SI Pac-12 Football Power Rankings: USC and Oregon Hold Down The Top Spots
The Pac-12 Championship game, set for a week from Friday at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, can go a lot of different directions.
The most likely scenario — the one neutral fans may be rooting for — would put USC against Oregon. As good as the top half of the conference has been, and it’s very good, the Trojans vs. the Ducks would make for a terrific title game.
They both can score at will and they haven’t previously played this fall, so there is intrigue there.
The Trojans once more sit atop our SI Pac-12 Football Power Rankings in Week 13, and this time they were the unanimous pick of our seven panelists of writers who cover the conference for the SI network.
Oregon resides in second place with Washington making a strong move to break into the top three.
USC plays out-of-conference rival Notre Dame on Saturday while Oregon faces in-state rival Oregon State at Corvallis.
We went over all the possible Pac-12 title game matchups possibilities earlier in the week. You can read about them here.
In the meantime, Cal (4-7, 2-6) is set to close its season on Friday at home against UCLA, which has dropped three of its five games after a 6-0 start. The Bears climbed one spot to No. 9 this week after their 27-20 win over Stanford in the 125th Big Game.
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SI PAC-12 FOOTBALL POWER RANKINGS - WEEK 13
1. USC 10-1, 8-1 . . . (7) 84 points
2. Oregon 9-2, 7-1 . . . 76
3. Washington 9-2, 6-2 . . . 70
4. Utah 8-3, 6-2 . . . 62
5. UCLA 8-3, 5-3 . . . 57
6. Oregon State 8-3, 5-3 . . . 50
7. Washington State 7-4, 4-4 . . . 42
8. Arizona 4-7, 2-6 . . . 34
9. Cal 4-7, 2-6 . . . 26
10. Arizona State 3-8, 2-6 . . .24
11. Stanford 3-8, 1-8 . . .14
12. Colorado 1-10, 1-7 . . . 7
-- JAKE CURTIS, CAL SPORTS REPORT
1. USC, 2. Oregon, 3. Utah, 4. Washington, 5. UCLA, 6. Oregon State, 7. Washington State, 8. Arizona, 9. Cal, 10. Arizona State, 11. Stanford, 12. Colorado.
Comment: Still rooting for a three-way tie for second when we'll have go down to the third or fourth tiebreaker to see who plays USC in the title game. USC vs. Oregon would be the best matchup, for the QB matchup and because they didn't play each other during the season.
-- MAX TORRES, DUCKS DIGEST
1. USC; 2. Oregon; 3. Washington; 4. UCLA; 5. Utah; 6. Oregon State; 7. Washington State; 8. Arizona; 9. Cal; 10. Arizona State; 11. Stanford; 12. Colorado
Comment: Oregon eked out a crucial win over Utah to stay alive in the Pac-12 title race, but it was clear Bo Nix was not at 100%. We'll see if this team can get a bit healthier this week before a decisive game against Oregon State. Around the Pac-12, USC's offense looks nearly unstoppable ahead of the Pac-12 championship game and Cal's win over Stanford may end up being the straw that broke the camel's back in David Shaw's tenure.
-- KEVIN BORBA, ALL CARDINAL
1. USC; 2. Oregon; 3. Washington; 4. Utah; 5. UCLA; 6. Oregon State; 7. Washington State; 8. Arizona; 9. Arizona State; 10. Cal; 11. Stanford; 12. Colorado
Comment: Last week's loss to Cal was absolutely rock bottom and the epitome of David Shaw's last four seasons at Stanford. This team is viewed as one of the worst in the country and has been playing as such. In terms of the rest of the Pac-12, this next week will be one of the most fascinating yet chaotic weeks of the season.
-- SAM CONNON, ALL BRUINS
1. USC; 2. Oregon; 3. Washington; 4. Utah; 5. Oregon State; 6. UCLA; 7. Washington State; 8. Cal; 9. Arizona; 10. Arizona State; 11. Stanford; 12. Colorado
Comments: The biggest weekend of the year in the Pac-12 was pretty much just as decisive as everyone assumed it would be, with the winners of the UCLA-USC and Oregon-Utah games asserting themselves as the best in the West by a pretty solid margin. Washington was going against the punching bag that is Colorado, but their blowout victory puts them in a spot to also reach 10 wins under a first-year head coach, so their late season push shouldn't go overlooked either.
-- WYATT ALLSUP, ALL TROJANS
1. USC; 2. Oregon; 3. Washington; 4. UCLA; 5. Utah; 6. Oregon State; 7. Washington State; 8. Arizona; 9. Arizona State; 10. Cal; 11. Stanford; 12. Colorado
Comment: Huge win for USC. DTR played very well for UCLA, but the four turnovers were the difference. USC’s offense appears to be back in the swing of things with Jordan Addison returning to have a huge night, and Caleb Williams just keeps getting better.
-- COLE BAGLEY, ALL UTES
1. USC; 2. Oregon; 3. Washington; 4. Utah; 5. UCLA; 6. Oregon State; 7. Washington State; 8. Arizona; 9. Arizona State; 10. Cal; 11. Stanford; 12. Colorado
Comment: This last week did not disappoint as the top teams went head to head and the outcomes came down to the wire. USC cemented itself as the top team, Bo Nix put on a performance we won’t soon forget and Washington has suddenly entered the chat. Going into the final week, USC will await its opponent, which most likely will be the Ducks. However, the Huskies and Utes both have a chance so we’ll see what happens.
-- DAN RALEY, INSIDE THE HUSKIES
1. USC; 2. Washington; 3. Oregon; 4. Utah; 5. UCLA; 6. Oregon State; 7. Washington State; 8. Arizona; 9. Cal; 10. Arizona State; 11. Stanford; 12. Colorado
Comment: It’s USC and the rest. All hopes ride on the Trojans for getting into the CFP, which would be sort of a farewell gift for the Pac-12 and an overdue breakthrough for the conference. As for its peers, can Washington or Oregon play themselves into a New Year’s Day bowl? Can either one of them get past their state rival? The best thing about the league this year is the lingering intrigue.
Cover photo of Cal coach Justin Wilcox by Darren Yamashita, USA Today
Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo
