Pac-12 Power Rankings After Week 10
By Brian Spaen
NOTE: One staff writer was unable to cast their votes as they recover from Hurricane Sandy.
Chip Kelly and his Ducks have been on top of the power rankings for most of the season, but they still have the next two teams to face. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE
1. Oregon (9-0, 6-0) – 33 points (all three first-place votes) (LW: 1)
Brian: Despite giving up all those yards on defense, there is not a better offense in the country. This may be able to help them win out the regular season but if they don’t improve defensively, a team like Alabama could definitely expose them in the title game.
2. Stanford (7-2, 5-1) – 29 points (LW: 2)
Mike (3rd): The AP poll discounted the Cardinal’s clinic in Boulder which Stanford might’ve found its new QB. Equally impressive was holding the Buffs under 80 yards of offense.
3. Oregon State (7-1, 5-1) – 28 points (LW: 3)
Brian (3rd): There’s no question that Cody Vaz should be the starter the rest of the way. The Civil War is looking more like the biggest game of the year for Oregon.
4. UCLA (7-2, 4-2) – 24 points (LW: 4)
Mike (4th): The Bruins treated the Wildcats like a lesser homecoming foe at the Rose Bowl in a game that was done by half.
5. USC (6-3, 4-3) – 21 points (LW: 5)
Brian (5th): They still can win the division and get a rematch against the Ducks, which is what their goal will be. That offense has NFL talent all over the place.
6. Washington (5-4, 3-3) – 18 points (LW: 8)
Mike (6th): Might have put the final nail in the Jeff Tedford coffin winning at Cal but more importantly Sark’s team won a conference road game.
7. Arizona State (5-4, 3-3) – 15 points (LW: 7)
Brian (7th): Can’t put Utah ahead of them even if they lost. The goal is simply getting to a bowl game now.
8. Utah (4-5, 2-4) – 11 points (LW: 9)
Mike (8th): Utah torched another team in SLC as they’ve won back-to-back conference games and have a bowl game in front of them as they still have Colorado on the schedule.
Arizona fell flat against UCLA, plummeting to the bottom-third of the conference. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Fielding-US PRESSWIRE
9. Arizona (5-4, 2-4) – 10 points (LW: 6)
Brian (9th): It’s the worst defense in the conference, and that’s saying something when it’s worse than Colorado.
10. California (3-7, 2-5) – 6 points (LW: 10)
Mike (10th): Lost another home game on Friday and seem to be playing for a lame duck coach the rest of 2012 as they are eliminated from bowl consideration.
11. Washington State (2-7, 0-6) – 3 points (LW: 11)
Brian (11th): It’s a complete disaster of a season for the debut of Mike Leach.
12. Colorado (1-8, 1-5) – 0 points (LW: 12)
Mike (12th): 76 yards on offense… *Drops mic and to quote Will Ferrell’s Alex Trebek “and we’ve reached a new low!”*
The Autzen Zoo Pac-12 power rankings are a collection of votes from our staff. Commentary is provided by lead editor Brian Spaen and staff writer Mike Vamosi.