Pac-12 Football runs into Week 8
PAC-12 FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK:
THE RANKINGS: Four Pac-12 teams are ranked in the AP and Coaches polls. USC (11/10) WASHINGTON (12/12), WASHINGTON STATE (15/18) and STANFORD (22/22) ... That’s 15 consecutive weeks with four or more Pac-12 teams in the AP Top 25.
KEEP RUNNING: Ten different players (9 running backs, 1 quarterback) rushed for 100 or more yards in week seven. Four players had runs for 50 or more yards on Saturday, bringing the Pac-12 total of 50+ yard rushes in 2017 to 23. Stanford’s Bryce Love leads the way with seven rushes of 50 or more yards this season.
100-yard rushers - Week Seven
230 Khalil Tate, QB, Arizona (2 TD) - 71 longest rush
185 Phillip Lindsay, RB, Colorado (2 TD) - 74 longest rush
172 Ryan Nall, RB, Oregon State (3 TD)
147 Bryce Love, RB, Stanford (2 TD) - 67 longest rush
143 Royce Freeman, RB, Oregon (0 TD) - 59 longest rush
141 Zack Moss, RB, Utah (0 TD)
135 Nick Wilson, RB, Arizona (2 TD)
111 Ronald Jones II, RB, USC (1 TD)
102 Vic Enwere, RB, California (1 TD)
102 Bo Olorunfunmi, RB, UCLA (2 TD)
BACK-TO-BACK: ARIZONA sophomore QB Khalil Tate rushed for 230 yards in the 47-30 win vs. UCLA, giving him 557 rushing yards over the last two games. Earlier this season, STANFORD junior RB Bryce Love posted 263 yards vs. UCLA (Sept. 23) and 301 vs. Arizona State (Sept. 30) for 564 rushing yards. Those total numbers are just 16 and nine yards shy of the Pac-12 record two-game total of 573 yards set by Washington State’s Rueben Mayes in 1984 (216 vs. Stanford, 357 vs. Oregon). Arizona’s Ka’Deem Carey added 570 yards in 2012 (366 vs. Colorado, 204 vs. Utah).
ELITE COMPANY: STANFORD junior RB Bryce Love set a Stanford single-game rushing record with 301 yards on 25 carries (12.04 ypc) with a pair of touchdowns in the 34-24 win over Arizona State (Sept. 30). Meanwhile, ARIZONA sophomore QB Khalil Tate set an FBS rushing record for a quarterback with 327 yards on 14 carries (24.3 ypc) in the 45-42 win at Colorado. Five of the Pac-12’s top 10 single-game rushing totals have come in the last six seasons.
Pac-12’s Single-Game Rushing (300-yard Club)
1. 366 (14.64 ypc) Ka’Deem Carey, Arizona vs. Colorado, 2012
2. 357 (9.15 ypc) Rueben Mayes, Washington State vs. Oregon, 1984
3. 347 (6.80 ypc) Ricky Bell, USC vs. Washington State, 1976
4. 332 (11.45 ypc) Joe Williams, Utah at UCLA, 2016
5. 322 (12.38 ypc) Maurice Drew, UCLA vs. Washington, 2004
6. 327 (23.4 ypc) Khalil Tate, Arizona vs. Colorado, 2017
7 321 (8.45 ypc) Kenjon Barner, Oregon vs. USC, 2012
8. 311 (16.37 ypc) Jahvid Best, California vs. Washington, 2008
9. 301 (12.04 ypc) Bryce Love, Stanford vs. Arizona State, 2017
301 (9.07 ypc) DeShaun Foster, UCLA vs. Washington, 2001
MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU: WASHINGTON STATE senior QB Luke Falk has moved to the top of the list on several Pac-12 career record lists and is within striking distance of several others.
Total Plays: 2,050 (previous record: 1,824 by Carson Palmer, USC, 1998-2002)
Pass Completions: 1,263 (previous record: 1,187 by Sean Mannion, OSU, 2011-14)
Touchdown Passes: 108 (2nd, trails Matt Barkley, USC, 116)
Total Offense: 12,796 (T2nd, trails Marcus Mariota, 13,033, and tied with Sean Mannion, 12,796)
Passing Yards: 13,179 (3rd, trails Sean Mannion, 13,600, and Matt Barkley, 13,327)
608: ARIZONA sophomore QB Khalil Tate set an FBS rushing record for a quarterback with 327 yards on 14 carries (24.3 ypc) in the 45-42 win at COLORADO. The Buff’s senior RB Lindsay Phillips rushed for 281 yards in the loss. The two combined for the most rushing yards by opposing players in Pac-12 history with 608 yards.
PAC-12 IN THE NFL: When NFL opening day rosters were revealed, 258 former Pac-12 players found themselves listed on active rosters. USC led all Pac-12 teams with 42, followed by UCLA with 30. California, Stanford and Utah had 28 former players make active rosters.
PAC-12 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK:
OFFENSE
Khalil Tate, QB, ARIZ
Tate followed up a record-setting breakout a week ago with another dominant performance to lead Arizona to its first victory (47-30) over UCLA since 2011. Totaled 378 yards of offense and 3 TDs. Gained 230 yards (sixth-most in UA history) on 15 carries (71 and 45-yard TDs) to become the first FBS quarterback since 1997 to post consecutive 200-yard rushing efforts. Completed 9-of-13 passes for 148 yards and a TD through the air with turnover free ball.
DEFENSE
Jordan Kunaszyk, ILB, CAL
Kunaszyk led Cal’s defensive performance in a 37-3 victory over previously unbeaten No. 8 Washington State that helped the Golden Bears’ to their first victory over a top-10 team since beating USC in 2003. Established or equaled career highs with 11 tackles, 2.5 sacks (-31 yards), 2.5 tackles for loss (-31 yards), one forced fumble and one interception. Cal finished with seven turnovers gained and 9.0 sacks as a team with the sacks tied for the second-most by an FBS team in 2017 and the most by a Cal team since a 2005 contest at Stanford. Was named the Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Mitch Wishnowsky, P, UTAH
The Pac-12’s leading punter averaged 46.8 yards on six punts (281 yards) vs. USC. Placed punts at the USC 2-, 7- and 12-yard lines for a total of three punts inside the 20. Had punts of 56 and 60 yards. Ranks No. 1 in the Pac-12 and No. 2 in the nation in net punting.
THIS WEEK'S GAMES:
ARIZONA STATE (3-3) at UTAH (4-2)
Sat., Oct. 21 • 1:30 pm MT • FOX • #ASUvsUTAH
ARIZONA STATE: The Sun Devils posted their seventh win over a ranked opponent at home under coach Todd Graham in six seasons ... The Sun Devils are 26-4 under Graham when holding their opposition scoreless in the first quarter ... Arizona State is 17-0 since 2012 when holding opponents under 20 points ... The 13 points scored in the 13-7 win over Washington were the fewest in a Sun Devil victory since a 13-9 win over Oregon State on Oct. 12, 2002 ... Sophomore WR N’Keal Harry has started 18 games and has a reception in all 18 of those games. Harry is currently fifth in the Pac-12, averaging 92.5 receiving yards per game with 43 receptions and 3 TDs ... The Sun Devils lead the league, and are second in the FBS, in fewest penalties (20) ... Freshman PK Brandon Ruiz connected on a 52-yard field goal against Washington. It was his second 52-yarder of the season, becoming the first ASU freshman to have two or more 50+ yard field goals in his freshman season.
UTAH: Utah’s current two game win streak against Arizona State marks just the second time the Utes have won back-to-back games in the series. The other time was in 1964 and 1966 when both teams competed in the Western Athletic Conference ... The Utes have sold out 47 straight games in Rice-Eccles Stadium ... Utah leads the Pac-12 and ranks 12th in the nation in time of possession (33.07) ... Utah’s two losses, both in Conference play to Stanford and USC, are by a combined four points ... Sophomore RB Zack Moss posted a career-high 141 rushing yards on 20 carries (7.1 avg) in the loss at USC. It was his second career 100-yard game ... Junior P Mitch Wishnowsky is second in the FBS in net punting (44.75).
OREGON (4-3) at UCLA (3-3)
Sat., Oct. 21 • 1:00 pm PT • P12N • #UOvsUCLA
OREGON: The Ducks have won the last six meeting with UCLA, averaging 41.3 ppg in that span ... Sophomore LB Troy Dye had a team-high 10 tackles at Stanford. It was his ninth double-digit tackle effort in 18 career games played ... Senior RB Royce Freeman has a school-record 54 career TDs and is now just five rushing TDs shy of matching the Pac-12 career mark held by Oregon State’s Ken Simonton (59 TDs, 1998-2001). His 4,943 career rushing yards place him fourth on the Pac-12 career chart behind Oregon State’s Simonton (5,044 yards, 1998-01) and Oregon’s LaMichael James (5,082 yards, 2009-11) ... The Ducks have scored 10 or fewer points in back-to-back games for the first time since 2006 (35-10 at USC, 37-10 vs. Arizona).
UCLA: The next UCLA win will be its 600th overall in UCLA football program history ... Junior RB Bo Olorunfunmi had a career-high 102 rushing yards in the loss at Arizona. It was the second time in three games that the Bruins produced a 100-yard rusher as junior RB Soso Jamabo recorded 100 yards at Stanford (Sept. 23) ... Junior QB Josh Rosen had his streak of seven straight 300-yard passing games snapped in the loss at Arizona where he threw for 219 yards. He also saw his streak of throwing at least one touchdown pass end at 14 games ... Over the last three games, junior WR Jordan Lasley has 24 receptions for 381 yards ... Senior LB Kenny Young has 34 tackles in the last three games (10 at Arizona, 12 vs. Colorado, and 12 at Stanford).
USC (6-1) at Notre Dame (5-1)
Sat., Oct. 21 • 7:30 pm ET • NBC • #USCvsND
USC: The winner of the USC-Notre Dame game gets year-long possession of the jeweled Shillelagh. The foot-long shillelagh—a Gaelic war club made of oak or blackthorn saplings from Ireland—has ruby-adorned Trojan heads with the year and game score representing USC victories, while emerald-studded shamrocks stand for Notre Dame wins ... The Trojans have won 11 of the past 15 meetings ... It’s the first USC-ND meeting since 2009 that both squads are AP ranked ... Sophomore QB Sam Darnold is 15-2 as a starter after completing 27-of-50 for 358 yards and 3 TDs in the win over Utah ... Darnold has thrown for at least 200 yards in 16 games and at least 3 TD passes in a game nine times ... Junior RB Ronald Jones II had his ninth career 100-yard rushing game with a 17-carry, 111-yard effort vs. Utah. He also scored one touchdown, extending his streak of scoring at least one touchdown in each of the last 13 games he’s played ... Freshman WR Tyler Vaughns has posted 17 receptions for 222 yards and one score over the last three games ... After missing his first field goal attempt of his career in USC’s win over Texas, freshman walk-on PK Chase McGrath has now hit eight consecutive field goals.
ARIZONA (4-2) at CALIFORNIA (4-3)
Sat., Oct. 21 • 5:00 pm PT • P12N • #AZvsCAL
ARIZONA: For the first time in program history, Arizona has scored 45 or more points in four of its first six games of the season. The Cats lead the league in scoring (42.8 ppg) ... Wildcats are leading the league and are fourth nationally in rushing (342.3 ypg). Dating back to last season, Arizona has rushed for 150 or more yards in 12 straight games ... Over the last two games, sophomore QB Khalil Tate has accumulated 859 yards of total offense. In that span, he’s rushed for 557 yards/6 TDs and completed 21-of-26 passing for 302 yards/2 TDs ... Tate is the first FBS quarterback to rush for 200 or more yards in back-to-back games since Navy’s Chris McCoy in 1997 ... Tate and junior QB Brandon Dawkins have combined to rush for 1,001 yards and 12 TDs ... True freshman DE Kylan Wilborn had four sacks in Saturday’s win, which is the most by an Arizona player since Joe Salave’a also had four against Arizona State in 1997 ... Arizona had three interceptions Saturday, including two by junior CB Jace Whittaker (returned one 42 yards for a TD). Arizona hadn’t intercepted a pass against the Bruins since 2010.
CALIFORNIA: The 37-3 win over No. 8 Washington State was Cal’s second over a Top 10 team since 1978 (defeated No. 3 USC in 2003) ... The last time Cal held a Pac-12 opponent to three points or less was against Washington State (3) in 2008 ... The Bears recorded nine sacks in the win, the most since they posted nine against Stanford in 2005. The defense also came up with seven turnovers (5 interceptions, 2 fumbles) ... Sophomore QB Ross Bowers has not thrown an interception in his last 100 attempts. He was 21-of-38 for 259 yards and one TD against Washington State ... Senior PK Matt Anderson has posted 272 points in his career and is just 16 points shy of Doug Brien’s school record of 288 points.
COLORADO (4-3) at WASHINGTON STATE (6-1)
Sat., Oct. 21 • 7:45 pm PT • ESPN • #CUvsWSU
COLORADO: The Buffs are now one win away from becoming the 25th school to win 700 games. CU owns an all-time record of 699-497-36 ... Senior TB Phillip Lindsay rushed 28 times for 185 yards and 2 TDs in the win to Oregon State. It was his 10th career 100-yard game ... Over the last two games, he’s rushed for 466 yards (6.75 yards per carry) ... He needs 5 yards to reach 1,000 rushing yards this season ... His 3,228 rushing yards move him into third all-time at CU, trailing only Eric Bieniemy (3,940, 1987-90) and Rodney Stewart (3,598, 2008-11) ... Already CU’s career all-purpose yards leader, he surpassed the 5,000-yard plateau, with 5,174 yards.
WASHINGTON STATE: The Cougars notched a pair of sacks in their loss at California, pushing their season total to 23 sacks. They had just 20 sacks for the entire 2016 season ... Junior DT Hercules Mata’afa leads the Pac-12 with 6.5 sacks and 12.0 tackles for loss. Mata’afa owns 36.5 tackles for loss (6th-most all-time at WSU) and 18.5 sacks (8th most all-time) ... Senior QB Luke Falk is 421 passing yards shy of matching the Pac-12 career mark held by Oregon State’s Sean Mannion (13,600 yards, 2011-14) ... Cougars have won five straight at home and 10 of their last 11 at Martin Stadium.
OPEN DATE
OREGON STATE (1-6): In its 36-33 loss to Colorado, Oregon State finished with 569 total yards, the 17th-highest total in team history, and the biggest total since the Beavers went for 570 yards at California on Oct. 19, 2013 ... Oregon State rushed for a season-high 280 yards, led by junior RB Ryan Nall’s 172 yards and 3 TDs ... Nall has rushed for 1,919 yards in his career and needs 29 yards to move into the school’s all-time top 10 list ... Sophomore PK Jordan Choukair set a school record with most field goals in a half when he connected on all four attempts in the first half against Colorado ... Since 2010, the Beavers are 7-3 when coming off a bye date.
STANFORD (5-2): Junior RB Bryce Love is averaging an FBS-best 198.1 rushing yards per game and is second nationally with 200.9 all-purpose yards per game. He has surpassed 100 yards rushing, scored at least one touchdown and posted a run of 50 yards or longer in nine consecutive games. He has rushed for over 150 yards in six of seven games this season, the lone exception being a 147-yard effort in the win over Oregon. He’s rushed for 100 or more yards in each of the last nine games for a total of 1,616 yards on 163 carries (9.9 avg) ... Love’s career touchdowns are 93, 47, 48, 7, 56, 50, 49, 10, 75, 51, 53, 69, 61, 43, 59, 68, 5 and 67 yards.
WASHINGTON (6-1): Washington is second in the FBS in total defense (236.9 ypg) and rushing defense (73.0 ypg) and third in scoring defense (10.6 ppg) ... Over the last three games, the Husky defense has allowed 110 yards on 86 carries (1.3 yards per carry). They allowed 110 vs. Oregon State, -40 vs. California and 40 vs. Arizona State ... Junior QB Jake Browning has 73 career TD passes, just two shy of matching the school career mark of 75 held by Keith Price (2010-13)... Senior WR Dante Pettis has 29 receptions for 207 yards and 3 TDs over the last three games.
COACHES TELECONFERENCE: This week's Pac-12 Football coaches teleconference can be found here.