Pac-12 Power Rankings: Oregon falls, setting up riveting USC-Utah rematch in title game
After a few weeks of playoff contenders dropping like flies, the Pac-12 remains alive thanks to USC emphatically stating its case with a comfortable win over Notre Dame. So there’s no change at the top of the Pac-12 Power Rankings this week.
But, boy, were there some interesting shifts to sort through following Oregon‘s loss to Oregon State.
Let’s unpack all the Pac-12 action from this weekend.
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Today we update the Pac-12 Power Rankings following Week 13 games.
2022 Pac-12 Power Rankings – Week 13
USC sewed up an 11-win regular season and quarterback Caleb Williams might have sewn up the Heisman Trophy race. Williams was terrific in a 38-27 win over No. 15 Notre Dame, throwing for 232 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing for 35 yards and three scores. The Trojans took the lead early and never really looked back, benefiting from two more takeaways to bolster their nation-leading turnover margin further heading into the Pac-12 Championship Game.
The Huskies just keep passing and just keep winning. This time a slightly more balanced approach resulted in a 51-33 win over rival Washington State. Washington ran for 218 yards and four touchdowns, while quarterback Michael Penix Jr. threw for three touchdowns and 485 yards. Washington finished 10-2, with its only losses both by one score on the road midseason.
- Oregon State (+3)
The Beavers started strong, let the Ducks build a 21-point lead and then battled all the way back to win 38-34. Short fields were the difference late. Oregon’s special teams were at fault for two of those, then quarterback Bo Nix was stopped on a fourth-and-1 from Oregon’s own 29-yard line. Oregon State just rode its ground game to score on all three short-field possessions down the stretch, finishing with 268 yards rushing in the contest.
- Oregon (-1)
Nobody will rue their missed opportunities in the Pac-12 more than Oregon, which blew a shot to reach the Pac-12 Championship Game with Saturday’s loss. The Ducks finished with losses in two of their last three games and avoided league leader USC on the schedule. Utah can make a strong case to be ranked ahead of Oregon in the logjam of teams at 9-3 from spots No. 3 to No. 6 in this week’s Pac-12 Power Rankings, but the head-to-head win two weeks ago gives Oregon the nod for now.
The Utes have an interesting resume and will get a chance to prove they’re better than their record indicates on Saturday in the Pac-12 Championship Game against USC. A 63-21 demolition of Colorado moved Utah to 9-3, with its losses by three points at Florida, 10 points at UCLA and three points at Oregon. But it’s hard to say just how good Utah is, at the moment. Saturday will tell us a lot. The first meeting between USC and Utah was an instant classic and now they’ll square up for a rematch at a neutral site.
- UCLA (-2)
We’re not a fan of moving teams down following wins, particularly on the road. That said, having four 9-3 teams at season’s ended necessitated some tough choices. And the Bruins limped into the finish a bit, falling to a sub-.500 Arizona three weeks ago before coming up short in that awesome shootout with USC. A 35-28 win at 4-8 California just wasn’t enough to move the needle and keep UCLA from bringing up the rear in the clump of teams just below the top.
It’s hard to win games when your opponent tops 700 yards. Washington finished with 703 in the annual rivalry game and even two turnovers wasn’t enough for Washington State to make it a real game. Washington pulled away with 16 unanswered points in the fourth quarter, winning 51-33.
Even with the job Lincoln Riley has done at USC this year, Jedd Fisch should get some serious consideration for Pac-12 Coach of the Year. After Arizona won just one game a year ago it reached five this season, including Saturday’s 38-35 rivalry win over Arizona State. The Wildcats faced five of the six teams with winning records in the league in consecutive weeks from Oct. 8 to Nov. 12, a brutal stretch. And still almost reached bowl eligibility. Impressive.
The bottom of our Pac-12 Power Rankings (from spots No. 8 to No. 12) have had only one change in the last month. The league pretty well sorted itself out at the bottom. California fell 35-28 to UCLA in the season finale, ending the year at 4-8. Jack Plummer threw for 294 yards and four touchdowns without an interception in the loss.
A tough year for Stanford — one that saw star running back EJ Smith lost for the season early in the year — ended Saturday with a 35-26 loss to BYU. Following the loss, coach David Shaw announced his resignation, so now the Cardinal will begin a coaching search as it heads into the offseason following a 3-9 campaign.
The Sun Devils were competitive in virtually all of their games in the second half of the season but simply couldn’t find ways to win. Unlike Stanford, Arizona State won’t have to worry about a coaching search anymore. The Sun Devils tapped Oregon offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham to run the program on Sunday.
Sensing a theme here at the bottom of our Pac-12 Power Rankings? Colorado is yet another team going through a coaching search, somewhere in the middle of Arizona State and Stanford timeline-wise. The Bears weren’t skunked this season, picking up a lone win midseason against California to finish 1-11. But it feels like a complete overhaul is needed in Boulder with a new regime after a horrific year.
Want to see how this week’s power rankings compare to our previous edition? Check out the 2022 Week 12 Pac-12 Power Rankings here!