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Another week of bowl projections for you. These are only for entertainment purposes. Do not make travel plans just yet.

VIZIO BCS National Championship (Jan. 6, 2014): Oregon vs. BCS
Rose Bowl Game Presented by VIZIO (Jan. 1, 2014): Stanford vs. Big Ten
Valero Alamo Bowl (Dec. 30): UCLA vs. Big 12
Holiday Bowl (Dec. 30): Washington vs. Big 12
Hyundai Sun Bowl (Dec. 31): Arizona State vs. ACC
Las Vegas Bowl (Dec. 21): Arizona vs. MWC
Fight Hunger Bowl (Dec. 27): Oregon State vs. BYU
Gildan New Mexico Bowl (Dec. 21): Washington State vs. MWC
New Era Pinstripe Bowl (Dec. 28): USC vs. American
Heart of Dallas Bowl (Jan. 1, 2014): Utah vs. Conference USA

The problem with coaching USC is you're coaching USC. If you don't really understand what that means, then you're doomed to fail.

That's the lesson learned by Lane Kiffin, who was fired shortly after the team's charter flight landed in Los Angeles early Sunday morning after his team's 62-41 loss at Arizona State, the school announced before any reporter could claim the news story prize.

Kiffin went 28-15 in three-plus years while the Trojans were buried under difficult NCAA sanctions, but the key span is the past 11 games. He lost seven of those, essentially starting a downturn just after folks started to wonder if he actually might be a good coach.

If you can recall USC in December 2011, the Trojans were coming off an impressive 10-2 season that included a win at Oregon. Quarterback Matt Barkley shocked many when he announced in front of a strategically placed Christmas tree during a Heritage Hall news conference that he would return for his senior season to take care of "unfinished business."

That, of course, meant a Pac-12 and national title.

The Trojans headed into the 2012 offseason overbrimming with talent and expectations. They were ranked No. 1 in the preseason AP poll. Yet, little thereafter went well. And that falls, not unfairly, on Kiffin.

He just never seemed capable of getting out of his own way and just coaching his collection of athletes, which in just about every case were more physically talented than the guys on the other side of the field.

Did USC have depth issues due to scholarship reductions? Sure. But that didn't change the fact that the area where USC consistently seemed to be most lacking was coaching, in terms of preparation, motivation and execution. And the offensive play calling, which Kiffin refused to give up despite pointed criticism, was fundamentally flawed in one simple way: The plays Kiffin called more often than not didn't work.

He too often tried to be clever or tricky. He also seemed to react poorly when things weren't going well. An early sack or turnover would seemingly spook him into an overly conservative plan. His complicated schemes seemed simplistic and predictable in execution compared to simpler schemes from other Pac-12 programs that seemed more imaginative and effective.

Further, USC had been eclipsed not only in the Pac-12 by Oregon and Stanford, it also had lost ground to its previously struggling rivals, UCLA and Notre Dame. Trojans fans are demanding as a whole, but losing to the Bruins and Fighting Irish is a deal-breaker.

Kiffin was most consistent as a recruiter, even with scholarship limitations. But the downturn even caught up with that. The Trojans presently have only seven commitments, and they are not ranked among the nation's top 40 classes.

USC remains one of the nation's best college coaching jobs. The high school talent in the surrounding area is among the best in the country. The school also has the resources to make the next coach among the nation's highest paid.

Athletic director Pat Haden likely decided to make a decisive move now so he could get a head start on his search. No sense in allowing the ship to continue to sink. He'll immediately start getting back-door feelers from NFL and college head coaches and top assistants -- many probably already have made inquiries. Lots of names will circulate, from Boise State's Chris Petersen, to St. Louis Rams coach Jeff Fisher, to Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio, to Washington coach Steve Sarkisian, to Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin.

Kiffin was unquestionably burdened with tougher circumstances than many coaches who take over college football superpowers. Yet such an explanation only goes so far in this win-now age.

While he flickered potential during the 2011 season, his ultimate downfall was this: His teams never consistently looked like USC should. And he never consistently looked like a guy who should be fronting USC.

Five things we learned during the five games in Week 5.

1. Changing impressions? Maybe rumors of Oregon State’s demise have been greatly exaggerated ... maybe. Since losing the opener to Eastern Washington, the Beavers have run off four in a row. Granted, the combined record of the four teams they beat is 6-9 (five of those six wins coming from the two Pac-12 teams). Many expected the Beavers to start 7-0, or 6-1 at worst. While no one expected that the “1” would be from an FCS team, Oregon State is still on pace. And with Sean Mannion and Brandin Cooks continuing to scorch stat sheets, you have to imagine they’ll stay competitive offensively. On the flip side of Saturday's game in Corvallis, the 2-0 start was nice for the Buffs, but they reverted against the Beavers. Going out of state for the first time -- and playing for the first time in three weeks -- the Buffs managed just 300 yards of total offense in the 44-17 loss.

2. Making impressions: People wanted to see what Washington looked like once the Huskies got into league play. Same for Arizona -- which hadn’t been tested after blowing through a vanilla nonconference schedule. The Huskies weren’t always clean, missing on a few opportunities especially in the first half of their 31-13 win over the Wildcats. But Bishop Sankey earned his 161 yards on a school-record 40 carries. Keith Price was good enough (14-of-25, 165 yards, two touchdowns, one interception). The Huskies are 4-0 for the first time since 2001. For what it’s worth, Arizona’s defense put up a gritty effort, keeping them in the game.

3. Impressive: Oregon, Stanford, Mannion and Arizona State’s offense. In a sloppy mess, the Ducks were still able to score 50-plus points for the fourth consecutive game. That’s a record for a program that doesn’t have many offensive records left to break. Stanford put on a dominating display on both sides of the ball. The offense looks explosive -- much more explosive than it did last season -- and deep threats are opening things up on the ground ... or is it the ground game opening up the deep threats? More importantly, the Cardinal put together a 60-minute game, which is what David Shaw had been preaching all week. Mannion’s monster season continues with six more touchdowns -- an Oregon State record. He now has 21 passing touchdowns on the year -- and that’s his career high for a single season. He leads the country in passing touchdowns, attempts, completions and yards. And the Sun Devils, who rolled up 612 yards of offense, received a dominating performance by quarterback Taylor Kelly, who accounted for more than 400 yards of total offense.

4. Unimpressive: Weather, obviously, had a lot to do with some of the offensive struggles for Arizona, Cal and Colorado. But there were also drops, fumbles, picks and flat-out bad reads and passes. Cal's offense was grounded with just 325 total yards and five turnovers. USC’s defense also falls into the unimpressive category. Give the credit where it’s due for ASU. Kelly was fantastic with some of his back-shoulder throws and Marion Grice just keeps finding the end zone. That said, the Trojans, who had been getting it done on defense, looked tired and beaten in the fourth quarter. And now they are 0-2 in conference play for the first time since 2001.

5. Northern impressions: With the Oregon State and Washington victories, the Pac-12 North moves to 5-0 against the South. In previous weeks, Oregon State beat Utah in overtime, Washington State beat USC and Stanford beat ASU. The average score of those five games is 36-23. Next week brings us only one North-South matchup when Oregon makes a trip to Colorado. Arizona, Oregon State and USC are on byes and UCLA and Utah play the only South matchup. Stanford hosts Washington, WSU is at Cal, and ASU takes on Notre Dame.

It is a whole new ball game with recruits out West now that Lane Kiffin is out at USC.

The Trojans’ Class of 2014 recruiting efforts mirrored the product on the field. There were a few bright spots like highly regarded ESPN 300 defensive end Malik Dorton (Bellflower, Calif./St. John Bosco), ESPN 300 linebacker D.J. Calhoun (El Cerrito, Calif./El Cerrito) and ESPN 300 offensive lineman Toa Lobendahn (La Habra, Calif./La Habra), but it was also a class full of incompletions, fumbles and big misses.

The Trojans, in one of the deepest hotbeds of talent in the entire country and with one of the proudest football traditions around, were able to lure only seven commitments and watched conference rivals Arizona, Arizona State, Stanford, UCLA and Washington blow past them on the recruiting trail. Recruits and high school coaches throughout the Southland also raised major concerns about the way Kiffin interacted with -- or some say flat-out ignored -- many top local prospects and coaches when they would come for unofficial visits or wanted to talk shop.

You have to win the recruiting wars in Los Angeles if you’re going to dominate at USC. It’s something that Pete Carroll figured out the second he stepped into Heritage Hall, but Kiffin was never able to fully embrace.

However, the Trojans now have a chance to reset things.

If USC makes the right hire, there’s still a real chance to lure a number of the West’s best prospects. Twenty-seven of the Top 100 and eight of the top 15 prospects in California have yet to make up their minds.

Plus, there will be kids who are committed to other schools that will take a long look at the Trojans again with a new coach in charge. You can bet that players like ESPN 300 offensive lineman and Alabama commit Viane Talamaivao (Corona, Calif./Centennial), ESPN 300 athlete and Arizona commit Marquis Ware (Los Angeles/Salesian), Elite 11 quarterback and Miami commit Brad Kaaya (West Hills, Calif./Chaminade) and many other committed players in California will get calls from the new USC staff.

In recruiting, nothing can erase the errors of the old and give a school some new momentum like a coaching change.

USC now has the chance to right its recruiting wrongs. Coupled with the fact recruits and high school coaches still consider the Trojans Los Angeles’ football team, USC’s run to signing day in February could alter the Pac-12 for years to come.

So who deserves a helmet sticker for a job well done?

Brandin Cooks, WR, Oregon State: Cooks was the best player on the field in Corvallis, decisively winning his battle with Colorado WR Paul Richardson in the Beavers' 44-17 victory. Cooks caught nine passes for 168 yards (18.7 yards per catch) with two touchdowns. He also rushed five times for 47 yards.

Sean Mannion, QB, Oregon State: Cooks was brilliant, but Mannion was also stellar, throwing six touchdown passes, a new team record. He completed 27 of 52 passes for 414 yards with an interception in the blowout win. That pick, by the way, bounced off the chest of his receiver, so it shouldn't count against him.

Bishop Sankey, RB, Washington: Sankey set a school record with 40 carries in the Huskies' 31-13 win over Arizona. He gained 161 tough yards and scored a TD.

Taylor Kelly, QB, Arizona State: Kelly completed 23 of 34 passes for 351 yards with three touchdowns and an interception in the Sun Devils' 62-41 win over USC. He also rushed for 79 yards on just four carries -- 19.8 yards per pop.

Alden Darby, S, Arizona State: Darby had two interceptions against USC, including one he returned 46 yards for a touchdown. He also forced and recovered a fumble and tied for second on the Sun Devils with seven total tackles

Bralon Addison, PR, Oregon: Addison returned two punts for touchdowns against California, the first for 75 yards and the second for 67 yards.

Devon Cajuste, WR, Stanford: The big receiver was the star of the Cardinal's new downfield passing game. He caught four passes for 115 yards in their 55-17 win over Washington State, including touchdowns of 57 and 33 yards.

TEMPE, Ariz. -- It was blowout Saturday in the Pac-12. It was not a day and evening for subtlety. It was a time for loud butt kickings. Substantive statements were made in Seattle, Eugene and Tempe. And there was one notable whimper.

That whimper came from USC coach Lane Kiffin, whose Trojans were battered by Arizona State 62-41. It was the most points the Sun Devils have ever scored against USC. That sort of ignominy, coupled with an 0-2 start in Pac-12 play, pushed the likelihood Kiffin will be fired further from the speculative and toward the certain. All Kiffin could do afterward was show growing resignation about the crescendoing "hot seat" talk.

"I'm fine with that," he said. "I have been dealing with that for 12 months. That's fine. That's the last thing I'm worried about. We have to find a way to coach better and play better and get our backups ready."

The most notable backup will be whoever replaces Biletnikoff winner Marqise Lee. The unanimous All-American hurt his left knee in the fourth quarter and was carted off the field.

"Obviously it didn't look very good," Kiffin said. "It didn't sound very good or look very good, so that's all I got for you."

USC's wasn't the only dreary losers' locker room, as some harsh reality was delivered by conference favorites on Saturday.

The average margin of victory in Pac-12 games among Oregon, Stanford, Arizona State, Oregon State and Washington was 29 points. The closest game was Washington's 31-13 win over Arizona. The biggest margin was Oregon's 55-16 battering of California. Stanford humbled Washington State 55-17, while Oregon State brought Colorado back to earth with a 44-17 victory.

The Sun Devils made a statement in the South Division a week after getting pushed around at Stanford. They, by the way, are the only South Division team that owns a conference victory at this point.

It was an impressive bounce-back win for the Sun Devils, who gained 612 yards, their most since piling up 667 yards in a loss to Oregon in 2000. QB Taylor Kelly passed for 351 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for a team-high 79 yards. Touchdown-generating machine Marion Grice scored twice rushing and twice receiving. With 12 touchdowns this season, he seems likely to continue to lead the nation in scoring again this week.

The Sun Devils scorched a defense that hadn't yielded more than 285 yards or 14 points in its first four games. The offensive fireworks helped background a struggling run defense, one that yielded 247 yards to the Trojans.

While Arizona State made the first move in the South Division, the two North favorites, Oregon and Stanford, playing in the rain-soaked Northwest, continued to look like the lords of the Pac-12 manor.

The Ducks jumped all over mistake-prone Cal, grabbing a 27-0 lead in the first quarter and coasting home. The Ducks needed only 381 yards to score 55 points because of five Bears turnovers, including four fumbles.

Stanford did a slower mash on Washington State, turning a 17-3 halftime lead into a second-half laugher. The Cardinal scored touchdowns on a pair of pick-sixes, and a reinvigorated downfield passing attack included three scoring strikes from QB Kevin Hogan.

Looking up at the Ducks and Cardinal in the North are Washington and Oregon State. The 16th-ranked Huskies took down previously unbeaten Arizona behind 161 yards from RB Bishop Sankey, who did his damage with a school record 40 carries. Oregon State got a school record six touchdown passes from Sean Mannion while whipping Colorado.

The Huskies can make a big statement in the North next Saturday at Stanford. Washington upset the Cardinal last year in Seattle, but that was before Hogan took over at quarterback.

That's the headliner game in the conference next week. Arizona State will play Notre Dame in Cowboys Stadium, giving the Pac-12 another shot at being loud in nonconference play.

There was no fourth-quarter excitement on Saturday in Pac-12 games. But not only thrillers are meaningful.

While the Pac-12 has been lauded for its depth over the first quarter of the season, what Blowout Saturday made clear is there remains a clear line of demarcation between the teams in the top-half and the bottom half.

And USC's apparently being in the bottom half is going to be a problem for Kiffin.

TEMPE, Ariz. -- While it's still early in the season according to the calendar, it's difficult not to feel USC's visit to Arizona State is a must-win game for both teams. Both teams had preseason aspirations to win the South Division. Both are 0-1 in Pac-12 play. Neither can afford to fall to 0-2.

The greatest pressure is on USC coach Lane Kiffin. He sits on the hottest seat in the nation. While USC's defense has been outstanding under new coordinator Clancy Pendergast, its offense has been horrendous. And Kiffin is in charge of the offense. The Trojans, despite the presence of All-American receiver and Biletnikoff winner Marqise Lee, have been unable to consistently throw the ball. More accurately, they've struggled to even be mediocre doing it.

Arizona State is probably going to try to make USC QB Cody Kessler win the game with his arm. The problem with that is the Sun Devils' run defense is not a strength. It's yielded 174 yards per game, which ranks 11th in the conference.

Then there's the Sun Devils offense, which surged in the fourth quarter last week at Stanford. But that only happened when ASU was hopelessly down 39-7 after three quarters. Still, quarterback Taylor Kelly and receiver Jaelen Strong made some plays downfield, something that was missing from the Sun Devils offense last year.

A downfield threat might open up the Sun Devils running game, which has been surprisingly mediocre thus far. They are averaging just 2.9 yards per carry. Sure, Wisconsin and Stanford offered up strong run defense. But the Sun Devils opened the season believing they could run on anyone.

USC's run defense, however, ranks tops in the conference and third in the nation. The going won't be any easier tonight.

The Trojans have owned this series. They are 12-1 against the Sun Devils since 2000, including a 38-17 win last year. But their last meeting in Sun Devil Stadium was a 43-22 Arizona State victory.

If USC can pull off the win, some of the anti-Kiffin chatter will die down. It then gets a week off to try to solve the offensive woes before playing host to Arizona on Thursday, Oct. 10.

If Arizona State wins, it positions itself well in the South race as it heads to Texas to take on Notre Dame. The Sun Devils then might look like UCLA's top competition in the division.

The bottom line is the winner will remain in good position to still realize its preseason goals. The loser will not.

Here's a look at Saturday's games. All times are ET.

Colorado (2-0, 0-0) at Oregon State (3-1, 1-0), 3 p.m., Pac-12 Network
This is the first meeting of these teams as Pac-12 members. The Buffaloes lead the series 3-2, including a 28-21 win in 1988, the teams' last meeting. There should be plenty of passing in this game. Buffs QB Connor Wood has passed for 370.5 yards per game, which ranks fourth in the nation, while Oregon State's Sean Mannion has passed for 401.0 yards per game, which ranks second in the nation. Mannion also leads the nation with 15 touchdown passes. His top target is Brandin Cooks, who leads the nation with 10.8 catches per game and has caught seven of Mannion's TD throws. Meanwhile, Woods has Paul Richardson, who leads the nation with 208.5 yards receiving per game. The last time these teams played, Colorado rallied from a 21-16 fourth quarter deficit to pull out a 28-21 win. Buffs RB Eric Bienemy carried the ball 20 times for 211 yards and three TDs, including a 66-yard TD run in the fourth quarter to put Colorado on top. Oregon State QB Erik Wilhelm was 27-of-38 for 353 yards and 2 TDs.

Arizona (3-0, 0-0) at No. 16 Washington (3-0, 0-0) 7 p.m. FOX
Washington leads the series 18-10-1, but the Wildcats rolled the Huskies 52-17 last year in Tucson. Unlike the above game, this one might be about rushing. Arizona ranks fifth in the nation with 322.3 yards rushing per game, while Washington ranks ninth with 303.7 yards rushing per game. RB Ka'Deem Carey leads Arizona with 149.5 yards rushing per game, while the Huskies counter with Bishop Sankey, who averages 148.7 yards per game. Arizona leads the Pac-12 in scoring defense (8.7 ppg). Washington is third in the Pac- 12 in scoring defense (10.0 ppg). The Wildcats have given up only 26 points through three games. The last time they gave up 26 or fewer points through the first three games of the season was in 1996. The Wildcats are 2-9 over their last 11 league road games, with five of those nine losses coming against ranked opponents. The Huskies are 3-0 for the first time since 2001 and have scored 34 or more points in three straight games for the first time since 2002. UW senior QB Keith Price tossed three TD passes to add to his Husky career record total of 61 (tied for 20th all-time in Pac-12). Price has completed 77 percent of his passes this season with seven TDs and just one INT.

No. 5 Stanford (3-0, 1-0) vs. Washington State (3-1, 1-0), 10 p.m., ESPN (CenturyLink Field, Seattle)
Stanford leads the series 37-25-1, including a 24-17 victory last year. At 61 percent, Stanford is one of three Pac-12 teams with a third-down conversion rate better than 60 percent (UCLA at 68.3 percent, Washington at 65.9 percent). All three Pac-12 teams are among the top five nationally in third-down conversion. Stanford has won 11 straight dating back to last season, which is currently the second longest streak in FBS (Ohio State is at 15). Stanford is returning to CenturyLink Field, where it suffered its lone conference defeat last year, to Washington. Cardinal junior WR Ty Montgomery is third in the Pac-12 in all-purpose yardage (165.7 ypg) and averages 20.7 yards per touch. In the win over Idaho, Washington State junior QB Connor Halliday recorded his sixth career four-touchdown game, tying Ryan Leaf for most all-time in school history. With 346 yards passing, he also posted his third straight 300-yard performance, and eighth career 300-yard performance. Sophomore WR Gabe Marks posted career-highs with 11 receptions and 146 yards in the win over Idaho. His 31 receptions this season are currently tied for fifth among all FBS players. The Cougar defense is allowing just 221.7 yards per game over the last three games. The Cougars have won three in a row for the first time since the 2006 season and are looking to make it four straight for the first time since the winning the final game of the 2004 season and the first three contests of the 2005 season. In last season's surprisingly close game, Stanford sacked Cougars QB Jeff Tuel a record 10 times.

USC (3-1, 0-1) at Arizona State (2-1, 0-1), 10:30 p.m., ESPN2
USC leads the all-time series against Arizona State, 19-10. The Trojans are 12-1 in the series since 2000, with ASU's lone victory coming in 2011, a 43-22 win to end an 11-game losing streak. Before this millennium, ASU was 9-7 all-time against USC. The Trojans beat the Sun Devils in Los Angeles last year in a 38-17 rout in the Coliseum. Arizona State RB Marion Grice is ranked No. 1 in the nation in scoring (16) and No. 5 in rushing TDs (6). Over the past six games, he has scored 14 TDs (11 rushing, three receiving), scoring once every 7.8 touches in that span. Sun Devils QB Taylor Kelly set a new career high with 367 passing yards against Stanford, and is sixth in the nation at 339.7 passing ypg. USC OLB Morgan Breslin leads the Pac-12 in sacks (1.3 per game) and tackles for loss (1.8 per game) -- Breslin missed the opener against Hawaii due to injury. USC has four players on its roster from Arizona (OLB Devon Kennard of Desert Vista HS, C-OG Cyrus Hobbi of Saguaro HS, SNP Peter McBride of Chaparral HS and S John Auran of Brophy College Prep), while the Sun Devils feature 39 Californians.

California (1-2, 0-0) at No. 2 Oregon (3-0, 0-0), 10:30 p.m., Pac-12 Network
California leads the series 39-34-2, but the Ducks prevailed 59-17 last year. In that game, Ducks QB Marcus Mariota completed 27 of 34 passes for 377 yards with six touchdowns and no interceptions, which gave him a 230.79 passer efficiency rating. Cal is facing its second-consecutive top-five opponent -- two weeks ago the Bears played Ohio State -- and third ranked foe this season. Cal freshman QB Jared Goff tops the FBS with 435.3 yards passing per game. The Ducks are 13th in the FBS in pass efficiency defense, so Goff versus the Ducks secondary is an interesting matchup. Oregon leads the Pac-12 and is second in the FBS in scoring, averaging 61.3 ppg. It has scored 50 or more points in a game three straight times and in 10 of the last 16 games. The Ducks have scored in less than two minutes on 23 of 28 scoring possessions, and 12 different players have found the end zone for the Ducks.