[OutsiderFan]

First of all, Southern Cal is just UCLA with better players.  What a terrible coach Helton is.  Southern Cal should have lost to Texas, possibly Cal, and got lucky to beat Utah.  I said last week that Utah isn't very good and Southern Cal would smash them, based on my belief Southern Cal was good.  After sleepwalking to a 21-7 deficit, they woke up, but Stanford beat Utah more soundly.  Southern Cal is not the team I thought they were, and apparently, neither are Washington and Washington State.

Stanford's run defense isn't good enough to beat teams that can run well and pass effectively.

Run well and pass decently: USC, SDSU, Washington
Don't run well and if they do, can't pass:  Rice, UCLA, ASU, Utah, Oregon, Oregon State, Washington State, Cal, ND

At this point, have to think Stanford will beat WSU.  They are a one-dimensional passing team and Stanford can play a very similar defense to Cal.  Combine this with Stanford's offense, and Stanford is too much for the Cougs.  So it really could come down to that Friday night game in November to decide the North.

Don't put Southern Cal in the title game just yet, because they would seem to have another loss in them, but even if they are in it, Stanford just doesn't have the front seven horses to stop the run well enough to beat them, IMO.  I know Phillips and Kalambayi were out for the first half vs. Oregon, but Stanford gave up 276 and 6.4 YPC to the floats.  If they had any semblance of a passing game, Stanford would have been in a 35-35-type game in the fourth quarter.

I've upped my pre-season Stanford prediction from 8-4 and no chance to win the North, to 9-3, with a sliver of a hope to get to 10-2 and win the North, given the pratfalls of the Washingtons in Week 7.  But given Washington is a balanced team with a very good defense, Stanford will be hard-pressed to win that game.

[OutsiderFan]

First of all, Southern Cal is just UCLA with better players.  What a terrible coach Helton is.  Southern Cal should have lost to Texas, possibly Cal, and got lucky to beat Utah.  I said last week that Utah isn't very good and Southern Cal would smash them, based on my belief Southern Cal was good.  After sleepwalking to a 21-7 deficit, they woke up, but Stanford beat Utah more soundly.  Southern Cal is not the team I thought they were, and apparently, neither are Washington and Washington State.

Stanford's run defense isn't good enough to beat teams that can run well and pass effectively.

Run well and pass decently: USC, SDSU, Washington
Don't run well and if they do, can't pass:  Rice, UCLA, ASU, Utah, Oregon, Oregon State, Washington State, Cal, ND

At this point, have to think Stanford will beat WSU.  They are a one-dimensional passing team and Stanford can play a very similar defense to Cal.  Combine this with Stanford's offense, and Stanford is too much for the Cougs.  So it really could come down to that Friday night game in November to decide the North.

Don't put Southern Cal in the title game just yet, because they would seem to have another loss in them, but even if they are in it, Stanford just doesn't have the front seven horses to stop the run well enough to beat them, IMO.  I know Phillips and Kalambayi were out for the first half vs. Oregon, but Stanford gave up 276 and 6.4 YPC to the floats.  If they had any semblance of a passing game, Stanford would have been in a 35-35-type game in the fourth quarter.

I've upped my pre-season Stanford prediction from 8-4 and no chance to win the North, to 9-3, with a sliver of a hope to get to 10-2 and win the North, given the pratfalls of the Washingtons in Week 7.  But given Washington is a balanced team with a very good defense, Stanford will be hard-pressed to win that game.