By
Chris Martin
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Maybe I am jumping the gun a little bit, but I think the Pac-10 as a whole is back as a football conference.
After the first true weekend of college football, the Pac-10 owns the most impressive mark of any conference in the nation - a 9-1 overall record.
Is this the same conference that was the embarrassment of West Coast football last year? Yes.
Like UA athletic director Jim Livengood has told me before, NCAA football is cyclical, it has ups and downs. Last year, needless to say, was a big down(er) for the Pac-10.
I will admit that I found this hard to believe after watching pass-happy Pac-10 schools getting smacked around by the big boys from the Big Ten and SEC.
I am starting to become a believer, though, for one reason: DEFENSE was actually played by more than one conference team.
Arizona brought its best defensive game to Salt Lake City this weekend, showing off the best team defense since last season's 31-24 victory against USC. In the game, which was held at Arizona Stadium, UA held the Trojans to -20 yards rushing and had seven sacks.
There was a team effort on defense in Salt Lake City, as the defensive line got to the quarterback, the linebackers were solid and the secondary - though inexperienced - played above expectations, picking off two passes.
Arizona's defensive effort, along with USC stout defense against Penn State last weekend, may signal a revolution in the Pac-10.
Maybe revolution is a strong word - only two teams have played really solid defense - but at least it is encouraging.
The most impressive conference victory was UCLA's huge defeat of then No. 3 Alabama in the Rose Bowl.
In the game, UCLA running back DeShaun Foster became my pick to lead the conference in rushing, especially if he keeps getting the ball 42 times a game.
I hope the Bruins coaching staff gets him a little rest this coming weekend against Fresno State because No. 3 Michigan comes to the Rose Bowl Sept. 16. Unlike Alabama, Michigan's run defense appears to be for real.
The Pac-10 still has a lot more to prove, especially this weekend when No. 18 Ohio State comes to Tucson (get your tickets soon!) and No. 4 Miami (Fla.) travels to Seattle to take on Washington.
If the Huskies send the Hurricanes back to Miami with an "L" and the Wildcats upset Ohio State (and they will), then the Pac-10 can once again claim to be among the elite conferences in the nation along with the SEC, Big Ten and Big-12.
So keep the faith.
Just look at the AP top-25 - someone even gave UCLA a vote for No. 1 team in the nation.
I may not be that stupid, but at least I 'm optimistic.
