PAC-12 Recap — Week 3 – The Walk-On Redshirts

Another eventful week of PAC-12 football is in the books that provided quite a bit of excitement for everyone as we prepare for conference play to start next weekend. I will also give an update on where my own personal predictions stand after week 3.

UCLA — 32 South Alabama — 31

UCLA was able to walk away with a one point after a game winning field goal against South Alabama after struggling throughout the entire game. South Alabama actually led 17-6 midway through the second quarter and then had a 31-23 lead at the start of the fourth quarter. Each team had two turnovers and only 8 yards separated each team’s total yards on offense. Bruins quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson had another efficient game going 20/30 for 263 yards and three touchdowns. I had UCLA beating South Alabama 38-14.

Notre Dame — 24 Cal — 17

This was a sluggish and slow start for both teams which featured a 0-0 tie after the first quarter had ended. Each team had less than 300 total yards on offense and combined to go for 7-27 on 3rd downs. Cal held a 17-14 lead late into the third quarter after a Jack Plummer rushing touchdown for the Golden Bears. Then, Notre Dame was able to score 10 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to get first year head coach Marcus Freeman his first win for the Irish. I had Notre Dame beating Cal 24-20.

Oregon — 41 BYU — 20

Oregon came out and was ready to go from the opening kickoff and ready to send a resounding message. The Ducks went up early and had a 24-7 lead at halftime. Quarterback Bo Nix had his best game so far for Oregon as he went 13/18 for 222 yards and two passing touchdowns along with 9 rushes for 35 yards and three rushing touchdowns. Quite a turn around for Oregon and first year head coach Dan Lanning these past two weeks. I drank the blue colored kool-aid and thought that BYU would come in and pull off a shocker in Eugene especially after their big overtime win at home versus Baylor last week. I had BYU beating Oregon 30-24.

Minnesota — 49 Colorado — 7

Colorado’s struggles continue as they went on the road and got blown out by Minnesota. Widely regarded as one of the worst teams in the country, the Buffaloes didn’t get on the score board until 8:55 left in the fourth quarter when Minnesota had already scored all 49 of their points. Minnesota accumulated 500 yards of offense including 334 rushing yards, while Colorado allowed the Gophers to go 13-15 on 3rd downs. It looks like it is going to continue to be a long season Colorado. I had Minnesota beating Colorado 48-14.

Washington State — 38 Colorado State — 7

After struggling to beat Idaho at home in week one, Washington State has continued to improve in impressive ways on both sides of the ball. Quarterback Cameron Ward went 24/34 for 299 yards with four touchdowns and one interception while the Cougars was dominant from the start and didn’t allow Colorado State to score until the fourth quarter. Wazzu totaled 442 yards of offense and linebacker Daiyan Henley was recognized as PAC-12 defensive player of the week. Pro Football Focus also lists Henley as the highest graded linebacker in the country. I had Washington State beating Colorado State 27-13.

Washington — 39 Michigan State — 28

One of the best games in the PAC-12 was watching Washington’s electric atmosphere at home as the Huskies were able to cruise to an impressive win against Michigan State. Once again, Washington’s passing attack was the story of the day as quarterback Michael Penix racked up 397 yards on 24/40 for four touchdowns. The Huskies led 29-8 at halftime time, but the other most impressive part of this game was Washington’s defense, specifically being able to hold the Spartans to just 42 rushing yards despite 29 attempts. I had Michigan State beating Washington 28-24.

Oregon State — 68 Montana State — 28

An explosion of offense for Oregon State and scoring 10 touchdowns led to the Beavers beating one of the better teams at the FCS level in Montana State. After a 7-7 first quarter, the Beavers came out and put up 27 in the second quarter. OSU went 10-12 on 3rd downs, totaled 538 yards of offense, and forced three turnovers on defense. Even with a few key starts out on both offense and defense, Oregon State was able to control this game from start to finish. I had Oregon State beating Montana State 38-17.

Utah — 35 San Diego State — 7

Utah had themselves another dominant performance against San Diego State and once again looked like the Utah team were all used to seeing. Quarterback Cameron Rising went 18/30 for 224 yards and four touchdowns. Utah’s defense looked fantastic as they allowed only 173 total yards of offense for San Diego State and 60 of those being passing yards. I had Utah beating San Diego State 48-23.

USC — 45 Fresno State — 17

USC continues to have success under first year head coach Lincoln Riley. A game that I originally had thought would be closer in the end, turned out to be a pretty comfortable win for the Trojans. Fresno State quarterback Jake Haener was carted off in the third quarter with an injury, but the Bulldogs were still able to tally up 421 yards of total offense on USC defense that is still a work in progress. On the other side of the ball, the Trojans offense once again looks like one of the best in the country after they totaled 517 yards of offense and quarterback Caleb Williams is cementing himself a legit heisman contender. I had USC beating Fresno State 45-34.

Arizona — 31 North Dakota State — 28

A nail biter all the way until the end for Arizona as they were able to escape with a win at home late in the fourth quarter against one of, if not the best FCS team in the country. North Dakota State had an impressive 283 rushing yards against the Wildcats. However, on the other side, quarterback Jayden de Laura was able to come up clutch when he needed to be as he threw a 22 yard touchdown with less than five minutes left in the fourth quarter to give Arizona the lead. I had Arizona beating North Dakota State 34-28.

Eastern Michigan — 30 Arizona State — 21

The big shock over the weekend and lone upset in the PAC-12 was when Eastern Michigan went into Tempe and beat Arizona State. This also led to the dismissal of head coach Herm Edwards a day after this loss. The Sun Devils looked pretty bad and not into this game from start to finish. They trailed 24-14 at halftime, gave up 458 yards of offense to Eastern Michigan including 305 rushing yards. The coaching search has begun for ASU and it will be interesting story to watch through the season as this is first PAC-12 head coach vacancy this season. I had Arizona State beating Eastern Michigan 37-20.