PAC-12 Week 12 Review – Arizona @ Washington State

The PAC-12 Week 12 Review gets off to a flying start. Washington State got to the magic 6 win mark, with a 44-18 win over Arizona. The Cougars had the points of the game when running back Max Borghi ran in a nice 26 yard touchdown. Borghi had already had 4 carries for 25 yards in the drive. They started with the ball on their own 45 yard line, after the Wildcats went for it on 4th and 1, but quarterback Will Plummer was stuffed on a run. Arizona kicker Lucas Havrisik missed a 50 yard field goal in a quiet first quarter.

After a couple of punts from each side, it was the Cougars who stretched their lead. Quarterback Jayden de Laura found receiver Travell Harris on an 8 yard pass. de Laura had a solid day, throwing for 259 yards and 4 touchdowns from just 13 completions. Arizona pulled it back with just over 2 minutes left on the clock. Will Plummer hit Boobie Curry on a 11 yard pass, his first touchdown reception since his 2 in week 1. It took Washington State 56 seconds and 3 plays to go in at the half 2 scores ahead. It was de Laura again on a 43 yard pass, this time to receiver Calvin Jackson Jr.

Borghi shows his class

The 3rd quarter was where the Cougars secured the victory. Max Borghi got his second TD on the day, combing with his 139 rushing yards it was a career day for him. Then Wildcats punter Kyle Ostendorp had his punt blocked and was recovered by Washington State in the end zone for a safety. Arizona kicked the ball back to the Cougars and were punished again. Again a big play from de Laura, a 31 yard pass found Harris for his second touchdown. 8 minutes had gone in the 3rd quarter and the game was gone from Arizona, now trailing by 30.

Arizona kicker Tyler Loop added a field goal, then Plummer hit Michael Wiley on a 27 yard touchdown to bring it to 20 points. It was the Cougars with the final say with the biggest play of the day. Calvin Jackson Jr. grabbed his second touchdown of the day when he hauled in a 78 yard pass from de Laura again. Both teams have their rival games next week. Washington State goes to Washington for the Apple Bowl, where a win and an Oregon State win will give them the North title. Arizona are on the road against Arizona State in the Duel of the Desert.

PAC-12 Week 12 Review – Washington @ Colorado

Colorado guaranteed a losing season for Washington, with a 20-17 home field victory. The Huskies slipped to 4-7 with the loss, with turnovers being a big factor. Washington had 426 yards on offence to Colorado’s 183, but 4-0 in turnovers killed the Washington offence. After Colorado slotted home a 35 yard field goal from kicker Cole Becker, Washington started their drive. The Huskies got the ball down to the Buffaloes 3 yard line on 1st and goal. Quarterback Dylan Morris fumbled the snap under centre, Buffs linebacker Jack Lamb scooped the ball up and went 88 yards for the defensive touchdown.

The 2nd quarter was better for the visitors, after a 59 yard drive got them to the Colorado 10 yard line for 1st and goal, they had to settle for a field goal. Then after a bad punt and a decent punt return from Giles Jackson put them at the Buffaloes 40 yard line, Washington tied the game up. Dylan Morris found receiver Romeo Odunze on a 8 yard touchdown pass.

Scorless Drama

The 3rd quarter didn’t have any scores but had drama. Washington turned the ball over twice and missed a field goal. First Dylan Morris had his first interception when at 2nd at 18 at the Colorado 38 yard line. Then a fumble on their own 12 yard line was recovered by Colorado and returned to the Huskies 7 yard line. The defence stood up and forced the Buffs to kick a field goal.

Early in the 4th quarter Morris was picked off again, this time in the end zone by cornerback Nikko Reed. Colorado made it a 10 point game again with 4 minutes left to play. Colorado QB Brendon Lewis kept the ball on a 2 yard run. Washington scored a touchdown just before the 2 minute mark, thanks to a Morris 55 yard pass to receiver Ja’Lynn Polk. The Huskies got the ball back with after a Buffs 3 and out but couldn’t do anything with the ball on 4 plays. Washington will hope to sign off a bad season with a win over rivals Washington State. Colorado have won 3 pf their last 6 to make the season a tad better. They play PAC-12 South champions Utah to finish the season.

PAC-12 Week 12 in Review – California @ Stanford

California piled more pressure on Stanford and HC Davis Shaw with a 41-11 rout. The 1st quarter was full of drama but without any points. On the first drive returning quarterback Tanner McKee had his 2nd pass intercepted. Cornerback Lu-Magia Hearns III set up Cal on their own 27 yard line. Running back Damien Moore was handed the ball on the first play. But had the ball forced out by Dalyn Wade-Perry. It was recovered by Kyu Blu Kelly. Stanford started at the Bears 32 yard line and managed to work the ball to the 9 yard line for 1st and goal.

The Cardinal couldn’t capitalize on the turnover, giving the ball back to Cal on downs at the 1 yard line. The entertainment didn’t stop there, when this time Golden Bears QB Chase Garbers had a pass intercepted inside the redzone. A stinger after going 80 yards downfield. Stanford had the ball again and marched downfield to the Cal 8 yard line for first and goal. Amazingly the Bears stopped them again on 4th and goal at the 5 yard line. That happened just inside the 2nd quarter, but capped a bizarre opening to the game. Cal finally opened the scoring when Garbers hit Trevon Clark with a 84 yard touchdown.

Garbers running the show

Garbers made it 14-0 on their next drive, this time finding Christopher Brooks in the end zone. Stanford reduced the lead before the half with a field goal from Joshua Karty. The flood gates opened in the 2nd half but nearly all the points went the way of California. First 2 field goals from Golden Bears kicker Dario Longhetto, then a big 76 yard run from running back Marcel Dancy made it 27-3 late in the 3rd quarter. Stanford running back Austin Jones gave them a tiny bit of hope with a 1 yard rushing touchdown, that McKee completed the 2 point conversion to John Humphrey.

The result was never in doubt and two further touchdowns from the Golden Bears made it a lob sided score line. Dancy rushed for his second touchdown of the game, then Chris Street added a final nail to the coffin with a 5 yard rushing TD. California still could reach the magic 6 win mark, with them still having 2 games left. UCLA on the road first, before the rearranged game against USC. Stanford has a tough final game at home against Notre Dame.

PAC-12 Week 12 Review – UCLA @ USC

UCLA beat USC 62-33 in a classic game between the two rivals. In an even first half it was UCLA who took a hold of the game in the 2nd quarter. After an early field goal from Trojans kicker Alex Stadthaus, the Bruins took the lead thanks to a 45 yard touchdown pass from QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson to Kazmeir Allen. On the next drive USC retook the lead thanks to a Vavae Malepeai 7 yard rushing touchdown. Both touchdowns came after Thompson-Robinson had 2 interceptions and USC quarterback Jaxson Dart had an interception. A wild 1st quarter and the game didn’t slow down after that.

The Bruins then scored 3 unanswered touchdowns in the 2nd quarter. First DTR hit Kyle Phillips on a 23 yard pass, then found Allen again on a 58 yard TD and then added one himself on the ground. Running back Malepeai grabbed his second rushing touchdown before the half to make it 28-17. After a rest at the half, it was back to both offences playing in top gear for most of the second half. On the first drive Thompson-Robinson hit Phillips on the in route and he ran in for the 11 yard score. USC added another field goal, then UCLA kicker Nicholas Barr-Mira missed a 46 yard attempt.

DTR ran the game from start to finish

Jaxson Dart threw his second touchdown pass of the day, finding Gary Bryant Jr. for a 44 yard TD. From the resulting kick off Kazmeir Allen who already had 2 receiving touchdowns, went the full 100 yards for a kick-off return touchdown. The 4th quarter came round in a flash and with it the Bruins put any doubt of a USC victory out the window. Running back Zach Charbonnet scored the first of 3 UCLA touchdowns, adding to his 167 rushing yard game. DTR added his second rushing touchdown, then at the final score of the game was from running back Ethan Fernea, his first touchdown of the season.

Thompson-Robinson finished with 349 passing yards, 4 passing touchdowns, 46 rushing yards and 2 rushing touchdowns. Wedged in-between that 3rd quarter demolition was a third touchdown for USC running back Malepeai. UCLA will hope to play at the same level against Colorado before their bowl game. USC still have 2 games left, the yet to be re-arranged game against California but first they play BYU.

PAC-12 Week 12 Review Arizona State @ Oregon State

Oregon State kept their PAC-12 North title dreams alive with an impressive 24-10 win over Arizona State. The Beavers defence shut out the Sun Devils in the first half, with ASU kickers Christian Zendejas and Logan Tyler both missing field goals. Two plays into the opening drive and defensive back Alex Austin intercepted a pass from Sun Devils QB Jayden Daniels. The first points of the game came from a successful 52 yard field goal from Beavers kicker Everett Hayes. Then after the first Arizona State missed field goal, after being stuffed inside the Oregon State 10 yard line, the Beavers extended their lead to 10.

QB Chance Nolan found wide receiver Tre’Shaun Harrison, who juked a defender and sneaked into the corner of the endzone. Nolan only had 90 passing yards and 1 passing touchdown, with 42 of the yards coming on that touchdown drive. The damage was all done on the ground, with a team total of 237 rushing yards and running back B.J Baylor having 150 of those from 20 carries. Just before the half and Oregon State made it 17-0 thanks to Nolan rushing in himself from 2 yards out. The Sun Devils needed to start fast in the second half and got themselves inside the opposition redzone. From 1st and 10 at the 15, they failed on 3 attempts to get the 10 yards, settling for a field goal which this time was made.

Errors dont cost the Beavs 

Oregon State gifted Arizona State with excellent field position at their own 4 yard line. Beavers punter Luke Loecher dropped the snap, then when he picked the ball up he was hit by Chad Johnson Jr. who forced the ball loose. It was recovered by Timarcus Davis and two offensive plays later it was a 7 point game, thanks to a rushing touchdown from DeaMonte Trayanum.

The potential of a comeback was short-lived as on the next drive as linebacker/running back Jack Colletto took the snap in shotgun and broke loose for a 47 yard touchdown. The Beavers missed a field goal late but the score stayed as it was. A massive win for Oregon State and go in to next week’s game against Oregon, knowing a win will secure a PAC-12 North title. Arizona State play rivals Arizona, with bragging rights at stake.

PAC-12 Week 12 Review Oregon @ Utah

Utah ended any dreams of a playoff place for Oregon with a comfortable 38-7 win. The Utes shut out Oregon in the first half while scoring 4 touchdowns. The Ducks looks like they put their excellent running game on the back burner and tried putting the ball more in quarterback Anthony Brown’s hand. A strategy that the Utah defence shut down, allowing just 17 completions from 35 attempts and 231 yards through the air. It wasn’t all Utah as some of the passing from Brown wasn’t on point. With the Utah defence shutting out Oregon, the Ducks only chance to score was a field goal, which was missed by kicker Camden Lewis, the offence backed them up. Tavion Thomas rushed for a 10 yard touchdown to start the first half rout off.

15 Minutes of Ute Brutality

In the 2nd quarter, Utes quarterback Cam Rising added a touchdown on the ground, before Thomas grabbed his second. The final blow in the first half came from a 78 yard punt return from Britain Covey. With just 11 seconds on the clock, Covey showed a great initial burst of the mark to get around on rushing Oregon players. He then seemed to squeeze through the smallest of gaps between the sideline and another Oregon player. Then raced down the sideline followed by a handful of Utah players. A excellent way to cap an amazing first half for Utah. Oregon gave them a glimmer of hope when Brown found Devon Williams on a 36 yard pass.

That was soon ended when Thomas grabbed his third rushing touchdown. Thomas had 94 yards from 21 carries, while tight end Brant Keith’s had 118 receiving yards from 4 receptions. Utah added a late field goal from kicker Jadon Redding to cap off a one sided victory. Theses two teams could meet again in the PAC-12 Championship game, but before then they have their final regular season games. Oregon play rivals Oregon State with a win securing the North title. The win for Utah and the Arizona State loss secured the PAC-12 South for the Utes. They welcome Colorado in the ‘Rumble in the Rockies’ this weekend.

Written by Jordan Merritt @Jordm87