Here are five things to keep an eye on in the Pac-12 this week.
Clinching scenarios: The math is simpler than it was last week. In the North, the winner of the Apple Cup wins the division. Washington State and Washington have matching 7-1 conference records, so it’s a winner-take-North scenario in Pullman. Regardless of the outcome, this will be the first time since conference expansion in 2011 that a school not named Stanford or Oregon has won the North. For that matter, it will be the first time neither of those teams will win the conference.
In the South, it all comes down to Colorado. If the Buffs can hold off visiting Utah, they will have completed a worst-to-first turnaround within the division after finishing 1-8 in Pac-12 play last season. At 7-1, they are tied with the Washington schools for the best record in the conference. If the Utes are able to play spoiler, then USC would repeat as South champs by virtue of its head-to-head tiebreaker over the Buffs. It's worth noting that every meeting between the two as Pac-12 members has come down to one possession, with the Utes winning four of five.
Nonconference finales: Stanford and USC wrapped up their conference schedules last week, with the Trojans finishing 7-2 in league play and the Cardinal finishing with mark of 6-3. The Trojans host a struggling Notre Dame team that will miss a bowl game for the first time since 2009. After an abysmal September, the Trojans have surged to seven consecutive wins. Notre Dame has won the Jeweled Shillelagh four of the last six times. But the Trojans won the last meeting in L.A. in 2014.
Recent history indicates the Cardinal are in pretty good shape to finish the regular season with nine wins. They have won 15 straight home nonconference games dating to 2007, and the Cardinal are 5-0 in season finales under David Shaw. Since Christian McCaffrey’s return from injury, the Cardinal have won four straight. During that stretch, McCaffrey has accounted for 787 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns.
Territorial Cup: As recognized by the NCAA, the annual meeting of Arizona State and Arizona is the oldest rivalry trophy game. It also features two teams that have started six quarterbacks between them this season. Things haven’t gone as planned in the Grand Canyon State. Injuries have decimated both squads, forcing them to start three different QBs each at some point during the year (Brandon Dawkins, Anu Solomon and Khalil Tate for Arizona; Manny Wilkins, Dillon Sterling-Cole and Brady White for ASU). The Sun Devils still have a shot at becoming bowl eligible. They’ve been sitting on five wins since Oct. 8 but have lost five straight. Things have been worse for the Wildcats, who have dropped eight in a row and haven’t won since Sept. 17. The closest they’ve come is the overtime loss to Washington. Every other game has been a double-digit loss.
Bowling at 5-7? UCLA and California had their rivalry games last week, with both losing to their crosstown counterparts. They enter the regular-season finale with matching 4-7 records. Is it possible the winner could still go bowling? It’s seeming more and more likely this will be the second straight season that multiple teams with a losing record go to a bowl game. Last year Minnesota, Nebraska and San Jose State went bowling with 5-7 marks. And all three won (which UCLA no doubt remembers). A 5-7 California or UCLA team might be able to make a case considering that between them they’ve scored wins over BYU, Texas and Utah and an overtime loss to Texas A&M. A lot of other potential 5-7 teams have to lose, and APR is a factor. But a win keeps a sliver of hope alive.
Civil War: Oregon enters the game having won the last eight meetings, which ties for the longest streak for either team in the history of the rivalry. Obviously, it lacks national attention, with both teams having down years. But at 3-8, the Beavers have shown solid progress and are coming off of a win last week against Arizona -- their second conference win of the year. That’s two more than last season. Oregon (4-7) is coming off a victory, too, after upending Utah. But as is usually the case with rivalry games, records rarely matter to those close to the programs. Said OSU coach Gary Andersen: “This game is a big game every year regardless of the situation or scenario. Our kids understand that. They know that. It’s a privilege and an honor for them to play in it.”