Pac-10 Week 10 Preview

There are 5 weeks to go in the college football season and the Pac-10 race is far from being over. The Oregon Ducks are the favorite as they are the only undefeated team in conference play. However, they still need to travel to Tucson, Arizona to face the Wildcats who only have one loss. The conference also features four teams with two losses who have small margins of hope. Then there is UCLA and Washington State who are both still seeking their first conference victory.

8 Oregon @ Stanford: After coming off an impressive 47-20 victory over the then number 5 USC Trojans, the Oregon Ducks are full of confidence and look to extend their 7 game win streak against Stanford. Both these teams like to run the ball, but they do so in incredibly different ways. Oregon uses the speed of LaMichael James to run on the outside, while Stanford uses Toby Gerhart to run between the tackles. The defense of Oregon has been excellent all year long and they will continue this trend on Saturday. Gerhart is the conference’s leading rusher, but the Ducks will find a way to slow him down and pull out the victory.

Washington State @ 18 Arizona: The Wildcats have moved up to number 18 in the polls and should have an easy time this week against the winless Cougars. Washington State is coming off a loss to Notre Dame and will extend its losing streak to 6 on Saturday. Arizona will beat Washington State and begin looking ahead to their matchup with Cal next week.

Washington @ UCLA: Until UCLA gets production from the quarterback position, they will continue to struggle. Washington has Jake Locker, who is quite possibly the best quarterback in the conference, leading their team. The Huskies have struggle of late by losing their last two games, but I expect them to get back on track this week in the Rose Bowl. Jake Locker has the ability to will his team to victory and will find a way to get the job done on Saturday.

Oregon State @ 20 Cal: After coming off a last minute victory against the Sun Devils, the Bears will look to continue their winning ways this weekend as they return home. The Bears have a three game winning streak and will extend it to four against the Beavers. Oregon State’s offense looked impressive against USC, but I have no confidence in a team that required all 60 minutes to beat an awful UCLA team at home. The Bears have one of the best offenses in the conference and will use all their weapons to beat the Beavers in Berkeley.

12 USC @ ASU: Both teams are coming off losses, but of very different sorts. The Sun Devils lost on a last minute field goal by the California Golden Bears, while the Trojans were embarrassed on national television by the Oregon Ducks. USC will be looking to restore its name and is expected to dominate the Sun Devils. Danny Sullivan is turnover prone and that is the one thing that the Sun Devils will not be able to afford on Saturday. The Sun Devils defense will try to keep the game close, but in the end there is no reason to believe that the Trojans will get their third conference loss.