This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Unlike previous years, we know where the Pac-12 Championship will be this season: Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.
And before that, it will pass through Eugene. Because the Ducks don't seem to be planning to let up with half the season to go.
Give Oregon some credit: In back-to-back weeks, they've steamrolled two straight one-loss teams. UCLA made it closer at the finish, but didn't truly compete. Then Washington got boat-raced out of Autzen Stadium.
There's still a lot of football left, but if Oregon can get past a two-week stretch against Stanford and Utah, they have Cal, Colorado and Oregon State left. That's at least three games in which they'll be heavily favored.
The Pac-12 has featured big upsets already this season, but Oregon already has a leg up as the only North Division team above .500 in conference play. Stanford took a step back against Arizona State, and looks to be fighting an uphill battle for offense this year.
While there's much to do to get back to the Pac-12 Championship - and, they hope, the College Football Playoff - it's a good time to be a Duck. They have all the advantages in the Pac-12 North right now, and guess what: They'll play in Levi's Stadium this week when they head down to Cal. Coincidence? Well, sure - but they're showing signs that they'll be back in December.
Here's the weekend in review:
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Weekly winner • Oregon
Washington is a good 45-20 win for the Ducks, giving them back some fire on their home field. Look at what Oregon has going for it: You know about Marcus Mariota, who at this moment is still a Heisman front-runner. Oregon throws the ball well, with efficiency, and runs better than anyone in the conference, too. When they get to the red zone, the Ducks score touchdowns 74 percent of the time, The defense took a lot of heat, but in the last game against the Huskies, they allowed only 317 yards of total offense. Meanwhile, Washington has a bit of soul-searching ahead after its defense didn't measure up. Oregon has now won 11 straight in the rivalry game. This team may go bowling, but it hasn't succeeded against the conference's best.
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Losing ground • Cal
Sonny Dykes deserves a lot of credit for bringing his team this far, and to the brink of knocking off UCLA on Saturday. But the Bruins prevailed, 36-34, and now the Golden Bears have lost two straight headed into Oregon next week. Cal also has USC and Stanford still on its schedule, with games against Oregon State and BYU looking slightly easier, but not all that much. They have a great offense, but anyone can throw on this team. Though Jared Goff is sixth in the nation in passing yards (2,482 yards), the Cal secondary has allowed 2,742 yards through the air this season - yikes. Fumbling is also troubling: The Bears have fumbled 14 times this year. On the other hand, UCLA gets some credit for surviving, something it couldn't do against Utah. The Bruins have shown a knack for explosive plays, which it showed again this week with Brett Hundley and Paul Perkins. But UCLA's defense really needs to start stopping somebody, or else it will lose again.
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Special props • Arizona State's defense
While we're talking about defenses, how about the Sun Devils' performance in a 26-10 win over Stanford? ASU appropriately got raked over the coals for a performance against UCLA that made its young defenders look like junior varsity tacklers. Although Stanford's offense isn't all that good this year, Arizona State out-Stanforded Stanford and didn't allow a touchdown until the fourth quarter. The Cardinal managed only 288 yards of offense for an ugly 4.7 yards per play average. One never got the sense Stanford was truly coming back. Safety Demarious Randall had seven solo tackles, a sack and a forced fumble with a recovery. Further special shout-out goes to ASU kicker Zane Gonzalez, who missed his first attempt from 48 but nailed four more kicks after that. Watch out: Arizona State is one of three one-loss teams in the South, and technically has as good a chance as anyone of making the playoff.
And the remaining game:
USC 56, Colorado 28 • Cody Kessler gets left out of the "conference of quarterbacks" conversation, but it's hard to understand why. He threw a USC-record seven touchdown passes this weekend, including TDs on his first four drives of the game. It was 28-0 after the first quarter. The Trojans, one offense and defense, are not messing around. Sure, it's against the Buffs, but the result probably doesn't make Utes fans feel any better about the impending match-up this weekend.
Here's the weekly standings, which are definitely becoming a little more distinct:
NORTHOregon (6-1, 3-1)Stanford (4-3, 2-2)Cal (4-3, 2-3)Washington (5-2, 1-2)Oregon State (4-2, 1-2)Washington State (2-5, 1-3)
SOUTHUSC (5-2, 4-1)Arizona State (5-1, 3-1)Arizona (5-1, 2-1)Utah (5-1, 2-1)UCLA (5-2, 2-2)Colorado (2-5, 0-4)
And Pac-12 teams ranked in the AP poll: No. 6 Oregon, No. 14 Arizona State, No. 15 Arizona, No. 19 Utah, No. 20 USC, No. 25 UCLA.
Kyle Goonkgoon@sltrib.comTwitter: @kylegoon