1. Utah (4-0, 1-0 Pac-12)
No. 10 Utah had quite a week. In addition to the Utes’ 62-20 beatdown of then-No. 13 Oregon, their season resume was bolstered by Michigan’s 31-0 demolition of then-No. 22 BYU. The Utes handled the Wolverines in week one, so – looking at UCLA’s one-point win over BYU – it’s not that crazy to vault Utah to the top of the conference power rankings.
2. UCLA (4-0, 1-0)
The No. 7 Bruins remain undefeated following their big victory in Tucson last weekend. They have a solid argument for a first-place ranking, but Utah’s momentum is undeniable. The long-term effect of key UCLA injuries also remains to be seen, but Bruin fans have to be impressed with their team so far in 2015. The top spot is in sight.
3. Stanford (3-1, 2-0)
The No. 18 Cardinal is undefeated in two games of conference play, with a big 41-31 victory over USC and last week’s win over Oregon State. The season-opening loss to Northwestern is troubling, but a continued strong showing against Pac-12 teams could continue boosting Stanford. If anything, this ranking is a tad optimistic.
4. USC (3-1, 1-1)
AP voters rank the No. 17 Trojans higher than the Cardinal, but the head-to-head result between the two leaves ‘SC narrowly behind in our power rankings. After going into Tempe and walking over the Sun Devils, it will be interesting to see if the Trojans can return to the level that analysts were projecting them to play at in the preseason.
5. Oregon (2-2, 0-1)
Did last weekend really happen? Eugene can’t believe it, and the nation responded accordingly. Dropping the Ducks out of the top 25 might be a slight overreaction, but this is certainly not your classic quarterback Marcus Mariota-era Oregon Ducks football. Can they recover to have a solid season? Probably.
6. California (4-0, 1-0)
The No. 24 Bears are undefeated, but have they truly been tested? Pac-12 play began for them last weekend with Washington, and Cal managed a 30-24 victory. After Washington State Saturday, the boys from Berkeley will face a grueling stretch against Utah, UCLA, USC and Oregon. Good luck.
7. Arizona (3-1, 0-1)
The previously-ranked Wildcats fell out of favor with AP voters following an embarrassment at home against the Bruins. The main reason? Teams are finally taking advantage of their weak defense. Arizona was already No. 92 in pass defense before it got shredded by the Rosen-led Bruin offense.
8. Arizona State (2-2, 0-1)
Unranked Arizona State’s season-opening loss to Texas A&M wasn’t too concerning, but then USC came to town. Yikes. Now the Sun Devils must take to the road and get back on track in Pasadena, and the Bruins won’t make that easy in the slightest.
9. Washington (2-2, 0-1)
It starts to get messy with the unranked Huskies. The bottom third of the Pac-12 is a scrum of okay-ish teams that simply face too many powerhouses on the path through their conference schedules. A bright spot: Washington had a solid showing against Cal, losing by just six with a second-half revival.
10. Colorado (3-1, 0-0)
The unranked Buffaloes are facing Oregon this week. They will lose, and it probably won’t be close. Is that a harsh assessment of a Colorado squad that just beat a team 48-0 last week? Maybe, but the losing team was Nicholls State. Nicholls State has a football team? Okay, we’ll stop.
11. Washington State (2-1, 0-0)
Unranked Washington State has looked solid thus far, starting 2-1 thanks to improvement on the defensive side of the ball. New defensive coordinator Alex Grinch has buoyed the Cougar defense in its early nonconference slate, but Pac-12 play is different. Grinch will get a rude introduction against Cal’s star quarterback Jared Goff on Saturday. The offense is nothing special either.
12. Oregon State (2-2, 0-1)
There’s no top-end talent on this roster. The unranked Beavers have two wins but both came against schools outside the Power Five. In two matchups against big programs – Michigan and Stanford – Oregon State has been outscored 77-31. Its 23 points per game ranks dead last in a conference full of dynamic offenses, and the defense is even worse.
Compiled by Tanner Walters and Matt Cummings, Bruin Sports senior staff.