Pac-12: Did you know?

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By Ted Miller

Some notes to get you through the hours until Saturday. Many thanks to ESPN Stats & Information.

• Arizona has lost six straight games against FBS teams, a streak that started with a 42-17 loss to Stanford last season. The other losses in order were to USC, Oregon, Arizona State, and Oklahoma State (twice).
• Stanford tight ends Coby Fleener and Zach Ertz have caught five of Andrew Luck's seven touchdown passes this season. With 18 TD passes to tight ends since the start of the 2010 season, Luck has twice as many touchdown passes to tight ends than any other quarterback. Boise State's Kellen Moore has nine.
• Luck is at his best in the pocket, where he completed 73.0 percent of his passes last season. That's a higher rate than any quarterback taken in the 2011 NFL draft.
• Luck excels throwing after a play fake, averaging over 10 yards per attempt. In Stanford’s victory over Arizona last season, Luck faked a run and then threw the ball 44 yards in the air to Chris Owusu for a 45-yard touchdown. Since 2010, when Luck uses play action, he completes 72 percent of his throws with 12 TDs and no interceptions.
• Luck has 51 career touchdown passes at Stanford. He’s one behind Jim Plunkett (52) for the 3rd-most in school history. John Elway is the all-time leader with 77.
• Arizona QB Nick Foles has had success throwing the ball downfield on first down, but has struggled to complete passes thrown 20 yards or more in the air after that. On such throws, he's completed 53 percent on first down with six TDs and one interception. On second and third*downs, he's completed 24 percent with a TD and two picks.
• Stanford is looking to start 3-0 for the seconds consecutive season. The last time the Cardinal started two straight seasons 3-0 was 1971-72.
• Stanford has won 10 straight games dating back to last season. It’s the longest streak for the Cardinal since winning 13 straight games during the 1939-41 seasons and the second-longest current streak in the FBS (Auburn – 17).
• Arizona State and Illinois have not met since the teams opened up the season against one another in 1987 and 1988 (both games won by ASU).
• Arizona State has started 2-0 all five seasons under head coach Dennis Erickson. The only 3-0 start under Erickson came in his first season in 2007 when the Sun Devils began the season with eight straight victories.
• Illinois has lost 10 straight games to opponents ranked in the AP top-25 (last win came on November 10, 2007 at top-ranked Ohio State). The Illini are 3-18 against ranked opponents since Ron Zook took over the program in 2005 (all three wins came in 2007 season).
• The Illini have lost five straight games against current Pac-12 teams.
• This will be the first ever meeting between*Presbyterian and California. And hopefully the last.
• This will be the first of five "home" games Cal will play at AT&T Park while Memorial Stadium in Berkeley is being renovated.
• Colorado leads its series with Colorado State 60-20-2. The Buffaloes won 24-3 last year.
• Colorado had never lost a game in which it didn't surrender either a sack or turnover until last weekend against California.
• This will be the first ever meeting between Missouri State and Oregon. And hopefully the last.
• Oregon is a perfect 14-0 at home under head coach Chip Kelly. Missouri State has lost nine straight road games.
• Oregon has outscored its last four FCS opponents by 186 points (212-26) including a 69-0 win over Portland State last season.
• Ducks QB Darron Thomas has seven TD passes in the Ducks' first two games of the season (tied for most in FBS).
• Texas and UCLA have met five times, with UCLA winning each of the past three. That includes a 34-12 upset win in Austin last September in which Texas was outrushed 264-85.
• Texas gave up a season-high 264 rushing yards in its loss to UCLA. The Bruins were able to march slowly up and down the field, as 22 of their 57 rushes (38.6) went for 5 yards or more.
• Since that big win vs. Texas last year, coach Rick Neuheisel and UCLA is 3-7.
• USC leads its series with Syracuse 2-0. The teams last met in 1990, a 34-16 Trojans victory.
• The Trojan are averaging just 21 points per game, which ranks 10th in the Pac-12 and 91st in the nation.
• Utah leads its rivalry series with BYU 54-34-4. The Utes beat the Cougars 17-16 last year, rallying from a 16-0 deficit in the fourth quarter and blocking a 42-yard field goal to win.
• Two rivalry trophies are at stake at BYU: The Deseret Duel and the Beehive Boot.
• The Utes rank last in the Pac-12 in passing offense (169.5 yards per game), which is a big reason they also rank last in total offense (305.5 ypg). They also are last in passing efficiency and first downs (35).
• Since losing by a combined 94-16 in back-to-back weeks to Stanford and Oregon in 2010, Washington turned to running back Chris Polk. Polk has run for a 100 yards in five or his past six games, all wins by the Huskies.
• Nebraska QB Taylor Martinez rushed for 137 yards and three TDs in the first meeting with Washington last season and managed just 23 yards and no TD in the Holiday Bowl.
• Washington’s current six-game win streak is tied for the fourth-longest in the FBS. Washington is looking to start 3-0 for the first time since the 2001 season (started 4-0).
• In its lone previous meeting with San Diego State, Washington State won 45-17 in 2007.
• Washington State's offense averages 61.5 points per game, which leads the nation.

Originally posted by ESPN.com - Pac-10 Blog
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