The Pac-12 has either two undefeated teams or no undefeated teams — it depends on your priorities.
USC and UCLA have won all five games on the scoreboard but lost twice against the spread.
In that regard, they are not the most successful teams in the conference through five weeks.
The following records against the spread are taken from teamrankings.com.
4-1: WSU, OSU, Utah and Washington
3-2: UCLA, USC, Cal, Oregon and Arizona
2-3: Arizona State
0-4: Stanford
0-5: Colorado
To the details …
Lines from vegasinsider.com (using BetMGM odds)
Trends from oddsshark.com and Phil Steele’s College Football 2022
Idle: Cal and Colorado
No. 11 Utah at No. 18 UCLA
Line: Utah -3.5 (total: 64.5)
Comment: The Utes have won — and covered — five in a row in this series, and only the first game in that stretch, in 2016, was close. Their victory margins in the past four are 31, 31, 46 and 20 points. (Last year, they rushed for 290 yards against UCLA.) The Bruins appear better equipped this time around, as reflected in the narrow point spread. UCLA has covered the spread in six of its last eight games overall, the Utes in six of their last seven.
Oregon State at Stanford
Line: Oregon State -6.5 (total: 58.5)
Comment: Some uncertainty here regarding OSU’s starting quarterback after Chance Nolan injured his neck in the loss at Utah. (Status this week: uncertain.)The Beavers have covered the spread in four of their past five games while Stanford has, incredibly, failed to cover in its past 10. The Cardinal’s last victory over an FBS opponent was Oct. 2, 2021 (Oregon), and the losses include a 35-14 defeat at OSU late last season. The Under has been the right call in four of the past six meetings.
No. 21 Washington at Arizona State
Line: Washington -13 (total: 55.5)
Comment: The reeling Sun Devils look for their first victory under interim coach Shaun Aguano after double-digit losses to Utah and USC. Washington is playing its second consecutive road game but had an extra day to prepare coming off the Friday visit to UCLA. Strong trend exists: The Devils have covered the spread in 13 of the past 14 matchups against UW and won 12 of the 14 outright. That includes a six-point home win in 2017 as an 18-point underdog.
Washington State at No. 6 USC
Line: USC -10.5 (total: 61.5)
Comment: To the extent that brand association impacts the betting public, this is a classic matchup in contrasts. Easily-overlooked WSU has covered the spread in nine of its last 10 conference games; money-gobbler USC has failed to cover in seven of its last eight. The Cougars have just two outright wins over the Trojans in the past decade. USC is 10th nationally in scoring (42.2 ppg) while WSU is 25th in scoring defense (18.2 ppg allowed).
No. 12 Oregon at Arizona
Line: Oregon -12.5 (total: 68.5)
Comment: The Ducks have encountered their share of trouble in the desert over the years in both Tucson and Tempe. Arizona has covered the spread in five of its past six home games overall and five of the past six in Tucson against Oregon specifically. The Under has been the right side of the total in six of the Ducks’ last eight road games. Weather shouldn’t be a factor: It’s warm this week in Eugene, and highs on Saturday in Tucson will be low-to-mid 80s with a chance of storms for the 6 p.m. game.
