We're taking a look at the best week-by-week trips to make in the Pac-12. My editors call it the Ultimate Road Trip. I call it dangling meat for you guys until we can start writing about actual games. Chow down, gang.
Welcome to Week 2.
Friday. Sept. 11
Utah State at Utah
Sat. Sept. 12
Sacramento State at Washington
Massachusetts at Colorado
San Diego State at California
Arizona at Nevada
Idaho at USC
Oregon at Michigan State
UCF at Stanford
UCLA at UNLV
Cal Poly at Arizona State
Oregon State at Michigan
Washington State at Rutgers
My choice: Oregon at Michigan State
Why: Duh.
First off, what an amazing Week 1. I didn't expect Jim Harbaugh to come right out and declare Devontae Booker as the 2015 Heisman winner after one week. But Harbaugh will be Harbaugh. And Chris Petersen calling a Statue of Liberty for the two-point conversion game winner in overtime -- in the house that he built -- was vintage coach Pete. But come on, who didn't see that coming?
Now on to Week 2.
Much like last year's showdown in Eugene, this is one of those pivotal games that the playoff selection committee will be referencing -- probably more than once -- throughout the course of the season. If you go by Mark Schlabach's most recent “Way Too Early Top 25,” then both teams will be ranked in the Top 10. I think that's a fair guess for when the actual polls come out too.
This is the only nonconference game with some teeth for either school (Oregon also plays Eastern Washington and Georgia State while Michigan State plays Western Michigan, Air Force and Central Michigan). So if either of these teams want to impress the selection committee with an out-of-conference victory, this is the game to do it.
Naturally, revenge will be on MSU's mind after last year's 46-27 defeat in Eugene. A loss that returning quarterback Connor Cook called “sickening” after the Spartans yielded a 27-18 lead in the third quarter.
A few of you got on me yesterday for declaring the Washington-Boise State game the most intriguing nonconference game in the league this year. I stand by that declaration. But I didn't say it was the most pivotal. This game -- by far -- is more significant on so many levels. It's against a major conference team. It's against a team that will be ranked in the top 10. And it's being played by a pair of teams with playoff aspirations (paying attention, Baylor?). As the powers that be face a surge of lobbying from conferences come playoff time, this is the résumé-building game that separates teams.
While Oregon was probable to make the playoffs last year by virtue of winning the Pac-12 championship, their Week 2 win over Michigan State solidified it. That could be the case again this year ... for either team.
Worth noting, too, that Oregon State will only be an hour away playing Michigan the same day. That's a 9 a.m. PT kickoff, so there is plenty of time to watch the Beavers and then make the trek for the 5 p.m. PT kickoff in East Lansing. Oregon and Oregon State fans totally get along, right?