College Football Power Rankings, Week 7: Pac-10 Wide Receivers
After weeks of top teams from across the country falling by the wayside, the Pac-10 finally has a team atop the AP and coaches' polls.
Similarly, a new leader has emerged among the conference's wide receivers.
At least in the power rankings.
Four teams were inactive this past weekend (Oregon, Stanford, UCLA and Arizona State), but there was still plenty of activity amongst those that did play to warrant a significant shuffling in this week's list.
The cream of the crop is finally rising. The question remains, who has made it to the top?
10. Keenan Allen, Cal
1 of 10
After yet another lackluster performance, this time against USC, Cal's Marvin Jones now finds himself without a place in the power rankings.
In his stead has arisen his teammate, Keenan Allen.
While Jones and most of the Golden Bears struggled against the Trojans, Allen had himself a solid, if somewhat modest, afternoon at the Coliseum, coming up with four catches and 61 yards, including one of Cal's two scores of the day.
Though Jones' season numbers (29 catches, 398 yards, five touchdowns) still well outpace those of Allen (18, 274, 4), the tailspin in Jones' performance in conference games coupled with Allen's recent uptick warrant the latter's inclusion in the rankings this week, even if his stay turns out to be a short one.
Last week's ranking: not ranked
9. Doug Baldwin, Stanford
2 of 10
Doug Baldwin finds himself back in the nine-spot in the rankings by virtue of his and Stanford's inactivity this past weekend.
However, he'll have a golden opportunity to rack up some serious yardage, and Stanford a wide-margin win, at home against Washington State on Saturday.
Last week's ranking: ninth
8. Jared Karstetter, Washington State
3 of 10
Honestly, Jared Karstetter's play against Arizona was less than satisfactory, and if it wasn't for his body of work in the 2010 season, there's no doubt he'd be well off this list.
Two catches for 17 yards doesn't exactly scream top 10 status.
However, he's been steady, more or less, for the Cougars during yet another turbulent season and will have an opportunity to redeem himself against Stanford.
Should Karstetter fail to deliver on Saturday, he may once again find himself on the outside of the rankings looking in.
Last week's ranking: sixth
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7. Markus Wheaton, Oregon State
4 of 10
Like Karstetter, Markus Wheaton didn't exactly wow anyone with his play on Saturday.
The Beavers lost a tough one in double overtime to Washington on a failed two-point conversion. Wheaton managed a mere four catches for 43 yards.
Oregon State has a bye this week, giving Wheaton a chance to regroup while his position in the rankings remains secure, even if only out of courtesy.
Last week's ranking: seventh
6. Juron Criner, Arizona
5 of 10
Not to beat a dead horse, but there were a number of less than stellar performances by ranked receivers this past week.
Perhaps chief among them was that of Juron Criner.
After reaching the summit of the power rankings in the previous edition, Criner now finds himself in the middle of the pack, thanks to an underwhelming haul of two catches for 20 yards against Washington State.
To be fair, Criner's decline may be attributable, at least in part, to the loss of star quarterback Nick Foles, who sprained his knee in the second quarter of the Wildcats' 24-7 win.
With Foles expected to miss another two to three weeks, Criner would do well to develop a rapport with backup QB Matt Scott if he wants his stellar season to keep rolling along.
Last week's ranking: first
5. Marquess Wilson, Washington State
6 of 10
Marquess Wilson has been in and out of the rankings all season, with a mix of powerful and perplexing performances to his name.
With another strong effort, this time against Arizona (six catches, 131 yards and a touchdown), Wilson once again finds himself leading the Pac-10 in receiving yards.
Mind you, Wilson is a true freshman.
Hence, it would be foolish not to re-include Wilson among the top wideouts in the conference.
If this Coug can keep up the good work against 12th-ranked Stanford this weekend, he may find himself on the up-and-up.
Last week's ranking: not ranked
4. Ronald Johnson, USC
7 of 10
There were plenty of statistical standouts for Lane Kiffin's USC squad against Cal.
Ronald Johnson was far from the least of them.
RoJo had himself a solid afternoon against the Golden Bears, racking up 45 yards and two touchdowns on seven catches in the Trojans' 48-14 romp at the Coliseum.
Add in a couple of punt returns and even a shot at running back, and it becomes clear that Johnson was, in fact, all over the field for the Cardinal and Gold.
Last week's ranking: fifth
3. Jermaine Kearse, Washington
8 of 10
After falling off the tracks in recent weeks, Washington's Jermaine Kearse came back in a big way on Saturday in the Huskies' wild win over Oregon State.
Standout quarterback Jake Locker was in a groove against the Beavers, and Kearse was the biggest beneficiary, bringing in nine passes for 146 yards and FOUR (yes, four) touchdowns.
If this Locker-to-Kearse connection keeps going, Kearse could very well find himself back atop the rankings sooner rather than later.
Last week's ranking: fourth
2. Jeff Maehl, Oregon
9 of 10
While all the competition was out piling up yards and touchdowns on Saturday, Oregon's Jeff Maehl was resting up in Eugene.
He and the rest of the Ducks had the weekend off to prepare for UCLA on Thursday.
Now that Oregon has ascended to the tops of the polls, the opportunity is ripe for Maehl to take the next, and final, step up to the top of the rankings.
Last week's ranking: second
1. Robert Woods, USC
10 of 10
It only took two weeks, but Robert Woods has done more than enough to assert himself as the best wide receiver in the Pac-10 right now.
After accumulating a mind-boggling 224 yards and three touchdowns against Stanford, Woods followed up with 116 yards and two touchdowns against Cal.
It was a ho-hum performance by comparison, but certainly enough to vault the uber-talented freshman to the top of the charts.
He's guaranteed at least one more week at the pinnacle, as the Trojans have the week off to prepare for a game at home against the top team in the land, the Oregon Ducks.
But now that Woods has emerged as Matt Barkley's top target, he may very well make a home for himself atop the power rankings.
Last week's ranking: third
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