College Football Playoff Ranking Projections: Top 25 for Week 12
By Zach Bigalke
After Washington lost on Friday night to Stanford, the door opened for Washington State to jump back up in the Pac-12 North. The Cougars followed through on the opportunity, taking down Utah in Salt Lake City 33-25 to move to 9-2 on the year. Now the Cougars hold control of their own fate, needing only to beat the Huskies in the Apple Cup to win the division.
Against the Utes on Saturday, Luke Falk threw for 311 yards and three touchdowns. He needed 69 passing attempts to get over 300 yards, though, and threw two interceptions. Washington State managed to put up only 27 rushing yards on 17 carries. Defense dominated for both teams, but the Cougars pulled ahead with four interceptions of their own.
Mike Leach’s team gets a well-deserved bye next weekend ahead of the showdown against the Huskies in Seattle on Thanksgiving weekend. The College Football Playoff might be a longshot even if the Cougars win the Pac-12 title, but they will move up in the Top 25 this week after keeping their conference hopes alive.