The PAC-12 is looking forward to a bright future as it recreates itself in 2026 as what will essentially be a brand-new startup conference. However, before that new start, their two legacy teams, Oregon State and Washington State, will have to compete for one more season as a two-team conference. As we preview each conference here at SGPN, this one is no different. We’ll dive into both teams as we look at this College Football 2025 PAC-12 Conference preview and best bets.
Boise State, Colorado State, San Diego State, Utah State, Fresno State, and Texas State will be the six schools joining Washington State and Oregon State to complete the Octo-box of “State” schools that will make up the 2026 PAC-12 Conference. Gonzaga will also join, but they do not currently have a football program.
Washington State and Oregon State will play each other in a home-and-home series as they basically operate as independent schools for the rest of their schedules. Each will get a taste of future conference foes as Oregon State squares off with Fresno State in Corvallis, Oregon, on September 6th. Washington State will host San Diego State in Pullman, Washington also on September 6th, then they will visit Colorado State to play the Rams on September 27th.
College Football 2025: PAC-12 Conference Preview and Best Bets
Oregon State Over 6.5 Wins (-170)
While it’s not the sexiest number in the world, “you only pay the juice if you lose” is what I often say. This doesn’t feel like a case where you’ll be paying for the juice. Depending on how confident you are in the Beavers, you can also grab them to win 8+ games at +190. Oregon State is headlined by transfer quarterback Maalik Murphy. Murphy comes over from Duke, where he went 9-3 as their starter in 2024. He also set Duke’s single-season record with 26 passing touchdowns. Prior to his time at Duke, the redshirt Junior spent two seasons with the Texas Longhorns. He comes with a 1.5-million-dollar NIL deal and high expectations.
Can Maalik Murphy bring Oregon State back to a bowl game in 2025 🦫
pic.twitter.com/bofFsjzeki— SleeperCFB (@SleeperCFB) June 13, 2025
The schedule lines up nicely for the Beavers in 2025. Road trips to Oregon, Washington, and Texas Tech will be a very tall task for this team. Outside of that, every other game on their schedule is winnable. This Oregon State team boasts a strong defense led by their star safeties Jaheim Patterson Jr and Skyler Thompson that should keep the team in plenty of games.
Washington State Over 5.5 Wins (+155)
These two teams are pretty straightforward in their expectations, but we’re taking a different route with Washington State. While Oregon State’s schedule is favorable, Washington State’s is far from it. They’ll face teams from 10 different College Football Conferences. Five quarterbacks on the Davey O’Brien watch list, and seven teams made bowl games in 2024. That’s why their under 5.5 is juiced all the way to -205.
DOT. 🎯@zevi_eckhaus 🤝 @KadenHarken pic.twitter.com/Zes1Dfmhra
— Washington State Football (@WSUCougarFB) August 6, 2025
It’s a completely new look team from the team that was ranked as high as #18 in the AP Top 25 poll at one point last season. With over 70 new players, and a new head coach to lead them, in Jimmy Rogers. Rogers comes over from South Dakota State, where he went 27-3, winning the 2023 FCS National Championship with the team. Quarterback John Mateer has also moved on to a new home at Oklahoma. Dual-threat signal caller Zevi Eckhaus takes over to lead this Cougars team. While overall their schedule is tough, and you never know what you might get out of a new team, Rogers is the type of coach who will get his team to rally around being the underdog and push them to at least six wins in 2025.
