Pacific Takes Pac-12 Power Rankings 12/2: Arizona takes over top spot in South

North 1. Oregon 11-1 8-1 (1)

It seemed impossible to accomplish for a minute there in early-October, but the Ducks escaped the regular season with just one loss and are in prime position for anything they want now that we have entered the championship section of the season. The only thing standing between them… the team that has handed them their last two losses. 2. Stanford 7-5 5-4 (2)

Out of nowhere, Stanford looked like the team that they were expected to be going into the season. Obviously UCLA is going to get a lot of flak for their performance, but don’t disregard the Cardinal, they are still just as talented as any team in the conference and may have just finally maximized their performance against the Bruins. 3. Washington 8-5 4-5 (3)

The Huskies may no longer have seven-win Sark, but they are pretty much the same team – an above average team with no real identity that mostly beats who they should and gets bombed by better teams and heads to a lower-level bowl game. 4. Cal 5-7 3-6 (4)

The Bears fizzled down the stretch and blew their shot at a bowl by losing at home to BYU, but I guess overall, it was still a good season for the Bears coming off one of the worst in school history. With all the experience returning next season, the pressure will be on Sonny Dykes in 2015 to take another step forward. 5. Oregon State 5-7 2-7 (5)

Take away Oregon State’s upset of an overrated Arizona State and the Beavers wrapped up their season by losing at home to a Washington State team starting a walk-on at quarterback and getting blown out by Oregon (excusable) and Washington (probably not excusable). It is going to be a tough off-season for Mike Riley and the Beavers. 6. Washington State 3-9 2-7 (6)

Rough season for the Cougars and Mike Leach. That is all. South 1. Arizona 10-2 7-2 (2)

And there you have it. Arizona wins the South with a win over their hated rival. Now, can they somehow beat Oregon for the third time in-a-row? 2. UCLA 9-3 6-3 (1)

Same old UCLA. The Bruins continued their long history of being an talented, but inconsistent bunch that never seems to come through when everyone expects them to and underachieves. 3. Arizona State 9-3 6-3 (3)

Rough way for the Sun Devils to end the season. Just a couple of weeks ago, they were a Playoff contender, now they have lost two of their past three, finished the season by losing the South to their rival and could slide to as low as the Sun Bowl. 4. USC 8-4 6-3 (5)

We know you Steve Sarkisian… covering up not showing up in a big game by blowing out a team that you should beat… we have seen this before. 5. Utah 8-4 5-4 (4)

The Utes narrowly avoided disaster by hanging on against Colorado and now can cap off a good bounce back season with a bowl victory. 6. Colorado 2-10 0-9 (6)

Sorry Colorado, improvement with a Pac-12 win doesn’t equate to much.