After an entertaining weekend filled with upsets, historic collapses and instant classics, there were changes all over the Pac-12 football power rankings from The Oregonian/OregonLive.
After an entertaining weekend filled with upsets, historic collapses and instant classics, there were changes all over the Pac-12 football power rankings from The Oregonian/OregonLive.
But not at the top.
The Washington Huskies were the unanimous No. 1 team in our rankings this week, earning 84 points and every first-place vote from our seven-member panel. It’s an expected and justified result for a team that edged the rival Oregon Ducks 36-33 in a thrilling top-10 matchup Saturday at Husky Stadium.
The Ducks held steady in the power rankings despite the defeat, remaining in second place with 77 points after earning all seven second-place votes.
The Oregon State Beavers were one of the week’s biggest risers in the rankings, surging to third place with 68 points, after defeating the UCLA Bruins 36-24 Saturday in Corvallis.
The USC Trojans, who debuted at No. 1 in our rankings in September, fell to a season-low fourth place after suffering their first loss, 48-20, at Notre Dame. The Trojans landed 60 points, four more than the Utah Utes, who surged from seventh to fifth place after earning a lopsided win over Cal.
How far did the Colorado Buffaloes tumble after their meltdown against Stanford? How far did the Arizona Wildcats surge after their upset over Washington State?
Here are this week’s power rankings from The Oregonian/OregonLive sports staff:
(Voting panel: James Crepea, Nick Daschel, Aaron Fentress, Joe Freeman, Sean Meagher, Joel Odom, Bill Oram)
1. NO. 5 WASHINGTON HUSKIES (6-0, 3-0)
Poll points: 84 (7 first-place votes)
Last week (1): Beat Oregon 36-33
This week: Arizona State at Washington, 7:30 p.m. PT, Saturday (FS1).
2. NO. 9 OREGON DUCKS (5-1, 2-1)
Poll points: 77
Last week (2): Lost to Washington 36-33
This week: Washington State at Oregon, 12:30 p.m. PT, Saturday (ABC)
3. NO. 12 OREGON STATE BEAVERS (6-1, 3-1)
Poll points: 68
Last week (5): Beat UCLA 36-24.
This week: Idle.
4. NO. 18 USC TROJANS (6-1, 4-0)
Poll points: 60
Last week (3): Lost to Notre Dame 48-20.
This week: Utah at USC, 5 p.m. PT, Saturday (FOX).
5. NO. 14 UTAH UTES (5-1, 2-1)
Poll points: 56
Last week (7): Beat Cal 34-14.
This week: Utah at USC, 5 p.m. PT, Saturday (FOX).
6. NO. 25 UCLA BRUINS (4-2, 1-2)
Poll points: 49
Last week (4): Lost to Oregon State 36-24.
This week: UCLA at Stanford, 7:30 p.m. PT, Saturday (Pac-12 ESPN).
7. ARIZONA WILDCATS (4-3, 2-2)
Poll points: 45
Last week (9): Beat Washington State 44-6.
This week: Idle.
8. WASHINGTON STATE COUGARS (4-2, 1-2)
Poll points: 34
Last week (6): Lost to Arizona 44-6
This week: Washington State at Oregon, 12:30 p.m. PT, Saturday (ABC)
9. CAL BEARS (3-4, 1-3)
Poll points: 22
Last week (10): Lost to Utah 34-14.
This week: Idle.
10. STANFORD CARDINAL (2-4, 1-3)
Poll points: 20
Last week (12): Beat Colorado 46-43 in double overtime.
This week: UCLA at Stanford, 7:30 p.m. PT, Saturday (Pac-12 ESPN).
11. COLORADO BUFFALOES (4-3, 1-3)
Poll points: 18
Last week (8): Lost to Stanford 46-43 in double overtime.
This week: Idle.
12. ARIZONA STATE (1-5, 0-3)
Poll points: 11
Last week (11): Idle.
This week: Arizona State at Washington, 7:30 p.m. PT, Saturday (FS1).
— Joe Freeman 503-294-5183
