Arizona State's trip to Provo for a ranked matchup against BYU highlights the Pac-12 Week 3 contests
Photo: Keith Birmingham - AP
Article by WestCoastCFB
Colorado vs Minnesota
Betting Line: Colorado -2.5
Colorado nearly pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the season during their heartbreaking 10-7 loss to #5 Texas AM. The Buffs proved their defense, led by Nate Landman, is one of the best in the conference and now they must bounce back quickly with another P5 opponent coming to Boulder. Minnesota lost their star running back to a season ending injury and after losing to Ohio State by 14 the Gophers only beat Miami (Ohio) by 5 last weekend. The Buffs will lean on their defense and pound the rock giving them just enough points to pull off the win.
Prediction: Colorado 24 vs Minnesota 20
Oregon State vs Idaho
The Beavers bounced back nicely from their loss to Purdue with a dominant 45-27 win over Hawaii. Chance Nolan should have no problem putting up big numbers once again against an Idaho team that lost 56-14 to Indiana last weekend.
Prediction: Oregon State 52 vs Idaho 17
WSU vs USC
Betting Line: USC -8.5
USC had high hopes entering the 2021 season but they all came crashing down during their blowout loss to Stanford this past Saturday. The devastating loss resulted in Clay Helton being fired and now it will be interesting to see how the team responds. USC has a huge talent advantage over the Cougs and should be able to pull off the win if they avoid giving up on the season.
Prediction: USC 34 vs WSU 27
California vs Sacramento State
Cal suffered a tough loss to TCU and have now lost of 5 of their past 6 games. The Golden Bears should have no problem getting back on the winning track against Sacramento State.
Prediction: California 41 vs Sacramento State 10
Washington vs Arkansas State
Betting Line: Washington -16.5
The Huskies have scored just 17 points in their first two games and will have a tough time keeping up with a high powered Arkansas State offense. The Red Wolves feature two excellent QB's in Layne Hatcher, an Alabama transfer, and James Blackman who started at Florida State for a few seasons. Arkansas State's defense is vulnerable as witnessed by the 55 points they allowed to Memphis so the Huskies should be able to put up more points than they did last weekend against Michigan. In the end, we expect the Husky offense to simply not be able to put up enough points to keep the Huskies in this one unless they make major schematic changes.
Prediction: Arkansas State 28 vs Washington 20
Utah at San Diego State
Betting Line: Utah -8
San Diego State looked outstanding last weekend against Arizona while jumping out to a 35-7 lead at halftime and they consistently have one of the best defenses in the country. The Utes are coming off a loss to BYU last weekend and can't afford to derail their season with another disappointing loss. This one should be a slug fest but the Utes do just enough to pull off a hard fought win.
Prediction: Utah 21 vs San Diego State 20
Oregon vs Stony Brook
The Ducks scored one of their biggest wins in history against Ohio State last Saturday. They now get a much needed easy contest to rest some of their star players before conference play.
Prediction: Oregon 52 vs Stony Brook 14
Stanford at Vanderbilt
Betting Line: Stanford -12
The Cardinal looked awful offensively in Week 1 against Kansas State and I don't think anyone expected them to drop 42 on USC just one week later. This week we will see which offense we can expect from the Cardinal for the rest of the season.
Prediction: Stanford 37 vs Vanderbilt 14
Arizona vs NAU
The Wildcats regressed in a major way against San Diego State last weekend and extended their losing streak to 14 games. That streak should come to an end this Saturday with FCS Northern Arizona coming to town.
Prediction: Arizona 37 vs NAU 13
Betting Line: ASU -3.5
The big game of the week. The Cougars are coming off back to back wins against the Pac-12 and will look to make it three straight if they can take down an undefeated Arizona State team with Pac-12 title aspirations. BYU needs to avoid a let down loss after the emotional victory last week and will have a tough test against an Arizona State squad that features an elite defense and a dominant rushing attack.
Prediction: Arizona State 24 vs BYU 21
#13 UCLA vs Fresno State
Betting Line: UCLA -11.5
UCLA surprised many with their upset of #16 LSU and their rushing attack looks like one of the best in the country. Now they get another difficult opponent with the dynamic Jake Haener coming to Pasadena. Fresno State will likely keep it close early but the combination of Zach Charbonnet and Brittain Brown will be too much for the Bulldogs.
Prediction: UCLA 41 vs Fresno State 24