BeaversEdge Pac-12 Power Rankings: Week 12

With week 12 of the college football season set to get underway, BeaversEdge continues our article series power ranking the 12 teams in the Pac-12 Conference...

Hear from Publisher Brenden Slaughter, Recruiting Analyst Dylan Callaghan-Croley, EDGE writer/KEJO host TJ Mathewson, and EDGE writer Ryan Harlan as they give their rankings and analysis!

T.J.'s Picks

1. Washington

2. Oregon

3. OSU

4. Arizona

5. Utah

6. UCLA

7. USC

8. Colorado

9. Cal

10. Arizona State

11. Stanford

12. WSU

We could get the most shakeup we’ve seen in the poll in the coming two weeks with the top three playing each other. Washington and Oregon keep the top two spots in my rankings after good wins at home. Oregon State did everything they were supposed to against Stanford and kept their spot.

In the tier below, Arizona moves up one after another conference win, while passing Utah who looked good but didn’t have enough on the road against Washington. UCLA and USC share essentially the same spot right now, UCLA somehow losing at home to Arizona State and USC getting outclassed again by a superior program.

I’ll give Deion and the Buffs credit, they looked the best they have in the last two months against Arizona and earned themselves the spot over California for another week. Arizona State jumps to their highest ranking of the season, while Stanford and WSU bring up the rear.

- T.J. Mathewson

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Brenden's Picks

1. Washington

2. Oregon

3. OSU

4. Arizona

5. Utah

6. USC

7. UCLA

8. Cal

9. Arizona State

10. Colorado

11. Stanford

12. Washington State

The Pac-12 race is nearly complete... Just two weeks remain in the regular season, and we're fixing to find out who is really the top dog in this conference.

Washington, Oregon, and Oregon State hold steady at 1,2,3 in my rankings, with each team taking care of business last weekend. Washington hasn't been playing better football than Oregon since their matchup, but the head-to-head win and undefeated record keeps them on top.

The Beavers also didn't move this week after drubbing Stanford and I firmly believe they are the third-best team in the conference as of writing this story. Could they find themselves moving on up in these rankings with a pair of wins coming up? Absolutely... Everything is still ahead of the Beavers...

Arizona climbs to No. 4 following their win over Colorado combined with Utah's loss to UW, but Arizona is ceiling-capped a bit given that they'd need a good amount of help even with winning out to make the Pac-12 Championship...

Utah, USC, and UCLA all fell after losses last weekend, with Utah and USC's losses being respectable, while the Bruins' loss to Arizona State could be the beginning of the end for the Chip Kelly era in Westwood...

Cal climbs to No. 8 after defeating WSU, and there's a halfway decent chance the Bears could win out and reach the postseason. They'll have to beat Stanford and UCLA to get there, but not a stretch. Of them, Colorado, and WSU, they're the most likely four-win team to win out and reach six.

Arizona State jumps up after an impressive win over Chip and Co., however, I think they'll come back to earth in a big way against Oregon this weekend. Colorado could have a case for being higher given that they took Arizona to the wire, but we don't credit for almost, they've got one Pac-12 win and it shows...

Last but not least, well kind of, we arrive at Stanford and Washington State. The Cardinal aren't the worst team in the conference in my opinion, but they didn't do themselves any favors in a blowout loss to OSU where they were barely competitive.

However, the Cardinal check in at No. 11 for simply how terrible Jake Dickert's Cougars have been since the end of September...

I mean, what happened you can't even make up... The Cougars started 4-0 with wins over two-ranked teams, and QB Cam Ward looked like a Heisman contender before dropping their last SIX games... The Cougars' team that beat Oregon State doesn't exist anymore...

- Brenden Slaughter

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Ryan's Picks

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