With one game already in the books, the focus shifts to the weekend games in the Pac-10. Washington took care of business at home on senior night last night, downing the UCLA Bruins, 24-7. The weekend action features a big rivalry game and three ranked teams in the Pac-10. It all kicks off at 12:30 p.m. when Stanford battles Cal in the Big Game. Who do the experts favor? Check out the roundup of all the college football picks.
In any rivalry game, picking a winner gets much more difficult. There's an added motivation that's typically absent in a regular season match-up, leading to games that are closer than one might expect. Stanford is clearly favored against the Cal Bears and are the superior team on paper, but a strong performance by Cal against the No. 1 Oregon Ducks makes choosing a winner harder in this case.
Over at CBS Sports, all five experts chose the Cardinal to bring home the axe. Rivals fell in line, as well, with all four experts and 95 percent of fans choosing Stanford. NBC Sports' John Tamanaha also chose the Cardinal by 14. Finally, Phil Steele picked the Cardinal in a close one, 24-21.
Looking for a team on upset alert? It could just be the USC Trojans. Back in the AP Top-25, the Trojans head to Corvallis to take on the reeling Oregon State Beavers. OSU lost to Washington State last weekend, snapping the Cougars' streak of 16 straight Pac-10 losses.
Steele picked the Trojans by a touchdown, but there were plenty of experts choosing the Beavers. Tamanaha chose Oregon State in an upset, 28-26. All four Rivals experts and 85 percent of the fans chose USC, as well. Four of the five CBS Sports pickers called it for USC, but one broke the trend and picked Oregon State. Can the Beavers bounce back this weekend? We'll find out Saturday afternoon.