Pac-12 football power rankings: Oregon Ducks and Washington Huskies still reign

The top of the Pac-12 power rankings have stayed as consistent as the product being put on the field by Washington and Oregon all season.

The Huskies (10-0, 7-0 Pac-12) and Ducks (9-1, 6-1) have been the clear 1-2 all season and appear to be heading straight to what could be an epic rematch in the conference championship game.

But Oregon State (8-2, 5-2) will have a say in who plays in Las Vegas on Dec. 1, and possibly even Arizona (7-3, 5-2).

These final two weeks of the season could be a doozy, beginning Saturday when the Huskies play the Beavers in Corvallis at 4:30 p.m. on ABC.

To keep their chances alive, the Wildcats will have to get past Utah (7-3, 4-3) at 11:30 a.m. on the Pac-12 Network.

Oregon is at Arizona State (3-7, 2-5) at 1 p.m. on FOX in a meeting between old friends Dan Lanning and Kenny Dillingham. The Ducks haven't lost focus all season so it's hard to imagine they will suddenly overlook the Sun Devils with so much on the line.

Here's our Pac-12 Power Rankings heading into week 12 of the college football season.

(Last week's ranking in parenthesis).

1. Washington (1)

Record: 10-0, 7-0 Pac-12

This week: at Oregon State

Last week: Beat Utah, 52-42

What to know: The Huskies are on a 17-game winning streak and are 10-0 for just the second time in program history. The last came in 1991, the season they shared the national title with Miami. They’ve been living on the edge for a while now as their last six wins have come by an average of 7.3 points and only one was a double-digit victory (52-42 vs. USC).

2. Oregon (2)

Record: 9-1, 6-1

This week: at Arizona State

Last week: Beat USC, 36-27

What to know: It gets more and more difficult to rank the Ducks behind the Huskies each week, but that head-to-head loss is tough to overlook. Still, by the eye test, Oregon looks like the best team in the conference and the stats back it up as the Ducks rank first nationally in scoring and second in total offense.

3. Arizona (3)

Record: 7-3, 5-2

This week: vs. Utah

Last week: Beat Colorado, 34-31

What to know: It’s time to jump on the Wildcats bandwagon. Arizona’s offense is clicking, the defense is top-five in the conference and it has what most teams can only hope for — a clutch kicker. Tyler Loop hit the 24-yard game-winning field goal as time expired against the Buffaloes this past weekend to improve to 36-for-36 on field goals under 40 yards in his career. He also had a career-long 52-yarder against Colorado.

4. Oregon State (4)

Record: 8-2, 5-2

This week: vs. Washington

Last week: Beat Stanford, 62-17

What to know: No team can play spoiler over the next two weeks like the Beavers, who close out the regular season with games against both the Huskies and Ducks. Win both and Oregon State could make the Pac-12 championship game and knock Oregon out in the process. The Beavers' loss to Arizona last month will haunt them, however, if the Wildcats also win out.

5. Utah (5)

Record: 7-3, 4-3

This week: at Arizona

Last week: Lost to Washington, 35-28

What to know: The Utes won the last two Pac-12 championship games, but last week's loss ended their already slim chances of playing for a third straight title. Utah fell to 2-3 against ranked teams this season with its loss to Washington and have another coming up against No. 19 Arizona.

6. Southern California (6)

Record: 7-4, 5-3

This week: vs. UCLA

Last week: Lost to Oregon, 36-27

What to know: As was proven again this past Saturday against the Ducks, quarterback Caleb Williams can only do so much for USC, which has only one win in its last five games — a 50-49 victory against California. The bowl-eligible Trojans will have plenty of time to regroup for the postseason as their regular season ends Saturday against the Bruins.

7. UCLA (7)

Record: 6-4, 3-4

This week: at USC

Last week: Lost to Arizona State, 17-7

What to know: Coach Chip Kelly had no magic wand to wave Saturday as injuries left him starting Kent State transfer Collin Schlee at quarterback. The Bruins went scoreless until a fourth-quarter touchdown. UCLA has lost two straight for the first time this season and scored a whopping 17 points combined in those defeats.

8. California (9)

Record: 4-6, 2-5

This week: at Stanford

Last week: Beat Washington State, 42-39

What to know: The Golden Bears ended their four-game losing streak last Saturday, thanks to a two-touchdown day from its defense on fumble recoveries, and 167 yards from running back Jaydn Ott, who now has 1,016 yards rushing this season to become Cal’s first 1,000-yard rusher since Patrick Laird in 2017.

9. Colorado (8)

Record: 4-6, 1-6

This week: at Washington State (Friday)

Last week: Lost to Arizona, 34-31

What to know: After losing on a last-second field goal to Arizona — the only time they trailed against the Wildcats — coach Deion Sanders lamented that his team is struggling to “get over the hump” because “We just simply don't know how to win yet.” Since the Ducks beat the then-undefeated Buffaloes, 42-6, on Sept. 23, Colorado is 1-6 and have lost four straight.

10. Arizona State (12)

Record: 3-7, 2-5

This week: vs. Oregon

Last week: Beat UCLA, 17-7

What to know: A big win — their second in three games — gets the Sun Devils out of the Pac-12 power rankings cellar. Now come the Ducks and a chance for first-year head coach Dillingham to play spoiler against his former team and good friend Lanning.

11. Stanford (10)

Record: 3-7, 2-6

This week: vs. California

Last week: Lost to Oregon State, 62-17

What to know: Not a whole lot working on The Farm. Since a 42-6 loss to Oregon on Sept. 30, the Cardinal are allowing 46.2 points per game and allowed Oregon State to score on eight of its first nine possessions last Saturday. The offense isn’t much better, having been held to 17 or fewer points five times this season.

12. Washington State (11)

Record: 4-6, 1-6

This week: vs. Colorado (Friday)

Last week: Lost to California, 42-39

What to know: The Cougars have finally played their way into the bottom of the Pac-12 power rankings. A six-game losing streak will do that. It’s hard to believe this is the same team that was 4-0 on Sept. 23 with wins against then-No. 19 Wisconsin and then-No. 14 Oregon State and themselves knocking on the top 10 with a No. 13 ranking.

Follow Chris Hansen on Twitter @chansen_RG or email at chansen@registerguard.com. For more sports coverage, visit registerguard.com. Want more stories like this? Subscribe to get unlimited access and support local journalism.

This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Pac-12 football power rankings: Oregon, Washington still reign