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Arizona (2-6) at Washington
(2-5)
3:00 EST
Why to watch: For
Arizona, there’s always next
year. For its head coach, Mike
Stoops, a different rallying cry
may be needed. After falling to
Stanford, and ensuring a ninth
straight year without a winning
record, the fourth-year coach
has begun to feel the heat
associated with unfulfilled
expectations. After going 6-6
in 2006 and beginning this
season with hopes for a rare
bowl game, the Wildcats have hit
a wall, losing whatever air was
left in the program in
Saturday’s one-point loss to the
Cardinal. After losing all five
games in a wicked gauntlet that
included Ohio State, UCLA, USC,
Arizona State, and Oregon, a
visit from Arizona couldn’t come
at a better time for
Washington. The Huskies will be
seeking their first Pac-10
victory of the year, and have a
somewhat more manageable back
end of the schedule to still
dream about seven wins and a
bowl invite. Don’t forget that
these guys had the Ducks on the
ropes last week before fading in
the final quarter. Beyond the
obvious goal of winning, the
next six games for the program
will also be about getting Jake
Locker closer to being a
complete quarterback for 2008.
Why Arizona might win:
While it’s had something to do
with the competition,
Washington’s defense has gotten
ambushed during the five-game
losing streak, allowing at least
460 yards a game and slipping to
last in the Pac-10. This is an
ideal opportunity for Willie
Tuitama and the Wildcats offense
to break out of their recent
slumber. The Huskies are
getting no pressure on opposing
quarterbacks, and RB Nick
Grigsby will continue making his
case for the Freshman All-Pac-10
team, ripping through a unit
that’s next to last nationally
in run defense.
Why Washington might win:
Emotionally, Arizona has to find
something in the tank after
losing to Stanford and coming to
grips with another bowl-less
postseason. The passing game
has regressed since the Sept. 29
rout of Washington State, and
the running game averages a
league-worst 83 yards a game.
The result has been just 59
points during the three-game
losing streak, and way too many
field goal attempts. Even the
Huskies will have a chance to
contain this feeble unit.
Coming off the best game of his
brief career, Locker will
flourish when given an
opportunity to face a beatable
opponent.
Who to watch: Lost in
Washington’s defensive implosion
has been the play of E.J.
Savannah, who is quietly
establishing himself this season
as one of the best young
linebackers in the Pac-10. Just
a sophomore, he leads the
Huskies with 70 stops and 46
solos, showing the athletic
ability and range that made him
such a coveted recruit three
years ago.
What will happen: While
Arizona is bummed, Washington is
emboldened by a let up in the
competition. It’ll show in the
form of Locker accounting for
250 yards and three scores in a
double-digit Husky win.
CFN Prediction:
Washington 33 … Arizona
23 ...
Line: Washington -3.5
Must See Rating: (5
America's Most Smartest Model -
1 Marie Osmond on DTWS) ...
2
Stanford (3-4) at Oregon State
(4-3)
6:30 EST
Why to watch: For the
second time in three weeks,
Stanford went on the road to win
a Pac-10 game, beating Arizona
and dispatching a message that
it won’t occupy the low rung of
the league ladder this season.
While the Cardinal has a long
way to go before it can start
seriously thinking about
competing for a conference
title, there’s no doubt the
program is headed in the right
direction under Jim Harbaugh.
With another win away from the
Farm this week, Stanford can
start seriously driving toward
bowl eligibility, a ludicrous
thought just a season ago.
Oregon State comes out of its
bye week well rested and fired
up from back-to-back wins over
Arizona and Cal. With games
still left at USC and Oregon,
this is a game that the Beavers
absolutely, positively can’t
lose if they have any hopes of
playing beyond the Dec. 1 Civil
War.
Why Stanford might win:
Which Oregon State team will
show up? Will it be the one that
beat Cal or the one that got
lapped by UCLA and Cincinnati?
The Beavers have been hard to
read this year because they lack
consistency and turn the ball
over more than any other team in
the Pac-10. An already
banged-up Oregon State offensive
line got bad news this week when
it learned that starting LT
Tavita Thompson has been
declared ineligible by the NCAA.
That can’t help error-prone QB
Sean Canfield, who’s been a mess
this year and will feel the heat
from a Cardinal defense that
already has 21 sacks and is
playing well above expectations.
Why Oregon State might win:
Stanford will have plenty of
problems scoring on a veteran
Beaver defense that’s started to
flex its muscles the last two
games. Oregon State is third in
the country against the run, so
there’s no chance the anemic
Cardinal running game will be
able to move the ball on the
ground. It’ll be up to QB
Tavita Pritchard to move the
ball through the air, but that
won’t be a pleasure cruise when
he’s feeling constant pressure
from Victor Butler, Jeff Van
Orsow, and the rest of the
nation’s third-ranked sack unit.
Who to watch: True
freshman Darrell Catchings has
begun to pick up some of the
slack left by Sammie
Stroughter’s season-ending
injury, gradually making his
presence felt at split end. A
speedy option for Canfield, he
could have a career day on
Saturday playing against a
Stanford pass defense that ranks
ninth in the Pac-10.
What will happen:
Stanford lacks the balance on
offense to get very far on an
improving and attacking Oregon
State defense. The Beavers will
get 100 yards and two scores
from RB Yvenson Bernard for a
comfortable third straight win.
CFN Prediction:
Oregon
State 34 … Stanford 16
... Line: Oregon State
-13.5
Must See Rating: (5
America's Most Smartest Model -
1 Marie Osmond on DTWS) ...
2
UCLA (5-2) at Washington State
(2-5)
6:30 EST, Saturday, October 27
Why to watch:
In an odd year, UCLA continues
to be one its oddest teams.
After upsetting Cal last week,
the Bruins remained unbeaten in
the Pac-10, yet are unranked
because of improbable
out-of-conference losses to Utah
and Notre Dame. With upcoming
games against Washington State
and Arizona, they’ll be favored
to be unblemished in the league
in time for the pivotal final
kick versus Arizona State,
Oregon, and USC. Although
starting QB Ben Olson remains on
the shelf, Patrick Cowan
returned last week to give UCLA
a double dose of stability on
offense. If things don’t change
real fast in Pullman, Washington
State will be playing out the
string in November, and
listening to the calls for Bill
Doba’s ouster grow louder. In
an already rocky campaign, the
Cougars reached rock bottom
before the bye, getting
humiliated by Oregon, 53-7.
Why UCLA might win: In
Washington State, the Bruins
will be facing one of the
Pac-10’s worst defenses, a unit
that’s allowed more than 40
points four times this season
and has surrendered an
astounding 21 touchdown passes.
Cowan will take advantage of his
surroundings, finding WR Brandon
Breazell on the deep routes, and
getting plenty of support from
the backfield tandem of Kahlil
Bell and Chris Markey. UCLA’s
pressure up front and rock solid
run defense will keep the
Cougars one-dimensional, a
problem that’s plagued them all
season.
Why Washington State might
win: If forced to play in
comeback mode, the Cougars are
equipped to do so with the
nation’s No. 11 passing attack.
All-time leading passer Alex
Brink will be getting top
receiver Brandon Gibson back
from injury and is benefiting
from the emergence of true
freshman Jeshua Anderson, a
burner that’s caught seven balls
for 225 yards over the last two
games. For as much as UCLA CBs
Trey Brown and Alterraun Verner
have gotten this fall, the Bruin
secondary has been soft,
allowing 241 yards a game.
Wazzu has been a different team
at home this year, beating San
Diego State and Idaho, and
nearly upsetting 7-0 Arizona
State. Who to watch:
UCLA’s speed rushing DE Bruce
Davis will add to his sack total
Saturday night, blowing past an
overmatched Washington State
line that’s very young and very
beatable. In the Cougars’ loss
to Oregon, Duck DE Nick Reed had
three sacks, which is a number
that Davis can hit if he doesn’t
face double teams all night.
What will happen:
Washington State’s track record
at home and UCLA’s track record
of inconsistency indicate that
this will game will be tighter
than expected for all four
quarters. The Bruins will pull
away late, wearing out a Cougar
D that lacks the depth to hold
up for 60 minutes.
CFN Prediction:
UCLA
30 … Washington State 21...
Line: UCLA -6
Must See Rating: (5
America's Most Smartest Model -
1 Marie Osmond on DTWS) ...
2.
California (5-2) at Arizona State (7-0)
10:00 EST
Why to watch: USC was the
Pac-10 favorite entering the
season. Cal took the baton
after the Trojans lost to
Stanford. Oregon is now the
flavor of the week. Has anyone
noticed that Arizona State is
one of just five teams that have
yet to lose a game in 2007? For
an unbeaten program, the Sun
Devils aren’t getting much
respect these days, but that’ll
change if they can extend the
Bears’ losing streak to three
games Saturday night. Arizona
State has quietly played very
well this fall, beating
opponents by an average of 22
points and playing with a
physical mentality that meshes
with first-year head coach
Dennis Erickson’s philosophy.
Star RB Ryan Torain is out for
the year, putting Keegan Herring
and Dmitri Nance in the role of
picking up the slack. Not long
ago, Cal was the No. 2 team in
the country, thinking about much
more than just a Rose Bowl
invite. That was then and this
is now. The Bears have slipped
to No. 21 in the BCS after
consecutive agonizing losses to
Oregon State and UCLA, and need
to stop the bleeding immediately
before the 2007 season gets put
on life support. If Cal can
regroup and run the table, a BCS
bowl game will still be there
for the taking.
Why Cal might win: Which
of Arizona State’s wins this
year should convince anyone that
this team is a bona fide player
in the Pac-10 race? Unlike Cal,
which has been able to measure
itself against Tennessee,
Oregon, and UCLA, only one of
the Sun Devils’ victims even has
a winning record. Now that QB
Nate Longshore’s ankle is
healthy again, the Bears will
get back to being one of the
league’s most explosive
offenses, exposing an overrated
ASU defense with the speed of
receivers DeSean Jackson and
Lavelle Hawkins, and the
shiftiness of RB Justin Forsett.
After facing seven straight
offenses that lack balance, the
Devil D will not be prepared for
the wave of weapons and options
that it’ll have to cover.
Why Arizona State might win:
It’s going to be a big night for
QB Rudy Carpenter, who’ll get
little resistance from a Cal
defense that can’t get a hand on
the quarterback and continues to
struggle in pass defense. The
Bears have just two sacks over
the last three games, which is
comforting news for a Sun Devil
offensive line that’s been
horrible in pass protection.
With more time than he’s
accustomed to, Carpenter will
hook up with a quartet of
quality receivers that’s led by
Michael Jones. Not your typical
backup, Herring has five
100-yard games in his career,
and will make a smooth
transition as Torain’s
successor. Yes, this is the ASU
defense’s toughest test of the
year, but this group tackles
well, prevents the big play, and
stops the run better than any
edition when Dirk Koetter was in
Tempe.
Who to watch: Cal is at
its very best when Forsett gets
running lanes, which weren’t
that abundant in last week’s
loss to UCLA. If the Bears can
pop a few runs early, it’ll take
the pressure off Longshore,
while opening things up in the
passing game. Forsett will be
the responsibility of Arizona
State LB Robert James, who is
covertly having an outstanding
senior season that should garner
him postseason recognition.
What will happen:
Sort of like Urban Meyer in
Kentucky last week, you just
don’t expect a Jeff Tedford-coached
team to lose three games
in-a-row. While Arizona State
is not living a lie, it will
fail to graduate from beating
mid-level opponents to handling
a Cal team that still has the
potential to reach the top 10.
As he did against Oregon and
UCLA, Jackson will elevate his
game, amassing 200 all-purpose
yards and scoring a couple of
times.
CFN Prediction:
California
34 …
Arizona State 30 ... Line:
Arizona State -3
Must See Rating: (5
America's Most Smartest Model -
1 Marie Osmond on DTWS) ...
4.5
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