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SEATTLE -- Even in an alternate reality, the results Chris Petersen has gotten from his team would likely be the same.Except it might not be Washington that Petersen has ranked No. 4 in the country and positioned for a run at a Pac-12 championship and the College Football Playoff. If the decisions made in late 2013 played out differently, Petersen could just as easily be having this much success at USC.But its the Huskies (9-0, 6-0 Pac-12, No. 4 CFP) that Petersen has on the verge of a special season with Saturdays game against USC as one of the biggest remaining obstacles on Washingtons schedule.You put the tape on and youre like `OK, first of all its USC. Then you put it on and its like, `Oh, OK. I get it. I know why there winning now, Petersen said. Theyre playing really good and they have that talent theyve always had.Petersen is correct that the Trojans are surging. After the shaky beginning to the season and the switch to redshirt freshman Sam Darnold at quarterback, the Trojans have looked the part for more than a month of being arguably the most talented team in the Pac-12. USC (6-3, 5-2) is not ranked in the Top 25 but did find its way into the CFP rankings this week at No. 20. The five-game win streak is the longest of any team in the Pac-12 outside the state of Washington.You earn respect by winning ballgames, thats just a fact, USC coach Clay Helton said. The reason that we are where we are is we have had a good run, and now weve got to keep that run going if we want to climb further.While Oregon and Washington State are the true rivals for the Huskies, there is a lengthy history of important benchmark wins against USC. One of those came last year . Even in a season where Washington finished with just seven wins, a 17-12 victory over the Trojans in Los Angeles was important in helping validate what Petersen was trying to build.Saturday could be another one of those moments, even though Washington is the favorite. No team in the Pac-12 South is hotter than the Trojans and a win would certainly boost Washingtons resume in the opinion of the College Football Playoff committee.I think our guys know. You know how big a game this is; its USC, all those type of things, Petersen said. Everybody. I certainly wouldnt do it thinking I need to get these guys more motivated and fired up.Heres what else to watch as Washington goes for two straight over the Trojans:YOUNG GUNS: Washington QB Jake Browning continues to put up record-setting numbers that have put him into the Heisman Trophy discussion. Browning has already set a single-season school record with 34 touchdown passes after throwing for six TDs last week against California.Not to be outdone is how well Darnold has played during USCs streak. In six games as the starter, Darnold has thrown 18 touchdowns and just three interceptions. His pass efficiency rating of 168.1 ranks seventh nationally -- but still lags far behind Browning and his national-leading mark of 202.8.TAILBACK U: Over the past three games, Ronald Jones II has been responsible for the rediscovery of the Trojans run game. Jones rushed for 223 yards two weeks ago against California and followed up with 171 yards and four touchdowns last week against Oregon. The growth of the run game is part of the reason USC has scored 40 or more points in four of the past five games.SPEED VS. SPEED: There might not be a more entertaining individual matchup than Washington wide receiver John Ross against USC cornerback Adoree Jackson. The duo is among the two fastest players in the Pac-12 and each among the elite at their positions. Jackson will be trying to slow down Ross march toward at school record in touchdown receptions. After a career-high 208 yards receiving and three touchdowns last week against California, Ross is just four TD receptions shy of the single-season school mark of 18 held by Mario Bailey.MAKING STOPS: USCs defense held Oregon to 288 total yards last week, the fewest yards by the Ducks since 2009. The task against Washington will be more difficult. The Huskies have the No. 2 scoring offense in the country averaging 48.3 points per game and last week against California had 31 first downs, rolled up 704 total yards and scored on 10 drives.---More AP college football at http://collegefootball.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-Top25Cam Neely Bruins Jersey . He just needed to be his best twisting, turning acrobatic self. "I didnt need to be anybody else, I just needed to be myself and be aggressive," said Burks, who scored a career-high 34 points to spark the Utah Jazz to a 118-103 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Monday night. Cam Neely Jersey . Clarke was injured while practicing on the Doha Golf Club range after the pro-am on Tuesday. The Northern Irishman arrived at the course on Wednesday hoping to start, but after hitting a few balls on the practice putting green Clarke advised officials he was not fit to play. http://www.thebostonbruinshockey.com/charlie-coyle-hockey-jersey/ . -- The Portland Timbers and Real Salt Lake played to a 0-0 tie Saturday night that left the top of the Western Conference standings unchanged. Steven Kampfer Jersey . Scott Kazmir allowed four hits in seven shutout innings, Michael Brantley hit a two-run homer in a three-run first inning and the Indians maintained their hold on an AL wild-card spot with a 4-1 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday night. Terry OReilly Bruins Jersey . Sgt. Eric ONeal says most of the arrests at Monday nights game were for public drunkenness, though one person was taken into custody on suspicion of trying to steal a seat from the stadium.YAS MARINA, Abu Dhabi -- After the Mercedes drivers locked out the front row of the grid on Saturday night in Abu Dhabi, Nico Rosberg remains on course for his first title on Sunday. The W07 Hybrid has shown strong pace over long practice runs, so a clean race should be enough for him to secure the top three finish he needs to become 2016 champion at the chequered flag. The main stumbling blocks along the way will be the start, a collision in wheel-to-wheel combat and the all-important tyre strategy.In 2010 Fernando Alonso and Mark Webber saw their title hopes disappear into the desert night when they pitted at the wrong time and were shuffled behind Nico Rosberg and Vitaly Petrov, who had made an early stop under a safety car period. In the last race before the introduction of DRS and quick-degrading Pirelli tyres, Alonso and Webber got stuck behind the slower cars on better strategies and were unable to overtake.Rosberg is unlikely to find himself in the same position on Sunday night given the pure pace of the Mercedes and the availability of DRS on the back straights, but Red Bulls Daniel Ricciardo could provide a strategy headache after showing strong race pace during practice. Drivers need a speed advantage of roughly 1.1s over the car in front to attempt a passing move at the Yas Marina Circuit, so if Red Bull can gain track position, Rosberg could find himself needing to dig very deep to make a move stick.So what are thee chances of that happening? Red Bull has opted to start on the super-soft tyres, which opens up the possibility of a competitive one-stop strategy.dddddddddddd Mercedes are expected to two-stop (the fastest strategy on a clear road) but could also force a one-stop from its ultra-soft starting tyre. If Red Bull have a similar race pace to the Mercedes, a one-stop could give Ricciardo -- starting third -- track position ahead of one or both Mercedes, but he will have to defend hard in the closing laps on older tyres.It is an offset strategy, but it is not the fastest strategy, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said of Red Bulls decision to start on super-softs. Our algorithms show the ultra-soft is the better tyre because you cant take the super soft much further, only a couple of laps.I guess Red Bull hasnt got the pace to win on the same strategy and the offset strategy gives them potential. It is a bit of a headache in a same way that Ferraris pace is a headache. Our main objective is being fought out on track, when the lights go green it is all that matters.Perhaps the biggest question of all is whether Hamilton attempts to back Rosberg into the pack to make life more difficult for his teammate.With that in mind, the drivers have the following tyres available to make their respective strategies work: ' ' '