Action-packed Pac-10 weekend

By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Who needs a championship game? The Pac-10 is involved in a playoff of its own right now.

Flying under the radar for most of the season, Arizona has put itself in a prime position to grab the Pac-10 title. While everyone was talking about Oregon, USC and even Cal, Arizona was busy putting together a 13th-ranked offensive attack. Now at 4-1 in the PAc-10, the Wildcats face a difficult home stretch, which starts this week with a showdown on the road against Cal. It's the Bears' final home game, but they will be without the team's best offensive weapon in Jahvid Best. Cal's defense has been questionable at best, holding only one Pac-10 team (UCLA) below 400 total yards. Arizona has to be drooling after watching Oregon State pass for 342 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The Wildcats have one of the most underrated quarterbacks in football in Nick Fowles, a sophomore who is in the top-20 in passer rating and the second-best completion percentage in the nation.

A win at Cal sets up a huge matchup between the Wildcats and the Ducks, who take on Arizona State in the late-late game. Oregon looked to be the toast of the Pac-10 after beating USC in punishing fashion, but stumbled a week later in a stunning lost to Stanford, which opened the door. This weekend's opponent Arizona State is not as potent as Stanford by any stretch of the imagination, but has proven able to hang with quality opponents. The Sun Devils have lost games against two ranked opponents (Georgia and USC) by a combined eight points and lost to Cal by just two. The backfield with LaMichael James and newly reinstated LeGarrett Blount face the sixth-ranked rushing defense, so Jeremiah Masoli, as usual, will the the x-factor. Defenses have to stay honest against the dual-threat quarterback and no one has been able to stop him recently (775 total yards over his last two games against USC and Stanford).

Upstart Stanford has pushed its way into the Pac-10 picture with the huge win over Oregon. Now the Cardinal has to make sure it doesn't suffer a let-down in the heart of the toughest part of their schedule. While Andrew Luck has had a solid season, it's the Cardinal's running game that needs to get going as it has all season. Stanford has scored multiple touchdowns on the ground in all but one game this year (against Wake Forest when they scored zero), and found pay dirt four times with the run in back-to-back wins over Arizona State and Oregon and neither of those defenses is anything to sneeze at. USC's defense has to be at its best and that unit has been very inconsistent. Oregon State and Oregon both had big days against the Trojans. They bounced back against Arizona State, but the Sun Devils aren't exactly a marquee running team.

Predictions:
Arizona 23, California 16
Oregon 51, Arizona State 17
USC 28, Stanford 24
With the win, Oregon stays on top in the Pac-10 at 6-1, followed by Arizona at 5-1, setting up next week's game with all kinds of championship implications. If Oregon wins out, they become the first non-USC Pac-10 champion since 2003. If Arizona wins out, they take the title. USC is still hanging on, but needs a lot of help. Still, fans of other Pac-10 teams still have to be nervous.