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A general overall view of the line of scrimmage as Utah Utes quarterback Cameron Rising (7) prepares to throw the ball on the Pac-12 logo at midfield against the Oregon Ducks in the first half during the 2021 Pac-12 Championship Game at Allegiant Stadium.

FanNation's Week 2 Pac-12 power rankings

There has been an expected change at the top after both Utah and Oregon lost
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USC Trojans
USC Trojans
UCLA Bruins
UCLA Bruins
Oregon Ducks
Oregon Ducks
Utah Utes
Utah Utes
Stanford Cardinal
Stanford Cardinal

The first week for a couple Pac-12 schools was not pretty by any means, as Utah came up short at Florida and Oregon was embarrassed by Georgia. 

This of course has led to some movement in the AP Poll, and the FanNation weekly Power Rankings, which is voted on by seven Pac-12 writers from sites covering Cal, Oregon, UCLA, USC,  Utah, Washington, and Stanford. 

All but one voter had USC making the move to the top spot, Utah was No. 2 in all but one, and Oregon fell to as low as No. 7.

Let's take a look at the final rankings of the Week 2 Pac-12 Power Rankings as voted on by FanNation's various Pac-12 sites. 

12. Colorado

Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Brendon Lewis (12) throws a pass in the second half against the UCLA Bruins at Rose Bowl.

Unfortunately for Colorado they looked dreadful against TCU. They did appear to find some momentum after making the switch from Brendon Lewis to J.T. Shrout, but they still have a ways to go before they leave this bottom spot.

11. Arizona State

Seattle, Washington, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils running back Rachaad White (3) rushes against Washington Huskies linebacker Jackson Sirmon (43) and defensive back Kyler Gordon (2) during the second quarter at Alaska Airlines Field at Husky Stadium.

I may have been higher on Arizona State than the other writers, but I was really pleased with how Emory Jones was looking. They have a chance this week against No. 10 Oklahoma State to really make a move. 

10. Cal

California Golden Bears helmet is raised into the air amongst fans after defeating the Stanford Cardinal at Stanford Stadium.

Cal started off fairly slow against UC Davis and looked like a team still learning how to play together. There is room for improvement on the field, but it all starts with continuity. 

9. Stanford

Stanford Cardinal wide receiver Michael Wilson (4) catches the ball for a touchdown over Colgate Raiders defensive back Asauni Allen (7) during the second quarter at Stanford Stadium.

Stanford handled business, but made too many preventable mistakes against Colgate. There seemed to be rust, which is expected, but when they were clicking they were good. There were just a couple too many drives where the execution wasn't there. 

8. Arizona

Arizona Wildcats quarterback Jayden de Laura (7) gestures at the line of scrimmage during the second half against the San Diego State Aztecs at Snapdragon Stadium.

Arizona was one of the most pleasant surprises of Week 1. The additions of quarterback Jayden de Laura and Jacob Cowing may be the difference this season. I like many others expected them to struggle against a tough San Diego State team, but they surpassed my expectations by a long shot.  

7. Washington State

Washington State's Konner Gomes (77) celebrates with De'Zhaun Stribling (88) as he makes a touchdown in the third quarter at the 88th Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl against Central Michigan at Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso, Texas, on Friday, Dec. 31, 2021.

That first game did not seem representative at all of what most people were expecting from the Cougars. Whether they overlooked Idaho or came out flat, I don't think we will see them play that poorly again. As a team who some consider to be a Pac-12 dark horse,  that was a poor outing. 

6. Washington

Washington Huskies defensive back Brendan Radley-Hiles (44) participates in pregame warmups against the Washington State Cougars at Alaska Airlines Field at Husky Stadium. Mandatory

Washington looked really good on offense. That was the Michael Penix that we all grew to expect last year, as he looked like the star we got to know a couple years ago. Their quarterback play wasn't always consistent a year ago, but it Penix can be as good as he was in Week 1 that could help them make a run for the Pac-12. 

5. Oregon

Oregon Ducks quarterback Bo Nix (10) scrambles out to pass against the Georgia Bulldogs during the third quarter of the Chick-fil-A kickoff game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Yikes..Oregon was flat out overmatched against Georgia, and may need to go back to the drawing board. On offense they couldn't move the ball at all, and their defense displayed some of the sloppiest tackling I've seen in a while. They have all year to bounce back from this, but it was definitely a tough way to start the year.  

4. Oregon State

Oregon State Beavers quarterback Chance Nolan (10) throws the ball against the Utah State Aggies in the first half of the 2021 LA Bowl at SoFi Stadium.

The Beavers came out with a chip on their shoulder. They looked like they were even better than last season, and made life difficult for the Boise State offense. 

3. UCLA

UCLA Bruins quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson (1) throws a pass against the Southern California Trojans in the first half at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

If this was an attendance power ranking they'd be at the bottom, but after a slow start in the first half they really turned it up. When they finally flipped the switch, it was evident how good they can be. 

2. Utah

Utah Utes running back Tavion Thomas (9) celebrates after scoring a touchdown in the second quarter against the Ohio State Buckeyes during the 2022 Rose Bowl college football game at the Rose Bowl.

Only one writer had Utah still remaining as the No. 1 team, and while I think they can make their way back, they disappointed. Their loss was definitely more respectable than Oregon's, but they were on the wrong end of Anthony Richardson's coming out party. 

1. USC

Southern California Trojans quarterback Caleb Williams (13) throws the ball during the spring game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

As expected, this offense was looking explosive and unstoppable. The defense also added four interceptions, with three being returned for touchdowns. All but one of the writers were confident that USC looked the best, and is currently the team to beat. 

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