Rivalry week included some surprising twists, but that has been the story of the Pac-12 the entire season. A few weeks ago, I mentioned that Arizona kept their slim chances to win the Pac-12 South alive with a nail-biting victory over Washington. Somehow, everything went perfectly for them since then and they accomplished the feat. Speaking about perfect games, the USC Trojans played their best game of the season by far against rival Notre Dame, salvaging what was left of a disappointing season with a dominating performance. However, the biggest surprise of the week was a five-loss Stanford team dominating Pac-12 South leader UCLA, allowing Arizona to win the division. It was a hectic week throughout the conference, so let’s recap.
Pac-12 Week 14 Analysis
Game of the Week
Arizona 42, Arizona State 35
Arizona State mounted a late comeback in the fourth quarter when Mike Bercovici took over at quarterback, but Arizona managed to hold on. If winning the Territorial Cup over their rival wasn’t enough, the victory sent Arizona to the Pac-12 Championship Game, and somehow the Wildcats have become contenders for the College Football Playoff if they can pull off another upset. Of course, once again, they are going to need some help from a couple teams. At this point, all they can do is add a prestigious Pac-12 Championship to their resume and hope that a couple teams ahead of them get upset.
Arizona State had a great chance to repeat as Pac-12 South Champions, but the Wildcats denied them. They finished third in the Pac-12 South, but fortunately they will remain in the national rankings and get into a quality bowl game. Mike Bercovici gave the Sun Devils hope for next year, as he will take over for Taylor Kelly. It will also be interesting to see if head coach Todd Graham rolls with the hot hand in their bowl game.
Stanford 31, UCLA 10
Stanford earned their biggest win of the season here and it couldn’t have been a better finish to a miserable season. Stanford is much better than their 7-5 record would suggest, as they lost three heartbreaking games against USC, Notre Dame, and Utah by three points each. They finished second in the Pac-12 North, but they currently sit in the middle of the conference overall. However, this dominating road performance against a good UCLA team proved that Stanford has had some unlucky breaks this year.
Once again, UCLA faltered after an emotional victory over rival USC. The Bruins had a tremendous opportunity to win the Pac-12 South and possibly reach the College Football Playoff. All of that is lost now, but just like with Arizona State, a quality bowl game is still available for a three-loss Pac-12 team. They still managed to finish second in one of the best divisions in college football. The bowl game will likely be quarterback Brett Hundley’s final collegiate game, and it will be interesting to see how UCLA adapts to a change at the position next season.
Utah 38, Colorado 34
Utah surprisingly struggled against the worst team in the Pac-12 in their final regular season game. However, with one of the most difficult schedules in college football this season, the Utes will still likely remain in the national rankings despite their four losses. They finished fifth in the Pac-12 South, but that is more indicative of the strength of the division. They exceeded the expectations of even their own fans this season with some memorable moments and they have an excellent opportunity to earn their ninth win of the season in a bowl game.
Colorado missed another chance to win their first conference game of the year and finished the season at 2-10. However, they were not as bad as their record suggests, as this was not the only close game they lost against a tough opponent. They nearly pulled off a monumental upset against UCLA earlier in the season, but they lost in double overtime. Before that, they lost to Oregon State by only five points and they lost to Cal in double overtime. The transition to the Pac-12 has been a grueling process, but the future is much brighter for the Buffaloes than this two-win season.
USC 49, Notre Dame 14
Cody Kessler tossed six touchdown passes as the Trojans dominated their rival Notre Dame. The best win of the season for USC came at the right time, as they desperately needed a win to salvage their season. They finished fourth in the Pac-12 South, but the future is much brighter. USC will be at full strength soon enough now that the sanctions are over and they will be ready to compete for a national title again. The roster is filled with young talent and the team will be very impressive once they can fill out an entire depth chart with scholarship players.
BYU 42, Cal 35
The heartbreaking non-conference loss left Cal one win short of bowl eligibility. They finished fourth in the Pac-12 North. However, Cal finished just 1-11 last season and failed to win a conference game, so the improvement in a short period of time is encouraging. Sophomore Jared Goff will lead the team again next year after throwing for nearly 4,000 yards this season. Head coach Sonny Dykes made Cal a respectable team this year, and they will be headed to a bowl game next year if he continues to grow the program.
Oregon 47, Oregon State 19
After handling rival Oregon State, the Oregon Ducks are now one win away from heading to the inaugural College Football Playoff. They have a chance to redeem themselves against Arizona and even an ugly win would easily result in a playoff spot. This will likely be Marcus Mariota’s final season, so Oregon needs to win a national championship while they are still a dominant force. They have come up short in the recent past, but this season could be different.
Oregon State could not pull off the upset here, as they fell one win short of bowl eligibility. Senior quarterback Sean Mannion did not end his collegiate career in the way he wanted to, as he threw for 1,500 yards less than last season. The team regressed with him, falling three wins short of last year’s total, which included a bowl win over Boise State. The Beavers finished in last place in the Pac-12 North.
Washington 31, Washington State 13
Washington dominated rival Washington State en route to their eighth win of the season. They finished third in the Pac-12 North, despite a mediocre 4-5 conference record. Chris Petersen’s first season as head coach wasn’t entirely successful, but they will represent the Pac-12 in a decent bowl game.
Washington State limped to the conclusion of a miserable 3-9 season after being bowl eligible last year. They finished fifth in the Pac-12 North. However, freshman quarterback Luke Falk gained some valuable experience after Connor Halliday’s collegiate career ended with an injury against USC. Falk provided some hope for next season, as he threw for 1,427 yards and 10 touchdowns in the three games he started.
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