Pac-12 Power Rankings: Ducks get Prime Time bump while Trojans’ defense drops USC

Pac-12 Power Rankings: Ducks get Prime Time bump while Trojans’ defense drops USC

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There was a lot of movement in the Pac-12 Power Rankings, which shouldn’t come as a surprise given that this was the first full week of conference play out west.

While we got a hyped-up matchup in Eugene, a battle of the little brothers in Pullman, and a low-scoring clas in Los Angeles, Week 4 delivered in the Pac-12, giving us a handful of thrilling games with near comebacks.

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It also gave us a much clearer picture on where the hierarchy currently is in the conference. While the teams at the bottom stayed at the bottom, there was some movement at the top with a couple of squads shuffling around in the upper-tier.

Here are our latest Pac-12 Power Rankings after Week 4.

John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports

Game Result: 21-20 Loss to Arizona

Previous Ranking: 12th

AP Ranking: N/A

Next Game: vs. No. 10 Oregon Ducks


Analysis: The Cardinal almost pulled off an impressive upset and got a win over the Wildcats on Saturday. I’m not sure if that says more about Stanford or Arizona, to be honest. Either way, both teams are near the bottom of my rankings.

Rob Schumacher-Arizona Republic

Game Result: 42-28 Loss to USC

Previous Ranking: 11th

AP Ranking: N/A

Next Game: at California Golden Bears


Analysis: The Sun Devils lost to USC, but it wasn’t as bad as it was expected to be. The Trojans’ porous defense gave up four scores to Arizona State, and there were a few moments in the second half where it looked like some Pac-12 After Dark magic might be at work. That’s a win for ASU.

Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

Game Result: 59-32 Loss to Washington

Previous Ranking: 10th

AP Ranking: N/A

Next Game: vs. Arizona State Sun Devils


Analysis: It’s no surprise that California got boat-raced by Washington — that apparently happens to any team that the Huskies play this year. There were times where the Golden Bears looked pretty good offensively, which is a nice change of pace this year.

John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports

Game Result: 21-20 Win over Stanford

Previous Ranking: 9th

AP Ranking: N/A

Next Game: vs. No. 8 Washington Huskies


Analysis: Last week, I talked about how Arizona was a nice representation of the mid-point in the Pac-12 Conference. They weren’t good enough to compete with the top teams in the league, but they were clearly better than the bad teams. I spoke too soon. It appears that the Wildcats may be bad, considering they could barely beat Stanford, the clear-cut worst team in the league.

Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

Game Result: 42-8 Loss to No. 11 Oregon

Previous Ranking: 8th

AP Ranking: 19th

Next Game: vs. No. 5 USC Trojans


Analysis: Colorado got a big dose of reality on Saturday and got spanked by the Oregon Ducks to the tune of 42-6. Deion Sanders may have an entertaining team, but there is a lot of work that needs to be done before the Buffs can be a team that is considered among the top half of the conference.

Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

Game Result: 14-7 Loss to Utah

Previous Ranking: 7th

AP Ranking: 22nd

Next Game: BYE


Analysis: Unfortunately, the freshman mistakes hurt QB Dante Moore too much in this one. A pick-six on the first play of the game ended up being too much to overcome in a low-scoring affair where every point mattered.

James Snook-USA TODAY Sports

Game Result: 38-35 Loss to Washington State

Previous Ranking: 5th

AP Ranking: 14th

Next Game: vs. No. 11 Utah Utes


Analysis: It appears that the Beavers may not be as good as we thought. With their first test against a real team on Saturday, Oregon State was unable to do much, and D.J. Uiagalelei struggled. A 17-point comeback attempt made the score look more respectable than it was, but I think the Beavers definitely got dinged this week.

Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

Game Result: 14-7 Win over UCLA

Previous Ranking: 4th

AP Ranking: 11th

Next Game: at No. 14 Utah Utes


Analysis: It wasn’t pretty, but none of Utah’s wins this year have been. What matters is that the Utes are undefeated, and it appears they will be getting QB Cameron Rising back soon. Once that happens, the season really starts in Salt Lake City.

James Snook-USA TODAY Sports

Game Result: 38-35 Win over Oregon State

Previous Ranking: 6th

AP Ranking: 21st

Next Game: BYE


Analysis: Alright, Washington State. I’ll admit, I’m impressed. The Cougars looked good to start the year with a 3-0 non-conference record, but they really showed what they’re made of with an impressive win against Oregon State that was a lot more of a lopsided victory than the final score would suggest. Look out for Washington State in the conference title race, they could play a major factor.

Rob Schumacher-Arizona Republic

Game Result: 42-28 Win over Arizona State

Previous Ranking: 1st

AP Ranking: 5th

Next Game: at No. 19 Colorado Buffaloes


Analysis: USC really gave up 28 points to Arizona State, the team that lost 29-0 to Fresno State last week? Is the Trojans’ defense that bad? If it is, then I think we may need to reconsider USC as a lock to make it to the Pac-12 title game and be a CFP contender. The offense is great, but to win the Pac-12 you’re going to need a defense that can get a stop every now and again.

Game Result: 42-6 Win over Colorado

Previous Ranking: 3rd

AP Ranking: 10th

Next Game: at Stanford Cardinal


Analysis: The Ducks have officially entered the College Football Playoff race. With a blowout win over No. 19 Colorado, Oregon proved it has a really solid defense to go along with one of the best offenses in the nation. The ceiling is high for this team.

Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

Game Result: 59-32 Win over California

Previous Ranking: 2nd

AP Ranking: 8th

Next Game: at Arizona Wildcats


Analysis: It really looks like Washington is playing better than any team in the nation at the moment. Yes, you can point to their strength of schedule and show that they haven’t played anyone very good, but the Huskies are still doing whatever they want on the field and looking like the best offense in the nation. That’s enough for us to put them at the top spot in the Pac-12 Power Rankings.

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