Six Takeaways From Week 2 in the Pac-12

The redshirt senior had 16 rushing touchdowns coming into this season. He’s already tallied three more this season, with two coming against Fresno State. He is an early All-Pac-12 First Team All Purpose candidate this year.

3. WAZZU’s Defense is the Unit of the Week

Despite being 17.5-point underdogs, the Washington State Cougars upset the No. 19 Wisconsin Badgers 17-14. All credit goes to their defense. The squad was on the field for over 70 plays and about 38 minutes. Yet, the defense never wilted. It held Wisconsin scoreless in the second half and came up with stops late when Wisconsin had opportunities to tie the game.

The Cougs’ offense has struggled to find consistency through two games. However, head coach Jake Dickert’s defense has come ready to play in both games.

4. USC’s Fast Start Continues

After starting the game with six-straight scoring drives against Rice last week, the USC Trojans scored touchdowns on their first five possessions against Stanford Saturday. They have outscored opponents 66-28 in the first half this season.

Lincoln Riley has his offense dialed in. It registered 505 total yards in the 41-28 victory over the Cardinal. Quarterback Caleb Williams looked close to flawless again by completing 20 out of 27 passes for 341 yards and four TDs. Yes, Rice and Stanford are not the best opponents to gauge USC’s true offensive strength. However, Williams, Jordan Addison, Mario Williams, Travis Dye and company have looked dominant thus far.

5. Growing Pains in Tucson

It was all positive for the Arizona Wildcats last week after they beat San Diego State 38-20. The negative vibes cam this week as Mississippi State stomped Arizona 39-17.  The Wildcats kept it within a one-possession game into the fourth quarter. However, they didn’t have the offensive consistency to keep up.

Arizona QB Jayden de Laura completed 23 of 45 pass attempts for one TD and three interceptions. It was a poor performance, and head coach Jedd Fisch has some work to do with his transfer QB.

6. Washington’s Air Attack Has Some Juice

For the second-straight week against an inferior opponent, the Washington Huskies have looked explosive on offense. In the 52-6 win over Portland State, Michael Penix Jr. threw for 337 passing yards and two TDs.

Last year, the Huskies only threw for over 300 passing yards twice. They have already accomplished this feat through two games this season. Again, Kent State and Portland State are inferior opponents, but UW had issues with lower-level opponents last year (see Montana). Everyone will see how quickly HC Kalen DeBoer has fixed the passing offense against Michigan State next week.