ore at punter.I think it was a very comical thing for us to release a de

PHOENIX -- The Pac-12, in some respects, has gone according to plan so far this season with No. 7 Stanford and No. 10 Washington leading the North Division.For the most part, though, the conference has been filled with surprises through the first four weeks of the season. Colorado tied for the lead in the South Division and Southern California dead last? Yeah, those would have been hard to predict.To get you caught up, heres a rundown in the Pac-12 so far:---BUFFALOES RISE: Colorado was picked to finish last in the Pac-12 South and coach Mike MacIntyre was expected to be on the hot seat if the Buffaloes lived down to those lowly expectations. Colorado has been far better than expected, starting with its convincing season-opening win over rival Colorado State and another blowout of Idaho State . The Buffaloes lost to No. 4 Michigan the third week, the kind of game that might have sent previous teams in Boulder reeling. Instead, Colorado bounced back last week with its biggest win since joining the Pac-12 in 2011, holding off Oregon 41-38 despite playing without senior quarterback Sefo Liufau due to an ankle injury. The victory left MacIntyre in tears and gave the Buffalos the big breakthrough theyve been searching for.USCS FALL: Loaded with blue chip playmakers, the Trojans were expected to make a run at their first Pac-12 title since 2008. USC has been nowhere close to being what was expected. The Trojans opened the season with a blowout loss to top-ranked Alabama and followed a lopsided win over Utah State with a 17-point loss to No. 7 Stanford. Needing a win last week to stay in the Pac-12 South race, USC stumbled again, blowing a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter to lose 31-27 to Utah. The loss dropped the Trojans to 1/3 for the first time since 2001 and left them searching for answers that may be tough to find. Despite all that talent on offense, USC is the worst-scoring team in the Pac-12 with 22 points per game.SUN DEVILS ASCENDING: This season was expected to be a rebuilding one in the desert. Arizona State limped to a 6-7 finish last season and entered 2016 with no quarterback on the roster who had thrown a collegiate pass. The Sun Devils also had to rebuild a defense that was the nations worst against the pass a year ago and were picked to finish fifth in the Pac-12 South in 2016. The Sun Devils have gotten off to slow starts and their defense has been shaky at times, but they keep finding ways to win, leaving them as one of four undefeated teams in the Pac-12. Arizona State had a late offensive burst to knock off FCS Northern Arizona in the season opener and last week exploded for 31 points in the fourth quarter to outlast California . Even with the schedule about to get more difficult, it will be hard to pick against the Sun Devils until someone actually beats them.MORE ARIZONA INJURIES: OK, maybe this shouldnt come as much of a surprise. Arizona has been plagued with injuries to key players the past few seasons, but the odds -- maybe karma? -- seemed to be in favor of the Wildcats this year. Nope. Anu Solomon, who won a tight battle with Brandon Dawkins, lasted one game as Arizonas starting quarterback after injuring his left knee on a wet practice field. Workhorse running back Nick Wilson, who battled injuries last season, was injured against Hawaii two weeks ago and didnt play against Washington this past week. Arizona also played without three starters against the Huskies and lost freshman running back J.J. Taylor -- the star against Hawaii -- for the season with a broken ankle in the third quarter. All coach Rich Rodriguez could do after the game was shake his head and say: Unbelievable.Pirates Jerseys China . - The Oakland Raiders re-signed offensive lineman Khalif Barnes on Friday. Custom Willie Stargell Jersey .com) - Yankee Stadium is the home of the Bronx Bombers, but on Sunday afternoon it will open its gates to host the latest addition of the Hudson River Rivalry. http://www.custompiratesjersey.com/ . Any real chance at payback wont come until the playoff. Still, Pittsburgh knows its taut 3-2 win over the Bruins on Wednesday night is a pretty good place to start laying the groundwork. "They are a very good defensive team," Penguins forward Brandon Sutter said. Pirates Jerseys China . Now tied for second in the league in shootout goals, the 24-year-old likes to see what the opposing goaltender has in store before he ultimately lands on a move. Custom Pirates Jersey China . Mats Zuccarello and Derek Stepan scored shootout goals, and backup goalie Cam Talbot earned his second win in two nights as the Rangers shook off a late tying tally and beat the Maple Leafs 2-1 Monday night.ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Jim Harbaugh has come up with another unique way of helping his players stay motivated, imploring them to avoid Freddy P. Soft.Who?Hes a 4-inch guy that wears a cape and a hat with a plume in it, Harbaugh explained, holding his right thumb and index finger apart just above his right shoulder. Hes just tall enough to talk right into your ear and tell you that `You dont have to practice today. `Why are you working so hard? Or, `Get over there in the shade. No need to attack with enthusiasm unknown to mankind today. Take a break. Take a knee. Hes not a guy you want around. You want to get him off your shoulder as fast as possible.No. 4 Michigan (2-0) tried to avoid listening to the praise it is getting for beating Hawaii and Central Florida by a combined score of 114-17 while it prepared to play Colorado (2-0) on Saturday at home.Here are some things to watch when the Wolverines host the Buffaloes:HAIL AT MICHIGAN: Colorado is commemorating its 1994 win at Michigan Stadium, where Kordell Stewart famously threw a 64-yard Hail Mary to Michael Westbrook with no time left on the clock for a stunning victory. The Buffaloes plan to wear throwback uniforms that look like they did 22 years ago, sporting white jerseys, black pants and gold helmets. Bill McCartney, who coached the Buffaloes in that game and during their 1990 national championship season, plans to be in the Big House as a guest of Colorado athletic director Rick George.Colorado coach Mike MacIntyre said he has met everybody involved in the play, and got to know Stewart well last summer when the former star quarterback was back on campus to take classes and graduate.Not only can he throw the ball 70-something yards in the air, hes a really good guy, MacIntyre said.YEAH, THAT WAS ME: HBO Real Sports spent time with and around Harbaugh during his first spring at Michigan. In one scene, Harbaugh was shown shouting at a player, whose image was blurred to keep him relatively anonymous. Quarterback Wilton Speight, who has emerged as a starter this season, acknowledged earlier this week he was the player Harbaugh was yelling at.ddddddddddddAll my buddies joked, they said, `Yeah, they blurred out the number, but youre the only 8-foot quarterback, Speight said. Obviously, weve come a long way since then and its something to look back and laugh.VERY FUNNY: Michigan does not release its depth chart so the Buffaloes figured two can play that game. Colorados game notes list Elmer Fudd at quarterback, Vito Corleone at nose tackle and Happy Gilmore at punter.I think it was a very comical thing for us to release a depth chart like that, Colorados real quarterback Sefo Liufau.Harbaugh, apparently, didnt think it was humorous.I was trying to imagine how many people sat around and how many hours they worked on that, he said Thursday in a radio interview on WXYT.OH, NO I DIDNT: Harbaugh was the subject of social media buzz earlier this week when a video post appeared to show him put his right thumb and index finger near his right nostril and into his mouth during the UCF game. Harbaugh asked to address the topic on his radio show earlier in the week.I have never eaten a booger in my entire life, Harbaugh insisted. It might have looked like that was happening, but if you rub your nose and then you bite your fingernail, thats not eating a booger.CONNECTED: When McCartney was an assistant for Bo Schembechler, before Colorado hired him away in 1982, he worked with Jack Harbaugh, father of Jim and John. The eldest Harbaugh would later go on to lead Western Kentucky, where he coached Matt MacIntyre, Colorado coachs brother, and prevented the football program from folding with some help from his wife and sons.That family is credited for sure for saving football at Western Kentucky, MacIntyre said.---AP college football website: collegefootball.ap.org ' ' '