ASU Football: 2018 Pac-12 Week Three Power Rankings

It was not a banner week for the Pac-12 with ASU football and USC losing road games and dropping out of the polls and Washington winning ugly at Utah.

After two signature wins for the Pac-12 against Big Ten opponents, the Pac-12 laid an egg last week.

Arizona State and USC entered the week ranked in the AP Poll and both suffered duds with the Sun Devils getting upset for the second straight year by San Diego State.

USC, after almost losing to Texas in Los Angeles last season, got handily beaten by the Longhorns 37-14 as the offense struggled to move the ball.

Adding Washington’s unconvincing win over Utah, there wasn’t many positives to take away from the Pac-12.

It was a heavy cupcake week filled with weak FBS opponents or FCS opponents.

Here’s our Week Three Power Rankings with the week beginning Friday with Washington State taking on USC.

Power Rankings: Preseason | Week 1 | Week 2 |

1. Washington Huskies (2-1, 1-0 Pac-12) Last Week: 1

The Washington Huskies won an ugly game in Salt Lake City defeating Utah 21-7.

Running back Myles Gaskin was the standout performer rushing for 143 yards and one touchdown to help set a balanced offensive attack.

The play that probably best encapsulated the game was Huskies quarterback Jake Browning backpedaling 15 yards as he was getting chased by the Utes’ pass rush, throwing the ball up in the air and getting picked off by 300-pound defensive tackle Pita Tonga.

Going up the sidelines, Tonga fumbled the ball out of bounds as it slipped out of his hands. Utah got zero points on the ensuing drive turning the ball over on downs.

Washington’s offense has not looked good through the first three weeks of the season, which should provide hope for Arizona State as they head into Seattle Saturday night.

– Sam Ficarro

2. Stanford Cardinal (3-0, 1-0 Pac-12) LW: 2

Running Bryce Love didn’t play for Stanford as the Cardinal defeated UC Davis 30-10. It was only 3-0 after the first quarter but Stanford’s offense got going with 27 points combined in the second and third quarters.

Quarterback K.J. Costello struggled to start the game throwing a pair of interceptions but finished with 214 yards and two touchdowns.

Stanford rushed for 137 yards as a team in Love’s absence, who’s expected back this week as the Cardinal head to Eugene for a top-20 showdown with Oregon.

The game will have heavy implications not only in the Pac-12 North but for the College Football Playoff.

– Ficarro

3. Oregon Ducks (3-0) LW: 3

It’s safe to say that Oregon has had one of the most explosive offenses in college football this season.

Mario Cristobal’s team is currently eighth in the country in points per contest. Justin Herbert has been lights out at quarterback throwing for 840 yards and 12 touchdowns already.

The Ducks’ schedule has been a major factor in the team’s success (Bowling Green, Portland State and San Jose State so far), but Oregon will certainly be tested this weekend when the No. 7 team in the nation, Stanford, travels to Eugene.

With the entire nation watching, will Herbert and the Ducks be able to explode on offense against a top-10 opponent?

– Koki Riley

4. Colorado Buffaloes (3-0) LW: 7

The Buffaloes are now 3-0 to start the season, including a big road win over Nebraska.

However, the Cornhuskers had several chances to win the game. And the other two wins were against Colorado State and New Hampshire.

The Buffaloes look good early but they will be really tested within the Pac-12 later in the season. Fortunately, for Mike MacIntyre’s team, conference play begins at home against 0-3 UCLA.

The connection between junior quarterback Steve Montez and sophomore wide receiver Lavishka Shenault Jr. has quietly become one of the best tandems in college football so far.

– Ethan Schmidt

5. Arizona State Sun Devils (2-1) LW: 4

After it rolled the first two games, the Herm Edwards train ran out of gas in Week 3 against San Diego State.

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Though the Sun Devils made a valiant effort in the last two minutes, it was not enough to make up for ASU’s defensive line and running game woes. As a team, the Sun Devils rushed for just 36 yards, compared to SDSU’s 311.

Pac-12 play kicks off for the Sun Devils Saturday against Washington. If the D-Line doesn’t make adjustments before Saturday, Washington running back Myles Gaskin could have a field day.

– Carson Field

6. Utah Utes (2-1, 0-1 Pac-12) LW: 6

It is unclear so far just how good the Utah Utes are. After a narrow 17-6 victory over Northern Illinois State, the Utes fell a week ago to Washington 21-7.

Utah has so far been unable to get any offense rolling after turning the ball over three times against the Huskies and constantly struggling to pick up first downs.

The Utes historically have one of the better defenses in the country and it will be interesting to see how well the offense is able to come around to determine the team’s fate for the season.

– Cody Whitehouse

7. USC Trojans (1-2, 0-1 Pac-12) LW: 5

2018 may become a rebuilding season for the Trojans.

USC’s 37-14 loss to Texas on the road this past weekend was not a positive sign after last weekend’s three point effort against Stanford.

The Trojans hit the road for both of those matchups, but with such a young offense this may be just the beginning of USC’s growing pains on that side of the ball.

JT Daniels’ inexperience under center is clearly showing (one touchdown compared to three interceptions) and for USC that’s certainly bad news for this season.

Defensively, USC has been solid thanks to the production of Cameron Smith (25 tackles) and Porter Gustin (four sacks). Regardless, the defense will need to improve even more if the Trojans offense continues to sputter.

– Riley

8. California Golden Bears (3-0) LW: 8

California has been one the biggest surprises in the Pac-12 this season as the Golden Bears have began the year 3-0 including a 21-18 victory over now No. 25 BYU.

The balanced offensive attack has been key for the Golden Bears with Chase Garbers leading the air attack with 454 yards and six touchdowns. On the ground it’s a balanced effort of Patrick Laird, Brandon McIlwain, and Chase Garbers who each have over one hundred yards through three games.

Cal will have this week off before squaring off against No. 20 Oregon next week in the Golden Bears opening Pac-12 game.

– Whitehouse

9. Washington State Cougars (3-0) LW: 9

The Cougars continued their strong start to the season, blowing out Eastern Washington by 35 points to improve to 3-0 heading into Pac-12 play.

Senior quarterback Gardner Minshew shined again for WSU, recording his second consecutive game with over 400 passing yards. So far, he’s accounted for 1,203 yards and nine total touchdowns.

The Cougars have done a majority of their scoring in the fourth quarter, outscoring opponents 52-0 in that frame. The team hopes to disperse that total as they move into conference play.

WSU will put their undefeated start to the test in a road game against USC this Friday at 7:30 p.m. PT.

– Trevor Booth

10. Arizona Wildcats (1-2) LW: T10

Well, the Wildcats are into the win column, albeit following an uninspiring performance against FCS foe Southern Utah.

The Arizona offense sprung to life on Saturday, dropping 61 points on the reigning Big Sky champs after putting up 41 combined through the first two weeks of the season.

Khalil Tate threw five touchdowns along with a career-high 349 passing yards but continues to struggle on the ground (four carries, 18 yards).

Defensively, the Wildcats conceded 30 first downs to SUU and had the ball 14 minutes fewer than the Thunderbirds. With a trip to Oregon State (30.3 points per game) on the horizon, we could be looking at a shootout in Corvallis.

– Zach Pekale

11. Oregon State Beavers (1-2) LW: 12

Despite losing 37-35 on the road to Nevada, the Beavers showed a lot of fight in their defeat.

Once trailing 30-7, Oregon State nearly mounted a comeback of epic proportions, but came up just short. In replacement of Conor Blount, quarterback Jake Luton was impressive, throwing for 284 yards and a touchdown.

This week, the Beavers host Arizona, who has struggled to start the season, especially on defense. First team to 50 wins.

– Field

12. UCLA Bruins (0-3) LW: T10

Things can’t go worse in Chip Kelly’s return to college football.

Overshadowing a 24-point loss to Fresno State was a social media war where quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson’s father, Michael, called Kelly’s coaching and play calling “lousy” while saying his success at Oregon “was simply a fluke.”

The matters elevate the woes of UCLA, who is last in the conference in total offensive yards per game with 320.

This isn’t what we’d expect from a Kelly-led offense, and if things don’t turn around quick, his return to college could be shorter than expected.

Next. ASU Football: How much will last year’s upset of Washington play a factor?. dark

UCLA has a bye week before travelling to play Colorado next Friday at 6 p.m. PT.

– Booth

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