A party on the Palouse, Popcorn Guy and a Bruin revival. Highlights from a crazy Pac-12 weekend
The long-awaited ‘College Gameday’ appearance in Pullman did NOT disappoint. As someone who has watched the show from the mid-90s, it was one of the best atmospheres they’ve ever had. While “Ol Crimson” was the star of the show, it was the tribute to “Popcorn Guy” that stole the show.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The Legacy lives on... <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PopcornGuy?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PopcornGuy</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/WSUCougars?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WSUCougars</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/WSUPullman?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WSUPullman</a> <a href="https://t.co/SHvGtMwa2c">pic.twitter.com/SHvGtMwa2c</a></p>— Maria Taylor (@MariaTaylor7) <a href="https://twitter.com/MariaTaylor7/status/1053677731001491456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 20, 2018</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">POPCORN FOR EVERYONE!!<a href="https://t.co/MlZqLgHXc1">pic.twitter.com/MlZqLgHXc1</a></p>— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) <a href="https://twitter.com/CollegeGameDay/status/1053660757085315073?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 20, 2018</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
WSU shakes up Pac-12 North race
As ‘College Gameday’ came to a close on Saturday morning in Pullman, I had a feeling that there was no way, absolutely no way, that Washington State loses against Oregon.
The Cougars made Oregon’s life a living hell on Saturday and turned up the notch on an already crazy Pac-12 North race. I mean, with a play like this, you kinda had to know the Ducks were in for a very long day.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">everything about this Washington State TD was awesome <a href="https://t.co/5nlAwQ0kwL">pic.twitter.com/5nlAwQ0kwL</a></p>— Sam Cooper (@SamDCooper) <a href="https://twitter.com/SamDCooper/status/1053797865628360705?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 20, 2018</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The Cougars’ victory forced a three-way tie for first place in the loss column with Washington and Stanford. The first battle for the outright division lead is Saturday when the Cougars go on the road to face Stanford. The winner of that game will next face Washington in a potential “winner take all” showdown for the north division crown.
USC’s Salt Lake City meltdown
While most of the nation was paying attention to what was going on in West Lafayette and Pullman, USC went up 14-0 on Utah on what looked to be a good night for the Trojans. That was as good as is was going to get for USC. Utah would go on a 34-point tear and dominate the Trojans in a 41-28 victory.
That loss has prompted some to call for the firing of the embattled USC head coach Clay Helton, who is now 9-9 in road games with the Trojans.
The other “LA Story”
First-year UCLA head coach Chip Kelly has had a rough start to his time in Westwood but is beginning to show some signs of life. UCLA has won two in a row after beating Arizona, giving the Bruins some momentum for Saturday’s game at the Rose Bowl against Utah. Another UCLA win could make the Pac-12 South as crazy as the north.
USC and Utah lead the south division while there’s a logjam with Colorado, Arizona and UCLA each with two victories. We will see some separation this weekend. USC faces off against last place Arizona State and Oregon will face a very wounded Arizona team.
Take a look at the standings now because this time next week, it could be completely different.
This story was originally published October 22, 2018 at 11:02 AM.