Some things we learned about the Pac-12 in Week 4:
No quit in Arizona: California led 28-6 at halftime and 31-13 going into the fourth quarter, and Arizona needed to go 85 yards in less than a minute without any timeouts. There were plenty of reasons to quit believing. Didn’t happen. Instead, the college football world was treated to the best game of the season. Freshman quarterback Anu Solomon's 47-yard Hail Mary to Austin Hill as time expired to give Arizona a 49-45 win and the play of the year so far. Arizona’s 36 fourth-quarter points mark a new school record for a quarter and more than the Wildcats scored all game against Cal the past season (33).
Utah is a complete team: It’s not that we learned the Utes are a complete team this week, more that our previous assumption was confirmed. Let’s recap Utah's 26-10 victory over Michigan. Special teams: Kaelin Clay added a punt return for a touchdown and now leads the nation with three returns for scores; kicker Andy Phillips was 4-for-5 on field goals in bad weather, including one from 50 yards; and punter Tom Hacket twice pinned Michigan inside the 20. Defense: Allowed only a field goal, intercepted three passes and forced a quarterback change. Offense: There is room for improvement, but quarterback Travis Wilson bounced back from a scary injury and immediately led the team on a seamless touchdown drive. Backup quarterback Kendal Thompson threw a sloppy pick-six, but on the next drive he settled down and showed he can move the team as well. Next week against Washington State should be interesting. And the Utah fans came to play as well.
Mannion into record book: Oregon State quarterback Sean Mannion became the school’s all-time leading passer. He eluded a pass rush and completed a 27-yard pass to Hunter Jarmon in the third quarter to take the record from Derek Anderson, who threw for 11,249 yards between 2001 and 2004. Mannion finished with 275 yards passing and now has 11,339 for his career, but he didn’t throw a touchdown and had one pick against the Aztecs. The most impressive part of the 28-7 win over San Diego State was the Beavers’ defense, which allowed just 215 yards of offense.
Colorado takes advantage: By giving both Washington a game and Oregon State a late scare, Hawaii proved it could hang with Pac-12 teams. But that was in Hawaii. Colorado’s 21-12 win started at 8 a.m. Hawaiian time and was played at altitude, and the Warriors’ flight was delayed on Friday, which canceled its walk-through. That’s tough sledding. Still, Colorado deserves credit for taking advantage. The Buffaloes built a 21-6 halftime lead and hung on to move to 2-2 for the second straight season -- they’ve yet to start 3-2 since their move to the Pac-12 in 2011. WR Nelson Spruce continued his torrid start with 13 catches for 172 yards, which included a 71-yard touchdown.
Another passed test for Oregon: Oregon's first road game of the season didn't go as smoothly as it would have liked, but a 38-31 road win over Washington State is a road win, and the Ducks are probably better for it. Offensive line issues remain a concern, but Marcus Mariota again looked like the Heisman favorite, as he finished 21-of-25 for 329 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions. He also ran for 58 yards on 13 carries. Sports Illustrated jinx? Better luck next time.
Inconsistency remains at Washington: Georgia State has never beaten an FBS opponent but led Washington 14-0 at halftime. Sure, the Huskies bounced back to score 45 points in the second half and win 45-14. Still, the first half has to be concerning. Take it from coach Chris Petersen, who said, “If we show up like we did in the first half from here on out, we’ll get run out of the stadium and won’t be able to get back in.” Washington is still searching for an identity after playing starkly different types of games in each of Petersen’s first four as head coach. The competition level takes a big jump next week, when the Huskies get a visit from No. 16 Stanford. The 45 second-half points were the most a team scored in the second half after being shutout in the first since West Virginia scored 46 against Louisville in 2005.
Time to take Cal seriously: First, poor Cal. To play that well for that long only to lose on a Hail Mary is torture for a team and fan base that suffered mightily a year ago. Be extra nice to your Cal fan friends this week; this isn’t the time for jokes. As devastating a loss as this could be, the performance did legitimize the Golden Bears’ first two games. Quarterback Jared Goff played like an All-American for long stretches, and the defense played well early before being gassed. That fourth quarter, however, was worse than anything the Cal defense did a year ago. The lack of depth was again on display, just like it was against Northwestern.
Cougars can compete: The WSU team that showed up in Pullman was the version many were expecting -- and maybe even better -- to see all season, but for WSU to beat Oregon, it would have taken a near-perfect game. The Cougars made a few too many mistakes to get this win, but overall, it was a positive step -- just don't tell Mike Leach. All of a sudden, WSU looks like it can compete week-in, week-out. Two games into the season, that wasn't the case.