Week 7 was one of the most interesting weeks of the season for the Pac-12. The week started with the thrilling upset in Boulder. Stanford stormed back to beat the Buffaloes 46-43 in two overtimes.
Then, once Saturday arrived, the Washington Huskies 36-33 win over the Oregon Ducks was the highlight of the College Football weekend. Bad news for the conference came later when the Trojans of USC were smacked on the road at Notre Dame.
Locally, the Arizona Wildcats were big-time winners. They won their 4th game of the season and need just two more to be bowl eligible. Arizona smashed Washington State 44-6 on the road. Let’s take a look at the four games on tap for Saturday.
Washington State Cougars +20.5 at Oregon Ducks; 62.5
The Cougars are reeling a bit, as they have dropped two straight games. The road does not get any easier, as they have to go to Eugene and take on an irritated Ducks team.
Oregon is nearly a three-touchdown favorite. The Ducks know they still can make plenty of noise and control their own destiny still to get to the Pac-12 title game.
Oregon’s Bo Nix was solid in the loss but wants to continue putting up big numbers for his Heisman case in December. This could get ugly, as the Cougars need some time off. Oregon wins big.
Utah Utes +7 at USC Trojans; 56.5
The Utah Utes are one of the best defensive teams in all of College Football. But the Utes have not faced an offense like the Trojans have. Especially an offense like the Trojans have that is coming off a loss.
Look for Lincoln Riley to wake the boys up and remain unbeaten in conference play. As we discussed with Oregon, the Trojans also can control their Pac-12 title game destiny. They have yet to lose but still have a very tough road to navigate through.
Look for the Trojans to get back on track with a big game from Williams and the offense.
Arizona State Sun Devils +26.5 at Washington Huskies; 58.5
The Sun Devils have dropped five straight games, and unfortunately for the folks in Tempe, the schedule does not show another winning opportunity. The Sun Devils simply have been outclassed from start to finish.
Now, they get one of the best teams in College Football. Kalen DeBoer’s squad knocked off Oregon and have some big games remaining on their schedule, so it will be important to not overlook anyone.
Look for Michael Penix to continue his assault on opposing defenses and come up with more big numbers in this game. This will be all Washington from start to finish on Saturday.
UCLA Bruins -17 at Stanford Cardinal; 53.5
The UCLA Bruins go a little overlooked in the Pac-12. While this is not the same talent they had last season, this is still a tough group.
They get a trip to Palo Alto after the Cardinal beat Colorado in two overtimes. That was a thrilling game that America got to see, and now the Cardinal have some momentum. The spread seems too high for this game.
UCLA has not been a great offensive team, and the Stanford offense started figuring things out a little at the end of their last game. While UCLA should still win this game on the road, Stanford covers the spread here.
As we head into Week 8, the USC Trojans and Washington Huskies are the lone unbeaten teams in conference play. USC is 4-0, Washington 3-0. The Oregon State Beavers, Oregon Ducks, and Utah Utes have just one loss. Arizona, UCLA, and Washington State sit with two, while Stanford, Colorado, California, and Arizona State all have three losses.
Enjoy the games this week, and best of luck with all your College Football betting. The Arizona Wildcats will take this week off and then host Oregon State next week in another effort to pull an upset.
