Pac-12 contenders in spotlight
Oregon-Washington and Utah-ASU to battle in games with playoff ramifications
The Pac-12 has slipped into the background of the college football season. Again.
The conference is still providing plenty of highlights and intrigue. No conference is more unpredictable from top to bottom.
In the College Football playoff era, those are not necessarily good qualities. Being the only Power Five conference without a top-10 team makes it difficult to command the spotlight, but this weekend the Pac12 has two games with championship implications and maybe even playoff ramifications.
No. 12 Oregon (5-1, 3-0), the only team in the Pac-12 still unbeaten in conference play, faces No. 25 Washington (5-2, 2-2). The Ducks might be the Pac-12’s best hope to reach the College Football Playoff. Of more immediate importance, Oregon could build a huge lead in the North by beating the Huskies for the second straight season.
In the Pac-12 South, No. 13 Utah (5-1, 2-1) hosts No. 17 Arizona State (5-1, 2-1) with the winner moving into a tie for first with the winner of Arizona-Southern California. The Utes already have a loss to USC on their résumé, and another loss will make it tough for the defending South champions to get back to the Pac-12 title game for the second straight season.
Regardless of what happens in Salt Lake City, a Washington victory would leave the Utah-Arizona State winner as the conference’s lone oneloss team.
The picks:
Friday
No. 4 Ohio State (minus 28) at Northwestern: Rematch of last year’s Big Ten title game and the first Friday night game for the Buckeyes since 1959 … OHIO STATE 31-7. Saturday
Tennessee (plus 34½) at No. 1 Alabama: Tide’s winning streak over the Vols is 12 games and the gap between the rivals is as big as it has ever been … ALABAMA 48-14.
No. 2 LSU (minus 18) at Mississippi State: QB Joe Burrow has been near flawless, but LSU’s running game is rolling, too, behind Clyde EdwardsHelaire, a 5-foot-8 junior averaging 6.3 yards per carry … LSU 38-23.
No. 3 Clemson (minus 23½) at Louisville:
Cardinals’ turnaround this season has been fueled by a big-play offense; Clemson’s defense is a bigplay black hole … CLEMSON 45-17.
West Virginia (plus 33½) at No. 5 Oklahoma: Mountaineers might be without QB Austin Kendall, an Oklahoma transfer … OKLAHOMA 56-20.
No. 6 Wisconsin (minus 31) at Illinois: Will the Illini score? … WISCONSIN 35-7.
No. 16 Michigan (plus 9) at No. 7 Penn State: You know the tune by now: The Wolverines are 0-7 as an underdog under Jim Harbaugh, including five double-digit losses … PENN STATE 20-14.
No. 9 Florida (minus 5½) at South Carolina: Gamecocks expect to have QB Ryan Hilinski in the starting lineup after a sprained knee against Georgia … FLORIDA 24-21.
Kentucky (plus 24½) at No. 10 Georgia: Wildcats used WR Lynn Bowden at quarterback to beat Arkansas last week; This is not Arkansas … GEORGIA 41-14.
No. 11 Auburn (minus 18½) at Arkansas: The Tigers’ passing game ranks 85th in the nation in efficiency rating (129.30), worst among ranked teams … AUBURN 34-14.
No. 12 Oregon (minus 3) at No. 25 Washington: Red zone touchdowns have been hard to come by for the Huskies; the Ducks lead the nation in red-zone defense … WASHINGTON 20-18, UPSET SPECIAL.
No. 17 Arizona State (plus 13½) at No. 13 Utah: Sun Devils last four games have been decided by a total of 17 points … UTAH 24-20, BEST BET.
No. 14 Boise State (minus 6½) at BYU: Cougars are piecing it together at QB with Zach Wilson injured; Broncos hope to have QB Hank Bachmeier (hip) ready … BOISE STATE 28-17.
Kansas (plus 21) at No. 15 Texas: Longhorns defense has been riddled by injuries and mauled by LSU and Oklahoma; here’s an opportunity to get it together … TEXAS 45-17.
No. 18 Baylor (plus 3½) at Oklahoma State: Bears have won four of five against the Cowboys, but that spread says all you need to know … OKLAHOMA STATE 28-23.
Temple (plus 7½) at No. 19 SMU: Can the Owls take down a ranked and unbeaten conference opponent two weeks in a row? … SMU 31-27.
No. 20 Minnesota (minus 28½) at Rutgers: Scarlet Knights completed five passes for one yard last week. No, really! … MINNESOTA 42-10.
Tulsa (plus 17) at No. 21 Cincinnati: First of four straight games the Bearcats are likely to be double-digit favorites … CINCINNATI 28-14.
No. 22 Missouri (minus 21½) at Vanderbilt: Commodores trying to stop a free fall after losing to UNLV at home … MIZZOU 42-14.
Purdue (plus 18) at No. 23 Iowa: In three games against Power Five teams not named Rutgers, the Hawkeyes have scored two touchdowns and 33 points … IOWA 24-14.
Louisiana-Monroe (plus 14½) at No. 24 Appalachian State: Get to know App State RB Darrynton Evans, averaging 108 yards per game and 6.1 per carry … APPALACHIAN STATE 35-16.