Pac-12 Football: Power Ranking the Conference's Best Performances from Week 5

Only five Pac-12 games this week, but there were some interesting ones, including the offensive fireworks in the USC Trojans vs. Arizona Wildcats game, which had a combined 893 yards passing and eight TDs.

The Pac-12 has not been easy for the new teams, as Utah and Colorado are a combined 0-3 in conference play, excluding Colorado’s loss to California, which was a pre-scheduled non-conference game.

There are three Top 25 Pac-12 teams again after the Week 6 AP rankings: The Stanford Cardinal (4-0) won big and dropped again to No. 7*, the Oregon Ducks (3-1) didn’t play and remained at No. 9* and the Arizona State Sun Devils (4-1) won ugly and moved up to No. 22*.

If Stanford keeps winning by good margins, it may drop out of the Top 10 in the next four weeks. Of course, it didn't help that Wisconsin had a blowout win over Nebraska.

The Pac-12 conference is still ranked fourth as indicated in the ESPN conference power rankings.

Player of the week honors go to USC quarterback Matt Barkley (second time) for offense, Washington State linebacker Alex Hoffman-Ellis for defense and Arizona State wide receiver/kick returner Jamal Miles for special teams. USC safety T.J. McDonald was named Lott IMPACT Player of the Week and the Jim Thorpe defensive back of the week. Washington State quarterback Marshall Lobbestael received the Manning Player of the Week honors.

Top games this week include Arizona State at the Utah Utes, the Washington State Cougars at the UCLA Bruins and the California Golden Bears at Oregon. USC and the Washington Huskies have a bye.

Here is a ranking of the conference’s best performances from the fifth week of the college football season, excluding Oregon and California, who did not play.

*Week 6 AP ranking

Previous Pac-12 Power Rankings

Week 4

Week 3

Week 2

Week 1

10. UCLA Bruins

Score: Stanford 45, UCLA 19

Details are under the No. 6* Stanford Cardinal (4-0) slide.

UCLA (2-3) hosts Washington State (3-1) in a must-win game for both teams.

*Week 5 AP ranking

9. Oregon State Beavers

Score: Arizona State 35, Oregon State 20

Details are in the No. 25* Arizona State Sun Devils (4-1) slide.

The Beavers (0-4) play host to Arizona (1-4, 0-3) in another must-win. They lost to UCLA in another game they had a chance to win.

*Week 5 AP ranking

8. Colorado Buffaloes

Score: Washington State 31, Colorado 27

Details are under the Washington State (3-1) slide.

Colorado (1-4) travels to No. 7* Stanford (4-0) for another likely loss.

*Week 6 AP ranking

7. Utah Utes

Score: Washington 31, Utah 14

Details are under the Washington Huskies (4-1) slide.

The Utes (2-2) host the No. 22* Arizona State Sun Devils (4-1) and will have a very tough time without QB Jordan Wynn, who is out at least two to three weeks with a left shoulder injury.

*Week 6 AP ranking

6. Arizona Wildcats

Score: USC 48, Arizona 41

Details are under the USC Trojans (4-1) slide.

Arizona (1-4) travels to Oregon State (0-4) in a must-win game for both teams.

5. Washington State Cougars

Score: Washington State 31, Colorado 27

Washington State (3-1) scored on a 63-yard pass reception by Marquess Wilson with 1:10 left to spoil Colorado’s (1-4) Pac-12 debut in a thrilling comeback win.

Colorado had contained the Cougars' high-powered aerial attack most of the game with a patchwork secondary before surrendering two TDs in the final two-and-a-half minutes and then fumbling after a pass reception on a drive to try to win the game. It gave up a 27-17 lead.

WSU QB Marshall Lobbestael, who is filling in for injured starter Jeff Tuel, threw for 376 yards, three TDs and one INT on 32-of-49 passing to lead the Cougars to coach Paul Wulff’s second road win in four years. This game seemed critical for Wulff because he may need a bowl game to keep his job.

WR Marquess Wilson had 121 yards and one TD on six receptions, and WR Jared Karstetter had 105 yards on nine receptions.

Colorado’s QB Tyler Hansen was 15-of-23 for 175 yards, two TDs and one INT. RB Rodney Stewart had 132 yards rushing and one TD on 26 carries. WR Paul Richardson had 76 yards and one TD on seven receptions.

Both teams had 10 penalties.

Washington State travels to UCLA (2-3) for another game it needs to win.

4. Arizona State Sun Devils

Score: Arizona State 35, Oregon State 20

No. 25* Arizona State (4-1) overcame four turnovers to beat winless Oregon State (0-4) in what should have been a blowout win. It was an ugly game, as the Beavers had five turnovers.

Arizona State fell behind 13-0 after turnovers by QB Brock Osweiler on its first three possessions. Osweiler ended up with three INTs and a fumble but was 24-of-37 for 258 yards and two TDs.

RB Cameron Marshall had 80 yards and two impressive TDs on 14 carries. Jamal Miles had Arizona State's first punt return for a touchdown since 2005 to put the Sun Devils up eight at halftime.

Oregon State’s freshman QB Sean Mannion was 40-of-66 for 341 yards, one TD and four interceptions. WR Markus Wheaton had 116 yards on 11 receptions. WR James Rodgers had 32 yards and one TD on five receptions. The Beavers had only 47 yards rushing and were penalized 13 times for 139 yards.

The Sun Devils visit Utah (2-2) on Saturday. With the Utes already 0-2 in Pac-12 play and missing their starting (and only experienced) quarterback, ASU will likely sew up the South division with a win.

*Week 5 AP ranking

3. USC Trojans

Score: USC 48, Arizona 41

USC (4-1) safety T.J. McDonald intercepted two Nick Foles passes and recovered an onside kick, and Trojan QB Matt Barkley passed for a school-record 468 yards to beat Arizona (1-4) in an offensive show for both teams.

Barkley had four TD passes, ran for a TD and had one INT on 32-of-39 passing. WR Robert Woods had 255 yards and two TDs on 14 receptions. He leads the nation in receptions per game and is third in receiving yards per game and fourth in all-purpose yardage.

True freshman WR Marqise Lee added 144 yards and one TD on eight receptions. This was another school record for two receivers. RB Curtis McNeal contributed 74 yards and one TD on seven carries.

The USC OL has struggled this season, especially with run-blocking, but this was another game without a sack, and it allowed Barkley time to make the necessary throws.

USC specials teams played well, and true freshman kicker Andre Heidari made both field-goal attempts, including one from 46 yards. They also forced Arizona to miss two extra-point attempts. The Trojans averaged 30 yards on four kickoff returns.

Coach Lane Kiffin’s play-calling fooled Arizona, coming out with an aggressive passing attack when they figured he would pound the ball at them. He was able to get the ball to Woods by moving him all over the field and then use Woods to set up others.

However, after a slow start including two interceptions in the first quarter, Arizona QB Nick Foles was unstoppable with 41-of-53 passing for 425 yards and four TDs. Foles spread the ball to 12 receivers, led by WR Dan Buckner’s 88 yards on six receptions. Of course, Foles also threw for 398 yards against both the No. 9* Oregon Ducks and No. 6* Oklahoma State Cowboys.

Freshman RB Ka’Deem Carey rushed for two touchdowns and caught another scoring pass for the Wildcats with 34 yards on 12 carries and 45 yards on three receptions.

This is the second game in a row that USC has given up 40 points, and it is the first time this has happened in 119 years. USC self-destructed against Arizona State with four turnovers and critical penalties, but this time it was Foles who spread the field so well and continued to be as accurate as in previous games.

The USC defense was effective in its first three games against inferior teams. USC’s defensive game plan against the potent Arizona passing attack was to limit the big plays, and the longest play was a 27-yard swing pass. However, the past two games have shown that it doesn’t work against spread-style offenses, and the Trojans must change their defensive approach to improve.

USC won the turnover battle for the first time this season and had only three penalties. One was another questionable personal foul, but a rare sideline infraction against Kiffin, who was several feet on the field and over 35 yards away from the play, was ridiculous.

This penalty had never been called against Kiffin as a head coach. There was some consolation, as Arizona coach Mike Stoops was called for the same penalty later in the game, but he had been further on the field many times before that.

This is the second game in a row that there have been strange calls by the officials. We thought the Pac-12 was going to fix that, but fans find it difficult that there are still officials like Jay Stricherz.

USC has a bye week and then faces the California Golden Bears (3-1) on a Thursday night game on October 13 in AT&T Park. This is a key game for the Trojans before traveling to face the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on October 22.

*Week 6 AP ranking

2. Washington Huskies

Score: Washington 31, Utah 14

Washington (4-1) ruined Utah’s (2-2) Pac-12 home debut, as Keith Price threw for three TDs and Chris Polk rushed for 189 yards, while Utah QB Jordan Wynn did not play in the second half due to an injury to his left shoulder.

Washington led 10-7 at half when Jon Hays relieved Wynn and was intercepted on his second college pass. He also fumbled in the fourth quarter.

The Utes uncharacteristically made five turnovers (three fumbles and two interceptions), including two in the red zone in the second quarter, as Wynn threw his second interception of the year.

Wynn was 12-of-17 for 149 yards with one TD and one INT, and Hays was 10-of-16 for 156 yards, one TD and one INT. RB John White had only 35 yards on 14 carries, and the Utes netted only 17 rushing yards. WR DeVonte Christopher had 125 yards on five receptions, and TE Dallin Rogers and WR Dres Anderson each caught one TD pass.

Price was 22-of-30 for 226 yards, three TDs and one INT. RB Chris Polk had 189 yards on 29 carries. WR Jermaine Kearse had 70 yards and one TD on seven receptions, and WR Devin Aguilar and WR Kasen Williams each caught one TD pass.

Washington has a bye before hosting Colorado (1-4) for a game it should win.

1. Stanford Cardinal

Score: Stanford 49, UCLA 19

No. 6* Stanford (4-0) cruised to another easy win over UCLA (2-2), as Andrew Luck threw for 227 yards and three TDs and added a one-handed acrobatic catch exclamation point.

Luck was 23-of-27, and the Cardinal extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 12 games. TE Coby Fleener had 78 yards and two TDs on four receptions, and WR Chris Owusu added 48 yards and one TD on six receptions. The Cardinal also had 202 yards rushing. RB Stepfan Taylor had 112 yards and two TDs on 17 carries.

UCLA QB Richard Brehaut was 18-of-33 for 202 yards and two TDs to WR Joseph Fauria. RB Johnathan Franklin had 96 yards on 12 carries. UCLA did not help its cause with two fumbles.

Stanford hosts Colorado (1-4) this week, and that is bad news for the Buffs.

*Week 5 AP ranking