Roundup: Pac-12 splits pair of bowl games with Big 12
The Pac-12 went 1-1 in bowl games Tuesday, starting things off with a 30-14 Utah win over West Virginia in the Heart of Dallas Bowl. Kurt Kraghtorpe opines that Utah’s defense dominated the day, holding the Mountaineers to just six first downs and 153 yards of total offense (West Virginia, it should be noted, was without its starting quarterback, top running back and best O-lineman).
The Bruins were unable to hold on to a 17-7 lead in a 35-17 loss to Kansas State in the Cactus Bowl. True, Josh Rosen was unable to go, but Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times writes that no Rosen wasn’t the reason the Bruins lost to K-State (and 14 other teams over the last two seasons).
We’ve got one bowl game on tap Wednesday with Arizona playing Purdue in the Foster Farms Bowl in Santa Clara, and Yogi Roth gives us a Foster Farms Bowl preview to marinate on (5:30 p.m. PT, 6:30 p.m. MT on FOX).
Washington linebacker Azeem Victor will not play in the Fiesta Bowl against Penn State, Adam Jude reports. Victor was suspended in November by head coach Chris Petersen after he was arrested on suspicion of DUI.
Washington State defensive coordinator Alex Grinch didn’t answer questions about rumors that he is headed to Ohio State after the Holiday Bowl in a press scrum. Multiple outlets have reported that Grinch, an Ohio native, is set to become the 10th assistant coach for Urban Meyer.
Brian Howell writes that the Buffs are confident in their talent at cornerback heading into the 2018 season. After losing a handful of standouts to the NFL the past few seasons, younger players are primed to reach their potential next fall.
Oregon women’s basketball guard Sabrina Ionescu was named Pac-12 Player of the Week for the fourth time this season after being named the MVP of the Duel in the Desert for leading the Ducks to wins over then-No. 19 Texas A&M and Hawai’i.
Meanwhile, Cal women’s basketball guard Kianna Smith was named Pac-12 Freshman of the Week after going for 14 points and eight assists in the win at Kentucky.
From Christmas – Stanford women’s basketball is out of the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2001, ending a run of 312 consecutive ranked weeks.
Ooooh – let’s take a look at the swag Arizona State players received for playing in the Sun Bowl. Players got to shop for $350 worth of swag at the Sun Bowl gift suite; not too shabby.
OSUBeavers.com tells us that Scott Rueck and Co. will try to make it four in a row against UW as they open Pac-12 play Friday at Gill Coliseum. A different feel to this game from previous years with the departures of Sydney Wiese, Kelsey Plum and Chantel Osahor.
Bruce Feldman gives us the story of USC football coach Clay Helton’s connection with a USC fan battling cancer. Great stuff here; good on ya, Clay.