The Khalil Tate Show rolls on for Arizona in Week 9 against WSU, and has the Wildcats thinking about a Pac-12 title this season.
Khalil Tate has taken the Pac-12 by storm since being inserted into the starting quarterback role for the Arizona Wildcats and has his team one win away from taking the top spot in the Pac-12 South Division. He and his Wildcats teammates will get a chance to overtake USC this weekend when they take on the Trojans in Week 10. The win would be their fifth in a row and put them in the driver’s seat as we head down the stretch.
Over in the North, Washington is still the team to beat, but Stanford is nipping at their heels. The Huskies looked great in their win against UCLA this past weekend, as they ran all over the Bruins. The Cardinal barely got past Oregon State, so it will be interesting to see how they fare against a Washington State team that has lost two of their last three this weekend.
Here are the latest Pac-12 Power Rankings heading into Week 10.
The Oregon State Beavers had the opportunity to shock the world this past weekend but fumbled away a win against the Stanford Cardinal. Coming into the game with a 1-6 record, nobody really gave the Beavers a chance to hang with Stanford. However, the Cardinal were playing without running back Bryce Love, who was ruled out of the contest about 90 minutes before kickoff.
Oregon State’s defense played so well in this one, but in the end, it was their offense that let them down. After Stanford scored a touchdown to take the lead, Oregon State actually got the ball back, but Darell Garretson threw an interception to seal the victory for Stanford. Ryan Nall rushed for nearly 90 yards on only 19 carries, but it was not enough to put the Beavers over the top.
Last season, Oregon State ended the year on a high note, and it looked like they would be doing the same with their effort against Stanford. They do get Cal next weekend, and with how great their defense looked against a good Stanford team, they may be able to stop Ross Bowers and company. It is another lost season for Oregon State, who is starting to look like a consistent doormat in the Pac-12.
The California Golden Bears played in Boulder, Colorado for the first time since 2013 this past weekend, but their effort could not match the firepower of the Buffaloes offense. The real issue in this game was the team’s inability to stop Steven Montez, who came back from his benching last weekend to shred the Golden Bears defense. Ross Bowers played very well under center for Cal, throwing for over 300 yards and three touchdowns, but it was not enough, as the Golden Bears dropped below .500.
Sophomore wide receiver Kanawai Noa had a terrific game for Cal, catching seven balls for 108 yards and two touchdowns. While Cal was solid in the passing game, the running game forgot to make the trip to Colorado, finishing with only 61 yards on the ground. Cal was forced to rely on the passing game more in this one, as their defense had no answer for the Buffaloes all game long.
It has been an up and down season for Cal, who has looked so good on occasion and just lost other times. They play their home finale this weekend against Oregon State, so they should be able to get back to .500 against the 1-7 Beavers. If they can win out, they will lock up a bowl game for head coach Justin Wilcox in his first season at the helm of the program.