[FarmBoy]

I think people are also evaluating the relative importance of the game to each team. For Stanford, this is their shot at playing for the Rose Bowl. UCLA has almost nothing to play for. I'm not even insinuating that the coaching that (or players) will phone it in so they don't have to play the Ducks in Eugene. But psychologically, Stanford knows that if they lose this game, they're likely out of the CCG. UCLA players know that win or lose, they're already in the CCG. And if the Ducks win, they know they're traveling, whether they win or lose. In the trenches, this will matter. Who will put forward that last bit of effort to lock down their assignment? Stanford players will have the motivation.

[FarmBoy]

I think people are also evaluating the relative importance of the game to each team. For Stanford, this is their shot at playing for the Rose Bowl. UCLA has almost nothing to play for. I'm not even insinuating that the coaching that (or players) will phone it in so they don't have to play the Ducks in Eugene. But psychologically, Stanford knows that if they lose this game, they're likely out of the CCG. UCLA players know that win or lose, they're already in the CCG. And if the Ducks win, they know they're traveling, whether they win or lose. In the trenches, this will matter. Who will put forward that last bit of effort to lock down their assignment? Stanford players will have the motivation.