| Oregon State's Markus Wheaton improved his draft prospects with a career day against UCLA on Saturday. (US Presswire) |
Here's the latest on the conference's top players who are projected to star on Sundays.
1. WR Markus Wheaton, 6-1, 182, Oregon State
Why he has the top spot: Wheaton has been somewhat overshadowed in his career by high-profile Pac-12 receivers like USC's Robert Woods and Marqise Lee, Cal's Keenan Allen and Washington State's Marquess Wilson. However, if he keeps performing like he did against UCLA on Saturday, it will be tough to ignore him. The senior receiver caught nine passes for a career-high 150 yards in the Beavers' 27-20 upset win of the Bruins. Wheaton is now tied for fifth on the school's all-time receptions list (153) and alone in eighth on the school's all-time receiving yardage list (1,987).
Season stats (two games): 17 catches for 237 yards and one TD.
Player ranking: Wheaton is ranked 181st overall and is the 22nd-highest wide receiver in CBSSports.com's latest player rankings.
Up next: No. 18 Oregon State travels to Arizona on Saturday for a Pac-12 inter-divisional showdown of two surprising teams. Wheaton could find some success going up against an Arizona defense that surrenders 247.3 yards per game, which ranks seventh in the Pac-12.
2. RB Silas Redd, 5-10, 200, USC
Why he has the second spot: The Penn State transfer had his biggest game of the season and second biggest game of his career in Saturday's 27-9 win over Cal. Redd carried the ball 21 times for 158 yards, falling just short of his career-high of 164 yards, a total he reached last season while with the Nittany Lions. Redd's biggest run of the day against the Golden Bears was a 33-yard TD run in the first quarter that put USC on top 7-0. The Trojans never relinquished the lead after that.
Season stats (four games): 58 carries for 338 yards and four TDs rushing; two catches for 39 yards.
Player ranking: Redd is ranked 144th overall and is the 12th-highest running back in CBSSports.com's latest player rankings.
Up next: The next time you see Redd will be on national television. No. 13 USC has a bye this week before heading to Salt Lake City on Oct. 4 for an ESPN Thursday night game against South Division rival Utah. Redd could find yards hard to come by against a Utah defense that's third in the Pac-12 against the run.
3. LB Michael Clay, 5-11, 222, Oregon
Why he has the third spot: Clay wasn't on many draft radars coming into the season, but his stock is slowly climbing. The senior linebacker had his biggest game of the season on Saturday in the Ducks' 49-0 win over Arizona. Clay tallied 13 tackles, including a sack and two TFLs and was an instrumental part of the Ducks' ability to hold the Wildcats to only 332 yards of total offense. Arizona went into the game averaging 604.7 yards, which ranked fourth in the country.
Season stats (four games): 25 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery.
Player ranking: Clay is ranked 144th overall and is the 69th-highest outside linebacker in CBSSports.com's latest player rankings.
Up next: Clay and the Ducks will be making a trip to Seattle to play Washington State in its annual "home game" on the western side of the state. The Cougars will show up on Saturday with the Pac-12's fourth-ranked passing offense. However, don't expect that to faze Clay or Oregon after the Ducks shut down Arizona's top-ranked passing offense on Saturday.
Keep an eye on: P Jeff Locke, 6-0, 207, UCLA
Why you should watch him: The senior punter was on the field often in the Bruins' 27-20 loss to Oregon State on Saturday. Locke averaged 44 yards on eight punts against the Beavers, including a long of 58 yards. He also pinned four of his eight punts inside the Oregon State 20-yard line.
Season stats: 25 punts, 1,073 yards (42.9 ypp)
Player ranking: Locke is ranked 333rd overall and is the seventh-highest punter in CBSSports.com's latest player rankings.
Up next: Locke may not see much action when the Bruins travel to Colorado on Saturday as UCLA's high-powered offense (577.5 ypg, third nationally) will be going up against a Buffaloes defense that ranks 103rd in the country.
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