Pac-12 Power Rankings Week 7: Oregon back on top

Pac-12 play continued this week with four league games. Oregon State and Utah had a bye in order to prepare for their game on Thursday night, while Colorado and Arizona State were off as well.

Oregon was the team of the week, traveling to the Rose Bowl and bouncing back from its upset a week ago to knock off UCLA.

Here are how things stack up throughout the rest of the conference:

1. Oregon (5-1, 2-1)

As we mentioned above, Oregon bounced back in tremendous fashion and blew UCLA out of the water for most of the game. The road win keeps the Ducks in the hunt for a Pac-12 title and College Football Playoff berth.

2. Utah (4-1, 1-1)

The Utes move up to second thanks to Arizona's loss. Are they the second best team in the conference? Probably not, but their only loss came by one point and they do have road wins against UCLA and Michigan. They will have plenty of opportunities to prove they belong as five of their next six games are against ranked opponents, and the one that isn't is a Thursday night road game against 4-1 Oregon State.

3. Arizona State (4-1, 2-1)

With south division rivals Arizona and UCLA falling on Saturday, Arizona State finds itself all the way up at third after a bye week. Like Utah, its upcoming slate is hellish. Three of its next four come against ranked teams, with the other at 5-1 Washington.

4. USC (4-2, 3-1)

The Trojans are the biggest riser this week after knocking off No. 10 Arizona in Tucson. Steve Sarkisian's team didn't trail after the six minute mark in the first quarter, but they still needed a missed 36-yard field goal on the final Wildcat drive to escape with the win.

5. Arizona (5-1, 2-1)

This seems like a good place to drop Arizona at after its first loss of the season. The Wildcats now get a much-needed bye week before embarking on a two game road trip.

6. Stanford (4-2, 2-1)

The Cardinal jump two spots after taking care of Washington State on Friday night. While they did get a 17-point win, some big problems are still plaguing this team. The offense seems to forget how to play football once it reaches the red zone, and the kicking game is still very inconsistent.

7. Washington (5-1, 1-1)

No one really understands how it is Oct. 13 and Washington has only played two conference games, but at least it keeps the Huskies right in the thick of the Pac-12 north race. They will need a similar defensive performance to the one we saw in their win at California this week when they travel to Eugene to face Oregon on Saturday. If they pull that upset, people will finally start talking about this team.

8. UCLA (4-2, 1-2)

While it might seem like UCLA is falling off the rails, its next two games come against California and Colorado. That should give the Bruins time to regroup, pick up a couple wins, and set up a huge game against Arizona to start the month of November at the Rose Bowl.

9. Oregon State (4-1, 1-1)

The Beavers did not play in week seven in order to prepare for their huge game against Utah on Thursday night. Still, they moved up one spot thanks to California's ugly loss against Washington.

10. California (4-2, 2-2)

Just when you thought the California program had turned the corner, its offense turns in its worst performance of the season at home against Washington. The Golden Bears scored seven points and lost three fumbles, including one which was returned 100 yards by linebacker Shaq Thompson for the first score of the game. Bowl eligibility now becomes the main goal for Cal, which faces UCLA and Oregon next.

11. Washington State (2-5, 1-3)

The Cougars only trailed by seven early in the fourth quarter against Stanford, but their offense was unable to break through after that for the remainder of the game. Quarterback Connor Halliday is going to need a better performance from his offensive line the rest of the way if Washington State is going to make a run at a bowl game. He was sacked four times in the 34-17 loss.

12. Colorado (2-4, 0-3)

The Buffaloes remain at the bottom of the Pac-12 after a bye in week seven. They'll try and shock everyone this Saturday at USC.