Pac-12’s tough schedule comes with a price

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The Pac-12 wants to supplant the SEC as the self-proclaimed “toughest conference in college football.”

It’s nearly mission accomplished, but — as in most endeavors — be careful what you wish for.

By picking off five of Cal quarterback Jared Goff’s passes, Utah survived the matchup of the remaining Pac-12 unbeatens in a 30-24 nail-biter Saturday night. Although the Utes (5-0) are the highest-ranked Pac-12 team with a 2-0 conference record, they have yet to play an opponent in the Pac-12 South, considered by many to be one of the toughest divisions in college football.

For now, Utah deserves its place in the top five, and that season-opening win over Michigan is looking better every week. But will the Utes survive a gantlet that includes USC, UCLA and Arizona State? And if not, what does that leave the Pac-12?

Commissioner Larry Scott, who attended the Cal-Utah game in Salt Lake City, sounded very concerned. In fact, he didn’t hold back in attacking the scheduling disparity among Power 5 conferences.

“There’s always going to be differences between conferences in terms of strength of schedule,” Scott told reporters at the game. “I think that would be a big step forward for college football if every conference had to play nine conference games, play at least one marquee nonconference game and have a conference-championship game. It’d be great if we could mandate that, but that’s not the way the governance works right now.”

As it is now, the Pac-12 and Big 12 are the only conferences that play nine conference games, and the Big 12 doesn’t have a conference-title game. The Big Ten is moving to nine conference games next season, but the ACC and SEC are sticking to their eight-game conference schedules. Not only that, but every ACC and SEC team is playing at least one FCS opponent this season, a practice those conferences are not going to end anytime soon. For its part, the Big Ten has mandated that its members play only FBS opponents going forward.

Unless the playoff selection committee severely punishes teams for their nonconference schedules, these glorified scrimmages are going to continue for obvious reasons. For top-end teams such as Alabama, LSU and Florida State, they effectively shorten the regular season to nine or 10 games; for lower-tier teams, they make it easier to reach the six-win threshold to be bowl eligible.

Most Pac-12 teams play at least one Power 5 nonconference opponent every season (only Colorado and Arizona won’t this season), and USC and UCLA (along with Notre Dame) have never scheduled an FCS team. But with preseason favorites USC and Oregon already out of the playoff picture, will the committee pick a surprise Pac-12 champion with one or even two conference losses for the four-team playoff?

LSU’s Heisman-esque Leonard Fournette ran for 158 yards Saturday — a season low. LSU’s Heisman-esque Leonard Fournette ran for 158 yards Saturday — a season low. Photo: Jonathan Bachman, Associated Press Photo: Jonathan Bachman, Associated Press Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Pac-12’s tough schedule comes with a price 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Scott is already lobbying.

“Certainly, this season there’s no champion that will emerge from conference with a tougher pathway than what we’ve got.”

He hopes the committee agrees.

The Heisman race is over

The biggest upset of the weekend — aside from Texas shocking Oklahoma at the Cotton Bowl — was that Leonard Fournette did not rush for 200 yards. LSU’s sensational sophomore running back ran for a season-low 158 yards on 20 carries, playing only three quarters in the Tigers’ 45-24 rout of South Carolina.

The reality is that Fournette, who eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark in five games, is going to win the Heisman Trophy (barring injury, of course). The only other player who’s still faintly in the race is TCU quarterback Trevone Boykin, who continues to put up video-game like numbers out of necessity.

Game of the Week

TCU 52, Kansas State 45: The once-vaunted TCU defense was shredded once again, giving up at least 37 points for the third time this season. The Frogs had to rally from a 35-17 halftime deficit and overcome an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter to pull out the victory in Manhattan. Boykin passed for 301 yards and ran for an additional 124. He connected with Josh Doctson on a 55-yard strike with 1:10 to play to run TCU’s record to 6-0.

Player of the Week

Michigan defense: We’re awarding this to an entire unit, under the charge of defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin, who deserves a mountain of credit in Jim Harbaugh’s fast turnaround job in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines’ defense pitched its third consecutive shutout in a 38-0 demolition of Northwestern. It’s the first time Michigan has shut out three straight opponents since 1980. The nation’s top defensive unit has not allowed a score in its opponents’ past 41 possessions.

What’s next

Michigan State might be ranked higher in the polls, but Michigan is favored in a matchup at the Big House between in-state rivals. The Spartans have won six of the past seven meetings, but you get the feeling the worm has turned. ... Down South, Fournette and gang host Florida, also turned around ahead of schedule under Jim McElwain, in a game between SEC unbeatens.

Samuel Chi is the managing editor of RealClearSports.com. Twitter: @ThePlayoffGuru

AP Top 25

Rec. Pts Pv 1. Ohio State (27) 6-0 1,411 1 2. Baylor (13) 5-0 1,390 3 3. TCU (3) 6-0 1,354 2 4. Utah (16) 5-0 1,350 5 5. Clemson (1) 5-0 1,260 6 6. LSU 5-0 1,231 7 7. Michigan State 6-0 1,139 4 8. Florida 6-0 1,075 11 9. Texas A&M (1) 5-0 1,046 9 10. Alabama 5-1 1,034 8 11. Florida State 5-0 937 12 12. Michigan 5-1 894 18 13. Mississippi 5-1 803 14 14. Notre Dame 5-1 766 15 15. Stanford 4-1 662 16 16. Oklahoma St. 6-0 614 21 17. Iowa 6-0 520 22 18. UCLA 4-1 487 20 19. Oklahoma 4-1 342 10 20. Northwestern 5-1 317 13 21. Boise State 5-1 260 25 22. Toledo 5-0 237 24 23. Cal 5-1 204 23 24. Houston 5-0 121 NR 25. Duke 5-1 114 NR

Others receiving votes: Temple 96, Memphis 59, Arizona St. 27, Mississippi St. 19, Georgia 16, Texas Tech 10, BYU 8, Southern Cal 5, W. Kentucky 5, Kentucky 4, Penn St. 4, Navy 3, North Carolina 1.