Ranking Best Pac-12 Football Matchups of Week 1
The Pac-12 Conference is coming off a 2015 college football season of mixed results. On one hand, 10 of the league's 12 teams qualified for bowl games, the most ever, but none of them earned a much-coveted spot in the College Football Playoff.
What will happen in 2016? We'll find out soon enough, as the opening week of action is just around the corner.
In Week 1, 11 Pac-12 schools make their 2016 season debut, with California getting the weekend off after opening with a 51-31 win over Hawaii in Australia on Aug. 26. The slate is a mix of high-profile matchups with power programs, rivalry games and clashes against the FCS that won't all be as easy as they might seem.
We've ranked these matchups based on how good they should be and how much you'll want to watch them.
11. Oregon vs. UC Davis
1 of 11
When: Saturday at 5 p.m. ET
When last we saw Oregon, it was blowing a 31-0 halftime lead to TCU in the Alamo Bowl. That collapse contributed to coach Mark Helfrich's decision to overhaul his defensive staff and bring in former Michigan coach Brady Hoke as coordinator.
Among the few notable changes for the Ducks from 2015, they welcome another new quarterback from the FCS ranks. Last year it was Vernon Adams Jr., who came from Eastern Washington, and now it's Montana State graduate transfer Dakota Prukop.
The rest of Oregon's explosive offense is similar to last year. Junior running back Royce Freeman is coming off a record-breaking season, while the receiving corps includes plenty of options including Olympic hurdler Devon Allen.
UC Davis went 2-9 last season and hasn't beaten an FBS school since 2010.
10. Utah vs. Southern Utah
2 of 11
When: Thursday at 8 p.m. ET
Utah quite often plays an FCS opponent each season; last year was a notable exception when it opened at home against Michigan in what became a high-profile game because it marked the debut of Wolverines coach Jim Harbaugh. This season's opener won't draw nearly as much attention, but it still has some history to it.
The Utes are 37-0 against teams from the Big Sky Conference but has never faced Southern Utah, which has had a program since 1963 and has been at the FCS level since 1993. The Thunderbirds won the Big Sky and made the FCS playoffs last season and nearly beat Utah State in September.
Utah returns 13 starters but has some major holes to fill on offense. Former Washington quarterback Troy Williams replaces four-year starter Travis Wilson, while new faces are also in line to start at running back and wide receiver.
9. Arizona State vs. Northern Arizona
3 of 11
When: Saturday at 10:45 p.m. ET
Arizona and Arizona State tend to alternate which one pays Northern Arizona to come to town and get slaughtered. The Lumberjacks are hoping this trip to Tempe goes better than the 2015 visit to Tucson, which resulted in a 77-13 loss.
Arizona State is glad to be starting with an FCS team if only because it provides its many new starters a chance to ease into the season. That includes the quarterback position, which will go to either redshirt sophomore Manny Wilkins or redshirt freshman Brady White, neither of whom have has a pass in college.
The schedule gets much tougher after this one, as ASU hosts Texas Tech next week.
The Sun Devils went 6-7 last season, their first losing record under coach Todd Graham. Big plays were their biggest problem in 2015, as they allowed opponents to gain 40 or more yards on a play 30 times and go for 50-plus on 19 occasions.
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8. Washington vs. Rutgers
4 of 11
When: Saturday at 2 p.m. ET
Washington was 7-6 in 2015, winning its final three games in impressive fashion to head into the offseason with a ton of momentum. That's morphed into plenty of hype, to the point the Huskies are being compared to one of the summer's biggest fads.
"The Huskies are the Pokemon Go of college football," the Seattle Times' Larry Stone wrote. "Every analyst is convinced he or she has unearthed the hidden breakout team of the Pac-12. So many people predict them to surprise, the surprise actually would be if they didn’t."
Quarterback Jake Browning and running back Myles Gaskin started as true freshmen last year and are poised for even bigger efforts as sophomores. They get the benefit of a favorable early schedule, starting with a Rutgers team that went 4-8 a year ago and is making a cross-country trip with a first-time head coach, Chris Ash.
7. Washington State vs. Eastern Washington
5 of 11
When: Saturday at 8 p.m. ET
Not all FCS opponents are created equal. Washington State can attest to this, because last year it lost at home to Portland State in Week 1 before rebounding to win nine games and go 6-3 in the Pac-12, its best league record since 2003.
Eastern Washington is as dangerous as they come as far as FCS schools. The Eagles were 6-5 last season but return some major offensive weapons, including senior wide receiver Cooper Kupp, who had 15 catches for 246 yards and three touchdowns in their 61-42 loss at Oregon last September.
Washington State narrowly beat Eastern Washington at home in 2012, the first win of the Mike Leach era, while the Eagles won at Oregon State in 2013 and nearly knocked off Washington in 2014.
Expect lots of aerial action from both teams, as the Cougars led FBS in passing last year and bring back quarterback Luke Falk and 104-catch receiver Gabe Marks.
6. Oregon State at Minnesota
6 of 11
When: Thursday at 9 p.m. ET
To say Gary Andersen's first season at Oregon State went poorly is a major understatement. The Beavers were 2-10 overall and winless in the Pac-12, the first time that's happened since 1987.
A young and inexperienced team struggled on offense, particularly when throwing the ball, as Oregon State averaged 159.1 passing yards per game and completed less than 47 percent of its throws. Major improvement is expected in 2016 with Utah State transfer Darell Garretson now at quarterback.
Minnesota was 6-7 in 2015 but finished on a high note, beating Central Michigan in the Quick Lane Bowl as one of three teams with losing records to earn bowl bids. Tracy Claeys, who took over for Jerry Kill as coach midway through last season, enters his first full year in charge of a Golden Gophers squad that returns 13 starters.
Andersen, who coached at Wisconsin in 2013-14, went 2-0 against Minnesota including a 20-7 win at TCF Bank Stadium in November 2013.
5. Colorado vs. Colorado State (in Denver)
7 of 11
When: Saturday at 8:05 p.m. ET
An underrated rivalry game that doesn't get much national attention, the Rocky Mountain Showdown has been played since 1893. Nine of the last 10 games have taken place at Mile High Stadium with two going to overtime, including last September when Colorado squeaked out a 27-24 victory.
Colorado was 4-9 last season but returns 18 starters, including senior quarterback Sefo Liufau. He suffered a Lisfranc foot injury in November but heads into this game needing 352 passing yards to become the Buffaloes' career leader. He threw for 220 yards and two touchdowns in last year's win against the Rams.
Colorado State was 7-6 in 2015 but had three losses by five or fewer points.
4. Stanford vs. Kansas State
8 of 11
When: Friday at 9 p.m. ET
Stanford is the defending Pac-12 champion, winning 12 games in 2015 that also included a Rose Bowl victory over Iowa. But because the Cardinal had two losses, including at Northwestern in the season opener, they were shut out of the playoff party.
Getting to open at home against a power opponent gives Stanford a chance for an early resume booster as well as an opportunity for some new players to be challenged right away. Among those first-time starters is junior quarterback Ryan Burns, who follows school wins leader Kevin Hogan.
Junior running back Christian McCaffrey set the FBS single-season all-purpose yardage record in 2015, gaining 3,864 yards that included 2,019 rushing yards. He finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting last year and is among the favorites this season, per Odds Shark.
Kansas State, which went 6-7 last year, is coached by 76-year-old Bill Snyder. He's been with the Wildcats since 1989, though he briefly retired from 2006 to 2008 before returning to the sideline.
3. Arizona vs. BYU (in Glendale, Arizona)
9 of 11
When: Saturday at 10:30 p.m. ET
Arizona has been perfect in nonconference play in each of coach Rich Rodriguez's four seasons, but most of those previous games were against non-power opponents or schools from the FCS ranks. BYU presents a much bigger challenge, and to add to the difficulty, the crowd at University of Phoenix Stadium doesn't figure to provide much of an edge.
According to Arizona athletic director Greg Byrne (h/t AZ Desert Swarm), BYU has sold more tickets than the Wildcats despite the game being only two hours from Arizona's campus.
Also working against Arizona is the playing surface, which is natural grass. Rodriguez's teams are 2-8 on the real stuff since 2012, with both wins coming at Colorado, and in December 2014 the Wildcats fell to Boise State in Glendale in the Fiesta Bowl.
BYU, an independent, is set to face six power-conference teams in the first seven weeks of 2017, including Utah and UCLA. It lost to both of those teams in 2015, including to rival Utah in the Las Vegas Bowl.
2. UCLA at Texas A&M
10 of 11
When: Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET
UCLA is the only Pac-12 team that opens with a true road game, and to call Texas A&M's Kyle Field a “hostile environment” is not doing it justice. With a capacity of 102,733, it is the largest stadium in the SEC and the fourth-largest in the country, more than 10,000 seats larger than the Rose Bowl.
But Bruins quarterback Josh Rosen thinks the crowd noise won't be any different than playing in a much smaller stadium.
"After about 50,000 people, it all sounds about the same," Rosen said, per Lindsey Thiry of the Los Angeles Times.
A&M fans will no doubt be ready to refute that comment.
UCLA has been a good road team under coach Jim Mora, winning 11 of its last 13 true road games. It also beat Texas in Arlington in September 2014.
A&M is coming off an 8-5 season in which it started 5-0 before fizzling out. The Aggies offense underwent an overhaul, as coach Kevin Sumlin hired coordinator Noel Mazzone away from UCLA.
1. USC vs. Alabama (in Arlington, Texas)
11 of 11
When: Saturday at 8 p.m. ET
It doesn't get more high-profile than opening the season against the defending national champions, but in all fairness USC probably would have preferred to have a game under its belt before taking on Alabama in a neutral site that has basically become Alabama's second home.
AT&T Stadium is where the Crimson Tide began last season with a win over Wisconsin and where they shut out Michigan State in the Cotton Bowl en route to their third national title in the last five seasons. USC has never played in the home of the Dallas Cowboys and hasn't had a game in Texas since losing the 2012 Sun Bowl to Georgia Tech.
This is technically the start of Trojans coach Clay Helton's first season, though he's been on the job since October and was integral in getting USC into the Pac-12 final as South Division champs. USC lost that game, to Stanford, and then fell to Wisconsin in the Holiday Bowl.
Helton has tabbed junior Max Browne as his quarterback, succeeding three-year starter Cody Kessler, while Alabama has yet to announce whether junior Cooper Bateman or redshirt freshman Blake Barnett will get the start. Whoever is on the field, though, will be in good hands, as former USC coach Lane Kiffin has been masterful as Alabama's offensive coordinator.
According to Odds Shark, USC is a clear underdog, but winning isn't the only way it could succeed in this game. Being able to hang with Alabama will also reap benefits for the remainder of the season, which features 10 more games against teams that played in bowls in 2015.
All recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports, unless otherwise noted. All statistics provided by CFBStats, unless otherwise noted.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
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