After a sobering week off, the Pacific-10 Conference will return to the gridiron Saturday. A few teams are looking to beat up on non-conference opponents before the full Pac-10 schedule gets underway next weekend. All of the games will involve emotional tributes to victims of the national tragedies.

Idaho (0-2 overall, 0-0

Conference)
The numbers point to a definite Washington victory in this game. The Huskies are coming off a 23-18 win over 10th-ranked Michigan last week, while Idaho has lost two straight to Washington State and Arizona. The Vandals trail in the overall series 2-30-2.
Recent national tragedies may prove to be a distraction for Washington, though. In addition to the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C., 16 Husky boosters died in a plane crash last week while traveling in Mexico. Despite these unfortunate circumstances, head coach Rick Neuheisel is confident his team will not miss a beat on the field.
“This is a game of very competitive people, both coaches and players alike, and I think when you get back onto the field of play that competitive spirit is going to shine just as brightly as it ever did,” he said.
During both the pregame period and halftime of the game in Seattle, there will be tributes to victims of both the tragedies.
Last season when the two teams met, Washington used a balanced offensive scheme gaining, 239 yards on the ground and 235 through the air. The Huskies also took advantage of five Idaho turnovers, winning the game 44-20.
Neuheisel’s squad is currently riding the longest winning streak in the Pac-10 at nine games. Unless Vandal quarterback John Welsh can come up with a phenomenal game and their defense can slow the Husky offense, the Dawgs should extend their streak to 10.

California (0-2, 0-0) at

Washington State (2-0, 0-0)
The first game of the Pac-10 season will be held in Pullman, Wash. The last time Cal won at Washington State was in 1979, so both history and a better football team stand in their way of a win.
Despite passing for 291 yards in their last contest against Brigham Young on Sept. 8, quarterback Kyle Boller and the Bears lost 44-16. Boller often uses fullback Marcus Fields as his primary receiver. In Cal’s first two games, Fields had nine catches for 133 yards and one touchdown. Head coach Tom Holmoe is not pleased with his team’s play, though.
“We’re just not making the big plays that we did last year,” he said. “I’m a little concerned because the first two weeks were dismal.”
On the other side of the field, Washington State has scored 77 points in its firsts two games and has the top rated offense in the Pac-10. Receiver Nakoa McElrath is leading the nation with 175.5 yards per game for the Cougars.
Head coach Mike Price’s defense is also holding opposing squads to 64 yards per game on the ground, so Cal’s straw-hat band will likely be kept quiet most of the game.

Arizona State (1-0, 0-0)

at Stanford (1-0, 0-0)
Stanford won the last two meetings, but Arizona State leads the overall series 11-6. Both teams are coming off big wins from two weeks ago, with Stanford beating a strong Boston College team, 38-22, and the Sun Devils victorious over San Diego State, 38-7. ASU head coach Dirk Koetter knows his team’s opponents will only get tougher.
“Even though we scored a few points against San Diego State, we are going to have to play a lot better as we get into Pac-10 play if we are going to get into shootouts with anybody,” he said. “We are a little bit away from putting everything together on offense.”
Stanford coach Tyrone Willingham is preparing his athletes for a physical battle.
“Arizona State has a great reputation for being a physical football team and also a very explosive and quick football team,” he said.
Stanford should keep an eye out for ASU center Scott Peters, who Koetter called a “coach’s dream.” He has helped the team focus on the practice field, and Koetter expects the game-time execution to be improved, thanks to Peters.
Players for ASU to watch out for are quarterback Randy Fasani, safety Tank Williams and linebacker Coy Wire, who led the Cardinal in tackles last season.

UNLV (0-2, 0-0 Western

at Arizona (2-0, 0-0)
UNLV should prove to be Arizona’s toughest competition of the young season. The Rebels are coming off a 37-28 loss to 20th ranked Northwestern two weeks ago and a 14-10 loss to Arkansas on August 30.
Junior quarterback Jason Thomas leads UNLV’s offense with a strong wide receiver group, including Troy Mason, who was the conference’s best punt returner last season.
Arizona head coach John Mackovic said the pass rush of the Rebels will be the best of the three teams they have played this year. In their two previous games, the Cats have allowed just two sacks while racking up 10 of their own. This is due in part to quarterback Jason Johnson’s ability to escape closing defenders.
“He knows what to do with the football and get rid of it if he’s under pressure,” Mackovic said.
In its last game Sept. 8, Arizona gave up 29 points in the fourth quarter, hanging on to win the game 36-29. Mackovic blamed the final quarter slide on conditioning.
“We wore down a little bit,” he said. “We need some three-and-outs.”
If the Cats’ defense can stay fresh, Arizona should be able to handle the Rebels.