Pac-12 Football Power Rankings: Week 5

In the Pac-12 Conference this past weekend, the schedule consisted of five inter-conference games with two teams on bye weeks. Here are this week’s Pac-12 Power Rankings:

1. Oregon: The Ducks racked up 55 more points and 381 more yards against Cal, pushing their season totals to 239 and 2,397 in four games. Oregon won the game 55-16 despite losing running back De’Anthony Thomas on the opening kickoff. They play Colorado in Boulder, Colo. before a showdown with Washington.
2. Stanford: The Cardinal blew out Washington State in Seattle 55-17. Quarterback Kevin Hogan threw for 286 yards and three touchdowns, and is now 9-0 in his career as a starter. The Cardinal are 2-0 in conference and now face Washington at home this weekend.
3. Washington: The Huskies stayed undefeated with a 31-13 win over Arizona in the rain. Running back Bishop Sankey ran for 161 yards on a school-record 40 carries, and has rushed for 607 yards in four games. Washington is now 4-0 for the first time since 2001. With a win over Stanford Saturday, the Huskies can establish themselves as potential national title contenders.
4. UCLA: The Bruins had a bye before opening their conference schedule against Utah on Thursday. The game begins a stretch of nine straight weeks with a game.
5. Arizona State: The Sun Devils put the final nail in the coffin of USC head coach Lane Kiffin after blowing them out 62-41 in Tempe, Ariz. Saturday. Quarterback Taylor Kelly and running back Marion Grice combined for 493 yards and five touchdowns in the victory. Arizona State is back in the polls at No. 22 heading into their showdown with Notre Dame this weekend.
6. Oregon State: The Beavers pushed their winning streak to four with a 44-17 blowout of Colorado. Quarterback Sean Mannion continues to put up gaudy numbers, as he’s now thrown for 2018 yards, 21 touchdowns and two interceptions in five games. Oregon State gets a bye before facing Washington State in Pullman, Wash. next Saturday.
7. Utah: The Utes were able to enjoy a bye week after a big win over BYU two Saturdays ago. Their game Thursday against UCLA begins a stretch of four straight weeks without a bye.
8. Arizona: The Wildcats lost their conference opener 31-13 to Washington on the road in sloppy conditions. Quarterback B.J. Denker completed 40 percent of his passes and threw two interceptions in his first Pac-12 road start and first career loss. While the defense played pretty well, it became pretty apparent that Arizona’s offense will struggle if they aren’t able to find a quarterback. The Wildcats get a bye week before playing USC next Thursday.
9. Washington State: After posting three straight wins, the Cougars came back down to earth after getting blown out by Stanford. They will need to win at least three of their next seven games to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2003. They play Cal in Berkeley, Calif. this Saturday.
10. Colorado: The Buffaloes showed that they’re not quite ready to climb out of the basement of the Pac-12 after a blowout loss to Oregon State. With four of their next five games against teams that are currently ranked, they’ll likely have to wait a bit for their first 2013 conference victory.
11. Cal: The Bears continued their cold stretch with a 55-16 loss to Oregon and have now been outscored 181-117 in their first four games. Cal is going to have improve a lot defensively if they want to win at least one conference game. They play Washington State Saturday in what might be a must-win game.
12. USC: The Trojans were a bit unlucky against Arizona State, as their already minimal depth was depleted by in-game injuries. Despite leading 21-20 with 14 minutes left in the 3rd quarter, they were outscored 42-20 the rest of the way, which ultimately cost Kiffin his job. Star wide receiver Marqise Lee injured his knee and is uncertain for next Friday’s game against Arizona. USC has a bye week this week.

For last week’s rankings, click here.