Deion Sanders and Colorado fall to 9th in Pac-12 power rankings

The Buffs are headed to UCLA in search of an upset victory

What a difference a week makes! Colorado entered their game against Stanford thinking they were a shoo-in for a bowl. Now, they’re staring down five straight games where they’ll likely be underdogs. 

It’s definitely a big challenge ahead for the Buffs in a league stacked from top to bottom.

Pac-12 Power Rankings

No. 1 Washington (7-0): Mishael Powell’s 89 yard pick six interception return keeps the Huskies at the top of the standings. The Pac-12, who just weeks ago looked like the strongest conference in the country, may now be down to just one possible playoff contender. And that team barely beat Arizona State!

No. 2 Oregon State (6-1): The Beavers will travel to Arizona and then on to Colorado the next two weeks. Three straight wins after a close loss to Washington State. Definitely a team that believes they can win the final Pac-12 Championship.

No. 3 Utah (6-1): Impressive win at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum! Kyle Whittingham with another masterful coaching performance. Injuries have decimated this team and they still keep on winning. I’m shocked.

No. 4 Oregon (6-1): Good bounce back win over Washington State. Bo Nix is now up to 19 touchdowns with just 1 interception on the year. Next up is a trip to Utah.

No. 5 USC (6-2): Two straight losses and the Trojans have gone from championship contenders to barely ranked in the top 25. USC travels to Cal this Saturday.

No. 6 UCLA (5-2): Bruins rolled over the Cardinals 42-7. Carson Steele had three rushing touchdowns in the win. Unlike Colorado a week earlier, they took a big lead and never let up against Stanford.

No. 7 Arizona (4-3): The Wildcats now have a legit shot at a bowl game. With three home games, along with road contests at Arizona State and Colorado, six wins seems very attainable.

No. 8 Washington State (4-3): What happened to this team? From 4-0 to 4-3, the Cougars need to get it together. Fortunately for them, they next face the bottom four teams in the league before their rivalry matchup with Washington.

No. 9 Colorado (4-3): Coach Prime told his squad this week that they need to steal a game back. They know they lost one, in Stanford, that they were supposed to win. Colorado has a shot at redemption when they enter a sold out Rose Bowl on Saturday.

No. 10 Cal (3-4): Head Coach Justin Wilcox could really use a signature win. They’ve been close against some good opponents and this may be the perfect time to catch a frustrated USC team. Wilcox is 33-40 as coach of the Bears, with only two bowl appearances. For that to change, they’re going to need to upset a couple of teams down the stretch.

No. 11 Arizona State (1-6): Kenny Dillingham’s squad gave it their all against Washington, it just wasn’t enough. Ultimately, passing on a chip shot field goal and having it turned into a pick six the other way was just madness.

No. 12 Stanford (2-5): When this team finishes 2-10, that Colorado game will seem even more tragic for Buffs fans.