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Pac-12 power rankings, Week 4: USC struggles, Washington rolls

By Brad Weiss

SEATTLE, WA - SEPTEMBER 16: Wide receiver Dante Pettis #8 of the Washington Huskies is congratulated by a teammate after returning a punt for a touchdown against the Fresno State Bulldogs at Husky Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA - SEPTEMBER 16: Wide receiver Dante Pettis #8 of the Washington Huskies is congratulated by a teammate after returning a punt for a touchdown against the Fresno State Bulldogs at Husky Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images) /
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BERKELEY, CA – SEPTEMBER 16: Patrick Laird #28 of the California Golden Bears celebrates as they sing the alma mater after they beat the Mississippi Rebels at California Memorial Stadium on September 16, 2017, in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
BERKELEY, CA – SEPTEMBER 16: Patrick Laird #28 of the California Golden Bears celebrates as they sing the alma mater after they beat the Mississippi Rebels at California Memorial Stadium on September 16, 2017, in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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California Golden Bears (3-0)

Last week: W 27-16 vs Ole Miss
Last rank: 9

All of a sudden, the California Golden Bears are sitting at 3-0, and have been one of the more surprising teams in the Pac-12 this season. While Cal did not put on an offensive show in this one, they did beat a pretty good SEC team in Ole Miss and had to come back to do so. The Golden Bears were down 16-7 at the half but outscored the Rebels 20-0 in the second half to win the game by the score of 27-16.

Quarterback Ross Bowers played his worst game of the season, but he still was able to make plays when it counted. Bowers has been great for Cal this season, his first as the team’s starter, but he had two interceptions in this one. Running back Patrick Laird was efficient running the ball against the Rebels, racking up nearly 80 yards and a touchdown.

The story for Cal in this one was the play of Davante Downs, who has been putting together an incredible senior season. The linebacker had 14 tackles in the game, his second this season with double-digit tackles, and also registered two sacks. As a team, the Golden Bears had five sacks in the game to go along with three interceptions, one of which was returned 32 yards for a touchdown by Cameron Goode.

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UCLA Bruins (2-1)

Last week: L 48-45 at Memphis
Last rank: 3

Only a week after vaulting to the No. 3 spot in our rankings, the UCLA Bruins took a big step back this weekend. Going on the road is always tough, but UCLA really laid an egg in this one. The Memphis Tigers were not supposed to win this game, but their offense kept coming back at the Bruins, and in the end, UCLA could not overcome some costly turnovers by their star quarterback.

Josh Rosen has been incredible this season for UCLA, and at times on Saturday, he looked like the first overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. However, he made two costly mistakes for interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown. Sometimes he just has to learn to live another day, and on Saturday, the Tigers took advantage of every mistake he made.

Memphis quarterback Riley Ferguson could not be stopped during the game, as he continuously connected with Anthony Miller Jr. The Bruins looked to be a big player in the Pac-12 this season, but head coach Jim Mora has to be worried about his defense at this point. If they have to rely on Rosen throwing for over 400 yards each week, they are not going to be able to beat the big dogs in the conference.

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