Previewing the Top 2026 Week 2 Pac-12 Football Games

Washington State at Kansas State

Saturday, September 12th
9:00 AM PT, TNT

Washington State played decently in their opener against Washington. It hurt the eyes, but the Cougars were a third-down stop away from an opportunity to tie the game.

If WSU wants to find success this weekend, however, they need to find a playmaker on offense. That side of the ball proved non-existent until the fourth quarter last week.

The Cougs also lost their top receiver in Tony Freeman, who is also their best offensive player.

The key to their matchup against Kansas State is to run the ball more efficiently. The Wildcats feature one of the best defensive ends in the Big 12, Wendell Gregory. If they don’t keep Gregory off balance, it’ll be a repeat of the Apple Cup.

Kansas State probably feels confident that scoring points in the first quarter would decide the game. Avery Johnson is a veteran quarterback but an iffy leader. Johnson’s a five-tool athlete but lacks some of the intangibles to play the position.

New KSU coach Collin Klein should work well with him, though; Klein was Johnson’s offensive coordinator his freshman year. If Johnson plays solid, the Wildcats should have enough talent to handle the Cougars.

The best way to summarize this matchup is that KSU is a slightly worse team than Washington.

WSU can hang, but can they win?

Memphis at Boise State

Saturday, September 12th
3:00 PM PT, USA Network

Boise State’s the best team in the conference, which makes this game against Memphis dangerous. No matter how well the Broncos played against Oregon, if they lose, they’re 0-2 and probably out of the College Football Playoff.

And the Tigers showed last week they can come out West and get a victory. But maybe not the Wild West. BSU only allowed three sacks against the Ducks in the opener.

U of M played well on offense against UNLV, but their defense won them the game. They finished with six sacks and held the Rebels to 3-of-15 on third downs. It feels unlikely they can replicate this against Boise State.

The Broncos offensive line should be able to control the tempo of the contest. The combination of Roger Carreon, Jason Steele, and Daylon Metoyer is elite. With these three moving furniture for Sire Gaines and Dylan Riley, the duo should put up some big numbers.

Memphis defensive linemen Elijah Kinsler and J’Mond Tapp are excellent players, but Boise just faced the No. 2 team in the country. Tigers quarterback Marcus Stokes is also phenomenal in his own right, but Will Smith won’t let Stokes win twice.

Look it up. Boise State—with a hat tip to the Far East Movement’s song—can still “fly like a G6.”

San Diego State at UCLA

Saturday, September 12th
4:15 PM PT, Big Ten Network

This is another game that could transform the perception of the Pac-12, one way or the other—especially after UCLA’s win at Cal.

If San Diego State gets thrashed by the Bruins, some will argue that the conference is pretty much the same as the Mountain West, except for Boise State.

But if the Aztecs win, the Pac-12 feels more credible.

The key to this contest is for SDSU to find their identity. If the offense can replicate what it did against Portland State, then Aztec FAST is coming to life. But Jayden Denegal will need to do more to knock off the Bruins.

It feels unlikely that SDSU will be able to run for 237 yards again. UCLA only allowed 119 yards against the Bears, and Cal running back Adam Mohammed is a bruiser with speed who can play.

Denegal needs to make some downfield throws to keep the Aztecs in this matchup. UCLA scored 45 points against Cal, and Nico Iamaleava had an off game.

San Diego State will also need to find a way to stop the Bruins halfback duo of Wayne Knight and Anthony Woods. They combined for 189 rushing yards and five touchdowns in the opener. This is concerning because SDSU only returns two starters on defense.

If the Aztecs are going to pull off the upset, they’ll need other skill players to support Lucky Sutton and Denegal. No one needs this more than the SDSU, but UCLA be fighting to protect their turf.

No. 13 Texas Tech at Oregon State

Saturday, September 12th
4:30 PM PT, CBS

Oregon State made a marvelous comeback against Houston.

If Amare Thomas didn’t make an elite catch in the fourth quarter, the game could’ve swayed. The Beavers offense had some crests and troughs in their initial outing.

OSU has to find a way to move the ball on the ground better. The Beavs only finished with 26 total yards rushing. The number looks worse because of four sacks, but they got stuffed.

However, on the positive side, Oregon State quarterback Braden Atkinson might be a stud. If he can play the way he did against the Cougars, anything could happen this week.

Texas Tech is the best team OSU will face all season, but maybe the Beavers can catch them exhaling from the Brendan Sorsby thing.

The Red Raiders feature three standouts in their front seven. The most notable is A.J. Holmes Jr., a second team All-American last season. Jamond Mathis and Ben Roberts can also wreak havoc at linebacker.

Another thing to consider is that Tech’s quarterback Will Hammond hasn’t proven much at the collegiate level. They have a pack of wolves around Hammond, but he’s gotta be successful on this hunt.

And if TTU falls behind early in Reser, the leader might get shaky.