The Pac-12 is entering a season of transition as the league welcomes new coaches to big-name programs such as Oregon, USC and Washington along with a handful of transfer quarterbacks who are expected to make big impacts. But there is one constant for the conference as it grapples with the looming reality that UCLA and USC will soon depart for the Big Ten, and that’s the play of Utah.
Coming off their second season of 10 wins or more in the past three, the Utes have become a model for stability under 18th-year coach Kyle Whittingham. Will that continuity carry the Utes to a defense of their Pac-12 title? Utah will certainly be among the favorites, but fending off the likes of Oregon, Washington, UCLA, USC and others won’t be easy as the league seeks to place a team in the College Football Playoff for the first time since 2016.
One change for the 2022 season designed to maximize the league’s chances of securing a CFP berth is the eradication of the divisional format. While the schedule is still determined by the old North and South divisions, the teams playing in the championship game will simply be the two teams with the best record in league games.
Our CBS Sports college football experts have provided their picks and predictions for the Pac-12 ahead of the 2022 season.
Most overrated team
USC: The Trojans may win the Pac-12. They may not. But to assume they’re going from 4-8 to playoff contention — which is what a conference title would bring — is a bit of a reach. There is a grand experiment going on out on the West Coast. Has a team ever attempted this sort of turnaround at this level? Remember, the Trojans are openly talking about winning the league. USC will be vastly improved but a conference title is too much to ask. — Dennis Dodd (also Tom Fornelli, David Cobb)
Oregon: I clearly think highly of the Ducks within the Pac-12, having picked Oregon to finish third in the conference in this same story, but it’s their position against the rest of the national landscape where I think the ranking is a little bit off. Oregon is a top-12 team in both the AP Top 25 and Coaches Poll, and I think that’s putting a ton of confidence in — and setting a pretty high bar for — first-year coach Dan Lanning. The roster is talented, Lanning clearly has coaching chops and I like his staff, but I’ve got Oregon as more of a fringe top 25 team until we see the…
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