Pigskin Pete
Pete's Crystal Ball
Cracked, Went 4-2

     By Fred Delkin

     Oregon surprised us, Oregon State unexpectedly slumped in their first Pac10 outings.  The Ducks buried California in a rout that has us believing Webfoot coach Chip Kelly has been playing possum 'til now.  The Quackers revved up their passing game by throwing to tight end Ed Dickson 11 times and the offensive line was superb in both pass protection and opening running back holes.  The visit to Autzen by woebegone Washington State will add to the threat a new Duck powerhouse poses to other conference title wannabes.  OREGON by 35.

The OSU Beavers have made a habit of starting their schedule slowly and finishing in a bowl-going mood.  That pattern is looking unlikely this time around.  Arizona State gave host Georgia fits in a 3-point loss to the Bulldogs last Saturday and should prove more than the visiting Bevos can handle this week...and following this trip, the Orange & Black will have trouble winning on journeys to USC, California and Oregon as the season unwinds.  ARIZONA STATE by 7.

It will be an interesting confrontation in Berkley Saturday when USC visits Cal.  The Golden Bears came unglued at Oregon, but they have played the Trojans almost to a standstill in recent seasons.  Until the Oregon visit, we would have predicted a Bear victory.  That could still happen, but we think the Trojans will survive another close one.  USC by 3.

Washington's Huskies weren't able, as we guessed, to follow their monumental upset of USC on their visit to Stanford.  This week's Husky journey to Notre Dame looks like another UW loss, but Jake Locker's QB heroics will make this one close.  NOTRE DAME by 3.

We admire coach Jim Harbaugh's rejuvenation of Stanford football and we think the Cardinal will prevail over visiting UCLA.  The Bruins have QB issues.  STANFORD by 14.

 Portland State should have won last week, but the Viking defense failed in the final minute to stop a Weber State drive.  This week, PGE Park will host a Viking runaway over Sacramento State, which has yet to win a game, losing by wide margins to UNLV, Cal Poly and Eastern Washington.  PORTLAND STATE by 28.

The Pac10 conference is showing well to date, with USC, Stanford, Oregon, Cal and Arizona boasting 3-1 records and Arizona State at 2-1.  UCLA remains undefeated at 3-0, but is a likely candidate to collapse from here on out as the Bruins'schedule toughens up.  USC's visit to Oregon on Oct. 31 could now be for the Pac10 title.

© 2009 Oregon Magazine