SEATTLE — So here we sit, halfway through a Pac-10 football season in which USC became vulnerable, Stanford became physical, Washington State became helpless and Washington became, uh, winless.

The Demis, please, after a half-season of mayhem (or in some cases, hair-pulling):

Offensive player of the half-season:

1. Jacquizz Rodgers, Oregon State. If there was any buzz about an OSU running back in August, it was over Ryan McCants, who seemed to resemble Steven Jackson. Instead, it's the 5-foot-6 freshman Rodgers, the anti-Jackson, who leads the Pac-10 in rushing with 119.7 yards a game.

2. Toby Gerhart, Stanford. He's the perfect back for the new Stanford, featuring a punishing ground game.

Defensive player:

1. Nick Reed, Oregon. Any of the Ducks' problems haven't been because of him. He leads the league in sacks with eight.

2. Kevin Ellison, USC. Trojans' leading tackler (40) is all over the field and is playing as well as anybody on the most fearsome defense (on occasion, at least) in the country.

Coach:

Jim Harbaugh, Stanford. He seemed to have popped out of the loony bin 18 months ago, when he forecast Pete Carroll to leave USC after the season. That didn't happen, but a Stanford victory over the Trojans did last fall, and now the Cardinal is 4-3 and playing with an attitude.

Most shocking result:

1. Oregon State 27, USC 21.

2. UNLV 23, Arizona State 20 (OT).

3. California 66, WSU 3.

4. Maryland 35, Cal 27.

5. Boise State 37, Oregon 32.

Surprise team:

Give it up for Stanford, which played its way into bowl contention with a victory over Arizona, using a backup quarterback (Alex Loukas) running out of a spread formation. A win at UCLA on Saturday makes it five, with WSU still left Nov. 1.

Most enigmatic team:

As usual, Arizona (4-2), following an old script. Just when it looks like the Wildcats have acquired some sizzle, they do a face-plant. If they finish 6-6 in a watered-down league and get to the Kitty Litter Kalamazoo Bowl, is that enough to save Mike Stoops' job?

Most disappointing team:

Arizona State is 2-4, going on 2-6 (Oregon and OSU are next), a strange way for a team picked second in the league to behave. The Sun Devils are last in rushing, quarterback Rudy Carpenter is playing hurt and last year's 10-3 debut under Dennis Erickson is increasingly written about in the desert as a product of the schedule.

Unluckiest team:

1. Washington State. The Cougars weren't going to be good in any case, but playing for them has truly become a health hazard.

2. Oregon. The Ducks are 5-2, haven't really beaten anybody, but in a calendar year's time, they've played seven quarterbacks, not counting Nate Costa, this year's fall-camp first-stringer.

Written word of the half-season:

From the weekly Pac-10 release — "Although struggling in many aspects, the Husky offense continues to convert third-down opportunities at a remarkable rate."

Lies, damned lies and statistics:

Washington State is second in the league in time of possession, Washington fifth, each with more than 30 minutes average, neither with victory over a Division I team.

Can't we all just get along?

Pac-10 coaches might not be gathering in the bar at the next conference meetings. In three different games — Washington at Oregon, Oregon at USC, WSU at Oregon State — there has been discussion about the way late touchdowns were scored. And Pete Carroll and Rick Neuheisel haven't yet had a full winter of trying to gouge each other's eyes out on the recruiting trail.

Some chutzpah, along with your pigskin:

Before the season began, the UCLA marketing department took out a large ad in local newspapers, with Neuheisel's photograph and a large, boldfaced caption: "The Football Monopoly in Los Angeles is Officially Over." BYU, which beat the Bruins 59-0, obviously doesn't subscribe to the L.A. dailies.

Things that go bump in the night:

Just as UCLA was finishing tending to injured receiver Terrence Austin — he's OK after a neck/concussion scare — a couple of fans behind the Bruins bench Saturday night at Autzen Stadium got into a fracas and one fell over the railing. The Eugene Register-Guard reported that the victim is OK and no charges will be filed against the other man, who was led away in handcuffs.

"It was two Oregon fans," Neuheisel reported Tuesday, without further explanation.

It only hurts when you laugh, or get beat 66-13:

As Washington State was preparing to charter from Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport to Oregon State last week, the aircraft captain announced, "We're No. 2 for takeoff."