Week 13

Hey All,

It's time for that column you love on Tuesdays, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

USC 50- UCLA 0: After hearing all week about how UCLA had "closed the gap" on USC, the Trojans came out and buried the bRuins. The bRuins sported all-white uniforms for the game. They should have used the their jerseys as flags of surrender at halftime. USC QB Matt Barkley torched the bRuin secondary all night completing 35 of 42 passes for 423 yards and 6 TDs. USC RB Curtis McNeal handled the majority of the Trojan ground attack rushing for 124 yards on just 12 carries and one huge 73-yard TD run. Meanwhile, the Trojan defense pitched a shutout, including stopping the bRuins four times in the red zone.

Telling Stat: The Trojan's marched well; USC's average scoring drive covered 77 yards in just 7 plays.

Oregon 49- Oregon State 21: In a warmup for their thrashing of UCLA this week, the Ducks beat up on the Beavers. Tied 7-7 early in the second quarter the Ducks went on a 35-0 run turning this game into a laugher at Autzen. UO QB Darron Thomas completed 27 of 40 passes for 305 yards and 4 TDs on the day, while RB LaMichael James ran for 142 yards and TD as well. AS for OSU, QB Sean Mannion led threw for 299 yards and 3 TDs in the loss.

Telling Stat: Back in the groove; After being held in check by USC last week, the Ducks put up 38 first downs and 670 yards of offense on the hapless Beavers.

Arizona 45- Louisiana-Lafayette 37: It was a meaningless game at the end of a dreary season for UofA, but it turned out to be an exciting affair where Wildcat QB Nick Foles set a couple of more school records before he exits for the NFL. In fact, Foles threw for 352 yards and 3 TDs. He set new Uof A records for career TD passes with 64, and single-season TD passes with 31. He also surpassed the 10,000 yard mark for his career. He now holds almost all of UofA's passing records. As for the game, it featured a crazy fourth quarter that saw the two teams combine to score 35 points. However, it was UofA that was able to run out the clock to seal the win. ULL's Blaine Gautier threw for 315 yards and a TD in a losing cause.

Telling Stat: A simple 6; after throwing for over 10,000 yards and 64 scores in his UofA career, it was a simple 6-yard pass from Nick Foles to Terrence Miller that sealed the game for the Wildcats and allowed Foles to walk off the field a winner one last game.

Washington 38- Washington State 21: It was the 104th Apple Cup and the Huskies came away with their 67th win in the series behind three TD passes from QB Keith Price. Wazzu hung tough in this game with QB Marshall Lobbastael throwing for 344 yards and 3 TDs of his own. However, he turned the ball over twice in the fourth quarter with one of those turnovers setting up the Huskies for the game-clinching touchdown. That TD was a 1-yard plunge across the double stripe by RB Chis Polk. The win snapped a three-game losing streak for the Dawgs and possibly ended the tenure of Wazzu HC Paul Wulf.

Telling Stat: Tough Dawgs in the fourth; The Husky defense recorded two sacks, forced 2 turnovers and held Wazzu to -1 yard rushing in the fourth quarter to win the Apple Cup.

Stanford 28- Notre Dame 14: In what many Pac 12 opponents hope is his last game on The Farm, SU QB Andrew Luck led his squad to a victory over the Fighting Irish and possibly an at-large BCS berth. The Cardinal built up a 21-0 halftime lead on three TD passes from Luck and a defense that held the Irish to just 85 yards in the first half. The Cardinal turned the second half in a glorified scrimmage with Luck tossing one more TD pass to put the game out of reach with 8:11 to play. The win leaves Stanford with an 11-1 record and at the mercy of the pollsters.

Telling Stat: Not as close as it looked; ND's final score came against SU's backups with just :23 left on the clock.

Colorado 17- Utah 14: All the Utes had to do was beat lowly Colorado and they would have a shot at the Pac 12 South division title. However, they stumbled and bumbled their way to defeat on a very cold and windy day in Salt Lake City. Colorado never trailed in the game, building up a 10-0 lead behind QB Tyler Hansen's 1-yard sneak and PK Will Oliver's 23-yard field goal. Utah would cut the deficit to three points early in the third quarter behind RB Tauni Vakapuna's 3-yard run. Colorado answered right back with a drive that ended in a 1-yard TD toss by Tyler Hansen. Then Ute QB Jon Hays capped brought Utah back again with a 6-yard pass to WR Shawn Asiata to cut their deficit to just three as the third quarter ended. Then came the fourth quarter, where Utah PK Coleman Petersen would miss two field goal attempts to hand the win to the Buffaloes. Tyler Hansen was the MVP for CU with a TD run and a TD pass.

Telling Stat: Broken; With the win, Colorado snapped their 23-game road losing streak, which was the nation's longest.

California 47- Arizona State 38: In a game that became irrelevant after Utah's loss to Colorado, the Sun Devils came out on the wrong end of a shootout with the Golden Bears. Cal RB CJ Anderson was the star for the Bears, scoring 2 TDs on the ground and 1 TD on a pass play of 74 yards. PK Giorgio Tavecchio also starred for Cal kicking four field goals in the game, the last two coming in the fourth quarter to seal the win. ASU QB Brock Osweiler threw for 264 yards and 3 TDs in the losing effort.

Telling Stat: MIllion dollar bodies and 5 cent heads; ASU cost themselves the game by committing 11 penalties for 121 yards and 4 turnovers.

Cranberry Crushers 28- Tough Turkeys 21- 3OT: In the first backyard Thanksgiving Day game to ever go to OT, the outstanding play the Crushers' Robert Weissler led them to victory. The Turkeys rushed out to an early 14-0 lead behind the passing combination of The Commissioner to Liza Weissler. However, two quick scores by the Crushers just before the half knotted the game at 14-14. The teams traded TDs in the second half, but the tough defensive play of Luci Ursich and Margaret Lenker of the Crushers along with that of Maureen Lenker of the Turkeys led to a game that stood tied at 21 all through two overtime periods. In the third OT period, Robert Weissler raced around the left end on third and goal to put the Crushers up 28-21. Then, he intercepted The Commissioner's second down throw on the ensuing possession to win the game.

Telling Stat: They could still move; It's amazing that the group could still go out and play after having a great Thanksgiving meal!!!!!

Bowl Eligibility Update

There are now 71 bowl eligible teams for the 70 bowl slots with six other squads one win away from becoming eligible. There will be some disappointed teams this time next week.

Observations

...And then there were none; Florida Atlantic got a 13-yard pass from QB Nolen Smith to WR Jonathan Perry with :33 left to defeat UAB. The win by the Owls means that there are no winless teams this year in the FBS. Everyone got to hold their heads high coming off the field at least once this year.

...A Cardinal and Gold escort out; Rick Neuheisel is the sixth bRuin HC to lose to USC in his last regular season game. That's half the number of head coaches UCLA has had since the rivalry began back in 1929. Rick's new fellow club members are Babe Horrell (1944), Bert LaBrucherie (1948), Bill Barnes (1964), Pepper Rodgers (1973), and Karl Dorrell(2007). Bill Spaulding (1938) and Buffett Bob Toledo (2002) also lost to USC in their last season, they just had other games after that in the regular season.

...Not so long ago; The current overtime setup in college football goes back to 1996. It seems like it's been around forever.

...A Cardinal and Gold escort- Part II; To answer your next question, USC has been the last regular season loss for five Notre Dame head coaches. Maybe we'll get to read about those details in 2012.

...Funny stuff; I remember reading all last spring how Utah was gong to come into the Pac 12 and dominate the league. I laughed then, and I'm laughing louder now.

...Rematch anger; When Ohio State and Michigan looked liked they were headed for a rematch of their regular season matchup in the BCS title game a few years back howls were heard all across the nation about how that can't happen. The loudest crying came from the SEC. Where are all those people now that we might be stuck LSU-Bama II? It wasn't good then, it ain't gonna be good now. Sorry Bama, you lost, you're out.

...Hmmmmmm; Just what would Notre Dame's record be this year without a 3-0 trip through the bottom feeders of the ACC?

...Might be just a coincidence; I find it odd that when Urban Meyer stepped down from coaching Florida due to life threatening stress levels that it just happened to be the same time that Tim Tebow's eligibility ran out.

...AD hot seat; UCLA AD Dan Guerrero is about to hire his third head football coach. Most AD's don't get a shot at a fourth.

...Snubbed; How Lane Kiffin didn't win Coach of the Year honors in the Pac 12 is beyond me. It went to Stanford's David Shaw who was handed a BCS bowl winner with a Heisman Trophy finalist at QB and an already in place coaching staff. All he had to do was not screw it up, which he did by losing to Oregon. What a joke.

...A rather quick axe; Turner Gill got fired after just two seasons as head coach at Kansas. Yeah, he was just 5-19 in those two seasons, but since when does a coach only get two years to install his program?

...A painful irony; Back in 1954, UCLA had arguably their greatest team. They went 9-0 during the regular season and thrashed USC in the process, 39-0. However, the bRuins didn't go to the Rose Bowl. It was their second straight PCC title and the league had a "no repeat rule," so UCLA sat home and watched USC get beat by Ohio State in the Rose Bowl. This week, the Trojans will watch UCLA get smashed by Oregon in the Pac 12 title game. That's just sad.

...A strong backup; Seeing Baylor had scored 66 on Texas Tech wasn't a surprise last week. Knowing they did it without QB Robert Griffin III for half the game was. While Griffin sat out the second half with an apparent concussion, backup QB Nick Florence came in and calmly completed 9 of 12 passes for 151 yards and TDs while running for 14 yards and another score to lead Baylor to victory.

...No room to complain; I seem to be saying this every year, but those who defend the BCS as a great system don't get to whine about a lame team coming out of the Big East with an automatic BCS bid.

...A final note; With USC thrashing UCLA another season has come and gone for my tailgate group. The games do no nearly mean as much without you all. The bonding, fun and laughter always lasts longer than and means more than any great plays seen during the year. Thanks for another fun year, folks.

Until next week folks, remember that only a league champ should qualify for the BCS title game.

-The Commissioner

Week 12

Hey All,

Here's the column that makes Tuesdays fun, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

USC 38- Oregon 35: USC came out confident and strong at Autzen Stadium. Behind QB Matt Barkley and an incredible defensive effort led by LB Hayes Pullard, the Trojans built up a 38-14 lead over the Ducks. Then , they held on for dear life in the final quarter to claim a victory that shook the nation. As UO PK Alejandro Maldonado's 37-yard FG attempt faded wide left, the Ducks 21-game home winning streak, 19-game conference winning streak and BCS title game hopes faded away as well. Barkley had a great game, completing 26 of 34 passes for 323 yards and 4 TDs. The big story of this game was the USC defense. The final numbers won't show it, but they did an incredible job shutting down the Ducks enough for a win.

Telling Stat: The clock; UO HC Chip Kelly doesn't care for clock management and it showed as he mismanaged it on UO's final drive.

Oregon State 38- Washington 21: The Huskies limped into Corvalis with QB Nick Montana starting in place of injured starter, Keith Price. The Beavers shut Montana and the Huskies down in that order. The Beaver defense held Montana to just 11 of 21 passing for 79 yards and 2 TDs. He also threw one interception and fumbled once to kill a pair of Husky drives. Meanwhile, OSU QB Sean Mannion burned up the Husky defense, completing 26 of 37 passes for 339 yards and a pair of TDs. The big running star of the day was OSU RB Jovan Stevenson who rushed for only 41 yards, but scored all 3 of the Beavers second half TDs on runs of 1, 3, and 15 yards.

Telling Stat: A big 3; The beavers put the game away with three straight TD drives in the final quarter.

Utah 30- Washington State 27 1OT: The Utes escaped Pullman with a big win that kept them in the Pac 12 South race. Ute RB John White IV spearheaded the Utah attack with 186 yards rushing on a whopping 42 carries and 2 TDs. As for the Cougars, freshman sensation QB Connor Halliday had some shine come off his penny as he threw four interceptions to go along with his 290 yards passing and 2 TDs. None of those picks were bigger than the one he threw in overtime that set up Utah for the game winning field goal. The kick was a 38-yarder by PK Coleman Petersen. The loss ended Wazzu's bowl hopes for 2011.

Telling Stat: 7-0; The Utes are 7-0 this season when RB John White IV rushes for over 100 yards a the game.

Stanford 31- California 28: The Cardinal recovered an onside kick by the Golden Bears to seal their win in the 114th Big Game. Stanford's offense wasn't really in sync for most of the rainy night in Palo Alto, but they came away with the win. SU QB Andrew Luck had an off first half completing only 8 of 15 passes for 81 yards, but he turned that around in the second half. He went 12 of 15 inn the second half for 199 yards and 2 TDs. Stanford's rushing game kept the Bear defense off balance by using a committee of backs to gain 149 yards and 2 TDs on a sloppy field. As for the Golden Bears, lefty QB Zach Maynard threw for 280 yards and 2 TDs to lead the Bear cause.

Telling Stat: 7s not 3s; Cal had two drives stall inside the Stanford five-yard line only to settle for a pair of field goals, when TDs might have won the game.

UCLA 45- Colorado 6: The bRuins came out and did what they didn't do last week at Utah. They came out strong and fast against the Buffaloes. The bRuins held a 21-0 lead at the end of he first quarter behind, two TD passes by QB Kevin Prince and a 14-yard TD run by RB Johnathan Franklin. UCLA then took the the second and third quarters off before exploding for another 21 points in the fourth quarter to turn this game into a rout. Prince had one of his best days as a bRuin, completing 15 of 19 passes for 225 yards and 4 TDs. He also ran for 84 yards. Franklin led all rushers with 162 yards on 15 carries and a touchdown.

Telling Stat: No threat; UCLA's defense totally shutdown the Buffs, allowing a lone TD in 14 CU possessions.

Arizona 31- Arizona State 27: ASU proved once again this week that they really don't want to win the Pac 12 South or the Territorial Cup by falling to the Wildcats. The Wildcats got another great day out of QB Nick Foles who threw for 370 yards and a pair of TDs, but it was backup QB Bryson Beirne who etched his name into the lore of this rivalry. Midway through the fourth quarter, UofA trailed 27-24 and just had Nick Foles knocked out of the game. All Beirne did was come in and lead his squad on the game-winning drive. He capped off the drive with a 23-yard TD pass to WR Juron Criner. ASU did engineer one final drive, but the Wildcat defense held, sending the Sun Devils down to defeat. ASU QB Brock Osweiler threw for 487 yards and a TD in defeat.

Telling Stat: 1/1/1; UofA backup QB Bryson Beirne attempted one pass, completed that one pass for one huge game-winning TD and became a hero in the ASU-UofA rivalry for all time.

Bowl Eligibility Update

Currently there are 66 Bowl Eligible teams for the 70 bowl slots available for this season. However, there are still 18 teams on the bubble to become bowl eligible in the final two weeks of the season. Nine of those teams are from BCS conferences. So, they would seem to have the inside track to some of those spots. However, for the first time in a long time it looks like there will be a good 10 teams or so sitting home despite being bowl eligible.

Observations

...There is still one; Florida Atlantic is still the only winless team in the FBS. At 0-10, they still have two games to play and both of those are against under .500 teams in Alabama-Birmingham and Louisiana-Monroe. So, there's hope for FAU.

...Fight, Fight, for dear old Harvard! Congrats to the Harvard Crimson, 2011 Ivy League Champions. The Crimson sealed their title run with a 45-7 thrashing of Yale at the Yale Bowl. It's always good to take a minute to salute the Ancient Eight where college football was born.

...Uniform watch; I saw a team wear something I'd never seen before, brown helmets. Wyoming broke out brown helmets for their tilt with New Mexico last week.

...Heavens to Bo and Woody! It's hard to believe that the first ever Big Ten title game won't have either Ohio State or Michigan as a participant.

...Great rivalry games this week; USC-UCLA, OSU-Michigan, Pittsburgh-West Virginia, and Indiana-Purdue are among the "big" games that have bragging rights on the line this week. Remember, all rivalry games are "big" and do mean something, just ask Arizona.

...Red v. Blue for the right to face the Green; Penn State travels to Wisconsin this week where the winner of their matchup will face Michigan State in the inaugural Big 10 Championship Game. Could we get a matchup of that great Wisc.-MSU game earlier in the season?

...No bowling for the 'Canes; So, Miami chose not to accept a bowl bid this year in the wake of their NCAA probe. It could be the first of many bowl-less seasons in Coral Gables.

...Scary stat for the Ducks; USC became the first team to beat a Chip Kelly Oregon team with just one week to prepare.

...Not as attractive; It's not as pretty a matchup as last week, but the Okie State-Oklahoma game is still for the Big XII title and a BCS berth.

...Big Least; It looks like Louisville could win the Big East win a 7-5 record.

...If an Independent fell in the forrest; BYU could finish the season at 9-3 with a win over Hawaii on December 3rd. Has anyone seen the Cougars play? Does anyone care? Way to grab those headlines and make people notice you as an independent BYU!

...Ahhh, a bi-coastal November; Notre Dame has racked up three straight wins this month over opponents from the ACC, this week they'll come over to the Pacific Coast to take on Stanford. Somehow, I don't see them enjoying it as much.

...All a Twitter; So, UofA used Twitter to announce the hiring of Rich Rodriguez as their Head Coach. I saw many of his press conferences at Michigan and West Virginia. I wouldn't let him speak either.

...Still ranked; Can someone explain to me how Texas can still be ranked at #25? They're 6-4 and in 7th place in the Big XII.

...Son shines; I wonder how the post game handshake went between UCLA WR Taylor Embree and his father, Colorado Head Coach Jon Embree after UCLA's 45-6 win?

Until next week folks, remember it's great to have speed on defense.

-The Commissioner

Week 11

Hey all,

Here's your Tuesday dose of the Pac 12, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

USC 40 - Washington 17: The Trojans had lost two straight to the Huskies on the final play of the game. This year, the Trojans made sure it wasn't that close. The Trojan defense really led the charge in this game, holding the Huskies to just 244 total yards, and a meager 2 of 13 on third downs. The USC defense even registered a safety that broke the Huskies spirit in the second quarter. As for the Trojan offense, RB Curtis McNeal was the man with 148 yards on 18 carries and 1 big TD that came on a 79-yard scamper in the third quarter. USC QB Matt Barkley had an off day, but did complete 18 of 28 passes for 174 yards and a touchdown. To cap it off for USC, the special teams wear great with a well executed fake punt, a kickoff return for a touchdown, and great kick coverage.

Telling Stat: Nowhere to run; The USC defense held UW star RB Chris Polk to 36 yards rushing, just one yard more than USC punter Kyle Negrete gained in the game.

California 23- Oregon State 6: The Golden Bears became bowl eligible and snapped a four-game losing streak to OSU with the win at AT&T Park. Cal RB Isi Sofele ran all over the Beavers, gaining 190 yards on 23 carries with a TD. Cal QB Zach Maynard overcame a shaky start to complete 13 of 19 passes for 128 yards and a TD. He also ran for another score. The Cal defense really controlled this game, holding the Beavers to just 27 yards rushing, and forced three turnovers. The Bear defense shutout OSU in the second half. Oh, and Cal managed to dominate this game despite racking up 15 penalties in the game. OSU QB Sean Mannion grew for 247 yards in a losing effort.

Telling Stat: Not as close as it seems; Cal had three TDs negated due to penalties. The score of this one could have been much more lopsided.

Colorado 48- Arizona 29: The Buffaloes got their first official Pac 12 win on a very windy day in Boulder. How windy? Try sustained 45 MPH winds with gusts up to 71 MPH during the game. That didn't stop both squads from throwing the ball though. CU QB Tyler Hansen completed 16 of 26 passes for 213 yards and a pair of TDs, while UofA QB Nick Foles completed 33 of 53 passes for 352 yards and 1 TD. However, this game was won on the ground as CU RB Rodney Stewart carried the ball 24 times for 181 yards and 3 TDs. The CU defense held the Wildcats to just 60 yards rushing total as a team and forced 4 turnovers make the victory possible.

Telling Stat: Wind-aided offenses; CU and UofA combined for 912 yards of offense and 50 first downs while running off 162 total plays.

Utah 31- UCLA 3: Up in Salt Lake City there was plenty of white stuff on the ground, a guy named White in the Utah backfield, and in the end, it was UCLA waving the white flag after being smacked around by the Utes. Utah RB John White IV gashed the bRuin defense for 167 yards rushing on 33 carries and 2 TDs. He also caught a TD pass to aid the Utah cause. As for UCLA, QB Kevin Prince was contained by the Ute defense all day and threw a pick-six that sealed the game for Utah midway through the fourth quarter. With the win, the Utes have climbed bad into the Pac 12 South race.

Telling Stat: Off to a bad start; UCLA punted four times, made one field goal and missed another in their six first half drives.

Washington State 37- Arizona State 27: The story wasn't the mix of rain and snow in the cold Pullman night. The story of this game was the freshman that lit up the Sun Devils. Freshman WSU QB Connor Halliday completed 27 of 36 passes for 494 yards and 4 TDs without an interception to lead Wazzu to victory. His favorite target was WR Marquess Wilson who caught eight passes for 223 yards and three TDs. Meanwhile, the Wazzu defense managed to keep the potent ASU offense corralled just enough for the win despite ASU having prime starting field position for most of the game due to Wazzu's lack of a healthy placekicker. As for ASU, QB Brock Osweiler completed 28 of 44 passes for 351 yards and a touchdown on the night.

Telling Stat: A grand fourth; Wazzu owned the fourth quarter, outscoring the Sun Devils 14-0 to get the win.

Oregon 53- Stanford 30: This was the big game of the year in the Pac 12. Heck, Even College Gameday showed up in Palo Alto for the first time ever, and the Cardinal self-destructed. They committed 5 turnovers, dropped numerous passes and just couldn't get used to Oregon's speed. The Ducks were in control of this game from the start. Despite converting on only 1 of 9 third downs, they still managed to put up 53 points on the Cardinal. UO RB LaMichael James ran for 146 yards and 3 TDs on the vaunted Cardinal defense. SU QB Andrew Luck threw for 256 yards, 3 TDs, and 2 interceptions in the loss.

Telling Stat: Stats don't matter; SU held the edge over UO in almost every offensive category and lost by 23 points.

Observations

...A note for Nick; UofA QB Nick Foles needs to watch himself in these next two games, avoid injury and then concentrate on the combine.

...Road weary; ASU is a Jekyll and Hyde team. 5-0 at home, 1-4 on the road.

...And then there was one; New Mexico RB Demarcus Rogers crossed the double stripe from one-yard out with 1:15 left to give the Lobos their fist win of the year, a 21-14 decision over UNLV. That leaves just Florida Atlantic as the only winless team in the FBS.

...Pac 12 nightmare scenario; It is possible that UCLA could make it to the Pac 12 championship game with a 5-7 record. Thanks, NCAA.

...Bowling Teams; As of this week, there are 53 bowl eligible teams for this year's 70 bowl slots.

...Truly poor kicks; Boise State's missed field goals v. Nevada last year and TCU this year will end up costing the school over 20 million dollars in bowl money. Ouch.

...Head scratcher; Just how did Texas Tech beat Oklahoma this year? That has to be the strangest upset of the season.

...Waiting in the wings; If Arkansas can get by Missisippi State this week, they will get a shot at LSU with a possible National Title shot on the table. Wooo Pig!! Sooiiiee!!

...Throw for almost 500 yards, get a start; Wazzu QB Connor Halliday threw for 494 yards and 4 TDs coming off the bench v. ASUlast week. Now, he'll get to start v. Utah this week. Makes sense.

...Rivalry stat to consider; Cal has won 7 of their last 9 v. Stanford. It could be a tight battle for The Axe this week.

...Finishing strong; I think UofA Qb Nick Foles will torch the ASU secondary this week.

Looking around the BCS conference races...

ACC: Clemson and VaTech look to be headed for the conference title game. Clemson spanked VaTech earlier in the year at VaTech, 23-3.

Big 12: There's no title game here. Okie State control it's fate. They win out, they have a shot to play for it all.

Big East: It's Cincinnati in control here. The Bearcats need to win out to win the league. if they lose one, West Virginia will most likely claim the crown.

Big Ten: Michigan State and Penn State still ride atop the divisions, but a loss by each would throw the league into tie-breaker chaos.

Pac 12: Oregon is all but in as the host of the inaugural Pac 12 title tilt, but the South division is a mess. USC's ineligibility could mean a sub .500 team could play for the league title. What a mess.

SEC: A win by Georgia over Kentucky this week and the Bulldogs will be SEC East champs. A loss will give South Carolina the nod. If the Hogs beat Miss St. this week, their tilt at LSU will be for the SEC West title.

Until next week folks, remember that the key to a great Tampa 2 defensive scheme is athletic, quick linebackers.

-The Commissioner

Week 10

Hey all,

Here's the column you love to read on Tuesdays, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

USC 42- Colorado 17: The Trojans found themselves coming off two emotionally draining games and physically banged up as they took the field at Colorado. The hapless Buffaloes were just what USC needed to get back on track. USC QB Matt Barkley hit on 25 of 39 passes for 318 yards and 6 TDs to lead the offense. His 6 TD passes are a new Trojan single-game record. As for USC's rushing game, RBs Amir Carlisle and DJ Morgan combined to rush for 177 yards. As for the Buffaloes, QB Tyler Hansen threw for 20 yards and a pair of TDs in a losing effort. USC's defense did a good job stopping the CU offense despite starting four freshmen.

Telling Stat: Big Hands; USC blocked two more kicks in this game. That gives them 6 blocked kicks for the season.

California 30- Washington State 7: It was an ugly game on a drizzly day at AT&T Park. The Golden Bears used a strong rushing game and a stingy defense to corral the Cougars. Cal RB Isi Sofele ran for 138 yards an 23 carries and a touchdown to lead Cal offense. Bear QB Zach Maynard didn't throw any interceptions and did throw for 118 yards and a touchdown before being knocked out of the game in the third quarter. By that time though, Cal had built up a 30-0 lead and just cruised the rest of the way. As for the Cougars, they couldn't muster much offense, only gaining 224 total yards and converting on just 4 of 16 third downs.

Telling Stat: 1st half misery; AS the Cal offense built up a 23-0 lead, the Cal defense made life miserable for WSU in the first half. They allowed only 55 yards of offense, forced six punts and held for downs once in the Cougs seven first half drives.

Utah 34- Arizona 17: The Utes got another 100 yard game from RB John White IV to help pick up their second Pac 12 win. White ambled for 109 yards on 27 carries with 2 TDs. However, the big story was Ute QB Jon Hays, who seems to have finally gotten it together. He completed 12 of 21 passes for 199 yards, 2 TDs, and no interceptions. He looked better than he has all year running the Ute offense. Meanwhile, UofA QB Nick Foles threw for 326 yards, 2 TDs, and 2 interceptions in the losing effort.

Telling Stat: They bent but didn't break; Utah's defense gave up 201 yards on 23 plays in the fourth quarter, but allowed only a lone TD while forcing two turnovers to get out of Tucson with a win.

Stanford 38- Oregon State 13: The Cardinal looked a little sluggish in the first 30+ minutes of this game, but shutout the Beavers 21-0 in the last 27 minutes to remain undefeated. However, for a sluggish looking team, the Cardinal offense still put up 507 yards of offense and racked up 31 first downs. SU QB Andrew Luck was his efficient self, completing 20 of 30 passes for 206 yards and 3 TDs. The Stanford defense returned to its' stingy ways, holding the Beavers to just 33 yards rushing on 17 carries. OSU QB Sean Mannion threw for 252 yards and a TD in the loss.

Telling Stat: They played keep away; Stanford used a committee of running backs to rack up 300 yards rushing on 48 carries and control the ball for 40:20 T.O.P.

Oregon 34- Washington 17: It was the last game at Husky Stadium before the place gets renovated and the Ducks spoiled the party. As usual the Webfoots played their up-tempo style and held a 17-10 halftime lead over UW despite just having the ball for a little over seven minutes in the half. Then, the Duck defense shutout the Dawgs the rest of the way and victory was theirs. Duck RB LaMichael James ran for 156 yards and a score, while QB Darron Thomas threw for 169 yards and a TD of his own. As for Washington, QB Keith Price threw for 143 yards and 2 TDs, but also threw two interceptions.

Telling Stat: Quick strikes; Oregon had the ball for 13 drives, only four of those went longer than 5 plays.

UCLA 29- Arizona State 28: UCLA QB Kevin Prince had another good day running the bRuins offense to lead his team to a big upset of the Sun Devils. Prince completed 11 of 17 passes for 196 yards and a TD, while backfield mate, RB Derrick Coleman carried the ball 17 times for 119 yards and 2 TDs. The bRuins ran up 416 yards of offense on ASU's vaunted defense. UCLA had the ASU defense back on its' heels all-night. That's what made this upset happen. As for the Sun Devils offense, QB Brock Osweiler completed 22 of 38 passes for 264 yards and 2 TDs. RB Cameron Marshall ran for 168 yards and a TD to help the ASU cause.

Telling Stat: 0 for 3; ASU PK Alex Garoutte missed three field goal attempts, the last coming on the final play of the game.

Observations

...And there are still two; Florida Atlantic and New Mexico are still the only winless teams in the FBS. This is a recording.

...No remtaches; Sorry, Alabama. You had your shot, you're out. Time for another undefeated to take a crack at #2.

...A rare feat; Now that they've joined the Big 10 this will happen a lot more often, but Northwestern gets to claim that they are the first Big Ten team to win at Nebraska since 1981. The Wildcats looked impressive in their 28-25 upset of the Cornhuskers.

...Back from the dead? We'll see if UCLA can keep their momentum going up at Utah this week.

...Lose to Kentucky, lose your job; Well, losing to Kentucky was the last straw for the administration at Ole Miss. HC Houston Nutt will resign, (be fired), at the end of the season. The loss was the Rebels' 12th straight in SEC play.

...Timing; Does anyone else but me find it a bit strange that the findings of the Penn State case broke just after Joe Paterno got win 409 to pass Eddie Robinson?

...Not for kicks; How could Alabama not have a good placekicker?

...Bronco hopes; Boise's last big hurdle to stay undefeated lies in front of them this week as they host TCU. This is a what could have been moment for the Mountain West Conference.

...Not a word; Nebraska(7-2) plays at Penn State (8-1) this week and I haven't heard word one about this game. Just sad.

...Giving snow quarter; TCU took a 31-20 lead over Wyoming early in the fourth quarter as a snowstorm hit the field in Laramie. The storm won the fourth quarter. Both teams went scoreless with two turnovers in the final 14:46.

...Could happen; Stanford could hold the ball for over 40 minutes, dominate the line of scrimmage and lose to Oregon, 45-42. It's amazing what speed can do.

...Bowl Eligibility; 44 teams are bowl eligible as of this week. There are 70 bowl slots this year and the WAC is the only conference without a bowl eligible team.

...Just a rumor; There is no truth to the rumor that the Pac 12 asked the Big 12 last week if they want to take Colorado back.

...Quietly making noise; It's funny how a guy can rush for almost 1,200 yards without many people knowing about it. SDSU RB Ronnie Hillman has rushed for 1198 yards so far and looks on pace to surpass his 2010 rushing total of 1,532 yards. He's a talented kid, and he's just a sophomore.

...A short word about Penn State; The situation at PSU is so beyond the pale that I, like others, am having trouble just understanding how something so bad could have happened. I just hope that the victims are not swept aside in this matter. Because they are the real story here. Their pain and how they were hurt is what matters, not what will happen to Joe Paterno.

Until next week folks, remember that special teams are important. Just ask Alabama.

-The Commissioner