Pac Ten Picks enjoys Top Dog

USC (-4.5) 24, Cal 10
It was supposed to be the game of the year in the Pac-10. Now the Trojans are fighting for a mere BCS bid, while the Golden Bears are looking for traction as a promising season has gone to naught.

But there are still plenty of compelling plots as these two meet Saturday at Memorial Stadium. Standout defensive tackles Sedrick Ellis and Fili Moala will both get chances to battle Cal junior center Alex Mack.

For Moala, the battle in the trenches is a throwback to battles past.

"I really remember ‘04 when [Shaun] Cody and [Mike] Patterson and Manny [Wright] was here and they had a great O-line with the center Marvin Phillip," he said. "This match up historically has always had a great group of guys in the trenches on both sides of the ball. Personally, I take it upon myself to go out here and give it to these guys. "

Golden Bears quarterback Nate Longshore is still hobbled by a sprained ankle. Quite simply, Cal cannot win if he can't move. USC's pass rush was relentless against Oregon State and could tee off on the junior if he can't move in the pocket.

Running back Justin Forsett (111.33 yards per game) is a good one and will be playing his last home game on Senior Day.

"Man, he comes with his own little bag of tricks," Moala said. "He can do it all – run the draws, catch the screen out of the backfield, hit it up in between the tackles, he can get it outside and bounce it. I kind of want to relate him to Maurice Drew, just in the sense of what they can do. Forsett is more than capable of doing the job. If we don’t cover him, he’s going to burn us."

The Trojans will ride their defense and rushing attack to a methodical win, setting up a BCS busting battle with the Sun Devils on Thanksgiving.

Arizona State (-7) 28, UCLA 20
Which Bruins team shows up? Would a win save coach Karl Dorrell's job? Why am I asking so many questions?

The bad one, who gave Notre Dame its only win. No chance in hell. I don't know.

Washington (+5) 24, Oregon State 21
Freshman quarterback Jake Locker is playing better, but that hasn't translated into many wins for the Huskies. Against the injury-riddled Beavers, who still possess a powerful rush defense, he'll avoid interceptions and carry the day.

Stanford (+11) 20, Washington State 17
Year one under Jim Harbaugh has stagnated after the upset win over USC, but the Cougars will cure what ails the Cardinal.

Upon Further Review do you know which UCLA team will show up?

UCLA 30, Cal 21

There is no more schizophrenic team in America than the Bruins. Take away losses to Utah and Notre Dame, this is a top five team. However, there's an equal likelihood they blow their undefeated conference record Saturday against pathetic Washington State. 

 

Stanford 21, Arizona 20

Mike Stoops, see ya later. Now 9-21 in Pac-10 play, he is all but assured a pink slip.

Oregon 55, Washington 34

The Ducks put on an offensive clinic, rushing for a school record 465 yards. The big question: can they duplicate fireworks against the Trojans stout front seven?

Full analysis of USC-ND, the biggest game of the Pac-10 season and the Cal Not-Ready-For-Prime-time Players coming later this week. 

Live Blog - From Notre Dame Stadium

Greetings from the press box on a crystal clear, crisp Midwestern afternoon.

I'll have thoughts and observations all game long.

Pregame: For USC, Brian Cushing (SS LB), Thomas Williams (M LB), Vidal Hazelton (WR), Butch Lewis (LT) and Mark Sanchez (QB) will be starting.

Halftime: Mark Sanchez is 18 of 32 for 183 yards and 2 touchdowns, but several dropped passes have kept him from building up an even more impressive stat line.
Notre Dame just can't seem to do anything on offense - four straight three-and-outs before some garbage yardage to end the half, five total. Punter Geoff Price (6 for 268, 44.7 average) has the second most touches behind only quarterback Evan Sharpley (19 pass attempts, 3 rushes)
Assuming the Trojans don't help out the Irish (a score on special teams or multiple turnovers), Pete Carroll's team will leave South Bend with some much needed momentum heading into a huge showdown with Oregon next week.

7:30 to play, Third Quarter: Game Over! USC leads 31-0 and the only questions left are does Clausen play and when do the Irish fans clear out?

Pac Ten Picks is off to South Bend

USC 28, Notre Dame (+18) 14
Mark Sanchez will make his second start, facing off against Irish QB Evan Sharpley (first career start) as the Trojans look for their sixth straight win in the inter sectional rivalry and third consecutive in South Bend.
The ND defense has actually played OK, but is getting no help from its counterparts on the other side of the ball. The same will hold true this Saturday.

Cal 27, UCLA 20 (No Line)
Assuming Nate Longshore starts for the Golden Bears, they should have no trouble taking out last week's frustrations on the Bruins. Adding to Cal's intensity, it has not won a game in Los Angeles under coach Jeff Tedford.
Pat Cowan starts for UCLA and should provide a spark, but the score won't be indicative of the separation between these two programs.

Oregon (+13.5) 45, Washington 20
The Ducks can't afford any more injuries, especially with USC looming next week. Still, they cruise to an easy win over a struggling bunch of Huskies.

Stanford (+13) 21, Arizona 17
Death knell for Mike Stoops as the Cardinal yo-yo bounces up heading into the easiest part of the schedule.

Best Bets
Louisville (-3.5) at Connecticut
Cincinnati (-10) at Pitt
Colorado (+4) vs. Kansas

Upon Further Review: What the hell is going on out here?

Oregon State 31, Cal 28

Twice in two weeks the Golden Bears seemed all but assured to become the nation's No. 1 team. First USC loses to Stanford and LSU trails Florida going into the game's final moments. Then the Tigers get beat by Kentucky, leaving Jeff Tedford's club needing only to finish off the Beavers to become reach heights unseen since 1951.

Unfortunately, nobody told quarterback Kevin Riley that all he had to do was "throw the fucking ball out of the endzone," to quote a text message I received shortly thereafter.

Now with ASU and USC ahead, Cal seems likely to continue its Rose Bowl drought, let alone play for the national championship.  

USC 20, Arizona 13

If grades were handed out for Football 101, redshirt sophomore Mark Sanchez would have received a solid C. He did a couple things well, but also threw two horrendous interceptions. 

He'll need to grade out much higher against Notre Dame to have any chance of starting in two weeks at Oregon, where the Trojans' dreams of winning the Pac-10 will live or die.  

  

Oregon 53, Washington State 7

Lost in USC's injury woes, the Ducks have lost WR Cameron Colvin and RB Jeremiah Johnson for the season. That helps the Trojans immensely given their weakness at corner, since Oregon's three receiver sets are now also diminished.

   

Arizona State 44, Washington 20

Another impressive second half win for the Sun Devils. However, facing the heart of the Pac-10 over the next month, they could end up anywhere from New Orleans to El Paso for the postseason. We'll know a lot more about Dennis Erickson's team shortly

TCU 38, Stanford 36

No surprise, as the Cardinal experience a let-down. The Trojans better hope that Stanford can beat up on the lower half of the conference and eek out a bowl bid. That would go a long way in keeping slim BCS title hopes alive in Los Angeles.

Instant Analysis: USC-Arizona First Half

The Trojans need to give Mark Sanchez some easy throws to start the first half to rebuild his rhythm; he looked solid on USC's touchdown drive but has regresses since then (5 of 6 for 51 yards in first quarter, 3 of 10 for 5 yards with 2 interceptions in the second).

Willie Tuitama (15 of 19, 142 yards) has looked very sharp, as the Trojans haven't had much luck pressuring him.

USC needs a score to start the third quarter to reestablish itself; either way, the Coliseum is looking at another four quarter affair.

-Dan Greenspan live in the Coliseum Press Box

Pac Ten Picks: Los Angeles is standing, barely

USC (-21) 34, Arizona 10
Mark Sanchez makes the start for the Trojans, in what could be the first legitimate quarterback controversy for Pete Carroll. The sophomore will end it, showing better mobility and a stronger arm than John David Booty and setting the stage for a thrilling and desperate push to get back in the BCS title race.

Cal (-14.5) 41, Oregon State 20
What do the USC-Stanford and UCLA-Utah games have in common? Both were on Versus, the network no one has. The Golden Bears better bring their A game to avoid a third embarrassing meltdown for the Pac-10

Oregon (-19.5) 38, Washington State 17
QB Alex Brink has one more shot at his hometown Ducks. Unfortunately, they rout the Cougs in frustration after handing Cal a win two weeks ago.

Arizona State (-11.5) 27, Washington 14
The Sun Devils should be able to pick apart the Huskies, and run their record to 7-0 in the process.

TCU (-6.5) 28, Stanford 20
Classic let down game. After a week in the nation's spotlight, the Cardinal will come down to earth and be soundly contained by a Horned Frogs club looking for traction

Straight up (3-2 last week, 14-5 overall)
Against the spread (2-3 last week, 8-11 overall)

Best Bets (2-1 last week, 4-5 overall)
Boston College (-14) at Notre Dame
Philadelphia Eagles (-3.5) at NY Jets
New England Patriots (-5.5) at Dallas Cowboys