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Vilardo: 2023 Week 6 SuperWest Football Power Rankings

How teams from the Pac-12, Mountain West, and BYU stack up after their Week 5 games
, 12 min read
Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. leads the nation with 1,999 yards passing and is second with 16 touchdowns | Rick Scuteri/AP

Posted on October 6, 2023


  By Stephen Vilardo, SuperWest Sports
Following another week of football for the 25 SuperWest teams from the Pac-12, Mountain West, and BYU, it’s time to see how they stack up.

As always, these updated Power Rankings look at where each team stands at this moment in time. They are likely to fluctuate from week to week as some squads get hot and others struggle through slumps.

Speaking of streaks and slumps, three of the five longest win streaks in the nation are among the 25 teams we cover: Fresno State 14, Washington 12, and Air Force 10.

But also five of the six longest conference losing streaks: New Mexico 13, Nevada 9, Colorado 8, Stanford 7, Arizona State 6. But hey, someone has to win the CU-ASU game, right?

Here’s my assessment of the teams as we head into Week Six.

Oregon Ducks Logo Pac-12

1. Oregon (5-0, 2-0) â—„â–º
Oregon’s 51.6 points per game stands as the second-highest in the nation.

In their two conference games, the Ducks have outscored opponents 84-12.

A big showdown with Washington is on deck following the bye. That one will have big ramifications not only in the Pac-12 but on the national stage.

2. Washington (5-0, 2-0) â—„â–º
Washington has now won 12-straight games, the third-longest active streak in the nation.

In their win against Arizona, the Huskies had to shift things around but still produced. The Wildcats took the big pass play away from UW, but Michael Penix was able to connect with his talented receivers on short quick routes.

Slowed—but not stopped—the Huskies keep winning.

usc logo

3. USC (5-0, 3-0) â—„â–º
Caleb Williams looked great in the win against Colorado, especially in the opening half.

The Trojans were flat-out dominant for the opening 30 minutes against the Buffs, then they took their foot off the gas a bit and it almost came back to bite them.

4. Washington State (4-0, 1-0) â–²1
Washington State has a tough matchup this week with a trip to the Rose Bowl and UCLA.

Really this season in the Pac-12 we could say most teams will have a tough matchup every week, the conference is just that good!

For the Cougars though, a chance to pick up a big road win and solidify themselves among the very best.

5. Oregon State (4-1, 1-1) â–²3
Oregon State got a win over Utah last Friday night and while things were sloppy at times it was still a comfortable win over a very good team.

The Beavers were penalized way too often in the win with 11 flags for 100 yards. The defense completely owned a Utah offense that is trying to find its way.

6. Fresno State (5-0, 1-0) â—„â–º
Fresno State continues to roll this season. The Bulldog win streak is now at 14, the second-longest streak in the nation.

The Bulldogs have now scored points in each of their last 25 quarters played dating to last season.

The win over Nevada may not have been as dominant as expected, but they led this one 27-0 in the fourth quarter.

7. Air Force (5-0, 3-0) â–²2
Air Force has won 10 straight games, the fourth-longest streak in the nation.

The last time Air Force was 5-0 to start a season was 2003.

The Falcons absolutely owned San Diego State in the most recent 49-10 win. If you forget about the passing game against this offense they will make you pay.

8. Utah (4-1, 1-1) â–¼4
Injuries and deficiencies on the offensive side of the ball finally caught Utah for the first time this season.

The Utes need the return of Cam Rising to hopefully spark the offense.

The Utah defense is very good but will need some help from the other side of the ball, especially when they start playing some of the elite offenses on the schedule.

9. UCLA (3-1, 0-1) â–¼2
The UCLA defense is sixth in the nation allowing just 11.0 points per game this season. The offense has had some struggles.

Coming off a bye, the Bruins host a very good Washington State team that can put up points.

We will see how good that defense is this week.

10. Wyoming (4-1, 1-0) â—„â–º
The Cowboys are sneaky good.

They are playing good defense and running the ball. Harrison Waylee is a threat to break a long run off at any moment.

A tough two-game stretch with Fresno State and Air Force starts this week. We will get to see what Wyoming is made of in the next 14 days.

11. BYU (4-1, 1-1) â—„â–º
BYU fell in their Big 12 opener but got a win over Cincinnati in their first home game as a Big 12 member.

The Cougars gave up some yardage to the Bearcats but made plays in the end when they needed to. BYU ended the game with 31 fewer plays run than Cincinnati had.

Kedon Slovis has 10 passing TDs this season, and has already matched his total from all of last season with Pitt.

Arizona football Pac-12

12. Arizona (3-2, 1-1) â–²1
Arizona had some very good moments against Washington in their seven-point loss last week.

A win is always better than a loss, but I actually feel better about Arizona following this performance than I did after the one-point win over Stanford the game before.

The defensive game plan took the deep pass away from UW. Granted, the Wildcats still got picked apart on the short stuff, but they kept it close and remained within striking distance.

The Cats were limited by injuries, but Noah Fifita settled down as the game went on and looked good in the absence of Jayden de Laura.

13. Colorado (3-2, 0-2) â–¼1
Colorado fought back against USC and showed some fight at the end of the game.

The first half of the USC game was not a pretty sight for the Buffs though. The first six quarters of the Pac-12 season for CU showed what they are.

But the last two quarters against USC also showed what they are capable of and could give a lot of teams some issues this season.

This week is a chance to end the eight-game Pac-12 losing streak, the fourth-longest conference losing streak in the nation.

14. UNLV (4-1, 1-0) â–²2
UNLV has scored at least 40 points in each of their last three games; no Rebel team has ever accomplished that feat.

UNLV is off to a fast start and has now gone 7-2 in their last nine home games.

The defense has recorded 10 sacks in the last two games. Barry Odom has them moving in the right direction.

15. Cal (3-2, 1-1) â—„â–º
The Bears had a must-win game at home against Arizona State and they got the job done.

It was not pretty and it did nothing to indicate Cal is going to step up to the next tier but the three-point win was much needed.

Jaydn Ott returned and ran well, and that is huge for Cal. The QB play is still not where it should be. Sam Jackson V was just 12 of 29 throwing it but did not turn it over.

16. Boise State (2-3, 1-0) â–¼2
The Broncos had worked their way back to .500 on the season, but then stepped out of conference play and fell again.

Boise State still sits 1-0 in MW contests and should pick up their second conference win in as many tries against San Jose State this week.

Despite the loss to Memphis, the Broncos are still in good shape to accomplish what they want to this season. Ashton Jeanty has been dynamic out of the backfield.

17. Colorado State (2-2, 0-0) â–²1
The switch to Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi after the opener looks like it could be a difference-maker for this team.

The Rams won for the second straight game against Utah Tech. Sure, the most recent win was over an FCS opponent, but those have not been gimmes for CSU recently.

The Ram offense may finally be looking like the unit Jay Norvell was hoping to have.

18. Utah State (2-3, 0-1) â–²1
Utah State has been outscored 67-7 in the first quarter this season. The Aggies have just played from behind way too much this season.

This week could bring a shootout with Colorado State. If the Aggies fall behind early, it could be tough to get back in it and outscore the Rams.

But if USU can keep it tight, they should be able to exploit the Rams defense a bit.

19. San Diego State (2-3, 0-2) â–¼2
The Aztecs are in the midst of a four-game losing streak in which they have been outscored 144-60. Even their last win, against Idaho State, was a struggle.

This is an Aztec team that is struggling right now. They need to use the bye week to get it figured out.

The run defense in particular needs to get better in a hurry.

20. Hawai’i (2-4, 0-1) â—„â–º
Hawai’i’s up-and-down season went down again. The question is, Will it go back up again?

Brayden Schager is playing well at QB and has improved over last season.

Timmy Chang will need to get the defense to the point that they can stop the run before this team can take another step.

21. Arizona State (1-4, 0-2) â—„â–º
Arizona State has struggled so far this season. The Sun Devils will need to get a win this week to avoid their worst six-game start to a season since prior to World War II.

The Cal game was one on the schedule that ASU had to feel like they could get. Colorado at home could be another one.

But the long season will keep getting longer at this point.

22. San Jose State (1-4, 0-1) â—„â–º
San Jose State ranks 129th in the nation against the run.

Hopefully, for the Spartans’ sake, they can get the run defense fixed or the season could get away from them fast.

23. New Mexico (2-3, 0-1) â—„â–º
New Mexico is moving the ball better on offense this season and is keeping things tighter than last year.

They need to pick up a conference win at some point, the Lobos have lost 13 straight MW games, the second-longest streak in the nation. Since 2017 UNM has gone 5-43 in conference games.

24. Stanford (1-4, 0-3) â—„â–º
Stanford has lost seven straight games to Pac-12 opponents. The most recent one came at the hands of Oregon 42-6.

The good news is the Cardinal put two FGs on the board prior to the Ducks scoring a point.

The bad news is the 42 unanswered they allowed. Troy Taylor has a lot of work to do.

25. Nevada (0-5, 0-1) â—„â–º
Nevada has lost 15 straight games, the longest active streak in the nation.

The Wolf Pack have looked better in recent weeks, but are still searching for their first win since September 3, 2022.



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