Pac-12 Football odds and picks: The Gamble-Tron, Week 10

Welcome to the Gamble-Tron's tenth week of trying to figure out which team of 18-22 year olds will be better than the opposing team of 18-22 year olds. Somehow we'd managed to safely wade through this mine field with minimal damage through eight weeks, turning a nice profit. Welp, then week number nine happened and, well, we're almost back to where we started. I mentioned last week that I'd lost the original version of the post when I was about half way done. Given what happened Saturday, I probably should have taken that as a sign and just taken a bye week. BUT NOOOOOO.

Why I'm a genius: Pretty barren out there. I rode the Houston bandwagon to another easy win. Why didn't I hop aboard sooner?

Why I'm an idiot: You mean besides re-creating last week's column from nothing? Well, let's see. I thought Stanford was in a class above WSU. Wrong. I thought Notre Dame would easily handle Temple. Little did I know that DeShone Kaiser would give the ball to the other team nearly every time Notre Dame got in the red zone. Same with USC. They had multiple chances to step on Cal's throat and pissed every one of them away, resulting in yet another push.

Oh, hey there UCLA. I also thought that Utah would bounce back from their beating at the hands of USC and easily handle OSU and its backup freshman quarterback. I should have remembered that God-awful Travis Wilson is still taking snaps. Finally, I said in this very space that I didn't see any way Washington would lose to Arizona. More than one of you scoffed. So what did I do? I went against my gut and picked Arizona to lose close. WSU broke Arizona and it was obvious to see, yet I went the other way. Why? Well, I'm an idiot.

Last Week: 2-5-1 / 0-1 / -$580

Season Total: 34-30-2 / $265

Reader Results:

• Ryan Eames: 3-4-1 / 0-1 / -$360
• Brian Anderson: 4-3-1 / 0-1 / -$225
• BothwaysUphill: 2-4-1 / -$245
• coug2828: 2-3
• cougbud: 2-3-1 / $75
• stewak: 5-1-1 / 0-1 / 1-1 / $285 - Congratulations on monumentally confusing me by picking Arizona to win, then taking UW -4.5. That seems odd.
• cmaddex: 5-2-1 / 0-1 / $175
• KINN1CK: 4-3-1 / $65
• hollyweirdcoug: 1-5-1

Stanford at Colorado (Stanford -16/-110, Colorado +16/-110): This line seems a tad deflated based on last week's results. Colorado did everything to beat UCLA except, well, actually win the game. Stanford barely escaped Pullman with a win, and now hits the road for a second straight week. I got burned badly by laying double digits last week. Well, as Ronald Reagan once famously said, "There you go again."

The Pick: $110 on Stanford

Arizona State at WSU (ASU +2.5/-105, WSU -2.5/-115): This line has swung mightily since it opened, as WSU has gone from 1.5 point underdogs to 2.5 point favorites. There's even more juice required if you take the favorite. Never in a million years would I have believed you if you'd said in August that WSU would be laying points here. I think Bercovici's running will give WSU fits, as they've struggled mightily against mobile QBs this season. Still, I'm jumping aboard the Good Ship Cougar with two feet. I pray I don't end up with broken ankles.

The Pick: $115 on WSU

UCLA at Oregon State (UCLA -18/-110, OSU +18/-110): If it were possible for an entire program to have Dissociative Identity Disorder, UCLA would be the runaway leader in the clubhouse. They got quite lucky to avoid a loss against Colorado (COLORADO!!!). I'm flipping a coin (no, really) to make this pick. That's where I'm at with UCLA. Heads: UCLA, Tails: OSU. Survey says!?

The Pick: $55 on Benny and the Beavs (it was a Missouri quarter, for the none of you who were wondering)

Utah at Washington (Utah +1.5/-110, UW -1.5/-110): If this line were any more inflated based on recent results, it would be hovering over the Rose Bowl on January 1st. Beware the error of recency. Arizona quit last week. Utah will not. My only reason for pause is that apparently Travis Wilson is still terrible.

The Pick: $110 on Utah

Cal at Oregon (Cal +4.5/-110, Oregon -4.5/-110): Boy, has Jared Goff cooled or what? He will still, in all likelihood, be a top pick should he forego his senior season (and even if he comes back), but he hasn't looked much better than average in these last few games. On the other side, Scott Frost is apparently picking Bralon Addison in his daily fantasy league. That's the only explanation for those play calls last Thursday.

This game is going to be a track meet, as Oregon has done little to demonstrate that it can stop a competent offense, and Cal still has a bevy of weapons, despite Goff's recent swoon. The difference, once again, will be Vernon Adams' ability to improvise when things break down, which is often.

The Pick: $55 on Oregon

Arizona at USC (Arizona +17.5/-110, USC -17.5/-110): As I said earlier, Arizona is broken. I have no idea what happened to them, other than a rash of injuries on defense, but they quit last week in Seattle. USC has quickly gained some traction since they canned Steve Sarkisian, and Clay Helton is making a strong case to get the job permanently.

The Pick: $110 on USC

Last-minute impulse buy - Baylor at Kansas State (Baylor -17/-110, KSU +17/-110): College Football Playoff Committee resident truther Art Briles is certain to have reminded his players this week about their ranking. That, coupled with the fact that Jarrett Stidham is about to become the talk of college football, adds up to a Baylor boatrace in Manhattan.

The Pick: $220 on Baylor

Cincinnati at Houston (Cincy +8/-110, Houston -8/-110): I have no analysis, but I am gonna keep riding the Cougar Express until it crashes.

The Pick: $110 on Houston

Iowa State at Oklahoma (Iowa State +25/-110, OU -25/-110): Iowa State is coming off a whitewashing of Texas. Oklahoma is coming off a bye. Well, either that or they played Kansas. Same difference. Bottom line, Oklahoma is gonna murder Iowa State.

The Pick: $110 on the Sooner Schooner