Pac-12 Football Notebook: Can Oregon Still Reach the College Football Playoff?

Pac-12 football is getting curiouser and curiouser, leaving us with a lot of questions following Saturday’s results. We have 15 queries.

Question No. 1: Does the Pac-12 still have a chance to get a team into the College Football Playoff?

First of all, it’s too early to say. However, it’s noteworthy that the Pac-12 and the Mid-American Conference are the only two of the 11 FBS conferences that don’t have at least one unbeaten team, which hurts the Pac-12. On the other hand, it’s also noteworthy that Oregon, despite losing to Stanford, is still ranked No. 8 in this week’s AP poll, which should leave the Ducks within range of the top four when the season ends. The first College Football Playoff rankings don’t come out until Nov. 2, which is when we’ll get a better idea of the status of Oregon and the Pac-12. Although Alabama and Georgia have proved to be worthy of two of the CFP berths, no other team has staked convincing claim to the other two spots. At the moments, Cincinnati, Iowa, Penn State and Oklahoma are all in that discussion for one of the final two slots, but none has a firm grasp on it.

Question No. 2: What is the most intriguing possible scenario as the season plays out?

Let’s assume Stanford and Oregon both win their remaining regular-season games, which is unlikely but certainly not impossible based on their remaining schedules. Stanford would then represent the North Division in the Pac-12 championship game, but Oregon would be 11-1 with its lone loss being in overtime on the road against the Cardinal. Would Oregon get a berth in the College Football Playoff despite not playing in the conference title game?

Whether this scenario has real possibilities will be determined next Friday night when Stanford plays at Arizona State. The Sun Devils opened as 12-point favorites, but the point spread was already down to 10 1/2 in some books and 9 1/2 in others by Sunday afternoon. Then, on Monday, the spread was back up to 11 points.

Question No. 3: Did Colorado coach Karl Dorrell need to apologize for shoving a cameraman while coming off the field following the Buffaloes' 37-14 loss to USC?

The answer, of course, is yes, and he issued an apology.

things are going well for Buffs football... pic.twitter.com/oD41OS8DkD
— RG 📷 (@RyanGreeneDNVR) October 2, 2021

Dorrell apologized in a statement released by the university on Sunday:.

"I want to apologize for the incident at the end of our game Saturday. We do value the media and the coverage they provide for our program, and this was strictly in the heat of the moment. That's not who I am, and I hope people who have known me through the years do realize that," Dorrell said in the statement. "I did reach out and spoke directly this morning to the videographer from CBS-4 and personally apologized to him."

Question No. 4: What were the strangest occurrences in Pac-12 games on Saturday?

We have two:

1. A blocked punt became a turning point in favor of the team that had the punt blocked: Washington State led 7-6 in the first quarter when its faced fourth-and-6 from its own 29-yard line and planned to punt. Punter Nick Haberer had his punt blocked by Cal's Nick Alftin, but instead of Cal getting the ball around the WSU 20-yard line, WSU's Ron Stone Jr. picked up the loose ball and advanced it 7 yards for a Cougars first down. WSU turned that possession into a touchdown and a 14-6 lead with 1:46 left in the first quarter.

2. In a tie game, one team’s defense tried to allow its opponent to score a touchdown, while the opposing offense made sure it did not score a touchdown: Washington and Oregon State were tied 24-24 when the Beavers reached the Huskies’ 20-yard line with 1:31 left. With Oregon State within field goal range, Washington figured its best option was to let the Beavers score a touchdown, giving the Huskies enough time to score a touchdown to tie the game. Washington defenders barely tapped the Beavers’ Deshaun Fenwick as he breezed through the Huskies’ line. Luckily for Oregon State, Fenwick tripped and fell at the 8-yard line. Realizing what Washington was doing, Oregon State opted to kneel down three times rather than try to score, running the clock down to three seconds before Everett Hayes kicked the game-winning, 24-yard field goal on the final play.

Question No. 5: What was the most spectacular play in games played Saturday?

There were several, but our nomination is this one-handed touchdown catch by Washington State’s Calvin Jackson Jr., which was ruled incomplete on the field but was overturned on review. Getting one foot down inbounds with all the upper-body contortions made it special. It put the Cougars ahead 14-6.

Question No. 6: Is Oregon State the best team in the Beaver State?

It’s premature to claim that Oregon State is better than Oregon, but the Beavers are alone in first place in the Pac-12 North for the first time ever. (This is only the 11th year of the Pac-12 North’s existence.) In consecutive weeks the Beavers beat two teams ranked in the preseason top 20 – topping USC in Los Angeles for the first time in 61 years and ending a nine-game losing streak against Washington on Saturday. Nonetheless, Oregon State still hasn’t assured itself its first bowl berth in eight years, and the Beavers better have that wrapped up before their final three games against Stanford, Arizona State and Oregon.

Question No. 7: Will Nick Rolovich be Washington State’s coach by the time it faces Washington in the Apple Cup?

Washington State got its first Pac-12 win by beating Cal, but we still don’t know if head coach Nick Rolovich will satisfy the state’s vaccination mandate. It’s possible he has already been vaccinated or has already received an exemption, but he’s not saying. If he has not yet been vaccinated or cannot get an exemption, he must get the Johnson and Johnson vaccine by Monday to be fully vaccinated by the Oct. 18 deadline. If he has not satisfied the mandate, Rolovich, as a state employee, would have to be fired.

Question No. 8: What were the oddest passing statistics from Saturday’s games?

We have two:

1. Oregon State quarterback Chance Nolan, who still leads the Pac-12 in passer rating, completed just seven passes for a mere 48 yards against Washington, but the Beavers still won.

2. Cal quarterback Chase Garbers, who entered the game as the Pac-12 leader in total offense, amassed just 65 passing yards through three quarters against Washington State, and 44 of those yards came on one completion on the Bears’ first possession of the game. Garbers was sacked three times for minus-23 yards between that long completion and the start of the fourth quarter, so if we use the NFL method of measuring team passing yards, Cal had negative-2 passing yards from the middle of the first quarter to the start of the fourth.

Question No. 9: Can a coaching decision on one play change an entire season?

Facing fourth-and-1 while trailing Arizona State by nine points, UCLA had the ball at the Sun Devils’ 2-yard line. Chip Kelly opted to go for the first down rather than kick a field goal, and Dorian Thompson-Robinson was stopped by freshman defensive back Eric Gentry for a 1-yard loss.

Maybe UCLA would have lost anyway, but a field goal would have brought the Bruins within six and given them momentum. Instead they lost, and went from Pac-12 South favorite and a No. 20 ranking to unranked and playing catchup.

Arizona State became the Pac-12 South favorite with that 42-23 win and re-entered the top 25 at No. 22 in this week’s AP poll.

Question No. 10: Is USC receiver Drake London the best player in the Pac-12?

The Trojans are a disappointing 3-2, so unless something changes, he’s not in the discussion for Pac-12 player of the year. But he had nine receptions for 130 yards against Colorado and now leads the nation in both receptions (48) and receiving yards (670).

Question No. 11: How is it possible that Stanford trailed by seven points with 0:00 on the clock and still won?

Tanner McKee threw an incompletion on a fourth-down play that began with three seconds left, and the clock had expired when the ball hit the ground. However, USC was called for defensive holding on the play, giving Stanford one more down with the clock showing 0:00. McKee completed the 2-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Higgins to tie the game, and Stanford won in overtime.

Question No. 12: Why was Stanford's game-tying drive so improbable?

The Cardinal had managed just 9 yards of total offense in the second half when it faced a second-and-19 from its own 4-yard line with 1:44 left, trailing by seven points. Two plays later, Stanford quarterback Tanner McKee took a hard hit that left him on the ground for quite a while, forcing him to leave the game. Jack West replaced him for one play, rushed for no gain, and surprisingly Tanner returned. He completed his next three passes for 40 yards. Three Oregon penalties that accounted for 32 yards and three Cardinal first downs also aided the drive that resulted in a touchdown.

Oregon had 99 yards of penalties against Stanford, and only nine of the 130 FBS schools average more penalty yards per game than the Ducks, who average 79.2 penalty yards per contest. The Ducks aren't the most penalized team in the Pac-12, though. USC ranks 123rd nationally with 80.8 penalty yards per game, and Arizona State is 127th with 92.2 penalty yards per game. It proves once again that getting penalized a lot does not necessarily prevent success.

Question No. 13: Is it a good idea to seek out a video to see the lower-leg injury suffered by Stanford wide receiver Brycen Tremayne?

An emphatic “No.” It was the kind of grotesque injury that sickens the soul.

Question No. 14: Was that the most significant injury of that game?

Oregon running back CJ Verdell, who thrust himself into the Heisman Trophy discussion by rushing for 161 yards and two touchdowns in the win at Ohio State, had to be helped off the field after sustaining a left leg injury in the third quarter. After the game, Ducks coach Mario Cristobal called the injury "significant," which suggests he might be sidelined for a while.

Question No. 15: Is it a mere coincidence that Stanford drove the final 73 yards of the game-tying touchdown after Oregon defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux was ejected for targeting with 1:33 left in regulation?

No. (By the way, Thibodeaux must sit out the first half of the Friday, Oct. 15 home game against Cal.)

The Pac-12 top five teams:

1. Oregon (4-1) – Yeah, I know the Ducks lost, but losing a road game in overtime against Stanford is no disgrace, and the Ducks have that road win over Ohio State on their resume.

2. Arizona State (4-1) – The Sun Devils’ convincing road win over UCLA makes them the Pac-12 South favorite.

3. Oregon State (4-1) – The Beavers are the only Pac-12 North team that has not lost a conference game.

4. Stanford (3-2) – Beating Oregon is a big deal, and with Tanner McKee at quarterback, the Cardinal could win the North. Friday’s game at Arizona State is pivotal, and the Cardinal is more than a touchdown underdog.

5. UCLA (3-2) – We still recall those wins over LSU and Stanford.

Pac-12 Player of the Year Standings

1. B.J. Baylor, Oregon State running back – His 111 rushing yards against Washington were impressive, and he leads the Pac-12 in rushing (106.6 yards per game, while averaging 6.6 yards per carry) for a team that stands alone atop the North.

2. Jayden Daniels, Arizona State quarterback – Excellent in the pivotal win over UCLA, Daniels has completed 71.9 percent of his passes and has run for 293 yards, averaging 7.0 yards per carry.

3. Chance Nolan, Oregon State quarterback – He leads the Pac-12 in passer rating and is 4-0 as a starter.

4. Tanner McKee, Stanford quarterback – 11 touchdown passes, zero interceptions, and he led the clutch late-game drive to send the game against Oregon into overtime.

5. Dorian Thompson-Robinson, UCLA quarterback – He tried to lead the Bruins past Arizona State by himself with 285 passing yards and 96 rushing yards, but couldn’t pull it off.

Note: It seems like we should have someone from Oregon in the top five, but who would it be? CJ Verdell is barely his team's leading rusher and he’s injured, and quarterback Anthony Brown has been less than spectacular.

Cover photo of Oregon State's B.J. Baylor by Soobum Im, USA TODAY Sports

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