Pick
Colorado 34 OSU 27

#50 Utah (4-1) vs. #19 USC (5-1) 5pm PT, ABC

Utah has another shot to move up a little this week if they can put together a good performance against the Trojans. Utah has played OK, against one of the worst schedules in the country, and Stanford falling in the model certainly didn't help matters. Utah's defense got a major boost from slowing down Stanford and from Arizona's offensive surge (making them look better for having, sort of, contained them using turnovers rather than plain stops). This should be a good matchup for them of their strength on the defensive line against a reeling USC O-line and if they can apply pressure and force turnovers they have a shot, but the USC defense will be the best defense that the, even by Utah standards, putrid Ute offense has faced this year. BYU is currently the best defense they have faced and BYU comes in at #67. I expect USC to pull it out, even as Whittingham limits possessions to keep it closer than it would be with an average number of possessions per team.

Pick
USC 24 Utah 13

#38 UCLA (3-2) vs #54 Arizona (3-2) 6pm PT, Pac-12

This week's game of the year of the week for Rich Rod is at home against the Bruins and it is extremely winnable for the Wildcats. UCLA's defense has turned in a utterly underwhelming showing so far this season and when you consider that their coordinator is Tom Bradley and all the defensive talent they have piled up in recruiting; it makes even less sense. That said the offense has been rolling and Arizona's defense looks to be only slightly improved off of last year; which isn't good. If UCLA can run the ball with any efficiency then look out, because Rosen will torch you on play action.

The flip side of this is Arizona's offense which has moved up due to playing well, except for turnovers, against Utah and mauling what looked like a good Colorado defense. Arizona fan's ready to anoint Tate should be careful though. Arizona's moribund offense has had breakout games in past seasons and they all looked identical to that Colorado game. A massively explosive athlete at QB has a big game on the ground, this puts the defense on it's heels and often into zones to keep eyes on the QB, and Arizona uses tempo, the zones, and a flustered defense to add on some very easy looking passes. Brandon Dawkins had the best game of any Arizona QB since Matt Scott against Washington last year in a game that was keyed by his own running rampant on the Husky defense. Which isn't to say this bad UCLA defense isn't going to be able to put a lid on Tate, but what should concern Arizona fans is "what happens if they do?" Can Arizona's offense win a conference game where the QB doesn't put up 150+ yards? Is anyone other than Dawkins/Tate even an explosive threat on this offense? If UCLA can take away Tate the rusher then he and the offense will most likely come back to earth because the rest of the offense doesn't offer anything nearly as concerning.

If this turns into a shootout that would be a good thing for Arizona. UCLA has a huge advantage on special teams #15 vs. #81 so a close game where the punting units see a lot of the field is a worse outcome than a close shootout where they trade kickoffs. This is a totally winnable game for Arizona, on a schedule that looks even easier than it did at the beginning of the season, but if Tate and the offense scuffle then look out, because I doubt this Arizona defense will hold UCLA under 35. An Arizona win changes the season dramatically for both teams; which isn't something you can usually say about two middling teams.

Pick
UCLA 42 Arizona 38

#8 Washington (6-0) vs #61 Arizona State (2-3) 745pm PT, ESPN
This kind of feels like Petersen vs. ESPN rather than the Sun Devils, who will be there and "may" make a game of it. ESPN acted like a bunch of exceedingly petulant children last week in taking cheap shots at Petersen, who didn't even mention ESPN. If ESPN's talking heads perfect for the "pivot to video" had bothered to look at Pac-12 network schedules they would have realized that they are only a small part of the problem, but Kirkopotamus and the boys just couldn't resist. So maybe the only reason to watch this is to see if ESPN puts more peevish on screen clap backs on Petersen in what should not be a close game.

On the field the Sun Devils don't match up well here. Washington is strong on both sides of the ball and will put up a lot of points on the Sun Devils and in big chunks if ASU gets caught out gambling. Manny Wilkins and the, actually pretty good, Sun Devils offense will have a tough time with poor field position and a good defense in front of them.

Pick
Washington 48 ASU 21

#36 Oregon (4-2) vs #26 Stanford (4-2) 745pm PT, Pac-12 Bay or Oregon

If Herbert were playing I might even take Oregon in this game, but without him I think Stanford takes its rebuilt offensive prowess right through a largely improved Oregon defense; seriously though how good is Jim Leavitt? I don't think Oregon has the offensive firepower right now to challenge this Stanford squad, even though the Stanford defense isn't very good.

Pick
Stanford 31 Oregon 20