USC, Oregon set to play for Pac-12 championship

No. 13 USC’s reward for being the only unbeaten team in the Pac-12 is a championship game that’s just as weird as the rest of this college football season.

After clinching the South Division title and rallying past UCLA last weekend, the Trojans (5- 0) spent two days of their short week preparing for Washington in the championship game before learning they would actually face Oregon (3-2), which didn’t play last week and has more losses than three other Pac-12 teams.

What’s more, the Ducks have been brutally tough on USC in recent years, winning every matchup but one between the schools since 2011. Oregon flattened the Trojans last year on the way to the conference title with a 32-point win that rattled coach Clay Helton’s job security.

“It’s one of those weeks where you’ve got to embrace and love the grind,” Helton said. “This is what it’s all about.”

If Helton and his Trojans feel any resentment toward the process that landed them in this patchwork matchup tonight at the Coliseum instead of being declared the conference’s champion outright, they aren’t sharing it. USC is playing its third game in 13 days against a well-rested opponent, but the Trojans are only thinking about the opportunity to earn a conference title and a January bowl game for the second time under Helton.

“When you face adversity, what defines you is when you overcome it,” USC offensive coordinator Graham Harrell said.

Although the Ducks are much more rested, they haven’t had the easiest championship week, either: After their game against Washington last week was scrapped due to the Huskies’ COVID problems, Oregon was tentatively matched up with Colorado in Los Angeles this weekend before getting pushed into the title game.

The Ducks are also on just the second two-game skid of coach Mario Cristobal’s tenure, losing to Oregon State and California. Oregon hasn’t won a game in nearly a month, but the league title game provides an opportunity for the powerhouse Ducks’ first back-to-back Pac-12 championships since Chip Kelly won three straight from 2009-11.

“I think we’ve been rewarded with this for sticking to our protocols,” Oregon quarterback Tyler Shough said. “Obviously we would love to have those losses back, but every opportunity we can, we’re going to take advantage of it. We’re going to take advantage of it this week, and do it unapologetically. If we’re in this opportunity, we might as well win it.”

If the Trojans stay unbeaten, they’ll almost certainly get a berth in the Fiesta Bowl. If the Ducks continue their mastery over USC and the Pac-12, they’ll throw one last wrench into the gears of this ramshackle conference season.

• UCLA announced that even if it wins Saturday against Stanford and becomes bowl eligible, it would decline a bowl invitation.

No. 23 Buffalo takes aim at MAC title against Ball State

Jaret Patterson and No. 23 Buffalo have packed a lot of accomplishments into this short season.

Patterson has rushed for over 1,000 yards in just five games, and the Bulls have an undefeated record and a national ranking. Now they have a chance for a feat that could resonate for even longer — a Mid-American Conference title.

“It’s important to me, important to this team,” Patterson said this week. “I feel like that’s really the only thing missing.”

Buffalo tries for its first MAC title since 2008 when the Bulls face Ball State tonight at Ford Field in Detroit.

Purdue fires defensive coordinator after one season

Purdue coach Jeff Brohm fired defensive coordinator Bob Diaco, just one season after he was hired.

Diaco signed a two-year deal after last season and the school still owes him $625,000, a number that could shrink if he finds another job, according to The Lafayette Journal & Courier.

The former Connecticut head coach was hired to replace Nick Holt.

While the Boilermakers (2- 4 Big Ten) finished in the middle of the conference pack in most defensive categories, they had a league-low five sacks and were 12th in passing defense at 254.2 yards per game.