SI Pac-12 Power Rankings: Oregon Takes Top Spot After Ohio State Victory
For what it's worth, the Pac-12 conference has played extremely well on a national level. Just one week removed from UCLA's upset over LSU, Oregon went to Columbus and stole a victory from Ohio State.
It was not only a huge win for the Ducks (who now find themselves in the AP's top four teams), but for the Pac-12 conference with many of the story lines surrounding them being negative. Even in losses, the conference gained respect. Colorado hosted No. 5 ranked Texas A&M and held a lead over the Aggies until the very end of the game.
It wouldn't be Pac-12 football if all the teams handled business as they should, right? Utah's 12-year win streak over BYU came to an end over the weekend, while a Stanford stomping of USC raises many questions about the Trojans, dropping them completely out of the AP's top 25.
With all the above thoughts factored in, Sports Illustrated's Pac-12 publishers put together their power rankings following a second week of games played. For the third rankings in a row, we have a new leader at the top:
Pac-12 Power Rankings After Week Two
1. Oregon 2-0 (6) 72 points
2. UCLA 2-0 66
3. Arizona State 2-0 59
4. Stanford 1-1 50
5. Utah 1-1 44
6 tie. Colorado 1-1 40
6 tie. USC 1-1 40
8. Oregon State 1-1 33
9. Cal 0-2 20
10. Washington State 1-1 19
11. Washington 0-2 18
12. Arizona 0-2 7
How AllSunDevils Voted
1. Oregon; 2. UCLA; 3. Arizona State; 4. Utah; 5. Colorado; 6. Stanford; 7. USC; 8. Oregon State; 9. Washington; 10. Cal; 11. Washington State; 12. Arizona
Donnie Druin: Man, what a way for Oregon to bounce back. A huge victory over what many assumed to be a certain College Football Playoff team in Ohio State on the road deserves the top spot, while USC takes a hit after falling apart to Stanford in horrid fashion. I was also a fan of how Colorado battled with a top-five team in the country despite losing the game.
Donnie Druin is a Deputy Editor with AllSunDevils. Follow Donnie on Twitter @DonnieDruin, and AllSunDevils @AllSunDevils. Like and follow AllSunDevils on Facebook, and for more ASU news visit https://www.si.com/college/arizonastate/