Pac-12 Football: Ranking the Top 10 Performances of the Last Month
It's hard to believe that the Pac-12 football season is two-thirds complete, but what a thrilling journey it has been with spectacular individual performances each and every weekend.
In the last month, we've seen Arizona score one of the most impressive wins in the country, UCLA fall and then begin to rise again, Oregon start to look like the team Chip Kelly coached from 2009-12 and schools like Utah, Arizona and Arizona State stake their claim to become king of the South Division.
Included among the drama was a number of noteworthy efforts by prominent players, as well as several by those unaccustomed to the limelight.
Those who compiled the most impressive stats and who managed to bring it all during key games or critical stretches of contests will make the list.
Here are the top 10 performances from the Pac-12 in the last month.
All stats via CFBStats.com. The last month is from Oct. 2-Nov. 1.
Just missed the cut: QB Brett Hundley vs. Arizona, KR Trevor Davis vs. WSU
10) UCLA Secondary vs. Arizona
1 of 10
The Arizona Wildcats seem to be reaching their potential with Rich Rodriguez at the helm, as his star quarterback, Anu Solomon, is leading the offense to almost 40 points per game as a freshman.
Against UCLA, however, it all came crashing down, as the Wildcats were held to just a lone touchdown in the first quarter.
While defensive back Tahaan Goodman led the charge with an interception and a pass broken up, it's the entire secondary that should get the most credit for the spectacular defensive effort.
The list from here on out is made up of individual players, but the unit as a whole recorded a whopping 10 pass breakups—double the amount of any other game this season.
If you've watched Arizona at all in the past month, seeing it score just seven points had to come as a shock. We're looking at the best performances in the Pac-12, and while the secondary is more than just one player, UCLA's unit as a whole was too good to ignore, and it checks in at No. 10.
9) QB Jared Goff vs. Washington State
2 of 10
A 500-yard passing game is typically good enough to make it onto the list, as is a game with five touchdowns and zero interceptions. Cal quarterback Jared Goff did both in a narrow 60-59 victory at Washington State.
He also completed nearly 70 percent of his throws, and were it not for a pair of kickoff returns by Trevor Davis, you have to figure Goff tops the 600-yard mark.
That it came against the Cougars is the only reason it's fallen to No. 9, as Washington State has demonstrated the unique ability of allowing tons of points to just about anyone.
Regardless of how bad the Cougs defense is, however, the throws still have to be made, and every one of them was crucial as the Bears won by a single point. Goff has all the makings of a star quarterback, so don't be surprised to see him have similar performances in the future.
8) QB Cody Kessler vs. Colorado
3 of 10
It's hard to have a better day at quarterback than Cody Kessler on Oct. 18 against Colorado. The junior signal-caller completed 73 percent of his passes for 319 yards and seven touchdowns in the 56-28 victory over the Buffaloes, which was over before the end of the first quarter.
Kessler did all of this on 19 completions as well, meaning he found the end zone on more than one-third of his successful throws.
Much like Goff's effort in the previous slide, the performance, as hard as it may be to top, really can't be much higher considering how awful Colorado's defense has been.
Still, Kessler is quietly putting together a monster season with 26 touchdowns and just two picks, and were it not for Marcus Mariota's running ability, you could make a legitimate case for Kessler to be a co-leader for offensive player of the year at this point.
It's games like the one he had against the Buffaloes that show you why.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
7) DE Hau'oli Kikaha vs. Cal
4 of 10
Three of the top four sack leaders in college football hail from the Pac-12, and atop the list is Washington defensive end Hau'oli Kikaha, an unstoppable force who's had at least one sack in every game this season.
His best effort, however, came in a 31-7 victory at Cal. Keep in mind that the Bears score 40 points per game, so holding the offense to just one score was no small feat. The ringleader was Kikaha, who posted three sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss in the game.
In total, Kikaha had nine tackles and also forced a fumble. The Bears have topped the 40-point mark in six of their nine games, yet against Kikaha and the Huskies, the offense was held to just seven, and the nation's leading sack man was the catalyst.
6) LB Scooby Wright III vs. UCLA
5 of 10
Entering the year, the top two linebackers in the Pac-12 were probably Shaq Thompson and Myles Jack, although you could throw Eric Kendricks in there as well. Even USC's Su'a Cravens has made a case for the honor.
But the best linebacker in 2014 has been Arizona's Scooby Wright III, and even in a loss, his effort against the Bruins was too good to leave out.
Wright posted 19 total tackles, which included 4.5 for loss and three sacks. The explosive UCLA offense, which is averaging more than 33 points per game, was held to just 17. Unfortunately for Wright, the offense was unable to come through, and his effort was for naught.
But it was yet another wake-up call for those still salivating over players like Thompson and Jack. They're great, but Wright is playing out of his mind and is a major reason why the Wildcats are still in contention in the wild and wacky Pac-12 South.
5) RB Royce Freeman vs. Washington
6 of 10
Bad news for the rest of the Pac-12: Oregon has found its latest and greatest two-headed monster in the backfield, and one of the players is unlike any Duck back we've seen in recent years.
We're talking about Royce Freeman, a bulky true freshman bruiser who can handle 25-plus carries a game and make defenses pay on every last one of them.
Enter the Washington Huskies to Autzen Stadium, looking to end a 10-year drought in the rivalry. Their stout defensive line appeared to have a slight edge over the Ducks' ground attack, but Freeman proved that wasn't the case.
He carried the ball 29 times for 169 yards and reached the end zone four times. It was a throwback performance from one of the team's youngest contributors, and it was one of the most impressive games in the Pac-12 over the past month.
4) QB Marcus Mariota vs. Stanford
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Quarterback Marcus Mariota didn't have his best game against Stanford, and save for an average outing against Arizona, you'd probably take the stats from every other game in the past month over what he had versus the Cardinal.
But this was a Stanford defense allowing just 12.5 points per game, and Mariota led his offense past that mark midway through the first quarter.
This was a defense that, coming into the game, was allowing just over three yards per carry and 90 yards per game to opposing offenses. Mariota averaged almost 10 yards per carry and had 85 yards on the ground to himself.
Add in 258 yards through the air and four total touchdowns, and you have one of the best games by a player in the thick of the Heisman Trophy race.
Again, the numbers alone won't wow you. But it marks the second time in 2014 that Mariota has absolutely shredded a top-notch defense, and it made for one of the top 10 performances of the past month.
3) WR Jaelen Strong vs. USC
8 of 10
One of last year's revelations at wide receiver was Arizona State's Jaelen Strong. He's backed up a solid first year with an even better second one, and through eight games, he has 821 yards receiving and eight touchdowns.
His best game, and arguably the best by any pass-catcher in the Pac-12 in 2014, came at USC in which he caught 10 passes for 202 yards and three scores. But it isn't just the numbers that give him the No. 3 spot—it's his final catch.
With the Sun Devils at midfield and needing a touchdown on the final play, quarterback Mike Bercovici heaved up a prayer toward the end zone.
As several USC defensive backs positioned themselves to catch the ball, Strong leaped up, simply snatched the ball in front of a bewildered Trojan and stepped into the end zone for the winning score. It capped off one of the more incredible individual efforts you're ever likely to see.
2) RB Javorius Allen vs. Arizona
9 of 10
USC traveled to Tucson badly needing a conference victory if it had any hope of staying in the race for the South Division title.
The Wildcats were undefeated and coming off a victory at Oregon, having allowed just 144 yards on the ground to the mighty Ducks' rushing attack.
Javorius Allen went and blasted that number away all by himself, carrying the ball 26 times for 205 yards and three touchdowns. Only UCLA, as an entire team, has rushed for more yards against Arizona than Allen did that night.
The Trojans ultimately won the contest 28-26, and without Allen hitting paydirt three times and controlling the ball on offense, it probably wouldn't have been close.
1) QB Connor Halliday vs. Cal
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It seems appropriate to give a nod to Washington State quarterback Connor Halliday here in the top spot after his heartbreaking injury suffered on Saturday against USC.
Though the Cougars have just two wins, Halliday has shown everyone what a talent he is, and his record-breaking performance against Cal tops our list.
Yes, it came in a loss and no, the game itself had no meaningful impact on any national or conference race. But against the Bears, Halliday completed 70 percent of his throws and had six touchdown passes with zero interceptions. He also had 734 yards through the air, and yes, you read that right.
A 700-yard game by an entire offense is noteworthy, and 500 yards passing is pretty unbelievable. But 734 yards through the air by a single player against any defense at any level is flat-out incredible.
It was an effort that Halliday not only earned but deserved as well. It was the best individual performance in the past month.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
