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Before we get to the power ratings:
Couldn’t help but notice the Yahoo streaming experiment with the NFL game (Bills-Jaguars) was less than an overwhelming success.
The league backpedaled on the initial (30 million +) and secondary (15M) numbers — Yahoo rigged the situation, to a certain extent — with the consensus total of less than 2 million any-given-minute viewers.
Why does this matter to the Pac-12?
It has no immediate impact. But if you’re casting an eye to the availability, viability and revenue-generation power of live Internet/over-the-top streaming for the Pac12Nets — commissioner Larry Scott and his consultants were no doubt monitoring the situation closely — the NFL numbers are cause for mild encouragement, but not celebration.
Last week: 1-3
Season: 27-22-3
Five-star special: 4-4
All picks against the spread.
Lines taken from vegasinsider.com (opening lines used)
OREGON (pick) at ARIZONA STATE (Thursday): The line has moved in ASU’s favor by a few points. Strikes me that the extra time works to Oregon’s advantage in getting Vernon Adams that much better prepared. Gut says 1) something is not quite right with ASU and 2) Ducks rise to the occasion. Pick: Oregon.
USC (minus-4) at CAL: Looks far different now than it did a week ago, before USC took down Utah and Cal malfunctioned at UCLA. In fact, it now looks much like the past 11 duels, all won by the Trojans (and most have not been close). If Cal runs the ball effectively, it should be tight into the fourth quarter. If not, another wipeout could be in order. Pick: USC.
COLORADO (plus-18.5) at UCLA: The Buffs might as well continue to enjoy the victory in Corvallis, which snapped their Pac-12 losing streak, because no amount of preparation will alter their fate in the Rose Bowl. Pick: UCLA.
ARIZONA (no line) at WASHINGTON: For the second consecutive week, UW’s quarterback uncertainty has prevented Vegas from posting a line. My sense is that Jake Browning will play, and UW’s defense will dominate. If a line materializes, I’ll update. Pick: N/A
OREGON STATE (plus-21.5) at UTAH: Don’t expect this to be close, but also skeptical that Utah’s offense in general and Travis Wilson specifically are operating at a level that would result in 3 TD+ victory. What could change that? OSU turnovers. Pick: Oregon State.
STANFORD (minus-12.5) at WASHINGTON STATE: Spread passing teams have not fared well against the Cardinal over the years. (Their defenses, so use to seeing the spread in practice, can’t handle Stanford’s power running game.) Each time the Cardinal goes 70 yards for a TD in seven minutes, the pressure on WSU increases while the margin for error shrinks. Pick: Stanford.
Straight-up winners: Oregon, USC, UCLA, Washington, Utah and Stanford.
Five-star special: Stanford. One team (and quarterback) is used to big games. The other is not.
The post Pac-12 football: Picks of the Week (with intro on the NFL’s streaming experiment) appeared first on College Hotline.
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by Jon Wilner