Offense was the story of the week in the Pac-12. In five conference games this week, a combined total of 313 points was scored. To put that into perspective, the Big 10 had five games this weekend and combined for 223 points scored. The fireworks were definitely apparent out west this weekend.
While it was challenging to keep up with all of the high-scoring contests from this past weekend, don’t worry, I have you covered in my Week 9 edition of “Unpack The Pac.”
Utah 21, Washington State 17
The star of this game didn’t even know he would be playing until minutes before kickoff. Junior quarterback Cameron Rising told coaches he would not be able to play in this contest and that put sophomore quarterback Bryson Barnes in line for his first career start. A ton of credit is due for head coach Kyle Whittingham who stuck with Utah’s prior winning formula and trusted Barnes to make enough plays to win the game. Barnes was excellent as he had 175 passing yards, one touchdown pass, 51 rushing yards and a QBR of 87.5.
While Barnes was the winning quarterback in the game, Washington State sophomore quarterback Cameron Ward had a suitable performance as he was 27-of-31 with 222 passing yards and two total touchdowns. After another gut-wrenching loss, the Cougars now drop to 4-4, but they are a much better team than their record. With three cakewalk games coming up, I expect them to creep into a mid-tier bowl game. And for Utah, this win keeps the Utes alive in the race for the Pac-12 championship.
USC 45, Arizona 37
Coming off a bye week, USC defeated Arizona, which got the bitter taste out of the Trojans’ mouth that stemmed from their heartbreaking 43-42 loss against Utah. USC transfer sophomore quarterback Caleb Williams was the game’s best player with 411 passing yards and five touchdown passes. The performance from Williams was even more impressive than it was on paper because he did it without his two most talented wideouts — sophomore Mario Williams and junior Jordan Addison.
While the offense showed no signs of rust from the bye week, the defense struggled immensely. USC’s defense allowed 543 yards and gave Arizona too many chances to sneak back into the game. Arizona’s sophomore quarterback Jayden de Laura took advantage of a USC defense that has trouble containing mobile quarterbacks, as his running ability posed a problem the entire game. His performance almost helped Arizona upset USC, but the Wildcats came just short. USC was in desperate need of a victory and found a way to sneak out of Tucson with one.
Oregon 42, Cal 24
After a slow start in the first quarter, Oregon continued its recent offensive surge as the Ducks rolled right over a wretched Cal team. Senior quarterback Bo Nix has been astonishing this season and added to his potential Heisman campaign as he had six total touchdowns and 471 total yards. Nix and the Ducks’ offense walked all over Cal’s dreadful defense.
Cal was dominated in every aspect of the game. After dropping another game, this looks like another lost season for the Golden Bears. On the other hand, Oregon added another win to its resume as the Ducks are vying for a Pac-12 title.
UCLA 38, Stanford 13
UCLA’s offense was too much for Stanford to endure, as the Bruins accounted for 523 yards. The Bruins’ most valuable player was senior running back Zach Charbonnet, who had over 250 total yards and three rushing touchdowns. On 21 rushes, Charbonnet averaged 9.4 yards per attempt. Stanford had no answer for Charbonnet the whole game, and it didn’t help that Stanford’s offense could not move the ball down the field.
Junior quarterback Tanner McKee gave a pitiful performance as he was 13-of-29 passing with 115 passing yards, one touchdown and an interception. Stanford entered the game on an impressive two-game winning streak and now looks to move on next season as a bowl game seems nearly impossible. On the other hand, UCLA is very much in the mix for the Pac-12 title as the Bruins continue to lean on their outstanding rushing attack.
Arizona State 42, Colorado 34
Both defenses in this game struggled mightily which created an offensive showdown between two lackluster rosters. This game had 916 total yards and 42 first downs. In his second straight game filling in for injured redshirt junior quarterback Emory Jones, redshirt junior quarterback Trenton Bourguet was fabulous. Bourguet passed for 435 yards and three touchdowns.
Bourguet was also able to lean on his superstar graduate running back, Xazavian Valladay, who rushed for 118 yards and three touchdowns. Arizona State and Colorado’s offensive lines gave their quarterbacks enough time to keep making plays to stay in the game. Ultimately, Arizona State was able to pull out a victory in this high-scoring contest.
“Unpack the Pac” runs every Wednesday.