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Just when it seemed like Washington State had all the Apple Cup momentum, Washington produced a strong response.

After the Cougars scored consecutive touchdowns to tie the game, the Huskies drove 61 yards in 1 minute, 41 seconds to retake the lead, 21-14 at the break.

The Huskies jumped to a 14-0 lead, mostly feeding off a sloppy start by the Cougars. Washington scored one touchdown on a blocked punt, then drove 55 yards for another.

The Cougars had five penalties, fumbled and gave up a blocked punt in the first quarter.

But Washington State found its footing on offense, driving 80 and 66 yards for touchdowns.

Both quarterbacks are playing well. Cougars QB Marshall Lobbestael completed 14 of 18 passes for 167 yards with two TDs and no interceptions. Huskies QB Keith Price completed 10 of 16 for 134 yards with two TDs and no picks.

So far, Washington State has done a good job of containing Washington running back Chris Polk.

The second half question may be which defense breaks first.

Washington State redshirt freshman quarterback Connor Halliday was released from Pullman Regional Hospital Tuesday, but he will not be making the trip to Seattle for the Apple Cup against Washington on Saturday.

Halliday suffered a lacerated liver in the Cougars' 30-27 overtime loss to Utah over the weekend but nonetheless finished the game.

Senior Marshall Lobbestael will get the start for the Cougars in CenturyLink Field, the Seattle Seahawks' home stadium. The Cougars already have lost starter Jeff Tuel (shoulder) for the season. Redshirt sophomore David Gilbertson, son of former Washington coach Keith Gilbertson, will be the backup.

Halliday set a Pac-12 freshman record with 494 yards passing and four touchdowns in an upset win over Arizona State, and he nearly led a comeback victory against Utah.

It might be a good thing that Washington quarterback Keith Price is going to miss Saturday's game at Oregon State. While that supposition hangs on the Huskies managing to beat the 2-8 Beavers with backup Nick Montana, Price has looked like he could use a break the past few weeks.

When the Huskies headed to Stanford on Oct. 22, they were 5-1 and ranked 22nd. Price, a sophomore, was fifth in the nation in passing efficiency (177.9) and had thrown 21 touchdown passes to just four interceptions.

Price and Washington got crunched 65-21 that evening, and a downward slide started for him and the Huskies, who have lost three of four, including the drubbing by the Cardinal. Price has throw four touchdown passes in his past four games, with six interceptions, and his rating has fallen to 155.1.

That's hardly terrible -- it ranks 16th in the nation. And, to be fair, the competition level went up, considering those defeats came to Stanford, Oregon and USC. But Price also threw three picks at home against woeful Arizona (though one wasn't his fault, he was saved from another by a penalty).

And, yes, coach Steve Sarkisian has seen it, too. Price has been playing with multiple injuries much of the season -- ankle, both knees -- but there's more than just a physical element to Price's recent struggles.

"I think when you start to struggle a little bit and you're a young quarterback, you can have a tendency to press and to maybe try a little too hard," Sarkisian said. "I think that's been a part of it."

But it's not all on Price.

"I don't think we've played very well around him," Sarkisian said. "I don't think we've protected the quarterback great. We haven't run the football as well as I think we can to take some of the pressure off of him. We haven't made tough catches. All of those things added up, your quarterback goes from being one of the hottest in the country to struggling a couple of games."

That's all fair. Price's receivers have dropped way too many passes. His offensive line has yielded 29 sacks, including seven to USC. And running back Chris Polk, who is averaging 113.2 yards per game, has only 116 total rush yards in the past two games.

So Price perhaps could use the break before the Apple Cup and whatever bowl game the Huskies end up in. Get healthy. Rediscover his kwan.

Of course, again, they need to win in Corvallis. To make sure that happens, the Huskies need to regain, to use Sarkisian's term, their "real sense of purpose and attitude," which he said he didn't see at USC.

As for Montana, son of NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Montana, he might not be asked to do too much if Polk can get back on track against the Pac-12's No. 11 run defense. But Sarkisian said he feels good about Montana running the entire offense.

"I feel great about Nick Montana because I have some experience with him now," Sarkisian said. "I understand what his demeanor is like on game day more so than the beginning of the season.''

The experience will be good for Montana. And the rest should be good for Price.

But none of it will feel good if it becomes the fourth loss in five games.

Lots and lots of Oregon-Stanford chatter this week. As it should be. Big game. Big stakes.

But there's a lot going on outside of Center Court.

• Three 5-4 Pac-12 teams can get bowl-eligible this week: California at Oregon State and the winner of UCLA's visit to Utah.
• Dennis Erickson was Paul Wulff's coach -- one of them, at least -- at Washington State. One of them is going to leave an axe wound in the other's once-promising season.
• Is Colorado going to win a Pac-12 game? It seems like a visit from 2-7 Arizona offers the last good chance for a conference win. The Buffs just don't win on the road, particularly against good teams, and their final two games are at UCLA and at Utah.
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AP Photo/Bret HartmanRick Neuheisel is trying to direct UCLA to its third consecutive win this weekend.
• Washington coach Steve Sarkisian has won two in a row over his former team, USC. He and Lane Kiffin have been trash-talking each other this week, which has been amusing. But this is a big game in the overall conference pecking order.

First there's Cal and UCLA.

Both program's have restless fan bases. Getting to a six win and bowl eligibility would quiet that a bit.

Cal needs to win. It will be an underdog in its final two games: at Stanford and at Arizona State. If the Bears finish 5-7 for a second consecutive year, coach Jeff Tedford will be near the top of hot seat lists going into 2012.

UCLA needs to win. Neuheisel is already on one of the nation's hottest seats, but a third consecutive quality victory might win friends and influence people. If that happens, the Bruins should be able to handle Colorado at home on Nov. 19. That then would set up a visit to archrival USC on the season's final weekend as a potential South Division title clincher.

And a loss at Utah would immediately bring the villagers and their torches back to Westwood.

If the Utes won at home, a third consecutive conference victory would suddenly turn a season that was once spiraling into the mire into one that could be pretty darn successful: 8-4 and a quality bowl game to get a potential ninth victory. Not too shabby after an 0-4 start in Pac-12 play.

Oregon State, Arizona and Colorado are just playing for pride. And every win makes the offseason just that much more tolerable. The Buffaloes and first-year coach Jon Embree, in particular, probably don't want to be freighted with a 1-12 record -- 0-9 in the conference -- for the next nine months.

Wulff is in a tight spot, period. Few folks believe he has a chance to save his job. But beating the Sun Devils -- not that far-fetched considering it could be rainy/snowy and cold on Saturday night -- would leave open the possibility of a late-run at a 6-6 finish. And, perhaps, 5-7 with an Apple Cup victory might offer Wulff some hope to return in 2012.

Meanwhile, for Erickson, a loss to the Cougars could overturn a once-promising season. Just two weeks ago, a 10-win regular season and South Division crown seemed likely. A second-consecutive defeat to a previously reeling team would cast a dark shadow over Tempe. Talk of Erickson's job security could renew.

As for USC-Washington, they are in the race for the unofficial title of "Third Best Team in the Pac-12." Both have good shots at winning nine games. The Huskies need to win their final three games. The Trojans need to go 2-1, and with a visit to Oregon on Nov. 19, this might be a must-win.

While the Trojans can't play in a bowl game due to NCAA sanctions, a 10-2 or 9-3 finish would generate plenty of positive momentum for the program as well as Kiffin.

The Huskies, meanwhile, could play their way into the Alamo Bowl. For a program that was 0-12 in 2008, there would be no mistaking the transformation under Sarkisian.

And he'd love to improve to 2-0 versus his buddy Lane Kiffin.

Taking stock of the fourth week of games in the Pac-12.

Team of the week: Washington State. While the Cougars buddies in Seattle deserve a tip of the cap for winning at Utah, it's not an exaggeration to say Washington State's comeback, 31-27 victory at Colorado was the most important result of the Paul Wulff Era. It was a show of mental toughness that will be nearly as important as improved talent for the Cougs' return to relevance.

Best game: The Cougars came back from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit with two TDs in the final 2 1/2 minutes, then forced a fumble to clinch the win. The key play was a 63-yard TD pass from Marshall Lobbestael to Marquess Wilson with 1:10 remaining.

Biggest play: Well, in order to spread the wealth -- Lobbestael-Wilson duly noted above -- Arizona State running back Cameron Marshall, playing on a nagging sprained ankle, turned in a physical, multi-tackle breaking 37-yard TD run against Oregon State that put the Sun Devils up 28-20 in the third quarter of a surprising tight contest with Oregon State.

Most memorable play: New category here to commemorate Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck's unbelievable, one-handed 13-yard reception against UCLA that also included him athletically getting a foot in-bounds. Hey, if the quarterback thing doesn't work out, there's always tight end (and we're only half-joking; he could play tight end).

Offensive standout: There will many outstanding offensive performances, but USC quarterback Matt Barkley completed 32-of-39 passes for a school-record 468 yards with four touchdowns in the Trojans' 48-41 victory against Arizona.

Defensive standout: Washington State linebacker Alex Hoffman-Ellis had 14 tackles -- 12 solo -- and two sacks against Colorado.

Special teams standout: Jamal Miles, Arizona State's multi-purpose star had a 78-yard punt return for a touchdown in the win against Oregon State.

Smiley face: The state of Washington. As Bud Withers of the Seattle Times pointed out, Washington and Washington State won road conference games on the same day for the first time since Oct. 18, 2003. Might the Apple Cup have some real stakes for both teams this year?

Frowny face: The new Pac-12 members. Colorado and Utah are now a combined 0-3 in conference play and 3-6 overall. The Buffaloes blew a 10-point fourth-quarter lead against Washington State, and Utah might have lost quarterback Jordan Wynn for a few weeks with a shoulder injury.

Thought of the week: Pac-12 defenses need to pick it up. No conference team ranks in the top-25 in total defense -- Stanford and California are 26th and 27th, respectively -- and eight rank 50th or worse. Here's a guess that the teams playing for the Pac-12 title on Dec. 2 will have top-50 defenses.

Questions for the week: Does Arizona State (4-1, 2-0) sew up the South Division on Saturday at Utah? The Utes, widely viewed as the Sun Devils top competition for the division title when the season began, are 0-2 in conference play and likely won't have Wynn. USC isn't eligible due to NCAA sanctions, and Arizona, UCLA and Colorado haven't shown much thus far.

The 11th of 12 quick updates on offseason Pac-12 goings on.

Washington in a sentence

• While QB Jake Locker is gone, the Huskies feel like they have turned a corner under third-year coach Steve Sarkisian after winning four consecutive games to finish 2010 -- including a Holiday Bowl victory over Nebraska -- but a number of young players will need to come through for them to exceed last season's win total.

The big issue

• While most of the focus will be on new starting quarterback Keith Price, youth on the offensive line and at linebacker might be more worrisome.

Quick hit news

• Starting cornerback Quinton Richardson suffered a high ankle sprain in preseason camp and is likely to miss the opener against Eastern Washington.
• Touted redshirt freshman running back Deontae Cooper will miss a second consecutive season due to a knee injury.
• Washington and Oregon were the only two Pac-12 programs that didn't experience any coaching staff turnover this offseason.
• Two touted in-state recruits, receiver Kasen Williams and tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins have played well in preseason camp and might end up winning starting jobs.
• JC transfer Antavius Sims and freshmen receiver Marvin Hall and running Kyle Lewis have yet to join the team as they still await approval of the NCAA Clearinghouse.
• More roster attrition: fullback Zach Fogerson and defensive tackle Chris Robinson "retired" due to recurrent injuries. Fullback Kimo Makaula transferred to Idaho State.
• Husky Stadium will begin a $250 million renovation in November that should be completed in advance of the 2013 season. Washington will play the 2011 Apple Cup against Washington State and all 2012 home games at CenturyLink Field, the Seahawks stadium near downtown Seattle.

First in a series looking at potential dream and nightmare scenarios for all Pac-12 teams.

Understand: These are not predictions. They are extreme scenarios and pieces of fiction. You can read last year's versions here.

We're going in reverse order of my post-spring power rankings (which might not be identical to my preseason power rankings).

Up first: Washington State

Best case

Idaho State isn't good; no one would say the Bengals should have been competitive with Washington State. But there was something about the way the Cougars marched over the Bengals like an army of steamrollers in a 62-3 victory that raised a few eyebrows in Pac-12 towns.

A 42-10 manhandling the following weekend over UNLV raised a few more. But it was a 38-17 victory at San Diego State that confirmed it: The Cougs will not be patsies in 2011.

"Making a statement? I don't know about that," said Cougars quarterback Jeff Tuel after throwing three touchdown passes and outplaying touted Aztecs quarterback Ryan Lindley. "We're 3-0. That's good. We've got a bye coming up. That's good. Then we start the Pac-12 season at Colorado. That's probably where we try to make a meaningful statement."

For three quarters, the only statement from the Cougs is "almost." Colorado leads 24-10 with eight minutes left in the final frame and is driving. But on a third and 4 from the Cougs 18, Travis Long catches Buffaloes quarterback Tyler Hansen from behind and slaps the ball loose. Washington State recovers. Three completions from Tuel gets the Cougars to the Buffs 25. A draw play for Rickey Galvin gets the rest of it.

The defense stops the Buffs again, but the ensuing punt is downed on the Cougs 8-yard line with 2:15 left.

Tuel to Marquess Wilson converts a third and 8. Tuel to Kristoff Williams for 33 yards gets the Cougs into Colorado territory. A screen to Logwone Mitz reaches the 14. Tuel scrambles to the four, but takes a sack on second and goal. On fourth down, Tuel loops a throw to Wilson in the corner of the endzone with seven seconds left.

"I started thinking about our 2-point play when we got the ball on the eight," Washington State coach Paul Wulff said after his Cougars improved to 4-0 with a 25-24 win. "I thought, 'What kind of name is Gino Simone anyway?' Sounds like some sort of pretentious fashionista doesn't it? Like, 'The spring collection from Gino Simone features silk and ruffles and bright colors that will make you feel fabulous!' Thought the kid needed a football moment. And I thought he would be open. I was right, eh?"

The Cougs get votes in both the AP and Coaches polls.

But then the rebirth hits a wall. An overtime loss at UCLA, is followed by a blowout home defeat to Stanford. Oregon State gets revenge for a 2010 loss to the Cougs, and Oregon rolls at home. A four-game losing streak has fans once again questioning Wulff. Athletic director Bill Moos says he won't comment until after the season, which is read as a refusal to give a vote of confidence.

Washington State picks up win No. 5 at California, but falls back to .500 on a late field goal by No. 19 Arizona State. Utah comes to town with hopes of a South Division championships, but the Utes trudge out 27-24 losers. Tuel scrambles for the winning score with no time left, which rocks Martin Stadium like it's 2002, as though Drew Dunning is again sliding on his knees after USC is vanquished in overtime.

Washington State, after winning just five games the previous three years under Wulff, is bowl eligible.

"Bowl eligible? That's great," Wulff said. "But I hate purple and that's all I can see right now."

The Cougars rolls 35-24 over the faltering Huskies -- last place in the Pac-12 North -- at CenturyLink Field in Seattle. Headline in the Sunday Seattle Times, "Sarkisian on the hot seat?"

Washington State whips Army in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl to finish 8-5, winning four of its final five games.

Wulff signs a contract extension exactly one month before signing a recruiting class ESPN.com's Tom Luginbill calls, "Shockingly good."

Worst case

It was a 2-0 start, but the 24-21 victory against Mountain West bottom-feeder UNLV didn't inspire many folks in Pullman.

The 35-30 loss at San Diego State felt revealing. Sure, quarterback Jeff Tuel can throw the football -- see three TD passes -- but giving up four sacks and rushing for just 96 yards isn't going to get it done. Nor is the defense yielding 487 yards.

The Cougars lose at Colorado but come back to surprise UCLA. That inspires hope: They are just three wins from bowl eligibility.

But no more wins come. Stanford, Oregon and Arizona State deliver beatdowns. Competitive games with Oregon State, California and Utah still include unhappy endings.

Wulff announces his resignation before the Apple Cup.

"While the program is better off today than when I took it over in 2008, my chief regret is that we just didn't get it done," he says. "I am and will forever be a Cougar. I only wish great things for this program in the future."

No. 15 Washington trounces Washington State 41-17. The Huskies head to the Alamo Bowl, where they bludgeon Texas A&M 35-10. ESPN.com shortly dubs them "darkhorse national title contenders in 2012."

The Cougars hire Tyrone Willingham to replace Wulff.

A football field is 100 yards long, and each yard marker has produced immortal memories in college football.

ESPN.com is looking at some of the most famous touchdowns in college football history for each and every yard marker, and Alex Brink's touchdown pass to Brandon Gibson that gave Washington State a 42-25 victory over rival Washington in the 2007 Apple Cup is the choice at 35 yards.

You can check out "Yards to Glory" here.

And here's what I wrote about Brink's pass, which I actually witnessed.

35. Apple Of Their Eye

Washington State takes Apple Cup in last-second fashion

Oct. 24, 2007: Washington State quarterback Alex Brink found Brandon Gibson for a 35-yard TD with 31 seconds left that gave the Cougars a 42-35 victory over rival Washington in the Apple Cup. Brink, who'd also connected with Gibson on a 40-yard scoring strike to tie the game at 35 with 7:30 remaining, threw for an Apple Cup record 399 yards and five TDs and became the first Cougars QB to beat the Huskies three times.

What joins men together, he said, is not the sharing of bread but the sharing of enemies.

• Some insights into Arizona.
• What does Arizona State look like at receiver?
• The Oregonian gives you a great link to keep up with the L'Affair de Willie Lyles. Ducks coach Chip Kelly and Lyles exchanged 12 text messages the day before LaMichael James committed to Oregon. Ducks fans, this will help define your vague worries into specific issues to obsess about.
• Some chats with UCLA recruits. And an update on Bruins recruiting.
• A Q&A with USC linebackers coach Joe Barry.
• Utah picks up commitments from a pair of linemen.
• Washington won't play this year's Apple Cup inside Qwest Field. It will play at CenturyLink Field. But there's a catch.
• Washington State has been historically bad under Paul Wulff.

I don't believe this! I've got a trig midterm tomorrow, and I'm being chased by Guido the killer pimp.

• Arizona athletic director Greg Byrne wants fans to help with compliance. Rutgers quarterback transfer Tom Savage will soon arrive in Tucson.
• Pat Tillman remains a significant presence at Arizona State
• A former California cornerback has been selected for the Golden Bears Athlete Hall of Fame. Talking about special teams.
• Some TV updates for Colorado. A former Buffalo offensive linemen is among the NFL's best.
• More on Oregon's military training.
• Debating what USC sanctions mean for UCLA. Three things you should know about the Bruins' offense.
• Some USC players who also will be tough to replace.
• An Apple Cup ticket update for Washington and Washington State.
• Washington State suffers a slight from a preseason preview magazine.

Every preseason we take a look at potential best-case and worst-case scenarios for every Pac-10 team. While these are often tongue-in-cheek, they nonetheless represent the top and bottom we see for each team.

So it might be worthwhile to revisit each.

Next up is Washington State, which finished 2-10.

Best Case: 5-7.

What was right: A little. The Cougars did beat Montana State. They did lose to SMU, USC, Oregon, Arizona, Stanford and California. They were more competitive than the previous two seasons. Washington did show up at the Apple Cup at 5-6, needing a win to earn its first bowl berth since 2002. This scenario feels a bit closer to what might actually happen this fall.

What was wrong: Well, there's a big difference in two wins and five. The Cougars lost badly at Oklahoma State in the opener (the Cowboys turned out to be much better than most folks anticipated). They got overwhelmed in the fourth quarter by UCLA. The 42-0 loss at Arizona State was the low point of the season. Oregon State was the Cougars' only Pac-10 victory. The Apple Cup was tight, but the Huskies prevailed in a high-scoring affair.

Worst case: 1-11, coach Paul Wulff resigns under pressure.

What was right: A lot. The Cougars were far better in 2010 than the previous two seasons, but they still won just two games, and one was over Montana State, as projected. The "surprisingly competitive" game with Oregon State turned out to be a win. While the Apple Cup wasn't really about Washington quarterback Jake Locker, the Huskies did win because of a marquee individual performance -- Chris Polk rushing for 284 yards -- and earn a berth in the Holiday Bowl. As for Wulff, the Cougars' improvement earned him another season, but AD Bill Moos has made it clear that just being competitive in 2011 won't be enough.

What was wrong: Not much. The Cougars beat Oregon State. Wulff survived to coach into 2011. Locker didn't get an invitation to the Heisman Trophy ceremony.

Conclusion: While the "worst case" more closely approximates what actually happened, if you are a Cougars optimist you saw enough in 2010 to make you hopeful. The season didn't feel like a "worst case" because the Cougars showed marked improvement and actually put players on the field who looked like they had the potential to play on Sundays in the future. Still, the question entering 2011 is would this "best case" be enough for Wulff to keep his job into Year 5?

Chris Tormey will get a different look at the Apple Cup this year.

Tormey, who was a Washington assistant from 1984-94 and 2004-08, has joined Washington State's staff as linebackers coach. Tormey, however, knows Eastern Washington. He grew up in Spokane.

A former head coach at Idaho and Nevada, he coached the past two seasons at Hawaii and served as the special team coach and also assisted with the safeties.

“Chris is going to be a great addition to our program,” Cougars coach Paul Wulff said in a statement. “He has been the head coach at both Idaho and Nevada, has 15 years of experience in the Pac-10, is a tremendous recruiter and is a very hard worker. He also grew up in Eastern Washington and understands the uniqueness and culture of coaching at Washington State University.”

Happy Friday.

• Arizona feels a bit like Charlie Brown this morning.
• Arizona State finds beating Arizona redeeming.
• Taking a closer look at California coach Jeff Tedford's contract.
• Oregon linebacker Casey Matthews has quietly become a star.
• Shhh! Oregon State has a plan to stop the Ducks.
• Considering Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck's season highlights.
• UCLA quarterback Richard Brehaut is eager to prove himself versus USC.
• USC quarterback Matt Barkley looks ready to go against UCLA. The game is bigger for Lane Kiffin than Rick Neuheisel.
• This Washington Husky is connected to a Coug.
• Washington State has a big-ticket receiver that may play a big role in the Apple Cup. Does the Apple Cup decide Paul Wulff's fate?

Some quick notes to get you through the hours until Saturday. Many thanks to ESPN Stats & Information.

• Warning, Oregon! Warning, Oregon! A team ranked in the BCS top two has lost its final game of the regular season 13 times in the previous 12 years. The last time neither of the top two teams lost on the first weekend of December was 2005.
• That said: Oregon State definitely doesn’t have history on its side in the Civil War. In the history of the AP poll, AP's No. 1 is 95-3-1 when playing a game in November or December against a team which entered the game with a losing record. The last time the AP No. 1 failed to win a game in November or December against a team with a losing record was Nov. 8, 1980, when 7-0 Notre Dame went to 1-7 Georgia Tech and tied the Yellow Jackets 3-3. Since that tie, AP No. 1 is 36-0 in this situation with only five games decided by a TD or less. The average score in those games: 44.3 to 9.9.
• Oregon was the first top-ranked team in the BCS standings to drop in the final four weeks of the season without losing.
• Oregon leads the nation with 50.5 points per game. The Ducks have scored a school-record 555 points and are on pace to score 656 points this season in 13 games, including their bowl game. The record for most points scored by a team in a 13-game season is 652 (2005 Texas Longhorns). The Horns averaged 50.2 PPG that season. In order to break that record, Oregon would need to score 98 points the rest of the way (49.0 PPG).
• Oregon’s 42 touchdown drives in under two minutes is more than 74 FBS teams have in total offensive touchdowns. The Ducks have 11 more drives that lasted less than two minutes than Oklahoma State, which ranks second in the nation.
• The Ducks also have 23 TD "drives" that took three or fewer plays. Auburn is No. 2 in that category at 19.
• Oregon also leads the nation with 30 TDs of 20-plus yards. Auburn in second with 26.
• Oregon State QB Ryan Katz's downfield passing might be a key to the Beavers' success. In their five wins, Katz has completed 48.7 percent of his passes of 15-plus yards with four TDs and no interceptions. In the Beavers' six losses, he completed 34 percent of his downfield throws with five TDs and five INTs.
• Oregon actually has a better winning percentage against the Beavers in Corvallis (.573) than at home (.519).
• Oregon is trying to beat Oregon State for the third straight time. No team has won more than two straight in this series since Oregon won four in a row from 1994-97.
• Oregon State has won five of the last six Civil Wars in Corvallis.
• Beavers junior running back Jacquizz Rodgers has 3,793 career rushing yards. If he rushes for 129 yards against the Ducks, he will move past Arizona's Trung Canidate and former Beaver Yvenson Bernard into sixth place on the Pac-10's all-time list.
• If the Ducks beat the Beavers, they will become the first Pac-10 team to go undefeated in a nine-game conference schedule.
• Oregon State, which is trying to avoid its first losing season since going 5-6 in 2005, will be wearing Nike Pro Combat Uniforms. It will be a tribute to the Beavers “Giant Killers” team of 1967 that beat top-ranked USC, second-ranked Purdue and tied second-ranked UCLA. That team went 7-2-1 and finished seventh in the AP poll.
• This is the 103rd edition of the Apple Cup. Washington leads the rivalry 65-31-6, including a 33-15 record since the Apple Cup trophy began being awarded in 1962. The series dates back to 1900.
• Washington becomes bowl eligible with a win. The Huskies haven’t been to a bowl game since the ’02 Sun Bowl.
• Washington State ranks 117^th in rushing offense (89.3 YPG), 109^th in scoring offense (18.8 PPG), 115^th in both rushing (211.6 YPG) and total defense (457.6 YPG) and 111th in scoring defense (35.9 PPG).
• The Cougars won their last game, three weeks ago against Oregon State and have not won two straight since the 2007 season (vs. San Diego State and Idaho). The Cougars have not won consecutive Pac-10 games since 2006 (vs Oregon and UCLA).
• A win would be the Cougars' third this season. Over the 2008-09 seasons, Washington State went 3-22.
• This is the 80th meeting between USC and UCLA, but the first since 2000 that neither is ranked for the game. USC has won 10 of the last 11 games (although they vacated the 2004 and 2005 wins). The Trojans’ only “on-field” loss came in 2006, when they entered the game as No. 2 in the AP poll and were upset 13-9 by unranked UCLA.
• Both teams will wear their home jerseys. These teams play for the Victory Bell and the winning school paints the bell with their school colors. The bell is painted cardinal red right now thanks to USC’s 28-7 win last year.
• Lane Kiffin is looking to win his eighth game in his first year as USC head coach. The last coach to win more in his first year with USC was John Robinson, who went 11-1 in 1976. Pete Carroll won six games his first year.
• USC would be bowl-eligible this season were it not for the NCAA sanctions that prevent it from going to a bowl, so the Trojans will miss out on a bowl this season for the first time since 2000. That was the last year with Paul Hackett as head coach and the year before Pete Carroll arrived.
• UCLA will miss out on a bowl for the second time in three years under Rick Neuheisel. UCLA went to a bowl every year in Karl Dorrell’s five seasons.

The "Crapple Cup" is no more. That hapless and widely ridiculed battle between Washington and Washington State in 2008 has given way to a game that has meaning Saturday for both programs.

If the Huskies win, they will become bowl eligible and enjoy the fruits of the postseason for the first time since 2002. If the Cougars win, they will announce a return to competitiveness after three seasons of being one of the worst BCS conference programs in the nation.

And they certainly would make coach Paul Wulff more secure as he tries to convince school administrators and a gaggle of frustrated boosters that he is the right guy to lead the program in 2011, which would be his fourth season.

"We know we've been in a major rebuilding mode, but we're about out of that part," Wulff said. "I think this is a bowl-quality team heading into next year."

It felt like Wulff and the Cougs broke through with a 31-14 win at Oregon State, which ended a 16-game Pac-10 losing streak. After a season of improvement and competitive losses, that was a tangible step forward in the record book. But there is a group of boosters who fell out of love with Wulff early-on in his tenure. It's hard to ignore that athletic director Bill Moos -- long thought to be in Wulff's corner -- has been silent on Wulff's status, which suggests there are machinations going on in the background, as highly respected Spokesman-Review columnist John Blanchette pointed out.

The Apple Cup might not -- shouldn't really -- decide Wulff's fate. But winning wouldn't hurt.

As for the Huskies, it's all about the bowl game. They are the Pac-10's best hope -- Oregon State also would finish 6-6 if it beat No. 1 Oregon on Saturday -- for a fourth bowl team. Most years, earning a sixth win on the season's final weekend would only garner a low-rung bowl invitation. But if Washington wins, it's going to either the Alamo Bowl -- if Arizona loses to Arizona State on Thursday -- or the Holiday Bowl. In either case, the Huskies will end up opposite a nationally ranked Big 12 team. That ain't too shabby.

Further, it would mean quarterback Jake Locker plays in his first bowl game, a nice cap for a disappointing senior season.

"It's special for him obviously, with all of the kind of ups and downs we have been through this year," coach Steve Sarkisian said.

There are a couple other issues, starting with weather. It's expected to be cold -- in the 20s -- and perhaps snowy on Saturday in Pullman. But both coaches called that a non-issue, with Wulff pointing out that it's a myth that the Cougars, with a roster made up significantly Californians, are used to playing in the snow.

Second: The Cougars haven't played since Nov. 13. That three-week layoff should produce a fresh, rested team, but it also might lack sharpness.

The Huskies are beaten up -- the latest casualty, offensive tackle Senio Kelemete, is decidedly questionable with a high ankle sprain -- but they should be sharp after winning two in a row to get to the cusp of bowl eligibility.

Neither team should lack for motivation.

The 2010 Apple Cup is about progress. For the Huskies, that means earning a bowl berth. For the Cougars, it means suggesting they will be contenders for one in 2011.

"To have the opportunity to go play in a bowl game symbolizes progress, no doubt," Sarkisian said. "Whether completely internally, it has that perception externally."

Oh, there's also this: It's a rivalry game and these two programs don't like each other. Don't want to forget that.