ESPN College Football

A few sentences looking at this week's matchups.

No. 21 California (6-2, 4-1) at No. 7 USC (7-1, 5-1): It's a near-certainty that Cal will be USC's final ranked opponent before the bowl season, so the Trojans need to put on an impressive show to catch the eyes of fair-mind voters who recognize that USC belongs in the national title discussion. Of course, Cal doesn't give a flip about that. It wants to go to its first Rose Bowl since 1959, and it can do that if it wins out. The biggest intrigue is who the Bears starting quarterback will be and will he then be able to do anything against the nation's best defense?

Stanford (5-4, 4-2) at Oregon (6-3, 4-2): Stanford needs to win one of its final three games to obtain bowl eligibility -- the Cardinal hasn't been to a bowl since the Tyrone Willingham Administration (2001). Oregon, a team putting together a season of 'what ifs?' needs to regain its mojo. These are the two best rushing offenses in the Pac-10, but neither can pass a lick.

Oregon State (5-3, 4-1) at UCLA (3-5, 2-3): Will Oregon State quarterback Lyle Moevao play, or will the shoulder injury he suffered in the win over Arizona State make Sean Canfield the starter? And will Canfield show the same poise on the road that he did coming off the bench at home? And what about the UCLA quarterback situation? Is Kevin Craft, after a bye week, going to emerge as a consistent passer who no longer throws the ball around in seemingly random ways? The Beavers should be motivated by their 40-14 home loss to the Bruins last year. Recall that they led 14-12 in the fourth quarter before two muffed kickoff returns and a blocked punt helped UCLA roll up unanswered 28 points in a seven-minute span to win the game.

Arizona (5-3, 3-2) at Washington State (1-8, 0-6): Arizona goes to Pullman and gets its sixth win of the season and earns bowl eligibility. Only real question is whether the Cougars might fight to beat their smallest margin of defeat this year: 25 points. Wildcats will want to start fast and clear their bench in order to avoid any important injuries.

Arizona State (2-6, 1-4) at Washington (0-8, 0-5): How many 2-6 teams have been two-touchdown favorites on the road against a conference foe? Not many, but not many 2-6 teams get to play such a lousy opponent like Washington. The Sun Devils will easily end their six-game losing streak in front of what figures to be a half-full Husky Stadium.