SI Pac-12 Week 6 Power Rankings: UCLA Falls to Middle of Pack Following Loss
The Fan Nation and Sports Illustrated publishers of the Pac-12 have come together to for the latest update of the conference's hierarchy following Week 5.
UCLA football (3-2, 1-1 Pac-12) dropped from No. 2 down to No. 5 in the latest edition of the SI Pac-12 Power Rankings following its loss to Arizona State on Saturday. While there wasn't a total consensus around the Bruins like there was last week when five of the six voters had them at No. 2, all the publishers still had the team squarely in the middle of the pack this time around.
All Trojans was the highest on UCLA, placing them at No. 4. All Bruins was the most negative towards them, slotting them in at No. 6. All Sun Devils, Cal Sports Report, Ducks Digest and Husky Maven placed the Bruins at No. 4.
Oregon sacrificed its top spot in the rankings after sitting at No. 1 for three weeks. The Ducks, who were the final unbeaten team in the Pac-12, lost to Stanford on Saturday and slipped in the AP and Coaches polls as well.
Arizona State jumped up to fill the void left by Oregon. The Ducks actually got more first-place votes than the Sun Devils, but the latter had more overall points. The Cardinal also earned a single first-place vote of their own.
Here are the full Week 6 power rankings, as well as some brief thoughts from each of the publishers:
SI PAC-12 FOOTBALL POWER RANKINGS
1. Arizona State (4-1, 2-0), 67 points (2 first-place votes)
2. Oregon (4-1, 1-1), 65 (3)
3. Oregon State (4-1, 2-0), 60
4. Stanford (3-2, 2-1), 59 (1)
5. UCLA (3-2, 1-1), 48
6. Utah (2-2, 1-0), 41
7. USC (3-2, 2-2), 38
8. Washington State (2-3, 1-2), 26
9. Washington (2-3, 1-1), 25
10. Cal (1-4, 0-2), 19
11. Colorado (1-4, 0-2), 14
12. Arizona (0-4, 0-1), 6
DONNIE DRUIN, ALL SUN DEVILS
1. Stanford; 2. Arizona State; 3. Oregon State; 4. Oregon; 5. UCLA; 6. USC; 7. Utah; 8. Washington State; 9. Washington; 10. Colorado; 11. Cal; 12. Arizona
Comment: The Pac-12 is as open as ever thanks to Stanford upsetting Oregon, although the Ducks are still probably favorites to win the conference. After upsetting UCLA, ASU hosts Stanford in what might be the biggest conference game to date.
JAKE CURTIS, CAL SPORTS REPORT
1. Oregon; 2. Arizona State, 3. Oregon State; 4. Stanford, 5. UCLA, 6. Utah; 7. USC; 8. Washington; 9. Washington State; 10. Cal 11. Colorado; 12. Arizona
Comment: Oregon’s resume is still better than anyone else’s with that win over Ohio State as its hole card. Oregon State may not be the third-best team, but I love the story of the Beavers season so far, so I’m giving them the benefit of the doubt until they get exposed.
MAX TORRES, DUCKS DIGEST
1. Arizona State; 2. Oregon State; 3. Stanford; 4. Oregon; 5. UCLA; 6. USC; 7. Utah; 8. Washington; 9. Washington State; 10. Cal; 11. Colorado; 12. Arizona
Comment: Oregon had looked questionable in all of its wins other than Ohio State and finally got exposed by a good Stanford team. Arizona State looks like they’re for real and could take firm control of the South after beating UCLA. It’s shaping up to be another year of chaos in the Pac-12. Did you expect anything different?
SAM CONNON, ALL BRUINS
1. Arizona State; 2. Oregon; 3. Oregon State; 4. Stanford; 5. Utah; 6. UCLA; 7. USC; 8. Washington State; 9. Washington; 10. Cal; 11. Colorado; 12. Arizona
Comment: In classic UCLA fashion, the Bruins choked away a prime opportunity to claim the top spot in the conference, allowing the Sun Devils to step up in their place instead. Oregon played bottom feeder Arizona close last week and then lost to Stanford the week after, so they clearly are not as untouchable as they seemed after the Ohio State game. The Pac-12 is very much wide open, so even with just one quality win to this point, Arizona State is currently in the best position out of anyone in the conference, almost by default.
CLAUDETTE MONTANA PATTISON, ALL TROJANS
1. Oregon; 2. Arizona State; 3. Stanford; 4. UCLA; 5. Oregon State; 6. Utah; 7. USC; 8. Washington State; 9. Cal; 10. Colorado; 11. Washington; 12. Arizona
Comment: The USC Trojans found some momentum in Boulder, Colorado on Saturday defeating the Buffaloes 37-14. The win certainly sparked some much needed life back into the program, as they prepare for the Utah Utes this week.
DAN RALEY, HUSKY MAVEN
1. Oregon; 2. Oregon State; 3. Arizona State; 4. Stanford; 5. UCLA; 6. Utah; 7. USC; 8. Washington; 9. Cal; 10. Washington State; 11. Colorado; 12. Arizona
Comment: Forget the CFP, it's a mad scramble to decide the West. It might be a Willamette Valley Bronx Series. Whoever wins Oregon is going to claim ultimate bragging rights. It's all in a 40-mile radius from Corvallis to Eugene. The league champion is going to have two losses.
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