All three ranked Pac-10 teams are in action this weekend and the early picks are in. The Oregon Ducks are heavily favored against the Cal Bears this weekend in Berkeley, but another ranked team, the Arizona Wildcats, appear to be headed for a dog fight against the USC Trojans this weekend. The Wildcats are coming off a beating at the hands of No. 7 Stanford on national TV last weekend. Stanford heads to the desert to take on Arizona State after the big win.
Experts are already lining up to pick the games. Over at CBS, Adam Jacobi is calling an upset, picking the Sun Devils over the Stanford Cardinal in Tempe. The other four experts disagreed, choosing the favored Cardinal. In what's becoming a recurring theme, the Oregon Ducks are a unanimous pick at CBS. Oregon has steamrolled its way through the 2010 campaign so far, regularly scoring over 50 points and pulling away from opponents in the second half.
Arizona is also the unanimous choice against the USC Trojans. The Arizona Daily Star's Greg Hansen doesn't seem to be so confident. In a column today, Hansen wonders aloud if the Wildcats can win any of the three remaining games on the schedule, including this weekend's matchup against the Trojans.
I think it's entirely possible that Arizona will lose its remaining games, 0-3, which would include a season-crushing loss to the Sun Devils. I think this club has seen its best days this season, and if Stoops can coach Arizona to even one more victory this year, it would be remarkable.
The Cardinals have been plagued by injuries all season and have had trouble on the defensive end, especially in the secondary. Against a USC team with Matt Barkley at the helm, that's not an encouraging sign.
Check back all week for updated picks for around the web for all the Pac-10 matchups in week 11.