College Football Picks: Pac-12 picks against the spread for Week 6

At least you can count on that much.

Sonny Dykes, admittedly, has never been to Rice-Eccles Stadium. It will be televised at on ESPN at 8 p.m. MT with Dave Pasch, Brian Griese and Tom Luginbill calling the game. Satellite listeners can tune in at Sirius 137 or XM 197.

This will be the Utes’ third time hosting “College GameDay”.

A few Cal fans are about ready to concede this one even before Lee Corso puts on his mascot head of choice.

No. 5 Utah (-7) vs. No. 23 California: I really like Cal. Yet here we are, almost halfway through the regular season, and the Golden Bears and Utes are the only teams in the Pac-12 North and South divisions, respectively, that remain undefeated. “I think the Oregon win was big and that if we win the Pac-12, more dudes will try and commit”. So Utah is not a babe in the woods, a cute program scrambling to enjoy its 15 minutes of fame. “If I cared enough to really feel something about it, it would be disdain”. Cal is winning with offense and on the arm of quarterback Jared Goff.

The Pac-12 has been filled with surprises and new teams rising toward the top. “When you play fast, you have confidence, and when you have confidence it gives you the ability to make plays”. However, it does indicate that what we’re seeing with the Cal defense is unusual.

Senior linebacker Gionni Paul took the mic and referenced Utah’s 62-20 win at Oregon on September 26th.

The offense for the bears must step up NOW.

There were no questions about the Utah run game and defense entering the season, but the quarterback position kept the Utes from being considered a Pac-12 contender. It’s too soon to say Book won’t get it, and he is leading the Utes in all-purpose yards with 148 per game.

It has become less simple, though. Oregon takes on Cal on Friday at 8pm Pacific Time.

The most points the Utes have allowed this season is 24, in a blowout win against Fresno State.

“We were ranked last and we didn’t talk about it”, Dykes said. They’ve held both Michigan and Oregon to season-low scores.

The victory sets up a battle between Cal and fifth-ranked Utah, the only two unbeaten teams in the Pac-12 Conference. The four starters have combined for 47 career starts, and will benefit from the return of DE Hunter Dimick who spent two weeks spent recovering from injury.

Junior Stephen Domingo, a transfer from Georgetown who gets his first chance for the Bears after coming back home to the Bay Area, has been impressed with how the young players have participated in the chat sessions. There has been no update on the status of freshman running back Marcel Brooks-Brown (gunshot wounds) or sophomore guard Lo Falemaka (gunshot wounds).

Each has steadily risen up the top 25 rankings through the first month and half of the season, but they’ve reached this critical juncture in entirely different ways. They showcase the best quarterback in the country, a stable of big, talented wide receivers, and running backs who handle their assignments well in an offense that doesn’t ask them to carry the ball a whole lot.

Martin is all about providing examples from his own path. Perspective is one of those teaching points. Consistency has been Wilson’s Achilles’ heel and the senior will be tested by a Cal defense that leads the nation with 18 turnovers. Wilson has been making excellent decisions and accurate throws.

Utah, like Cal, is undefeated.

“I’m kind of aggravated with it a little bit”, Lasco said this week.

Washington coach Chris Petersen faced his former team earlier this season when the Huskies traveled to Boise State. Carter doesn’t think there’s any danger of overconfidence or complacency. “We don’t want to eat each other”. “There are going to be arguments on certain things, we’re not going to see eye to eye but for us to be able to communicate through those disagreements and come to a solid conclusion is something that will help on the court as well”.