Pac-12 Football: Utah over Cal, Washington upsetting USC lead Week 6 headlines

We witnessed yet another wild turn of events in the Pac-12 this week. After the Thursday night game brought a jolting defeat to the preseason favorite Trojans, the weekend brought plenty of fun matchups as well, including an overtime finish and another game that was decided by just six points. Here's what we learned about the Pac-12 in Week 6.

Arizona Wildcats (4-2, 1-2 in Pac-12)

Look who's back.

Quarterback Anu Solomon was back in action for the Wildcats against Oregon State after sitting out Arizona's 55-17 drubbing at the hands of Stanford. The result was the Wildcats offense regaining its normal form, beating the Beavers 44-7. The ground attack wasn't even heavily reliant upon leading rushers Nick Wilson and Jerard Randall, as Jared Baker and Orlando Bradford spearheaded the effort, combining for over 200 yards and three scores.

Arizona State Sun Devils (4-2, 2-1)

Finding their form.

In wake of their upset over UCLA last weekend, the Sun Devils took on Colorado hoping to build on the momentum they established last week. They did so, finishing with nearly 500 yards of total offense while seeing their quarterback toss five touchdown passes on the evening. Next up is a trip to Utah, and with the Sun Devils currently in control of their destiny, it will be very interesting to see if they can come out of Salt Lake City with a win.

California Golden Bears (5-1, 2-1)

Almost, but not quite.

It was a rough night for the No. 23 Golden Bears' offense, namely quarterback Jared Goff. The hype train surrounding Goff's play may have come to an abrupt halt for the moment in lieu of a five-interception outing which includes the turnover that ended up stalling Cal's comeback attempt in the closing minutes. On the bright side, it's only one loss, and there's time left for Sonny Dykes to get his unit back in order and turn things around to finish the year off strong.

Colorado Buffaloes (3-3, 0-2)

Rocky road ahead.

Colorado was bullied throughout most of the night against the Sun Devils, but refused to give up and played with heart until the very end of the 48-23 loss. The Buffaloes will take on Arizona and Oregon State in successive weeks before facing UCLA, Stanford and USC. Mike Macintyre's group will need to put it together if they're to become bowl eligible this year.

Oregon Ducks (3-3, 1-2)

The collapse of the giant.

With a 45-38 overtime loss to Washington State, there have been calls for Marcus Mariota and Chip Kelly to somehow find their ways back to Oregon. Those prospects are certainly unlikely, but the Ducks need to find some way to turn this season around, considering they've now seen three different faces start at quarterback in 2015 following Taylor Allie's outing. It's now completely safe to say the mighty program that was has come back to earth.

Oregon State Beavers (2-3, 0-2)

Showing youth.

Gary Andersen's team had a tough time against Arizona this weekend. Quarterback Seth Collins (8-of-24, 56 yd, INT; 10 rush, 56 yd, TD) struggled and was knocked out of the game briefly in the first half before returning in the second. The Beavers were simply overmatched by the Wildcats on the day. Performances like this are expected with such a young group in a coach's first season, but even this one had to sting looking at the result.

Stanford Cardinal (4-1, 3-0)

Watch closely.

The No. 15 Cardinal enjoyed an off-week in Week 6, and with the Golden Bears falling to Utah, the stage is set for Stanford to win the North division this season should they continue the strong run they're currently on.

UCLA Bruins (4-1, 1-1)

Recovering.

Their loss two weeks ago was one that's halted College Football Playoff talk for the Bruins for now, but they'll need to regain their focus ahead of their bout with Stanford this week to stay alive in the Pac-12 conversation.

USC Trojans (3-2, 1-2)

In trouble.

The Trojans were the preseason favorite to win the conference, nonetheless compete for a spot in the Playoff during the postseason. That's all come to an end, and now the football program finds itself in a position it was in not too long ago with an underachieving head coach at the helm, despite possessing one of the most talented rosters in the nation.

Utah Utes (5-0, 2-0)

Something real?

In a primetime tilt against the conference's best signal caller, the No. 4 Utes managed to deliver, albeit by just six points. An opportunistic, aggressive defense coupled with a huge outing from Devontae Booker carried Utah over the Golden Bears, but while atop the conference now, they remain vulnerable. The Utes are now the hunted; how they respond to this will be worth monitoring going forward.

Washington Huskies (3-2, 1-1)

Ahead of schedule.

The Huskies boast one of the youngest groups in the conference, yet managed to overcome one of the most talented in the Trojans while on the road. This team's defense is proving to be one of the best in the country already, entering Week 7 ranked 17th in total defense, conceding only 15 points per game. "Defense wins championships," as the saying goes. Perhaps this is just the beginning for this team which features 24 underclassmen in its two-deep line up.

Washington State Cougars (3-2, 1-1)

At last.

They needed overtime, but the Cougars managed to beat the Ducks for the first time since 2006 on Saturday. Thanks to a last-second touchdown pass from Luke Falk to Dom Williams in regulation, the Cougars were able to force overtime, where Wazzu would go on to hammer the final nail into the coffin of Oregon's disappointing season. They'll hope to carry the momentum from the victory into their upcoming matchup against Oregon State this week.