Pac-10 Week 5 Preview

Finally, all teams now have at least one conference game under their belt. If there was any lesson learned this week it was that this conference is deeper than it has been in the past. There are no guaranteed wins this year, except for the Washington State game. Teams that appeared to be on the rise lost and teams that were struggling came up with big wins.

UCLA @ Stanford: The Stanford Cardinal is attempting to end a 7 year postseason drought and this appears to be the year where they finally reach a bowl game. After a 24-16 victory over UCLA, Stanford is now 3-0 in conference play. Running back Toby Gerhart is off to a fast start this year. He continued his great play on Saturday as he rushed for 134 yards and 3 touchdowns.

Washington @ Notre Dame: This is Jimmy Clausen’s year. The Notre Dame quarterback threw for two touchdowns and 422 yards in Notre Dame’s overtime victory. It was the fourth straight game decided in the final 60 seconds for the Irish. Despite the impressive start, the Huskies have now fallen to 2-3 and will desperately need a rebound win next week against the Arizona Wildcats.

Oregon State @ Arizona State: Although the Sun Devils showed signs of life in the second half, this game was not as close as the score indicated. The Beavers beat the Sun Devils 28-17. James and Jacquizz Rodgers combined for 211 total yards and 3 touchdowns. ASU’s defense has been strong all year, but it showed signs of vulnerability and weakness on Saturday. The lone bright spot for the Sun Devils was Chris McGaha who had 15 receptions for 165 yards.

USC @ Cal: This game was essentially a must win for both teams. They both had one conference loss and needed a win for different reasons. Cal needed to win to show that what happened in Oregon was a fluke and that they were a legitimate Pac-10 threat. USC needed this victory to show that they could win without Stafon Johnson and to show that they were still a national title contender. Cal’s offense went missing last weekend in Oregon and it was not found on Saturday either. For the second straight week, the Bears failed to find the end zone. USC’s defense dominated Cal all day and made it easy for Matt Barkley and the rest of the Trojans to roll to a 30-3 victory.

Washington State @ Oregon: This game was never even close. Oregon was up 21-0 at the end of 1, 42-0 at half and they cruised in the second half on their way to an easy victory. Ed Dickson had 7 receptions last night, bringing his career total to 104. This gives him the most career receptions for a tight end in Oregon history. The other story that comes from this game is that quarterback Jeremiah Masoli left the game early with an apparent knee injury. Masoli did not return to the game once he left, but that could just be a precaution because the Ducks already had a 35-0 lead.