Utah (2-3, 0-3 Pac-12) at Pittsburgh (3-3, 1-1 Big East) 9:00 a.m., ESPNU@@http://pac-12.org/SPORTS/Football/Standings.aspx@@@@http://www.pittsburghpanthers.com/sports/m-footbl/sched/pitt-m-footbl-sched.html@@
Utah’s transition to the Pac-12 has gone as poorly as anyone might have imagined. The Utes, winless in conference play, haven’t scored more than 14 points in any of their three league games. Maybe a trip to the East Coast will be just the remedy Utah needs — the Panthers are coming off a 34-10 blowout loss at the hands of a mediocre Rutgers squad. Then again, Pittsburgh’s overall resume isn’t too shabby. Led by the electric Ray Graham, the Panthers have the nation’s 44th-ranked rushing attack. They also have a noteworthy win over then-No. 16 South Florida, and a narrow 15-12 loss to Notre Dame. Utah, which will be led by backup quarterback Jon Hays for the rest of the year (starter Jordan Wynn injured his shoulder in a loss to Washington two weeks ago), will need to eliminate turnovers (they committed five in last week’s loss against Arizona State), contend with an early East Coast start time and find a way to contain Graham to have a shot at pulling the upset.@@http://utahutes.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/sched/utah-m-footbl-sched.html@@@@http://www.pittsburghpanthers.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/graham_ray00.html@@@@http://www.ncaa.com/stats/football/fbs/current/team/1025@@@@http://www.pittsburghpanthers.com/sports/m-footbl/recaps/092911aab.html@@@@http://utahutes.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/hays_jon00.html@@@@http://utahutes.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/recaps/100811aaa.html@@
Colorado (1-5, 0-2 Pac-12) at Washington (4-1, 2-0 Pac-12) 12:30 p.m.
After getting thumped 48-7 by Andrew Luck and Stanford last week, Colorado will face another tough test — and top-notch quarterback — in the form of Keith Price and the Huskies. Aside from a 51-38 road loss to Nebraska, Washington has been perfect this season, with wins over Eastern Washington, Hawaii, California, and Utah. With 17 touchdowns against four interceptions and a 173.7 passer rating, Price has been better than his highly touted predecessor Jake Locker, while running back Chris Polk has been his usual productive self. Conversely, the injury-ravaged Buffaloes are near the bottom. Despite the considerable talent of running back Rodney Stewart and experienced senior quarterback Tyler Hansen, Colorado is only 93rd in the nation in points scored, and worse, 100th in points allowed.@@http://www.cubuffs.com/SportSelect.dbml?SPID=255&SPSID=3850&DB_OEM_ID=600@@@@http://www.gohuskies.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/price_keith00.html@@@@http://www.gohuskies.com/sports/m-footbl/sched/wash-m-footbl-sched.html@@@@http://www.gohuskies.com/sports/m-footbl/stats/2011-2012/teamcume.html@@@@http://www.cubuffs.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=3845&SPID=255&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=600&ATCLID=1514883&Q_SEASON=2011@@@@http://www.ncaa.com/stats/football/fbs/current/team/1043/p2@@
BYU (4-2) at Oregon State (1-4, 1-2 Pac-12) 1:00 p.m.@@http://byucougars.com/schedule/m-football/2011@@
Traditionally, at around the season’s midway point, Oregon State finds its bearings and goes on a tear to end the season. Right on cue, the previously winless Beavers pulled a surprising upset of Arizona. Oregon State could easily make it two wins in a row against a BYU team that has played far worse than its 4-2 record would indicate. Three of the Cougars’ four wins were by seven points or fewer. Highly touted sophomore quarterback Jake Heaps has been ineffective for much of the year, so much so that unheralded backup Riley Nelson has been elevated to No. 1 on the Cougar depth chart and is expected to get the nod against the Beavers. Then again, a struggling Oregon State defense might just be the best solution for Heaps’ early season struggles — the Beavers are 90th in the nation in points allowed, a ranking nearly matched by their equally ineffective offense that ranks 97th in points scored. Redshirt freshman quarterback Sean Mannion has been impressive since wrestling away control of the starting job from Ryan Katz, however, the Beavers are ranked 30th in the nation in passing yards per game.@@http://byucougars.com/athlete/m-football/jake-heaps@@@@http://byucougars.com/athlete/m-football/riley-nelson@@@@http://www.ncaa.com/stats/football/fbs/current/team/1043/p2@@@@http://www.osubeavers.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/mannion_sean00.html@@@@http://www.ncaa.com/stats/football/fbs/current/team/1026@@
No. 7 Stanford (5-0, 3-0 Pac-12) at Washington State (3-2, 1-1 Pac-12) 4:30 p.m., Versus
Owners of the nation’s longest winning streak, the Cardinal will visit Pullman as a huge road favorite, and rightfully so. Buoyed by some guy named Luck, Stanford ranks in the top seven nationally in both points scored and points allowed. The Cardinal are coming off a 48-7 shellacking of Colorado, one of its more dominant wins in a dominant season. Washington State, conversely, blew a long-awaited chance to host ESPN’s Gameday show by surrendering a late lead at UCLA last weekend. If it’s any consolation, star quarterback Jeff Tuel was cleared to play following a lengthy absence due to a broke collarbone, and could split time with Marshall Lobbestael running the Washington State offense. However, moving the ball hasn’t been an issue for the Cougars (Washington State ranks 13th nationally in points scored) — preventing touchdowns has. And, despite his considerable talents, Tuel won’t help a Cougar defense ranked 57th nationally in points allowed contend with the well-oiled Cardinal offense.@@http://www.opposingviews.com/i/sports/ncaa-football/acc/college-football-power-rankings-lsu-wisconsin-michigan-and-more@@@@http://www.wsucougars.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/wast-m-footbl-mtt.html@@