Depending on where you look, the hierarchy of college football teams is a little bit different going into the start of the 2022 season. That’s to be expected at this point in the year, though. With no games played, and no records to base things on, everything is judging the top teams based on talent evaluation and schematic forecasting, which is anything but objective.
So while the Oregon Ducks have faired well in both the USA TODAY Coaches Poll and Associated Press preseason poll, they take a little bit of a hit in the ESPN preseason power rankings.
In this poll, they not only fall out of the top-12 schools but they are ranked as the third-best Pac-12 team in the nation.
Here is how ESPN ranked the top of the conference in their latest power rankings:
No. 6 — Utah Utes
Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports
It comes as no surprise that Utah is ranked inside the top-10, and just outside of the top-5. As the reigning Pac-12 champions, they return much of their offensive firepower with QB Cam Rising leading the way into a potential College Football Playoff run.
Here is what ESPN had to say about Rising, who they named Utah’s X-factor:
Quarterback Cam Rising’s impact on Utah’s 2021 season was among the most notable in all of college football. He didn’t start the Utes’ first three games of the season (1-2), and from the point he entered in relief of game No. 3, the offense felt like a completely different unit. The Utes went 9-1 in his first 10 starts to win the Pac-12 and qualify for the Rose Bowl — a pair of program firsts. As the entrenched starter, his value is even more important.
Up Next: USC Trojans
No. 12 — USC Trojans
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
It appears that ESPN values the Trojans much more than both USA TODAY and the Associated Press, where they rank 15, and 14, respectively. It’s all about the transfers for the Trojans, who will look to follow new head coach Lincoln Riley to a conference championship and hopefully be in contention for a New Year’s Six bowl, if not a spot in the College Football Playoff.
Here’s what ESPN had to say about the Trojans:
It would be easy to slot Caleb Williams in this spot and call it a day, but the reality is that USC’s running back room will be just as essential as the Williamses and Jordan Addisons of the world. Oregon transfer Travis Dye seems to be the shoo-in for the top spot in the backfield, but between Austin Jones, Darwin Barlow and incoming five-star Raleek Brown,…