Pac-12 power rankings, Week 4: USC trounced by Texas, Arizona State upset
By Brad Weiss
The Colorado Buffaloes ran through their early cupcakes, moving to 3-0 to start the season, and will now have a week off before opening up their Pac-12 slate against UCLA on Sept. 28. The Buffaloes got a stellar effort from running back Tavon McMillian this past weekend against FCS school New Hampshire, as he rushed for 162 yards and two touchdowns in a game that got out of hand pretty early.
Quarterback Steven Montez continues his stellar start to the season, leading an offense that has looked explosive through the first three games. In addition, the defense put the stranglehold on the Wildcats all game long in Week 3, holding them to under 50 yards rushing as they won their home opener.
The Pac-12 South is wide open this season, and through the first three weeks of the season it looks like Colorado could be the class of the division. The North has powerhouses in Oregon, Washington and Stanford to name a few, but the South has no team really taking the division by storm early in 2018, clearing the way for Colorado to possibly represent the division in the Pac-12 title game when all is said and done.
The Washington Huskies took care of business this past weekend, going into Utah, which is a tough place to play, and holding off the Utes long enough to escape with a 21-7 victory. With the win, Washington ran its record to 2-1, and if not for a very hard-fought loss to Auburn, it would be undefeated heading into their matchup with Arizona State this weekend.
Myles Gaskin was a beast on the ground for Washington, rushing the ball 30 times for over 140 yards and a touchdown. Jake Browning did a nice job moving the ball against Utah, but he also made some questionable decisions, which is pretty surprising since he has been the team’s starting quarterback for four years now.
If Washington hopes to win the Pac-12 and lock up a spot in the College Football Playoff, Browning has to be better than he was on Saturday night. The Arizona State Sun Devils have a solid defense and a head coach who has won big at the NFL level, so you can be sure they will be ready for the Huskies on Saturday.