PAC-12 North Week 5 Update

Oregon (4-0, 1-0)

Last week: Bye

Next week: Oregon takes on Arizona on Thursday night

Stanford (3-1, 1-1)

Last week: Stanford went into Seattle and barely escaped with a 20-13 win over the Huskies. Led by quarterback Kevin Hogan, the Cardinal had 185 more total yards than the Huskies did. Hogan passed for 178 yards and rushed for another 53 and scored a touchdown on both the ground and through the air while Washington was held to 2 touchdowns on the night and struggled to move the ball down field. The Stanford defense was as stout as they have been and held Washington to just 3.3 yards per pass.

Next week: Stanford takes on Notre Dame in their first top-25 matchup since losing to USC

California (3-1, 1-1)

Last week: California played in their second consecutive game that came down to a game winning play. The Golden Bears took on Colorado last week and won in double OT 59-56, the week before they lost on a last second hail mary to Arizona. Even though they trailed in total yards, penalties, rushing yards and time of possession they were still able to make big plays and come out with the win. Quarterback Jared Goff threw for 458 yards and 7 touchdowns to go along with 1 interception. Thirteen of their 17 drives took longer than 5 plays and had 7 drives longer than 45 yards.

Next week: California heads to the Palouse to take on Washington State

Washington State (2-3, 1-1)

Last week: The Cougars played in their best game in the Mike Leach era on Saturday and fought back from a 21-point first quarter deficit to beat Utah 28-27. Midway through the first quarter, Mike Leach gathered the team and talked with them on the side line. They clearly got the memo as they turned it around and pulled off one of their best comebacks. Connor Halliday continued on his great season and threw for another 400 yard game and took the lead on an 81 yard touchdown to Vince Mayle. They didn’t allow Utah back into the game from there on and the defense stayed strong and sealed the victory.

Next week: The Cougars host California in a game that could have a combined score close to 80.

Washington (4-1, 0-1)

Last week: The Huskies fell short to Stanford 20-13 after failing to score in the second half. Washington was going into the game undefeated and unranked and was looking to prove that they belong on the top-25. Seattle was held to just 179 total yards and went 5-18 on third down conversions and failing on 3 fourth down conversions. After being down 10-0 they fought back and tied the game at 13 with just under 2 minutes remaining in the first half. Washington went for it on 4th down and was stuffed at the line of scrimmage and Stanford not only took the ball over but the rest of the game.

Next week: Bye

Oregon State (3-1, 0-1)

Last week: Oregon State suffered their first loss of the season last week when they fell to USC 35-10. Oregon State took over the lead with just over 11 minutes to go in the second quarter. That didn’t last long as USC scored 28 unanswered points and put the game out of reach for the Beavers. They were held to just 161 yards of total offense to USC’s 461 yards while not scoring an offensive touchdown. They also punted the ball on their last 6 drives of the game which came after an interception.

Next week: The Beavers head to Colorado to take on the Buffalo’s