Pac-12 Football: Washington takes over top spot out West

After four consecutive wins to begin the season, including league victories over USC and Oregon, Stanford appeared ready to cash-in as a contender for the College Football Playoff.

Those hopes, though, were halted for the time being in South Bend, as the Cardinal fell to Notre Dame, 38-17, in a Top-10 matchup.

.K.J. Costello threw for 174 yards and Bryce Love was held under 100 for the third time in four games this season. Love, the Heisman runner-up last year, had just 73 yards rushing before leaving early with an injury.

The Cardinal defense is allowing just 13.5 points per game, but teams are picking up over 350 yards per. They have 13 sacks and seven forced turnovers.

Stanford returns home to host Arizona State with games against the two schools from Washington to follow over back-to-back weeks. Look for Costello and J.J. Arcega-Whiteside to have a big game this Saturday.

Arcega-Whiteside has 17 catches for 408 yards and seven touchdowns on the season.

The Huskies have almost always been one of the strongest defensive units in the Pac-12, and that continues this year.

Through five games, teams are allowing just 11.6 points and 281 yards of total offense vs. Washington, numbers that have allowed them to start 4-1 with wins over Utah, Arizona State and BYU.

Now, the Huskies have another game they will be heavy favorites in as they head to UCLA before back-to-back showdowns with Oregon and Colorado.

Jake Browning recently set a new school-record for career passing yards, as he has thrown for 1,243 on the year with eight touchdowns. Aaron Fuller is his favorite target, hauling in 30 receptions for 474 yards.

Myles Gaskin anchors the ground unit with 438 yards and thee touchdowns, with Salvon Ahmed adding 242 and two scores.