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Who to root for to help Cats earn bidArizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 11.07.2008
You cannot watch the Arizona Wildcats' game against Washington State on television.
Get over it. You have bigger things to worry about.
With a victory Saturday and help from one other team, the Wildcats (5-3 overall, 3-2 Pac-10) would lock up a spot in one of seven bowl games available for Pac-10 Conference teams. With help from three other teams, Arizona could move toward the top of the conference standings.
Arizona is currently sixth in the Pac-10 standings, ahead of UCLA, Arizona State, Washington State and Washington.
The Wildcats must hope some of the Pac-10's more surprising teams — like Cal — fall back into mediocrity, and the conference's bad-but-not-horrible teams (cough! Arizona State!) continue to lose.
A Sun Devils loss, for instance, would leave the Pac-10 with the possibility of just seven winning teams. With seven available bowl spots, Arizona would be guaranteed a berth with just six wins.
Quarterback Willie Tuitama knows the possibilities but said he is trying to the focus on a Wildcats' win first.
Arizona is a 41-point favorite against the 1-8 Cougars this weekend.
The Wildcats have their job. Rooting for Oregon State, Wasington and USC is yours.
Here's what's at stake and how it affects Arizona:
Root for ...
OREGON STATE over UCLA (4 p.m., no TV)
The Beavers (5-3 overall, 4-1 Pac-10) can do more than just stay in the Pac-10 Conference race with a win over the Bruins at the Rose Bowl; they can make sure UCLA (3-5, 2-3) stays toward the bottom of the standings. A loss would assure the Bruins of a 6-6 season at best; Arizona would have an edge over UCLA if they finished tied, having routed the Bruins 31-10 on Sept. 20.
Why it will happen: Oregon State is on fire. The Beavers have won their last three conference games by a combined score of 127-51. And these Beavers love cold weather: OSU is a combined 10-2 in the months of November and December since 2006.
Why it will not happen: Mike Riley cannot beat UCLA. The Beavers' coach is 0-5 lifetime against the Bruins in seven seasons at Oregon State, and was 0-4 as the offensive coordinator at rival USC. OSU will be without quarterback Lyle Moevao, who is out with a shoulder injury.
WASHINGTON over Arizona State (5p.m., Fox Sports Arizona)
The Huskies (0-8, 0-6) have not won a game this season, so maybe an upset of Arizona State is expecting too much.
Still, it is worth rooting for: A win by Washington would eliminate the Sun Devils (2-6, 1-4) from bowl contention for the first time since 2003, leaving the Pac-10 with just seven possible bowl teams.
Arizona State has dropped six consecutive games, its worst losing streak since 1929.
Why it will happen: Washington owns Arizona State coach Dennis Erickson. In stints at Idaho, Washington State, Miami (Fla.), Oregon State and Arizona State, Erickson has never won a game in Husky Stadium.
Why it will not happen: Washington has not defeated Arizona State in Seattle since 1997. The Huskies have lost four straight to the Sun Devils dating to 2002.
USC over Cal (6 p.m., ABC)
The Trojans (7-1, 5-1) can vault back into national championship contention by vanquishing a tough Cal team on the road. Better yet, they can knock the Golden Bears (6-2, 4-1) back into the middle of the conference standings.
An Arizona win and a Cal loss would pull the teams even with 4-2 conference marks; the Wildcats would have an edge with their Oct. 18 victory.
Why it will happen: It is USC. Since losing to Oregon State on Sept. 25, the Trojans have won five straight games by a combined score of 214-20.
Why it will not happen: Cal has home field advantage. The Golden Bears are 5-0 in Strawberry Canyon this season, with wins coming over Michigan State, Colorado State, Arizona State, UCLA and Oregon.
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