In some cases, teams are just routinely outmatched. In some, an opponent just has their “number”. Some are predictable, some make little sense, but across the Pac-12 Conference, there are individual matchups in which one team simply can’t get the proverbial monkey of another off its back.
One such case is this week’s opponent for Arizona State in Oregon, a team to which the Sun Devils have lost nine consecutive games spanning more than a decade. ASU is also on the positive end of another streak as no team in the league has defeated Washington more times in succession than the Sun Devils.
This week’s Sun Devil Science lesson focuses on the longest conference losing streaks against a single league foe for all 12 teams in the league – both in terms of the number of defeats and years since the most recent win – to compare ASU’s aforementioned positive and negative standings to its conference brethren.
Note: The two lists below only include conference games, therefore games played by/against Colorado and Utah prior to 2011 do not qualify
Longest Losing Streaks Against One Team in Pac-12 Play (Years)
Washington to ASU – Last Win: 2001*
California to USC – 2003 *
ASU to Oregon – 2004*
Oregon State to Oregon – 2007*
UCLA to Oregon – 2007
Longest Losing Streaks Against One Team in Pac-12 Play (Losses)
California to USC – 11*
Washington to ASU – 10*
ASU to Oregon – 9*
UCLA to Stanford – 9#
Oregon State to Oregon – 8*
*-Yet to play in 2016
#-includes 2012 Pac-12 Championship Game
Team-by-Team Losing Streaks
Arizona State
Opponent: Oregon*
Streak: Nine*
Last Win: 2004*
*-Arizona State plays Oregon on Oct. 29
There’s no shame in losing to the team that has had the greatest level of dominance over the conference over the past decade, but still within that Arizona State has had miserable fortune against Oregon since last defeating the Ducks in 2004.
The last time ASU defeated Oregon was on Oct. 2, 2004, when the Devils defeated the Ducks in Eugene by a score of 28-13 to help ASU to a 5-0 record to begin the year, the best start since 1996. In that game, Hakim Hill rushed 25 times for 134 yards with a touchdown, while Andrew Walter threw three touchdowns – one to Jamaal Lewis, one to Terry Richardson and one to Rudy Burgess. Kellen Clemens started at quarterback for the Ducks, who fell to 1-3 with the loss and finished the season 5-6 – the most recent time Oregon failed to reach a bowl game. At the time, ASU had a bit of an edge over Oregon as 2004 marked the third consecutive victory for the Sun Devils over the Ducks.
Since that point, ASU has lost in all kinds of ways to Oregon. Four of the nine losses have come by 21 points or more, while the Sun Devils lost competitive battles in 2007 and 2010 and suffered a heartbreaking defeat in overtime last year in Tempe.
Besides the lengthy losing streak to the Ducks, in terms of total games the next highest win streak against the Sun Devils is just two games by both USC and Washington State, while the lengthiest streak in terms of years is Oregon State as ASU hasn’t beaten the Beavers since 2013 as OSU downed Arizona State in 2014 and the teams did not play in 2015 and will not play this season.
Arizona
Opponent: UCLA, Stanford*
Streak: Five, Four*
Last Win: 2011, 2009*
*-Arizona plays Stanford on Oct. 29
After falling to UCLA by a score of 45-24 in Pasadena on Oct. 1, the ‘Cats losing streak to the Bruins extended to five games with Arizona’s most recent win coming on Oct. 21, 2011. Arizona has failed to beat its division foe in the five games played from 2012-16.
The most recent win by Arizona over UCLA is a game that can be remembered as the first after Mike Stoops was fired and interim head coach Tim Kish guided the Wildcats to a 48-12 win over a Bruin squad that ultimately claimed the first ever Pac-12 south division title. In that game, Nick Foles threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns while both Gino Crump and Juron Criner surpassed the 100-yard receiving mark. Kevin Prince threw for 286 yards for UCLA, but the bruins were held to just 37 rushing yards by the Arizona defense.
Due to the fact that the two teams didn’t play in 2013-14, Arizona’s active four-game losing streak predates that which the Wildcats have against the Bruins, and should the ‘Cats fall to Stanford this season the number of losses would match the total suffered to UCLA. The Wildcats’ four losses have come in 2010-12 and 2015.
The last time Arizona beat Stanford, the Wildcats overcame a 15-point third quarter deficit to beat the Cardinal by a score of 43-38 in Tucson. Nick Foles (415 yards, three touchdowns) battled Andrew Luck (423 yards, three touchdowns) at quarterback, while Toby Gerhart added 123 rushing yards with two scores and three players – Stanford’s Chris Owusu and Arizona’s Juron Criner and Terrell Turner – tallied more than 100 receiving yards.
California
Opponent: USC*
Streak: 11*
Last Win: 2003*
*-California plays USC on Oct. 27
(Note: This was written before California and USC played on Oct. 27)
The greatest active losing streak in conference play in terms of total games lost, Cal has not defeated USC since 2003 – dropping 11 straight to the Trojans.
The last time Cal beat USC was on Sept. 30, 2003, in Berkeley when Tyler Frederickson kicked a 38-yard field goal in triple overtime to knock off the third-ranked Trojans by a score of 34-31. In just his second career major college start, Aaron Rodgers began the game but was unable to finish due to an injury but the Golden Bears to a win over Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, LenDale White and the rest of the Trojans from the historic Pete Carroll days.
The Golden Bears also have the double whammy of a lengthy losing streak in the “Big Game” against Stanford as Cal hasn’t beaten the Cardinal since 2009.
Colorado
Opponent: USC, Washington, UCLA*
Streak: 11 (Six in Pac-12 play), Six (Four), Five (Five)*
Last Win: Never, 1996, 2003*
*-Colorado plays UCLA on Nov. 3
Colorado and Utah are tricky selections, as we can analyze the streaks only since they joined the Pac-12 Conference in 2011, the all-time matchups and/or both.
Largely due to Colorado’s impressive surge in 2016, only three teams remain that have swept the Buffaloes since joining the conference: UCLA, USC, and Washington.
Regardless the angle of analysis, USC claims the greatest ownership over the Buffaloes as earlier this season the Trojans extended their streak over Colorado to 11 wins without a loss, six of which have come in conference play.
The first meeting came in 1927, then in 1963-64 and then again in both 2000 and 2002. The most recent six victories have come in Pac-12 play starting with Colorado’s debut year in the league in 2011.
Washington also is undefeated against Colorado since the Buffaloes entered the conference, though the win total is smaller than USC due to the fact that the Huskies did not play CU in 2015 and will not in 2016. The Huskies won all four Pac-12 matchups with the Buffaloes from 2011-04 as well as both games of a home-and-home played in 1999 and 2000.
The most recent victory by Colorado over Washington actually came in postseason play, when the No. 8 Buffaloes took down the No. 13 Huskies on Dec. 30, 1996, in the Holiday Bowl in San Diego. The offensive trio of QB Koy Detmer and WRs Darrin Chiaverini and Rae Carruth helped lead the Buffaloes to their 33-21 bowl victory.
Though Colorado and UCLA have yet to play in 2016, the Bruins have swept the first five meetings since the Buffaloes entered the league.
The last Buffalo win over the Bruins came on Sept. 6, 2003, in Boulder when QB Joel Klatt, RB Bobby Purify, and K Mason Crosby were the offensive difference makers against the likes of QB Drew Olson, WR Craig Bragg and TE Marcedes Lewis for UCLA in Colorado’s 16-14 win.
Oregon
Opponent: Washington State
Streak: Two
Last Win: 2014
The team that has had the greatest overall success in the league in the past decade, it is no surprise that no team holds a decisive win streak over the Oregon Ducks.
It may come as a surprise to some, but Washington State boasts the longest win streak over Oregon, albeit just a string of two wins spanning the past two seasons.
The most recent time Oregon defeated Washington State was in 2014, when the national runner-up Ducks outlasted WSU by a score of 38-31. Eventual Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota threw a six-yard touchdown pass to Keanon Lowe with 5:33 remaining for what became the game-winning score. Altogether, Mariota threw for 329 yards and five touchdowns and ran for 58 yards, while Wazzu’s Connor Halliday threw for 436 yards with four touchdowns.
Oregon State
Opponent: Oregon*
Streak: Eight*
Last Win: 2007*
*-Oregon State Plays Oregon on Nov. 26
A page out of the book of adding insult to injury, Oregon State’s longest losing streak comes against its in-state Civil War rival in Oregon, as the Beavers have lost eight straight to the Ducks with their most recent win coming in 2007.
In that most recent Beaver win over Oregon, four different OSU rushers ran for a touchdown and Derrick Doggett returned an interception for a touchdown in OSU’s 38-31 win in Eugene.
This year’s Civil War game will be played in Corvallis on Nov. 26 and with Oregon having its worst season in a decade, though the Beavers are having yet another subpar season themselves this year figures to be as opportunistic as any in recent years for Oregon State to snap its in-state skid.
The Beavers have also struggled against other powers of the Pac-12 north as OSU has lost six straight to Stanford and five straight to Washington.
Stanford
Opponent: Utah, Oregon*, ASU
Streak: Three (Two in Pac-12 play), Two*, One
Last Win: 1995, 2013*, 2013
*-Stanford plays Oregon on Nov. 12
Since Utah joined the Pac-12 in 2011, it has barely crossed paths with Stanford as the two teams did not play in 2011-12, did not play in 2015 and do not play one another in 2016 (unless the unlikely scenario emerges that the two meet in the Pac-12 Conference championship game). However, in the only two matchups between the Utes and Cardinal, Utah has emerged victorious both times.
Prior to Utah’s move to the Pac-12, the Utes downed the Cardinal by a score of 17-10 on Sept. 7, 1996.
The last time Stanford defeated Utah was on Sept. 9, 1995, in Salt Lake City by a score of 27-20.
Like Utah, Oregon holds a two-game win streak in Pac-12 play over Stanford with victories in 2014 and ’15 but the two teams will clash again on Nov. 12.
ASU sticks on this list due to the mere fact that, like Oregon, the Sun Devils have not lost to Stanford since 2013 – although, that includes just one game as the two teams did not play in 2015 and will not in 2016.
UCLA
Opponent: Stanford, Oregon
Streak: Nine, Six
Last Win: 2008, 2007
Though UCLA has experienced its share of struggles in 2016, a positive spin for the Bruins is that they do not play either of the two teams this season against which they have the longest losing streaks.
Including the 2012 Pac-12 Championship game, UCLA has lost nine straight to Stanford, as the Bruins haven’t beaten the Cardinal since the start of the Andrew Luck era under Jim Harbaugh in Palo Alto.
The last time UCLA defeated Stanford was on Oct. 18, 2008, in Pasadena, when Kevin Craft threw a seven-yard touchdown to Cory Harkey with 10 seconds left to give the Bruins a 23-20 victory. In that game, Craft threw for 285 yards with two scores, while Toby Gerhart carried 27 times for 138 yards with two touchdowns for the Cardinal.
A longer streak in terms of years consumed, UCLA’s six-game skid against Oregon dates back to the Bruins’ most recent win over the Ducks which came on Nov. 24, 2007. A game between teams battered and bruised at quarterback, Ben Olson, and Osaar Rasshan took snaps to lead UCLA to a 16-0 win over a Duck team guided by Cody Kempt, Brady Leaf and Justin Roper at quarterback. Between the two teams, five total interceptions were thrown and only five combined players caught passes from the five different quarterbacks that attempted passes in the game.
USC
Opponent: Stanford, Oregon*
Streak: Three, Two*
Last Win: 2014, 2011*
*-USC plays Oregon on Nov. 5
A traditional power in the south division, it is no surprise that the only teams to have any sort of win streak over the Trojans are the recently elite programs of the north in Oregon and Stanford.
Stanford has the edge in terms of actual wins to comprise the streak as the Cardinal have beaten USC three straight times including the 2015 Pac-12 Championship Game.
The most recent Trojan win over Stanford came on Sept. 6, 2014 when a 53-yard Andre Heidari field goal with 2:30 remaining allowed USC to leave Palo Alto with a 13-10 victory. Javorious Allen rushed for 154 yards for USC, while Kevin Hogan threw for 285 yards for the Cardinal.
When it comes to the longest streak in terms of total years, Oregon has a distinct advantage as the Ducks haven’t lost to the Trojans since 2011. However, only two games have been played in that span as the two teams missed one another in 2013 and ’14 and have yet to play in 2016.
In that 2011 game won by USC, the Trojans escaped Autzen Stadium with a 38-35 victory after nearly blowing a 38-14 lead late in the third quarter. Matt Barkley threw for 323 yards with four touchdowns, while Marqise Lee totaled 187 receiving yards with a touchdown and Robert Woods added a pair of scores. For Oregon, Kenjon Barner rushed for 123 yards and two touchdowns, while Darron Thomas threw for 265 yards and a touchdown to De’Anthony Thomas.
Utah
Opponent: Washington State
Streak: Two
Last Win: 2012
Due to Utah’s competitive nature specifically in the past few seasons, very few teams boast any sort of win streak over the Utes. In fact, the only program with an active win streak of any kind against Utah surprisingly is Washington State with back-to-back victories in 2013 and ’14. The two interdivisional opponents did not play in 2015 and will not in ’16, so the streak for the Cougars is safe for now.
Last season, Utah defeated each of the four teams left on its 2016 schedule – Washington, ASU, Oregon and Colorado – so no additional team this year is capable of matching the Cougs with consecutive wins over the Utes.
The last Utah victory over WSU came on Nov. 3, 2012, when the Utes blasted the Cougars by a score of 49-6 in Salt Lake City. In that game, John White ran for 101 yards and two touchdowns, Travis Wilson threw for two scores and Reggie Dunn had a 100-yard kickoff return for six for Utah.
Washington
Opponent: Arizona State*
Streak: 10*
Last Win: 2001*
*-Washington plays Arizona State on Nov. 19
Ahh, one of the true points of pride in interdivisional matchups for the Devils as ASU has not lost to the Huskies since Oct. 27, 2001.
To put things into perspective of how life was when the Huskies last defeated the Sun Devils, on the same night as this game the Diamondbacks hosted the New York Yankees in game one of the World Series, much of the world was still using dial-up internet and this writer was in his first semester at ASU and pledging to the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity.
The Huskies held a decisive first half lead at 24-7 before a Mike Barth field goal made it 24-10 at the half. In the third quarter, Tom Pace rushed for a two-yard score, ASU forced a safety and Jeff Krohn threw a 23-yard touchdown to Shaun McDonald to give ASU a 25-24 lead. Late in the third, Washington’s Willie Hurst ran for a 23-yard score to allow the Huskies to regain the lead at 30-25.
The Sun Devils took the lead on the first play of the fourth quarter with a one-yard Delvon Flowers touchdown to give ASU a 31-30 edge, but with three seconds left in the game, John Anderson kicked the game-winning field goal to give Washington a 33-31 victory.
Since that point, ASU has won 10 straight games with years off from playing the Huskies in 2003-04 and 2011-12. Todd Graham is 3-0 against Washington and won his only matchup with the Huskies in Seattle, a 24-10 win amid disturbing winds in 2014.
This year, however, presents a formidable possibility of Washington ending the lengthy streak as the Huskies host the Devils in the regular season’s penultimate game and could enter the contest still as a favorite to qualify for the College Football Playoff.
Washington State
Opponent: Washington*
Streak: Three*
Last Win: 2012*
*-Washington State plays Washington on Nov. 25
Similar to Oregon State – though not nearly as severe – Washington State’s longest losing streak within conference play also comes against its in-state rival as the Cougars have dropped three consecutive Apple Cup games to Washington.
In WSU’s last Apple Cup win, the Cougars edged the Huskies in Pullman by a score of 31-28 on Nov. 23, 2012. In that game, Washington State staged a spectacular second half comeback as the Cougars entered the fourth quarter down 28-10 but ultimately won on a 27-yard Andrew Furney field goal in overtime. For the Cougars, Jeff Tuel threw for 350 yards including 143 to receiver Dom Williams, while Keith Price threw two touchdowns and Bishop Sankey ran for a pair of scores for the Huskies.
This year’s Apple Cup is all but guaranteed to be the most eagerly anticipated clash between the two Washington teams in many years as the Huskies are currently in legitimate College Football Playoff contention while the Cougars currently stand second behind Washington in the Pac-12 North and have ripped off five straight wins.
