game. The defense is improving and the run game is really going. The key to beating UCLA is to score early and make them play from behind. Right now, they just can’t pass the ball. As for WSU, they are bad, but maybe feisty enough to play with teams and possibly earn at least one upset.

Oregon State 31, ASU 28

A good, old fashioned slugfest. The Beavers were in control for awhile, but ASU never quit. Ryan Katz gets a little bit better every week and once James Rodgers gets healthy OSU may have a very potent offense. ASU’s offense may not be great, but they are decent. The bigger issue may be the defense, which has given up 42 (well actually 28 because Oregon scored twice on defense) and 31 in back-to-back weeks. The defense is good, but may not be good enough to win them games if the offense falters. Mentally, the Beavers are getting more confident, it is October afterall, while I wonder what the psyche of the Sun Devils is after losing three competitive games in a row. If Denis Erickson can keep this team together mentally, ASU will be a tough out week after week.

Washington 32, USC 31

A week after hyping the Trojans, they lose to Washington. Not a huge shock, as the Trojans have all kinds of talent, but very little development. Jake Locker showed why scouts love him as the threw for over 300 yards and ran for more than 100. That may be key for the Huskies. Locker has tried to be more of a pocket passer, but he is more dangerous as a duel threat quarterback. I still think USC is the fourth best team in the Pac-10 and UW is destined for 7^th or worse, but this one again shows the depth of the league.

Oregon 52, Stanford 31

The first half of this one was as good as any game I’ve seen in a long time. If we have learned anything from watching the Chip Kelly edition of the Ducks, is that they are never out of games. This is their second straight comeback, and they have made a habit of scoring points in bunches. They look like a legit top-5 team and the only way to beat them will be to outscore them. As for the Cardinal, why are so many people counting them out? They are a legit top-15 team and Andrew Luck did nothing to make me think less of him. If Stanford does not turn the ball over three times, this one is probably a shootout until the end. At worst, these are two of the three best teams in the league.

Okay, I missed Texas/UCLA last week, but show me someone not wearing the Bruins’ baby blue who picked the Bruins. Other than overvaluing the Arizona and Cal offenses and not giving ASU’s offense enough credit, I was pretty close.

Washington State at UCLA

Do I smell a letdown game for the Bruins? Yup. Do I smell a Wazzu win? Nope. The Bruins put 37 on Texas but worked a short field on all but one scoring drive, so the offense is still as questionable than the lunch meat I left on the counter overnight. Kevin Prince passed for 27 yards again in the Texas win, and even Dick Tomey thought the Bruin offense lacked balance. Sadly, WSU is so poor that Prince could pass for less than 27 yards and this one could still be a rout. UCLA 31, Washington State 7

Arizona State at Oregon State

Denis Erickson returns to the scene of last coaching job he did a good job at (sorry 49er fans), while the Beavers are thrilled that it is October and they can start winning again. ASU has played very well, but has just a .500 record to show for it and another loss could really damage the psyche. Oregon State needs to avoid a 1-3 start, but has always bounced back from slow starts under Mike Riley. Both of these teams player physical, hard-hitting defense, but Oregon State has given up 28 or more points in every game this season. ASU’s challenge will be to hold onto the football in one of the more underrated locales in the Pac-10. Oregon State 28, Arizona State 24

Washington a USC

The Huskies are trying to save their season, while the Trojans want to keep winning under the radar. Jake Locker lost the Heisman two weeks ago, but has a chance to save his drooping draft stock. USC is not playing for the postseason, but is 4-0 and not getting talked about. Don’t be shocked if the Trojans don’t have a chip on their shoulder. They want revenge for the loss to UW last year, they want to prove their QB is the league’s best and they are probably just a little irked that UCLA has gotten all the attention. I am still not sold on USC for the long haul, but they have more talent than the Huskies. USC 28, Washington 17

Stanford at Oregon

The best game in the nation this week. The winner has the upper hand for the Rose Bowl, since both teams host the Wildcats. This is a contrast in styles. Stanford is physical and can pass the ball, while Oregon is speedy and will keep it on the ground as much as they can. The Ducks are not as effective against smash mouth teams, but they are playing in Eugene. Oregon 41, Stanford 38

Easiest game to pick: UCLA over WSU

Toughest game to pick: OSU over ASU

Last Week: 5-1

Season: 20-4