Pac 10 Things We Learned This Week

The renaissance of USC under Mark Sanchez, the demise of Oregon's secondary and the utter collapse of Arizona State highlight 10 lessons learned after week six of Pac-10 play.

-We have met the enemy and he is US(C)
With Oregon moving up and down the field on its first three drives, with a little help from three USC personal fouls, it seemed the Trojans were in danger of losing consecutive Pac-10 games for the first time since 2001.

Instead, Pete Carroll opened up the offense, unleashed the defense and the Men of Troy rolled to a 44-10 romp over the Ducks.

Ripped apart by little Jacquizz Rodgers of Oregon State 10 days earlier, they limited one of the most prolific rushing offenses in the country to 60 yards on 39 carries. The Ducks actually managed 63 net yards on their first three drives, when they scored their only points of the night.

Most importantly, USC showed its ability to capitalize on turnovers as it had during national title runs in 2003 and 2004. Corner Josh Pinkard, whom Carroll once called the team’s best defender, knocked loose a fumble with 22 seconds left in the half and Mark Sanchez threw a touchdown on the very next play.

The Trojans went into the half with a 17 point advantage, scored on a spectacular Stafon Johnson run to open the third quarter and that was it.

It’s been a cliché the past three seasons, but from here on out USC beats USC barring only a catastrophic injury to its quarterback.

-Sanchez has asserted himself as an elite quarterback
That gasp heard across Los Angeles was not Cubs fans realizing that year 100 would not end their frustration when the Dodgers pushed across a couple of runs in the bottom of the first, but former Mission Viejo High teammate Nick Reed barreling into Sanchez late in the third quarter.

The junior suffered a bone bruise in his left knee, the same one he injured in training camp, but later returned to action and is expected to play Saturday against Arizona State.

Though Arkansas transfer Mitch Mustain threw a long bomb for a score late in the game, the drop off between the two would close the gap between USC and the rest of the conference.

Sanchez has thrown for at least three touchdowns in every game this season, shown the ability to move in the pocket and throw the deep ball. His leadership and enthusiasm have reenergized the Trojans after two lean years by their incredible standards.

-What’s wrong with the Oregon secondary?
What a difference a year makes. Last year at Autzen Stadium, the Ducks baited Sanchez into two key interceptions and locked down on USC’s underachieving receivers in a 24-17 win.

At the Coliseum, Damian Williams and Ronald Johnson were wide open on 34 and 63 yard touchdown receptions.

Two weeks earlier, Oregon was torched by Boise State for 386 yards and three scoring passes.

Defensive coordinator Nick Aliotti has gone from hero to goat in the span of a year and what was supposed to be the nation’s best secondary is a big reason why. Their tendency for getting beat with play action has cost the Ducks even more than the quarterback carousel.

-Genius has limits
Oregon’s offensive coordinator Chip Kelly has created a thrilling spread attack in Eugene, but injuries to his signal callers and falling behind against tough teams have taken away the run game.

UCLA should remedy that, but what happens against the other top teams in the conference? The resume is very suspect, considering the Ducks have beaten up on the No. 117, 114, 63 and 116 scoring defenses in their wins.

-Stick a pitchfork in Arizona State
It is now 10 consecutive terrible quarters - plus the overtime period against UNLV - and counting for the Sun Devils, who are now challenging Clemson as the country’s most disappointing team.

Rudy Carpenter is hurt and Coach Dennis Erickson looks completely lost. Can he rally a senior-laden team that faces USC, Oregon and Oregon State the next four weeks?

The performances against Georgia and California indicate the answer is no.

-Arizona is the second-best team in the Pac-10 right now
Give the Wildcats credit for smashing the dregs of the conference and have another chance to build their confidence at Stanford before a brutal stretch run.

The offense looks outstanding and the defense, completely rebuilt from last year, ranks No. 1 in the nation in pass defense and No. 2 in total yards allowed.

-Hey, Washington had a sack
It only took five games to take down the quarterback. Unfortunately, the Huskies also allowed 48 points and 449 yards of offense as they were torched by Arizona.

San Francisco 49ers assistant Mike Singletary, Nick Holt of USC and Cal’s Bob Gregory should merit some consideration if UW decides to go in a defensive direction in replacing Tyrone Willingham.

-When scoring 28 points is an abject failure
Washington State had allowed the four FBS teams it had played to score an average of 53 points.

UCLA managed just 28 and barely rushed for 100 yards.

Just saying.

-Insert Pac-10 ref joke here
If Stanford doesn’t make a bowl game, expect Jim Harbaugh to launch another diatribe on the horrific officiating in Saturday’s loss at Notre Dame.

-Rank ‘em
After six weeks, here’s how they stand based of past performance and upcoming circumstance:
1. USC
2. Arizona
3. California
4. Oregon
5. Oregon State
6. Stanford
7. Arizona State
8. UCLA
9. Washington
10. Washington State