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Thursday, November 10th (9:30 PM ET, FS1)
Arizona State [5-4] v. #15 Utah [7-2]
Ingle Win Probability Calculator: Utah (55%)
Arizona State: After jumping out to a 4-0 start to the season, the Sun Devils have fallen apart down the stretch, losing four of their last five contests while allowing 40.4 points per game to opponents. In Week Eleven, something will have to change on the defensive end for Arizona State to right this ship. The Utes may not be prolific offensively but they are chasing a Pac-12 South lead at the moment. That’s something the Sun Devils can’t quite say at this point.
Utah: Utah won some credibility with their tough effort in a loss to Washington, as the Utes looked to be poised to pull off the upset, until some special teams blunders derailed that bid late in the game. While the loss may have hurt the Utes in terms of their belief, it also may have just done enough to take the ability to control their destiny out of their hands. Utah will now have to win out to even hope to have a shot in the Pac-12 South, which will be easier said than done with Oregon and a road trip to Boulder still looming after the Sun Devils.
Robert Ingle: Utah
Marcus Russell: Utah
The_Coach: Utah
Brian J. Moore: Utah
DavidMays: Utah
Donald B. Jordan: Utah
Saturday, November 12th (4:00 PM ET, Pac-12 Network)
Oregon [3-6] v. Stanford [6-3]
Ingle Win Probability Calculator: Stanford (53%)
Oregon: The Ducks stopped the bleeding with a Week Nine win over Arizona State and while they may finally be on the board in the Pac-12 North, the holding pattern that this team remains in hasn’t been changed much. Oregon may have found themselves a nice, developing talent in freshman quarterback Justin Herbert but it’s never gonna be the offense that derails this Ducks team. Oregon still needs to get things together on the defensive side of things...and fast.
Stanford: Despite Stanford’s unique mid-season breakdown, head coach David Shaw and company are still the third best squad coming out of the Pac-12 North, behind still untouched Washington and Washington State. That could say more for the lackluster depth to the conference than anything else. At this point, Stanford won’t catch the Huskies and Cougars and with three-losses on their resume, they’re simply playing for bowl position now. It’ll be somewhat strange to watch these two Pac-12 “powerhouses” play for nothing more than pride on the line, this time around.
Robert Ingle: Stanford
Marcus Russell: Stanford
The_Coach: Oregon
Brian J. Moore: Stanford
DavidMays: Stanford
Donald B. Jordan: Stanford
Saturday, November 12th (7:30 PM ET, FOX)
#4 Washington [9-0] v. #20 USC [6-3]
Ingle Win Probability Calculator: Washington (60%)
Washington: Washington’s pursuit of perfection continues against USC, as the path to securing a Pac-12 title draws nearer, but doesn’t necessarily become any easier for the unbeaten Huskies. What a showdown this one could be on Saturday. While quarterback Jake Browning has been absolutely electric for Washington, the growing feeling is that the Huskies cannot become overly reliant on his abilities and must maintain the steady, dominant balance they’ve shown all season. Washington’s defense will need to play big to hold off a surging Trojans offense.
USC: Confidence. Confidence. Confidence. No word probably better describes the way that USC is playing at the moment than the appearance that the Trojans are a confident and inspired group, who are ready to put that signature stamp on a chaotic 2016 season. Now how can it be done is the question? There’s no game-plan to knock off the Huskies just yet but USC could learn something from Utah’s ball-control approach against the Huskies. The Trojans will need to not give Washington any easy chances in this one.
Robert Ingle: Washington
Marcus Russell: Washington
The_Coach: Washington
Brian J. Moore: Washington
DavidMays: USC
Donald B. Jordan: Washington
Saturday, November 12th (9:00 PM ET, Pac-12 Network)
UCLA [3-6] v. Oregon State [2-7]
Ingle Win Probability Calculator: UCLA (57%)
UCLA: It’s hard to imagine that this is the same UCLA team that almost knocked off Texas A&M back on the first week of the season but it seems like the Bruins have now come a long way since that opening weekend, and not for the better at all. UCLA is a hurting unit at the moment. The Bruins are playing without quarterback Josh Rosen, which must be taken into consideration, but the fact of the matter is that even with Rosen, there were some glaring issues with this group. It also won’t help UCLA’s cause that head coach Jim Mora has unofficially been added to the “hot seat” rumor group of coaches due to his team’s 3-6 start to the season.
Oregon State: While 2-7 may not have been the turnaround season that Beaver fans were hoping for up to this point, the reality that it’s been more of a matter of circumstance in dealing with a rash of injuries and shortcomings has already set in for Oregon State. And yet, with three weeks left in the season, the Beavers still have to like their chances to finish out this campaign on a high note. If head coach Gary Andersen can rally the group for a road trip to UCLA, the Beavers may have some momentum on their side with Arizona coming to Corvallis next week.
Robert Ingle: UCLA
Marcus Russell: UCLA
The_Coach: Oregon State
Brian J. Moore: UCLA
DavidMays: Oregon State
Donald B. Jordan: UCLA
Saturday, November 12th (10:00 PM ET, FS1)
Arizona [2-7] v. #12 Colorado [7-2]
Ingle Win Probability Calculator: Colorado (65%)
Arizona: The spread for this one comes in at just over two touchdowns and there’s no reason to likely think this one will go any other way, even considering that underdog Arizona is playing at home. The Wildcats have just looked like their tank is simply on empty. Like most of the league, Arizona’s roster has been decimated by injuries and there doesn’t seem to be an end in sight for the Wildcats. Arizona has limped this far along in the season, now they can crawl their way to the end with match-ups against Oregon State and Arizona State still left.
Colorado: Sitting atop the Pac-12 South Division, there’s probably no team in this league that has been more of a surprise than the Buffs, but there’s also just about no team that still has more to prove than Colorado as well. But don't worry, they’ll get their chances to prove their worth in Week 12 & 13 match-ups against #23 Washington State and #15 Utah. Until then, the Buffs should use this road trip to the desert as a tune-up to prepare themselves for a program-defining finish to the 2016 campaign.
Robert Ingle: Colorado
Marcus Russell: Colorado
The_Coach: Colorado
Brian J. Moore: Colorado
DavidMays: Colorado
Donald B. Jordan: Colorado
Saturday, November 12th (10:30 PM ET, ESPN2)
#23 Washington State [7-2] v. California [4-5]
Ingle Win Probability Calculator: Washington State (63%)
Washington State: The caretakers of the “air-raid” offense in the Pac-12 this season, the Cougars aerial assault has overtaken Cal’s “bear-raid” attack, as Washington State currently has the second best passing offense in the country per game (only trailing Texas Tech). How will Cal attempt to slow down a red-hot Luke Falk and company? The Washington State quarterback has thrown for more than 3,200 yards and 28 touchdowns this season already and remember, this is was a Cougars group coming off a 69-7 dismantling of Arizona. Back at home, expect nothing to change for head coach Mike Leach’s boys offensively.
California: For California, the game-plan is simple. Slow down this air-raid offense. The Golden Bears will never been mistaken for an impressive defensive team but if Cal wants to have a shot in this one, they will have to at least contain Washington State’s offense with some sort of resistance. If nothing else, they will definitely have to conjure a better showing than they have in their last four games. Cal hasn’t allowed less than 45 points in a game since an October 1st, which coincidentally came in a win over Utah. Forget about offense at this point, the Golden Bears will have to play some kind of defense if they want to win. Case closed.