SI Pac-12 Week 5 Power Rankings: UCLA Back on the Rise

The Bruins inched back towards the top, but still have yet to cut into the Ducks lead at No. 1.

The Fan Nation and Sports Illustrated publishers of the Pac-12 have come together to for the latest update of the conference's hierarchy following Week 4.

UCLA football (3-1, 1-0 Pac-12) moved from No. 3 back up to No. 2 in the latest edition of the SI Pac-12 Power Rankings following its win over Stanford on Saturday. People were all over the place on the Bruins a week ago, as they were ranked everywhere between No. 2 and No. 5 on the six previous ballots, but there was much more of a consensus after they beat last week's runner-up team in the Cardinal.

All but one of the voters slotted UCLA in at No. 2. Ducks Digest was the lone holdout, instead putting Oregon State at No. 2 and the Bruins at No. 3.

Oregon remained the unanimous top team in the Pac-12 for the third week in a row, as they boast the only undefeated record of the 12 teams.

Arizona State, UCLA's next opponent, came in at No. 3. That means the Bruins will be part of a No. 2 vs. No. 3 matchup for the second week in a row after being the lower-seeded of the two teams in their game against the Cardinal on Saturday.

Here are the full Week 5 power rankings, as well as some brief thoughts from each of the publishers:

SI PAC-12 FOOTBALL POWER RANKINGS

1. Oregon (4-0, 1-0), 72 points (6 first-place votes)
2. UCLA (3-1, 1-0), 65
3. Arizona State (3-1, 1-0) 57
4. Oregon State (3-1, 1-0) 56
5. Stanford (2-2, 1-1) 45
6. Utah (2-2, 1-0) 41
7. Washington (2-2, 1-0) 39
8. USC (2-2, 1-2) 32
9. Cal (1-3, 0-1) 24
10 (tie). Colorado (1-3) 15
10 (tie). Washington State (1-3, 0-2) 15
12. Arizona (0-4, 0-1) 6

DONNIE DRUIN, ALL SUN DEVILS

1. Oregon; 2. UCLA; 3. Arizona State; 4. Oregon State; 5. Stanford; 6. Utah; 7. Washington; 8. USC; 9. Colorado; 10. Cal; 11. Washington State; 12. Arizona

Comment: Again, another not great week for the Pac-12. Oregon appears to be the only hope for the conference’s national pedigree. 

JAKE CURTIS, CAL SPORTS REPORT

1. Oregon; 2. UCLA; 3. Oregon State; 4. Arizona State; 5. Stanford; 6. Utah; 7. USC; 8. Washington; 9. Cal; 10. Washington State; 11. Colorado; 12. Arizona.

Comment: The easy picks are the one at the top and the one at the bottom, although it’s starting to look like the Pac-12 has a bunch of pretty bad teams lingering in the bottom half of the rankings.

MAX TORRES, DUCKS DIGEST

1. Oregon; 2. Oregon State; 3. UCLA; 4. Stanford; 5. Arizona State; 6. USC; 7. Utah; 8. Washington; 9. Cal; 10. Washington State; 11. Arizona; 12. Colorado

Comment: Oregon State continues to impress and looks like they've found their quarterback in Chance Nolan. Oregon's game against Stanford this week looks significantly more meaningful than many expected before the season, and the Ducks look vulnerable after an underwhelming performance against Arizona. It looks like the Bruins moved on from the Fresno State loss and should be dangerous the rest of the way.

SAM CONNON, ALL BRUINS

1. Oregon; 2. UCLA; 3. Arizona State; 4. Oregon State; 5. Utah; 6. Stanford; 7. Washington; 8. USC; 9. Cal; 10. Colorado; 11. Washington State; 12. Arizona

Comments: All eyes are surely on Oregon vs. UCLA coming up on Oct. 23, but don’t sleep on Arizona State visiting the Rose Bowl on Oct. 2. Far and away the two best teams in the Pac-12 South will go head-to-head in what stands to be a key matchup for the hierarchy of the division by year’s end. Oregon State showed they can be fun and legit, while USC’s performance up in Pullman a week ago was clearly a flash in the pan.

CLAUDETTE MONTANA PATTISON, ALL TROJANS

1. Oregon; 2. UCLA; 3. Arizona State; 4. Washington; 5. Oregon State; 6. Utah; 7. Stanford; 8. USC; 9. Cal; 10. Washington State; 11. Colorado; 12. Arizona

Comment: The USC Trojans disappoint again with a brutal loss to the Oregon State Beavers at home, 45-27. This was the first time the team has lost to the Beavs in the Coliseum since 1960. As the Bruins and Ducks continue to rise, the Trojans begin to fall further down the rankings. 

DAN RALEY, HUSKY MAVEN

1. Oregon; 2. UCLA; 3. Arizona State; 4. Oregon State; 5. Washington; 6. Stanford; 7. Utah; 8. Cal; 9. USC; 10. Colorado; 11. Washington State; 12. Arizona   

Comment: Is this the year of the Oregon schools? Both of them! The Beavers give hope to underdogs everywhere after ending six decades of futility against USC in Los Angeles. They haven’t been this good since Jonathan Smith played at OSU. If they can beat Washington at home, always a nemesis, anything goes.

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