ASU Football: 2018 Pac-12 Week Six Power Rankings

ASU football saw their Pac-12 South hopes get dashed in Boulder while Colorado made its case to be the best team in the division.

It was a tough week for Arizona State last Saturday in Boulder.

After a stellar first half, the offense struggled to move the ball in the second half as Colorado wide receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. broke out for 140 total yards and four total touchdowns in the Buffaloes’ 28-21 win over the Sun Devils.

Colorado, as the last remaining undefeated team in the Pac-12, is making a strong case to be the frontrunner to win the Pac-12 South for the second time in three years.

Elsewhere in the Pac-12, Stanford were blown out at home by Utah as they went from being No. 7 in the AP Poll two weeks ago to unranked this week.

In other scores around the league, No. 10 Washington defeated UCLA, Arizona defeated California and Washington State defeated Oregon State.

It’s a sparse week for the conference with only four games this week, but the biggest one is in Eugene with No. 17 Oregon hosting the seventh-ranked Huskies for Pac-12 North supremacy.

If Oregon were to win, it would more than likely mean the Pac-12 would be shut out again from the College Football Playoff.

With that said, here’s out Week Six Pac-12 Power Rankings.

1. Washington Huskies (5-1, 3-0 Pac-12) Last Week: 1

A win is a win but defeating a winless UCLA team by just a touchdown does not inspire confidence for a Huskies team still trying to play themselves back into a spot in the College Football Playoff.

Myles Gaskin had a solid day on the ground with 116 rushing yards. Jake Browning on the other hand completed 18-of-26 passes but also threw an interception.

Defensively, Washington allowed the Bruins to crawl back into the game after leading 24-7 at half time.

The Huskies have been impressive so far this season but a one touchdown win against a UCLA team that has yet to be competitive so far this season.

– Koki Riley

2. Oregon Ducks (4-1, 1-1 Pac-12) LW: 3

The Ducks have newfound life following Stanford’s loss to Utah.

Coming off a bye, Oregon has a chance to bring themselves within a half game of the Pac-12 North standings against No. 7 Washington. The opportunity will come once again at Autzen Stadium.

If the Ducks are to knock off the Huskies, they’ll need a consistent effort from the freshman tailback duo of Travis Dye and CJ Verdell. The pair combined for 221 yards in their victory over No. 24 California, by far their best rushing game of the season.

All eyes will be on the duel between Justin Herbert and Jake Browning. If Herbert can get support from surrounding areas, scoring chances could come in bunches.

– Trevor Booth

3. Stanford Cardinal (4-2, 2-1 Pac-12) LW: 2

The Cardinal’s playoff hopes are most likely gone now after their loss to the unranked Utah Utes who had opened up Pac-12 play 0-2. Stanford was without star running back Bryce Love due to injury and the lack of Love showed on the offensive end.

Utah jumped out of the gates to take advantage of what was a slow start for the Cardinal as the Utes led at halftime 24-7. The Stanford offense attempted to comeback late in the second half with a 14-point third quarter but were unable to score in in the fourth quarter.

Stanford will face Arizona State after a bye and will hope to have Love back for the matchup in Tempe against the Sun Devils.

– Cody Whitehouse

4. Colorado Buffaloes (5-0, 2-0 Pac-12) LW: 6

The Colorado Buffaloes are for real, at least we think they are. After going 4-0 to begin the season against teams with a cumulative record of 1-16, the Buffaloes proved they were for real with a 28-21 victory over Arizona State.

Colorado was led by Laviska Shenault Jr. as the nation’s leading receiver totaled four touchdowns in the game receiving two through the air and two on the ground. The Buffaloes were also led by quarterback Steven Montez who threw for 328 yards without getting sacked all game.

Up next for the Buffaloes will be USC, a team they have never defeated in a total of 13 attempts. Expect Colorado to be challenged early, but pull away and remain the Pac-12’s lone undefeated team.

– Whitehouse

5. Utah Utes (3-2, 1-2 Pac-12) LW: 9

Since the season began, the Utes prayed for an offensive outburst. The timing couldn’t have been better.

In their 40-21 win over Stanford, Kyle Whittingham’s squad finally brought consistency many expected at the beginning of the season.

Tyler Huntley completed 81 percent of his passes while throwing for 199 yards and one touchdown pass while Zach Moss rushed for a season-high 160 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries.

Granted, the victory comes with an asterisk. Stanford was without star running back Bryce Love, who sat out a second game with left ankle soreness.

Still, a double-digit victory in Palo Alto is nothing to scoff at. The Utes are on the board in Pac-12 play, and they have a victory that carries some momentum.

They’ll look to pick up their second straight victory Friday night as they host Arizona.

– Booth

6. Washington State Cougars (5-1, 2-1 Pac-12) LW: 7

More than 1,000 total yards and 93 combined points later, Washington State left Corvallis with a win over Oregon State.

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Quarterback Gardner Minshew continued his scorching start to the season as he threw for 430 yards and five touchdowns, guiding the Cougars to 28 unanswered points after halftime.

Following another impressive showing, the graduate transfer from East Carolina surpassed his season totals in passing yards and touchdowns from a year ago having played in four fewer games.

Coach Mike Leach is still clearly in touch with his Big 12 roots and continues to get the most out of a signal-caller that struggled with the Pirates in 2017.

Sitting at 2-1 in what has become a free-for-all in the Pac-12 North, WSU has a chance to solidify itself against the traditional contenders when it faces No. 17 Oregon in Pullman.

– Zach Pekale

7. USC Trojans (3-2, 2-1 Pac-12) LW: 4

Back in action off the bye week, USC has its toughest test of the season in No. 19 Colorado.

When the Trojans last took the field, they escaped with a four-point win over Arizona despite committing 18 penalties for 169 yards. For additional perspective, freshman quarterback J.T. Daniels only mustered 197 passing yards against the Wildcats.

The survive and advance approach was enough to get the job done two weeks ago but another game centered around a lack of discipline would be costly to the Trojans’ chances to win the conference.

With USC and Colorado separated by a half game entering Saturday, the winner controls its destiny in the Pac-12 South.

– Pekale

8. Arizona State Sun Devils (3-3, 1-2 Pac-12) LW: 5

ASU’s road struggles continued at Boulder last weekend when the Sun Devils failed to score more than a touchdown in the second half.

Granted, the Buffaloes are undefeated and sitting atop the top-20 of the AP poll but the Sun Devils only got three catches from N’Keal Harry as Manny Wilkins finished the game with a knee injury.

The Sun Devils defense could not get off the field on third down. The Buffs converted on half of their third down opportunities and Colorado finished off ASU with a game-clinching fourth quarter drive to seal the win.

After the bye week, ASU heads back home to play a reeling Stanford team coming off back-to-back losses to Notre Dame and Utah.

– Riley

9. California Golden Bears (3-2, 0-2 Pac-12) LW: 8

Cal got off to a hot 3-0 start to begin the season but the Golden Bears have now dropped two in a row, both conference games most importantly.

The team is now in fifth place in the Pac-12 North after last Saturday’s tough loss to Arizona. Quarterback Brandon McIlwain put up big numbers through the air and on the ground, but ultimately would throw a pick six that gave Arizona the game.

Other than the three total interceptions, Cal played well. The Golden Bears’ defense was a bright spot only allowing 265 total yards.

Now, Cal gets a chance to be back in the win column against a 0-5 UCLA team in Berkeley. The Golden Bears can improve to 4-2 and would be just one win shy of their season total from last year.

– Ethan Schmidt

10. Arizona Wildcats (3-3, 2-1 Pac-12) LW: 10

Arizona picked up a big home win against Cal 24-17 thanks to their defense recording two pick sixes despite the Golden Bears outgaining the Wildcats 476-265.

It’s been so perplexing to see how poor this Wildcats offense has been. When Kevin Sumlin was hired, everyone thought it was a match made in heaven with quarterback Khalil Tate.

It’s been the complete opposite as Tate doesn’t look like the explosive player he was last season. Tate has rushed the ball 44 times for 109 yards this season after rushing for 1,411 yards last season.

They’ll take the win any day, but Arizona finished with only 13 first downs and had the ball for nine less minutes than Cal. The offense is still a serious concern in Tucson.

Next up for the Wildcats is a Friday night road game at Utah, who’s coming off a big road win at Stanford last week.

– Sam Ficarro

11. Oregon State Beavers (1-5, 0-3 Pac-12) LW: 11

Another conference game for the Beavers ends in another defeat as they fell at home to Washington State 56-37.

Both offense had their way with Washington State tallying 530 yards compared to Oregon State’s 497 yards.

The difference was quarterback play with Gardner Minshew continuing to shine in Pullman throwing for 430 yards and five touchdowns in the victory.

A bright spot for Oregon State continues to be running back Jermar Jefferson who recorded his fourth 100-yard rushing game of the season.

Jefferson finished with 138 yards and four touchdowns raising his season total to 865 yards and 12 touchdowns this season.

The Beavers are on a bye week this week before hosting Cal next week.

– Ficarro

12. UCLA Bruins (0-5, 0-2 Pac-12) LW: 12

The winless drought continued for Chip Kelly and the Bruins Saturday falling to No. 10 Washington 31-24.

UCLA played better in the second half making it a game competitive after trailing 24-7 at halftime.

The offense played well against the stout Huskies defense with quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson throwing for 272 yards and two touchdowns, running back Joshua Kelly rushing for 125 yards and one touchdown and tight end Caleb Wilson recording 102 receiving yards and one touchdown.

The defense struggled to stop Washington’s balanced attack with Jake Browning throwing for 225 yards and Myles Gaskin rushing for 116 yards.

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Sitting at 0-5 (0-2 Pac-12), UCLA will look to enter the win column in Berkeley against Cal Saturday.

– Ficarro

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