In the last 15 seasons, USC has probably been among the preseason favorites to win the conference about ten times, and they've won exactly one, in 2017. That season they lost the Cotton Bowl to Ohio State.
The Trojans were dominant in the eras of Pete Carroll, John Robinson and John McKay, but Lane Kiffin, Steve Sarkisian and Clay Helton all left town in shame. Lincoln Riley was brought in to restore the luster of the Trojan mystique. In Year One he turned in an 11-3 season that included a loss in the conference championship and a 46-45 loss to Tulane in the Cotton Bowl.
Riley has won at Oklahoma and at SC but he still hasn't proven he can win big games. He's cranked out Heisman winners, but he's 1-4 in bowls, 0-3 in the college football playoff, 0-1 in the PAC-12 Championship game.
Still the media confidence in the Trojans is understandable. They bring back All-American and Heisman Trophy quarterback Caleb Williams and a loaded receiver room that added 1000-yard receiver Dorian Singer, a transfer from Arizona. Riley bolstered the talent level this offseason by adding the #8 prep recruiting class featuring ultra-speedy 5-star wide receiver/returner Zachariah Branch, 5-star tight end Duce Robinson, 5-star future quarterback Malachi Nelson. For the defense they added 4-star Edge Rusher Brayian Shelby and 4-star cornerback Maliki Crawford.
Riley also got busy in the portal. He picked defensive tackle Bear Alexander from Georgia, running back MarShawn Lloyd, 4-star defensive end Anthony Lucas, linebacker Mason Cobb; in all, 16 players, the fourth-ranked portal class in the nation.
It's odd that two-time defending champion Utah is a bit overlooked at third, but some of that has to be uncertainty about quarterback Cam Rising coming off knee surgery. It's certain that the Utes will be tough, physical and well-coached.
Washington had a great season last year and they have one of the nation's best passers in Michael Penix. They return all their stars, didn't have a single player leave for the NFL draft. They feature very solid bookend offensive tackles in Roger Rosengarten and Troy Fautanu, the conference's most celebrated edge rushers in Bralen Trice (9 sacks last year) and Zion Tupuola-Fetui (4.5).
However the Huskies are rebuilding the middle of their offensive line and at cornerback and linebacker (zero returning starters in those groups) and the schedule is much tougher: they missed both Utah and SC last season--this year they're at The Coliseum on November 4th, host the Utes the very next week on November 11th, then travel to Corvallis to play the Beavers on November 18th.
In out-of-conference play they have a road game this year, at Michigan State in Week Three. Instead of opening with home games against Portland State and Kent State they'll face Boise State and Tulsa, two opponents with a pulse.
One thing is sure, the PAC-12 race will be settled on the field. The top five teams play a virtual round-robin over the course of the season, starting with Utah at OSU on September 29th. Then the league title game is likely to be a rematch.
For the Ducks to emerge out of all this they'll have to keep Bo Nix healthy, gel on the offensive line and show dramatic improvement on defense. That's the thing about media polls. They start with the assumption that everybody will play like they did last year and give bonus points for reputation.
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