Hey All,
As summer keeps fighting to hang on in Southern California, here's another edition of the column that makes you think of fall beach bonfires, sweater weather and road trips to games, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Tom Kelly.
Summaries
USC 42- Arizona State 25: Los Angeles, CA- For the first 30 minutes USC played without much energy on either side off the ball and found themselves clinging to a 21-17 lead at the half. The USC defense had not really stopped the Sun Devils yet and an early TD in the second half would put the Trojans behind and in trouble against a team they were favored to beat by 25.5 points. Ahhh, but the the SC defense did wake up and force three straight punts which allowed the SC offense to put up two TDs and take a 35-17 lead into the final quarter. Then, things got dicey again for the Trojans. A penalty-aided 75-yard drive and two-point conversions cut USC's lead to 35-25 with 6:16 to play. ASU then recovered the ensuing onside kick. But wait, the refs reviewed the play and bailed SC out when they threw flag after the fact on the Sun Devils for blocking a player trying to recover the kick before the kick traveled 10 yards. The Trojans took advantage and drove 39 yards for their final TD of the night when RB Travis Dye waltzed into the end zone from the one-yard line. The Sun Devils last chance to get back into the game was snuffed out when DB Calen Bullock picked off QB Emory Jones near the goal line and returned it to the ASU 37-yard line. A kneel down later and the Trojans got a much harder than expected victory. USC QB Caleb Wiliams torched the Sun Devils, completing 27 of 37 tosses for 348 yards, three TDs and an interception while RB Travis Dye gained 62 yards on 13 carries with two TDs. For ASU, Jones completed 23 off 32 passes for 243 yards, a TD and an interception.
Telling Stat: 5 feels fine; USC is 5-0 and now has more wins this year than all of last year.
Utah 42- Oregon State 16: Salt Lake City, UT- In a rare daylight game in the Pac 12, Oregon State basically imploded in the first quarter, then rallied before being put away by the Utes at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Beaver QB Chance Nolan started out the game like he finished v SC last week with an interception. Three plays later, Utah QB Cam Rising found WR Jaylen Dixon for a 19-yard TD and a 7-0 lead. OSU seemed to shake off the bad start as they marched 79 yards in seven plays to tie the game on a 29-yard TD run by RB Silas Bolden. The next time OSU got the ball, Nolan threw another interception. This one was returned 38 yards for for TD by DB Clark Phillips III. Utah would never trail again. Nolan would be injured a few plays later leaving backup Ben Gulbranson to guide the Orange and Black the rest of the way. OSU's running game kept them in the contest. They trailed just 21-13 with :37 left in the the third quarter. That's when Utah stood up on both sides of the ball to dominate the end of the game. A 16-yard TD pass from Rising to WR DeVaughn Vele extended Utah's lead to 28-16. On the ensuing possession, Gulbranson was picked off deep in OSU territory. Two plays later, Dixon ran 22 yards for a TD and Utah held a 35-16 lead. Another Beaver interception would lead to Utah's last TD and the final score of 42-16. The Utes would then snuff out any last chance the Beavers thought they had to comeback with yet another interception. The Utes then drove 77 yards in 11 plays to kill the remaining 7:16 off the clock.
Telling Stat: -4 killed them again; For the second straight week, Oregon State threw four interceptions and lost the game.
Arizona 43- Colorado 20: Tucson, AZ- The Wildcats worked over the Buffaloes in what would be Karl Dorrell's final game on the sidelines as the HC at CU. The Buffaloes put up only token resistance as UofA QB Jayden de Laura passed for 484 yards and six TDs. The six TDs tied the school record for most passing TDs in a single game at UofA. de Laura's favorite targets were WRs Jacob Cowing and Dorian Singer. Cowing hauled in seven passes for 180 yards and a TD while Singer snagged nine balls for 163 yards and a TD. The Wildcats almost had a third WR eclipse the century mark, but Tetairoa McMillan came up just short with 90 yards on five catches and a TD as well. Arizona seemed to be able to score at will and CU just could not keep up. QB Owen McCown completed 14 of 30 passes for 186 yards and a TD, while also running for 43 yards on 10 carries and a TD For the hapless Buffs.
Telling Stat: 202 yards short; Colorado gave up 673 yards of total offense to Arizona, but that ranks only as the fourth worst defensive effort in CU history. Oklahoma ran up 875 yards of offense in an 82-42 beating of the Buffaloes in 1980.
UCLA 40- Washington 32: Pasadena, CA- This game was billed as a battle of unbeatens with the big bad Huskies coming to the Rose Bowl on Friday night to take on the bRuins. What it really turned out to be was a play in three acts. The very short first act saw the Huskies march down the field on their first possession and take a 7-0 lead on a 33-yard TD pass from QB Michael Penix, Jr. to WR Rome Odunze. Then, the second act began and it was all bRuins for a long time. First, the Huskies gave up a safety when they fumbled in their own end zone and managed to fall on the ball. The UCLA offense would then score on six of their next seven drives while their defense stymied the Dawgs offense. QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson looked unstoppable running the bRuins offense. The second act ended with 3:46 left in the third quarter and the bRuins holding a 40-16 lead. The third act saw the Dawgs offense come back to life and score two TDs and a pair of two-point conversion to make the score 40-32 UCLA with 3:59 to play. UCLA then needed to run out the clock and they did. Nine plays would net the bRuins 33 yards, three first downs and a big win over the Dawgs. Thompson-Robinson had himself a great game, completing 24 of 33 passes for 315 yards and three TDs. He also ran the ball 10 times for 53 yards and a TD too. His backfield mate RB Zach Charbonnet led all rushers with 124 yards on 22 carries and a TD of his own. For the shell-shocked Huskies, Penix, Jr. complerted 33 of 48 passes for 345 yards, four TDs and two huge interceptions.
Telling Stat: They really only stopped themselves; UCLA only punted once in this game. They also failed on two fourth down conversions or else they could have hung a good 50 points on Washington.
Oregon 45- Stanford 27: Eugene, OR- Stanford's losing has become formulaic. The Cardinal start slow, get buried early then put a up few scores late to make the game look a little closer than it really was. The Ducks led after one quarter of play, 10-0 on a 38-yard FG by Camden Lewis and a 49-yard TD pass from Bo Nix to WR Chase Cota. The Quacks then answered a 23-yard FG from Stanford PK Joshua Party with three more TD drives. Those three TDs came one a 10-yard TD pass from Nix to WR Tony Franklin, a four yard run from Nix and a one-yard plunge by RB James Jordan. The Men of Oregon took a 31-3 lead into halftime. Stanford did try to make a game of it. WR Casey Filkins hauled in a 42-yard TD pass from QB Tanner McKee with 5:01 left in the third period. But 15 seconds later, Nix dropped back, dodged the Stanford pass rush and ran down the left hashmark 80 yards to paydirt. Nix's mad dash ended the competitive portion of the game. Stanford would outscore UO, 17-7 in garbage time before the clock hit triple zeroes. Bo Nix is just having good day after good day lately. He completed 16 of 29 passes for 161 yards and two TDs while also leading all rushers with 141 yards on six carries and two more scores. In the loss, McKee completed 19 of 33 passes for 166 yards and two TDs.
Telling Stat: Running downhill for the W; Oregon ran over Stanford. They rushed the ball 37 times for 351 yards. That equates to a nifty 9.5 yards per carry average.
Washington State 28- Californian 9: Pullman, WA- After their soul-crushing defeat at the hands of Oregon last week, could the Cougars rally back for a win over the Golden Bears? The Cougars did do just that, but it was a struggle. The game stood 7-3 WSU at the half with both defenses dictating the action. Wazzu's touchdown was set up by a good punt return and an unusual penalty thanks to the Pac 12's worst ref, Mel Mothershed. PR Robert Ferrel's 34-yard punt return brought the ball to Cal 35-yard line. However during the return, one of Cal's defenders had his helmet knocked off and continued to try and make a tackle. The poor kid was flagged 15 yards for continuing to play without his helmet. That gave the Cougars a 1st and 10 at the Cal 20-yard line. Four plays later RB Jaylen Jenkins crossed the double stripe from two yards out and the Cougars held a 7-0 lead. WSU had the ball to start the third quarter and decided to throw over the top of the Cal defense. Four long passes were good for 75 yards and a touchdown. The capper to the drive was a 17-yard TD strike from QB Cameron Ward to WR Robert Ferrel. Cal would cut into Wazzu's lead in the beginning of the fourth quarter when RB Jaydn Ott topped off a seven play, 90-yard drive when he barreled into the end zone from two yards out. Now trailing 14-9 the Golden Bears then went for two and failed. WSU put the game away on their next two drives. TD passes of 37 yards and one yard from Ward handed the Cougs their fourth win of the year. Ward completed 27 of 40 passes for 343 yards, three TDs and two interceptions for Wazzu. Cal QB Jack Plummer completed 23 of 33 passes for 273 yards in the loss.
Telling Stat: No run= A win; Wazzu stopped Cal's running game, holding the Golden Bears to just 31 yards on the ground to pave the way for the victory.
Observations
...That look; Utah HC Kyle Whittingham always looks like he's ready for bar fight and his team plays that way too.
...They're human after all; USC committed their first turnover of the year when QB Caleb Williams threw a third quarter interception in the end zone v. ASU. The Trojans had played 277 minutes of turnover free ball until that point.
...We want Riggo!; College Gameday will be in Lawrence, Kansas for the first time ever this week as the undefeated Jayhawks will host the undefeated Horned Frogs of TCU. They gotta get John Riggins to make an appearance on the set.
...We're #130!; Even though they were drubbed by Michigan last weekend, Iowa is now no longer last in total offense in the FBS. They are now 130th in total offense gaining 242.2 yards per game, a whole .4 yards per game better than #131 Colorado State.
...Religion in Sin City; Notre Dame squares off with BYU this week at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Anyone else find that weird?
...And then there were two; There are only two winless teams left in the FBS. Colorado and Colorado State are a combined 0-9 this year.
...Quietly making noise; UNLV is 4-1 overall and atop the West Division of the Mountain West Conference with a 2-0 mark in league play. The Rebels only loss was by just six points at Cal.
...Tough Wildcats trivia; QB Jayden de Laura tied the UofA single game record with six TD tosses v. Colorado last Saturday. With what former UofA QB does de Laura now share the record? Hint: 40 years ago.
...How will it happen?; When Georgia does everything to Auburn this week short of flattening the liters on their team bus, will HC Bryan Harsin get end zoned, tarmac or just not allowed on the flight home. It'snot a matter of if, just when he'd fired this year.
...A huge chip; UCLA QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson is playing with a big chip on his shoulder and no mercy for his opponents.
...Why are they surprised? ; Some notable USC fans have discussed how awful they've been treated on the road this year. Hey, get used to it. USC's leaving the Pac 12 most likely has signaled the demise of the conference. The USC hate will get a lot worse as the date to go to the Big Ten approaches.
...W/ L mirror image; Washington went on to beat Michigan Start after forcing a safety a few weeks ago, then went on to lose after giving up a safety to UCLA last Friday.
...Sign of the times; If you don't like it when players skip bowl games to get ready for the draft, then you're really gonna hate this. SMU players are bailing out on the season to get ready to enter the Transfer Portal. Bailing Out
...Summer won't let go; The floor of Rose Bowl will be over 90° for UCLA's big game with Utah this week.
...Low expectations; The Over/Under for the Iowa-Illinois game this week is 35.5 points. For perspective, the lowest over under in any of the other Power Five conferences is in the ACC where the number on the Va TEch-Pitt game is 44.
...Just make a run for it; Mississippi State HC Mike Leach will answer just about any question, so why wouldn't reporter Alyssa Lang ask him about her upcoming wedding plans? Runaway Bride
...He got rammed; The best tackle by any Rams player lately was when Bobby Wagner nailed this idiot fan on Monday night. Play stupid games...
...Never to see the sun; Stanford has another late game this week, an 8 PM kickoff at home v. Oregon State. Tickets on the secondary market for this snoozer of a game are going for as low as 10 bucks.
...Another week, another firing; For the fourth week in a row an FBS HC was fired and this week's victim was Colorado's Karl Dorrell. Dorrell was named the HC in Boulder after then HC Mel Tucker bolted for Michigan State. Dorrell's Buffaloes went 8-15 during his time at CU. Dorrell will receive an 8.7 million dollar buyout. Oh, and DC Chris Wilson was canned too. DL coach Gerald Chatman was named the interim HC. Here's CU AD Rick George's press release on the firing. Rocky Mountain Low
...Buyer's remorse; After dropping to 2-3 overall and 0-2 in the Big Ten, not a lot of Michigan State fans are happy with the 10-year, 95 million dollar extension HC Mel Tucker was handed in the offseason.
...Another week, another firing Part II; Wisconsin made it two firings this week when AD Chris McIntosh showed HC Paul Chryst the door. The Badgers started off 2-3 this year. The three losses were an upset at the hands of Washington State, and two blowouts by TheeeOSU and Illinois. In seven seasons, Chryst went 67-26 in Badger land.
...Trivia answer; Arizona's Tom Tunnicliffe threw six TD passes against Pacific on October 23, 1982.
Pac 12 Overreactions
UCLA is an 11-1 team.
Oregon will go 10-2.
Utah will lose two games due to stubbornness.
Cal doesn't have enough offense to make a bowl.
Wazzu is the most dangerous team in the league.
Stanford will go 2-10.
Washington will barely win this week.
ASU will be a 3-9 team with many close losses.
Colorado still won't score over 20 points this year.
Oregon State is a QB away from being very good.
USC can't afford to sleepwalk through anymore games.
Arizona won't be back in the Pac 12 cellar anytime soon.
Ugly Uniform of the Week
This week's winner is the Baylor Bears and their all-gold look v. Oklahoma State. That's just too much gold. Yuk.
Departments
Low Score Game of the Week: Miami, OK- This game comes form the Southwest Junior College Football Conference. The Tyler Junior College Apaches defeated the Northeastern Oklahoma A&M Golden Norsemen, 5-0. Yes, 5-0. TJC took a 2-0 lead midway through the first period when Apache LB Dontavious Burrows caused a fumble in the NEO A&M end zone that Golden Norsemen fell on for a safety. Then, with 1:20 to go in the game PK Aaron Gallegos booted a 35-yard FG to extend the Apaches lead to 5-0. This intrepid reporter was unable to find any stats on the game, but is indebted to the Tyler Morning Telegraph for their recap.
Blowout Game of the Week: Pueblo, CO- The Colorado St.- Pueblo Thunderwolves wiped out the Fort Lewis College Skyhawks, 75-3 in a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference clash. The Thunderwolves built up a 49-3 halftime lead and then emptied the benches in the second half. Nine different Thunderwolves combined to gain 315 yards rushing with six TDs while QB Hunter Raquet completed five of 10 passes for 154 yards and three TDs in limited action. The Pueblo defense held Fort Lewis to just 154 total yards.
Razorback Report: Fayetteville, AR- The Hogs failed to show up in the first half, played a good third quarter, then disappeared again in a 49-26 loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide. This week the Razorbacks travel to Mississippi State.
This Week's Three Notes About Nothing...
My sister's Raspberry Vanilla cake with Lemon icing is flat out amazing.
It's hard to find apple jelly in any grocery store.
A good supply of Ziploc bags is one of the basic pillars of any home kitchen.
Until next time, remember that playing to your level of competition is a recipe for disaster.
-The Commissioner
