Washington Huskies

Taking stock of Week 13 in the Pac-12.

Team of the week: Quick: Name the team that you saw as a certainty to lose this past weekend. Washington State, right? The Cougars were 2-9, mired in controversy, and their best defensive player, OLB Travis Long, was out with an injury. Further, rival Washington was riding high, having won four games in a row. And when the Huskies took an 18-point lead into the fourth quarter, that certainty felt confirmed. Heck, the Pac-12 blog even tweeted a postmortem, declaring the Cougs dead. But despite all that was against them, the Cougars rose up and won. Kudos, particularly to the seniors, who end their careers on a high note.

Best game: The Apple Cup was exciting -- it went to overtime -- but it was terribly sloppy. No. 1 Notre Dame's 22-13 win over USC, while certainly not elegantly played by the Trojans, was a high-stakes affair that wasn't resolved until the waning moments of the fourth quarter. While Notre Dame was seemingly in control throughout, USC's offensive talent made it seem as though things could change quickly. The Fighting Irish stopped USC eight straight times inside the 10-yard line with 2:33 left to ice the game, which was pretty darn dramatic (though USC fans might use another term).

Biggest play: With less than six minutes left and the score tied at 27, Arizona lined up to punt from its 15-yard line. The Wildcats already had lost momentum, allowing a 10-point lead to slip away, but there was no reason it couldn't swing back their way. Unless they gave up a blocked punt, which they did. Kevin Ayers got the block, and it was recovered at the Arizona 8-yard line. A TD run from Cameron Marshall later, the Sun Devils took a lead they'd never relinquish.

Defensive standout: Arizona State LB Brandon Magee, a Pac-12 blog favorite, collected a career-high 17 tackles -- 14 solos -- with three coming for a loss in the Sun Devils' win over Arizona.

Defensive standout II: Stanford outside linebacker Chase Thomas, who has had a better season than his overall numbers indicate, was dominant against UCLA, recording two sacks in the win over the Bruins.

Offensive standout: It hasn't been the scintillating year many projected for Oregon WR/RB De'Anthony Thomas, a preseason Heisman Trophy candidate, but he came through big for the Ducks when they needed him in the Civil War. With Kenjon Barner banged up, Thomas turned in his best game of the season, rushing for 122 yards on 17 carries with three touchdowns. TD runs of 5 and 29 yards in the third quarter transformed a close game into a blowout.

Special-teams standout: Utah's Reggie Dunn quite simply has posted the best season a college football kick returner has ever had. In the win over Colorado, just after the Buffs tied the game with a 100-yard kickoff return, Dunn went 100 yards for a score on the ensuing kickoff, providing the winning points. It was the fourth time this season and fifth time in his career Dunn has gone 100 yards for a touchdown on a kick return. Both are NCAA records.

Special-teams standout II: Washington State kicker Andrew Furney came up big in the Cougs' come-from-behind Apple Cup win. He tied the game with a 45-yard field goal and won it in overtime with a 21-yard kick. On the night, he was 3-for-3.

Smiley face: It was reasonable to wonder how Stanford might react at UCLA after its emotional, hard-fought win at Oregon. But the Cardinal were efficient, businesslike and dominant on both sides of the ball against a very good Bruins team. I'd bet if you asked the SEC champion which team it wouldn't want to play for the national title, Stanford might be the first team mentioned.

Frowny face: Late in the fourth quarter and holding a nine-point lead, Notre Dame stopped USC eight straight times inside the 10-yard line. First, you give credit to Notre Dame, which plays outstanding defense. Then you acknowledge that Lane Kiffin's play calling at this crucial moment was ... terrible, as L.A. Times columnist Bill Plaschke wrote in detail here.

Thought of the week: With the Rose Bowl berth on the line, UCLA gets a second crack at Stanford on Friday in the Pac-12 championship game. With just six days separating that and their regular-season game, how might this matchup look different? Did the Bruins save some schematic ideas? Remember: UCLA already had won the South Division. With Oregon's win over Oregon State, the Cardinal needed to win at UCLA to earn the Pac-12 North Division crown. The Bruins' stakes were much lower: pride. If you're one for realpolitik in college football, a win Saturday would have sent the Bruins to boisterous Autzen Stadium for the Pac-12 title game. UCLA's chances to get to the Rose Bowl might be better at Stanford than they would have been at Oregon.

Questions for the week: Who had Stanford and UCLA as their North and South Division winners in August? Anyone? Anyone? I can't recall a published prediction picking either. But I now have written a post-it note that is now stuck to my desk: "There are no sure things. There are no sure things. Never forget." Of course, you know I will forget this.

If you don't like where you are in the power rankings, play better.

And, again, keep in mind the power rankings lean heavily on the week that was, not as much on the totality of the season.

See last week's power rankings here.

1. Stanford: I've started to think Stanford has become one of those "No one in the entire nation is playing better at this point of the season" teams. Certainly no team has better back-to-back wins over the past two weeks.

2. Oregon: The Ducks looked like their old selves against rival Oregon State. Best bet is they are headed to the Fiesta Bowl, where they will almost certainly play a Big 12 team that is ranked higher than the Big Ten's Rose Bowl representative. Maybe even good ole Kansas State.

3. UCLA: Were the Bruins -- consciously or unconsciously -- holding something back against Stanford on Saturday, knowing they'd already secured a berth in the Pac-12 title game? Maybe. We'll see in Friday's rematch.

4. Oregon State: Early in the third quarter, it looked like the Beavers might challenge the Ducks. Then -- poof -- Oregon went all Oregon and it was another blowout. Guessing the Beavers end up in the Holiday Bowl with the Pac-12 title game loser going to the Alamo Bowl.

5. Arizona State: It's official: Year 1 under new coach Todd Graham is an unquestioned success. Going 7-5 is one thing, but 7-5 with win No. 7 coming in Tucson is entirely different.

6. Arizona: While the reverse on the Arizona State verdict isn't true -- it's impossible to say the Wildcats didn't greatly exceed expectations in Rich Rodriguez's first season -- losing state bragging rights is an itch that will demand scratching for an entire year.

7. Utah: The Utes end the season with a close win at Colorado. That's not much -- at all -- but the teams below rate lower based on their recently elevated program misery index.

8. USC: Last year, the Trojans upset Oregon and beat their top rivals, Notre Dame and UCLA. This year, preluded by national championship expectations, they lost to all three. USC went from top-ranked to unranked, from expectations of 12-0 to 7-5. There are no grins inside Heritage Hall. Lane Kiffin will be near the top of every 2013 preseason coaching hot seat list.

9. Washington State: It was an awful season, full of losing and controversy. Ah, but when a Washington fan walks into the local watering hole, he will avert his eyes in shame from the Cougar contingent. When the folks in purple start to talk about all the great things going on at Washington, they will be silenced by a simple: "31-28. Stick it."

10. Washington: That was a dreadful choke in the Apple Cup, Huskies. You rightly should expect much grief from your Coug friends. Of course, you still have a bowl game ahead in which to secure an eighth win, which the Huskies haven't collected since 2001. Do that, and you not only will perk up several spots in the power rankings, you can enter the offseason with a smile.

11. California: Teams that fire their coach tend to tumble in the power rankings. But take heart, Golden Bears fans. See how quickly three of the four Pac-12 teams that hired new coaches a year ago climbed out of the doldrums.

12. Colorado: Worst season in Colorado history? Probably. Now there's just one question, Buffs: What are you going to do about it?

There is a term Washington State fans often use on their own team. "We Coug'ed it," they will say with considerable bitterness after a bad loss. Of course, other Pac-12 teams say it with a smirk.

Yet in the 105th Apple Cup, it was Washington that "Coug'ed it." Or "Husky'ed it," if you prefer.

Or just call it what it was: A massive choke.

Washington State overcame an 18-point fourth quarter deficit to force overtime against the Huskies, then used a bumbling Keith Price interception on the first play of overtime to set themselves up for Andrew Furney's game-winning 27 yard field goal.

So that's 21 unanswered points in the fourth and overtime for a team that entered the game averaging 19.5 points per game, one that was playing without its two best players: wide receiver Marquess Wilson, who quit the team, and outside linebacker Travis Long, who was injured.

Perhaps it shouldn't be looked on as a Washington choke. Perhaps it should be about the Cougars showing some grit against the rivals. Probably it's a little of both. In fact, Washington State fans might enjoy thinking of it both ways.

The win ended the Cougars' (3-9, 1-8) three-game losing streak in the rivalry series and an eight-game overall losing streak. The Huskies (7-5, 5-4) saw a four-game winning streak end.

It was a horribly sloppy game. The Cougars had four turnovers, the Huskies two. The Huskies also were flagged 17 times for 127 yards.

The Huskies, who didn't have a first down in the fourth quarter until their final possession, had a 35-yard field goal to win the game in regulation, but Travis Coons pushed the kick wide right.

In overtime, the Huskies got the ball first, but Price was intercepted on the first play by defensive tackle Kalafitoni Pole, who nearly rumbled the other way for a score before being tackled inside the 10-yard line.

The Cougars then calmly set themselves up for the winning kick, knowing Furney, who had tied the game at 28-28 with a 45-yard field goal with two minutes left, is the best clutch kicker in the conference.

Cougars quarterback Jeff Tuel completed 33 of 53 passes for 350 yards.

The Huskies, who had won 11 consecutive games decided by 10 points or fewer, were outgained 366 yards to 269. They trailed 10-7 at halftime but seemed to take control of the game with 21 unanswered third quarter points.

They didn't.

This means state bragging rights belong to the Cougars, even though they suffered through a miserable first year under new coach Mike Leach.

The Huskies get a bowl game -- though likely a lesser one -- in which to try to put a positive cap on their season.

But this one figures to hurt the men in purple for a bit.

SEATTLE -- Jaydon Mickens rarely passes up an opportunity to do extra drills. So, it wasn’t much of a surprise to see him linger on the Dempsey Indoor turf while his teammates headed for the locker room after a recent practice.

Once Mickens finished, he reflected on his freshman season.

The 5-foot-10, 170-pound receiver called it a “learning experience.” He pointed to the older players who have pushed him in the right direction.

When asked which players have helped him the most, Mickens didn’t hesitate.

“Actually, the whole team has taken me under their wings,” he said. “Everybody is trying to get each other better. Everybody is trying to get each other right.”

Then Mickens got more specific. He talked about defensive backs Sean Parker, Justin Glenn and Desmond Trufant making life difficult in practice in order to make things easier on Saturdays.

“All those guys are banding together, making me better,” Mickens said.

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