At the halfway point of the 2026 college football season, the Pac-12 has a clear front edge: No. 23 Boise State and Oregon State have pulled away from everybody else.
Boise State got there with a gritty 38-31 road win at Fresno State last Saturday. Oregon State followed by steamrolling San Diego State 66-14 at home. Those two programs now sit above the rest of the league, and their Nov. 14 meeting at Albertsons Stadium carries major weight - it could decide home field advantage for the Pac-12 championship game.
Boise State’s win was its best offensive showing of the year, and it came against one of the conference’s better defenses. Dylan Riley continues to drive the Broncos’ attack as the nation’s leading rusher, sitting at 127 carries for 835 yards and six touchdowns.
Oregon State, meanwhile, has turned its offense into a national talking point, but the Beavers have also quietly built the Pac-12’s best defense by yardage, allowing just 326.3 yards per game. That number may tighten up even more this week, with a matchup coming against one of the nation’s weakest offenses.
Fresno State took the loss to Boise State in a game where the Bulldogs fought but couldn’t get the stops they needed late. Their run game also wasn’t the same without Rayshon Luke, though he could be back this week.
The middle of the league is a mess of teams trying to find some traction. The Bobcats have a stretch of two home games they can win before heading into back-to-back road trips to Boise State and Oregon State. Colorado State gets a well-timed bye after that, and the break may help in more ways than one: quarterback Hauss Hejny could be back, and Jim Mora also got time to rework the defense after the firing of defensive coordinator Tyson Summers.
Utah State picked up a 17-16 home win over Washington State on Friday, and the result only reinforced what the standings already suggest: the bottom of the Pac-12 is ugly. In that kind of crowd, the Aggies have at least looked like the most competent team.
San Diego State’s situation has turned far more uneasy after the 66-14 loss at Oregon State. The source of that collapse was pointed: the Aztecs may have quit on head coach Sean Lewis during the blowout, and Saturday’s game will show whether there’s anything left in the tank.
Washington State remains at the bottom until Kirby Moore makes a change at quarterback, with Caden Pinnick still the starter after the Cougars’ 17-16 loss at Utah State. The next chance for a response comes Saturday at Oregon State.
In Other News...
Oregon State Rolled But Two Concerns Still Followed The Beavers
Oregon States 66-14 win over San Diego State at Reser Stadium looked like the kind of complete performance a coach wants to bottle up and save for later. The Beavers controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides, with the offense rolling and the defense delivering a steady answer whenever the Aztecs tried to settle in. Jesse Legree was among the players who stood out, and the overall feel was of a team that dictated the game rather than reacting to it.
Still, the cleanest wins usually leave a few things to sort through, and this one was no exception. The return of Pac-12 referees added its own layer, with a handful of officiating mistakes mixed into the afternoon, while Oregon State also had some issues to clean up in the kicking game and at cornerback. After a lopsided result like this, those are the kinds of details that matter most, because better opponents tend to find every crack. [Read more 🡒]
Oregon State Now Faces A New Problem In Washington State Game
Washington State is adding a fresh wrinkle for Oregon State to sort out this week, with coach Kirby Moore turning to Owen Eshelman at quarterback. Eshelman redshirted last year and has been preparing as the starter, so the Beavers will now have to game-plan for a quarterback they have not seen in college action yet.
The move comes after Caden Pinnick struggled through the first six games, leaving Washington State in search of a spark on offense. For Oregon State, it means another layer of uncertainty in a matchup where the Cougars are trying to reset the position and make the Beavers adjust on the fly. [Read more 🡒]
Oregon State Gets Needed Reinforcements As One Injury Concern Grows
Oregon State is getting some welcome signs of help as the season moves along, even if the injury picture is still uneven. Receiver Xayvion Noland is expected to be available this week after missing the previous game, which gives the Beavers another option as they try to steady the offense and keep some rhythm going around a line that has been shorthanded.
The bigger concern remains on the defensive side, where linebacker Kord Shaw is not close to a return and appears unlikely to be back this season. Along the offensive front, there is some movement in the right direction: left tackle Josiah Timoteo has been practicing again, and interior lineman Carter Guillaume is edging nearer to being ready, giving Oregon State at least a little hope that its front could get healthier soon. [Read more 🡒]