Best of the West: Oregon on top, Utah climbs and Air Force returns ahead of duel with Boise State

Each week, the Hotline ranks the best major college football teams across the western third of the country — not only the Pac-12 but the Mountain West and Independents — using a formula that's partly results-oriented and partly subjective.

We will publish a similar ranking once the basketball season begins, incorporating the top teams from the West Coast Conference, Big West, Big Sky and Western Athletic, as well.

Here's our assessment through the results of Week Seven …

1. Oregon (5-1/3-0 Pac-12)

Last week: 2
Result: DNP
Next up: vs. UCLA (12:30 p.m. on Fox)
Line: Oregon -6 (total: 69.5)
Comment: Potentially relevant Saturday afternoon: UCLA is No. 4 nationally in third-down conversions (54.8 percent) while Oregon is No. 129 nationally in third-down conversion defense (50.6 percent). Will the Ducks' defense ever get off the field?

2. UCLA (6-0/3-0 Pac-12)

Last week: 3
Result: DNP
Next up: at Oregon (12:30 p.m. on Fox)
Line: UCLA +6 (total: 69.5)
Comment: And yet, there's good reason to question the validity of any statistical comparisons given the disparity in competition to date. Oregon's strength of schedule is ranked No. 30 by the Sagarin computer while UCLA's schedule is No. 102. (There are only 65 teams in the Power Five.)

3. Utah (5-2/3-1)

Last week: 6
Result: beat USC 43-42
Next up: idle
Line: N/A
Comment: After the mammoth victory, the Utes have a chance to reset: Their next game is next Thursday, in Pullman.

4. USC (6-1/4-1)

Last week: 1
Result: lost at Utah 43-42
Next up: idle
Line: N/A
Comment: What happens when the wobbly USC defense faces a talented opponent that doesn't turn the ball over left and right? Twenty-four points in the second half, that's what.

5. Oregon State (5-2/2-2)

Last week: 9
Result: beat Washington State 24-10
Next up: vs. Colorado (5 p.m. on Pac-12 Networks)
Line: Oregon State -24 (total: 50.5)
Comment: Only one pass defense in the Pac-12 ranks in the top 20 nationally in efficiency rating and the top 30 in completion percentage allowed, and it resides in Corvallis.

6. Brigham Young (4-3/3-1)

Last week: 4
Result: lost to Arkansas 52-35
Next up: at Liberty (12:30 p.m. on ESPNU)
Line: Brigham Young -6.5 (total: 57.5)
Comment: With their next loss, the Cougars will equal the number of defeats they suffered in the 2020 and 2021 seasons combined.

7. Washington State (4-3/1-3 Pac-12)

Last week: 5
Result: lost at Oregon State 24-10
Next up: idle
Line: N/A
Comment: We considered dropping the Cougars below Washington, but their three losses (Oregon, USC and OSU) are to teams with a combined record of 16-4.

8. Washington (5-2/2-2)

Last week: 8
Result: beat Arizona 49-39
Next up: at Cal (7:30 p.m. on ESPN)
Line: Washington -7.5 (total: 56.5)
Comment: Last win in Berkeley: Nov. 5, 2016. Last road win anywhere: Oct. 30, 2021.

9. Boise State (4-2/3-0 Mountain West)

Last week: 10
Result: DNP
Next up: at Air Force (4 p.m. on CBSSN)
Line: Boise State +3 (total: 47.5)
Comment: If they take care of business in Colorado Springs, the Broncos should be undefeated in conference play entering their difficult finishing stretch against Wyoming and Utah State.

10. Air Force (5-2/2-2 Mountain West)

Last week: Not ranked
Result: won at UNLV 42-7
Next up: vs. Boise State (4 p.m. on CBSSN)
Line: Air Force -3 (total: 47.5)
Comment: While Boise State had two weeks to prepare and the Falcons played last weekend, it was not a taxing situation in Las Vegas: They led 28-0 just three minutes into the second quarter.

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