Pac-10 Week 2 Preview

Last week was a good showing for the conference, but it was all overshadowed by the events following the Oregon game. Thankfully, we are back to playing football again and should be able to forget last week’s events and focus on the rest of the season. The Pacific-10 Conference has nine non-conference games this weekend and the majority of them are very intriguing. This week’s games are:

Stanford at Wake Forest: Despite losing their opener; I’m still picking Wake Forest to win this game. Riley Skinner threw three interceptions in the opener against Baylor. This is uncharacteristic and he should bounce back against the Cardinal. Stanford has been and continues to be a program on the rise, but it’s hard to see them winning on the road at 9 a.m local time.

Idaho at Washington: I didn’t predict them to do well this season, but the Steve Sarkesian era got off to an impressive start last Saturday as they only lost to LSU by 11. This is the week that the Huskies get their first win in over a year as Idaho visits the apple state. Jake Locker is a great quarterback that has been stuck on a bad team. Hopefully he plays big and enjoys this week because who knows when the Huskies will have another shot at victory.

UCLA at Tennessee: After beating Western Kentucky 63-7, Tennessee looks to continue its success against the visiting Bruins of UCLA. This game will be close and is very intriguing, but I trust Tennessee at home more than I do UCLA on the road. This is a big game for the Pac-10 as they could gain some respect by beating an SEC school; however the sea of orange will be too much for the Bruins.

Eastern Washington at 10 Cal: This game will not even be close. The Golden Bears dominated Maryland last week. Kevin Riley showed signs that he is becoming a more consistent quarterback and that he is in for a good year. Riley should have a big game and Jahvid Best should appear on Sportscenter’s Top 10 plays at least once with a big run or return.

Hawaii at Washington State: I’ve picked the home team in all the previous games this week, but I’m breaking the trend right now. Washington State is absolutely horrible and I expect Hawaii to pass all over them.

3 USC at 8 Ohio State: Pac-10 vs. Big-10. This is easily the best game of the weekend, not only in the conference, but in the country as well. Last week Ohio State struggled as they only beat Navy by 4. Terrelle Pryor only threw for 174 yards. Hopefully they were looking past Navy and onto USC because if they play like that again the Trojans will blow them out. Freshman Matt Barkley only has one game under his belt, but he will be helped by a potent running attack. Ohio State gave up 186 yards on the ground to Navy; they need to shut down the run and make Matt Barkley beat them if they have any chance of winning. This game is hyped, just as it was last year, but in the end the Trojans will walk out of the horseshoe as champions.

Northern Arizona at Arizona: State bragging right are on the line this Saturday in Tucson! Just kidding, no one actually cares about this game, but a Pac-10 team is playing so I’ll write about it. Nice to know that NAU has a football team, but I don’t see the Lumberjacks coming away with a win this week. The Wildcats are a talented team this year and will improve to 2-0.

Purdue at Oregon: For Oregon to win this game, they need to avoid a shootout. The Ducks need to run the ball early and punch Purdue in the mouth; no pun intended. Okay maybe that was intentional. Oregon has something to prove. They need to show the nation that they are better than the team that did not get a first down until the 3^rd quarter in Boise on Thursday. Purdue put up a good showing in their week 1 victory, however Autzen is one of the toughest places in the country to play and the Ducks should be ready. I’m not sold on this pick, but Oregon needs desperately needs a win to get their season on track, so I’ll go with the Ducks.

Oregon State at UNLV: Jacquizz Rodgers. UNLV may have gained some respect amongst Pac-10 fans last year when they travelled to Tempe and upset the Sun Devils. This year will be different however as the Beavers should get a win in Sin City.