The 12 college football programs that made up the last full iteration of the Pac-12 conference are off to an outstanding start to the season collectively, a brutal reminder to west coast football fans of what could have been.
The teams currently sit with a combined record of 21-2, with the only losses coming when Colorado got trounced by Nebraska in Week 2 and Stanford’s loss to TCU in Week 1.
The two remaining Pac-12 programs, Oregon State and Washington State, are a combined 4-0 with the Cougars securing a win over Big 12 opponent Texas Tech in Week 2. Those two teams will face their old rivals, Oregon and Washington, in Week 3 – matchups between four programs that are all 2-0 on the year.
Oregon didn’t make it look easy, only beating Idaho by 10 and needing a fourth quarter comeback to defeat Boise State, but they remain a legit player for a spot in the expanded College Football Playoff alongside the USC Trojans, who knocked off LSU in Week 1 before blowing out Utah State on Saturday.
Oregon and USC are two likely College Football Playoff contenders in the Big Ten, while the Utah Utes and Arizona Wildcats are both in the picture out of the Big 12. Those four teams are all ranked in the AP Top 25, with Washington (27) and Cal (3) picking up votes as well.
In the ACC, Cal picked up a quality win over SEC opponent Auburn in Week 2, establishing themselves as a legit player in the conference thanks to star running back Jaydn Ott and a strong defensive unit.
While many of the rivalry matchups will still take place this season, the college football world was robbed of an opportunity to see this group of teams compete against each other in 2024.