Pac 10 Breakdown

Why the hell am I doing previews for the two conferences I hate? Next year, I'm doing the ACC and SEC. I call it. They're mine. I'll do the Big XII too. BOOMER SOONER!

1. Southern Cal
I love calling USC Southern Cal. When Cal beat then #1 USC a few seasons ago, Pete Carroll issued a statement to the media that his team was never to be called "Southern Cal" again. Southern Cal lost 10 players to the NFL, but they reload better than anyone in the country. Their defense was one of the best in the nations last year, and should be just as impressive in '08. Under center, Mark Sanchez replaces JD Booty. But if Sanchez struggles, Arkansas transfer Mitch Mustain is right there to take snaps. USC is probably the most talented team in college football. Their coach sucks, and they have a knack for losing a game they should win (See: Stanford). But they have the hottest cheerleaders in the country.



2. Arizona State
ASU was 117th in sacks allowed per game in 2007. They gave up over 4 per contest and it's what prevented them from winning the Pac-10, or even winning their bowl game. QB Rudy Carpenter threw for 3,202 yards and 25 TDs last year, despite being sacked 54 times. They have some holes in the defensive secondary that need to be filled in the pass-happy Pac-10. ASU plays USC on the road on October 11th. They also host Georgia on September 20th.

3. Oregon
When Dennis Dixon went down, so did the Ducks, losing their last 3 regular season games. But they rebounded with Justin Roper to crush South Florida in the Sun Bowl 56-21. The Ducks also lost RB Jonathan Stewart. His replacement-to-be had off-season surgery, so juco transfer LaGarrette Blount will take most of the carries. Oregon has a strong defense and will contend for the Pac-10 title, but will fall short.

4. Oregon State
The Beavers had a great run game on both sides of the ball last year. But they lost RB Yvenson Bernard (110+ yards per game), and their rush defense has lost some strength. WR James Rodgers ran for 586 yards last year, pretty much always on reverses. The Beavers have playmakers, but also have big time liabilities at quarterback. Sean Canfield and Lyle Moevao combined for 11 TDs and 21 INTs last year. Oregon State also lost all 4 of its starting defensive linemen.

5. UCLA
UCLA had two QBs vying for the starting job in '08. Patrick Cowan tore his ACL. Then Ben Olson broke his foot. Olson will be back for the start of the season. The Bruins have a strong front 7 on defense, but lost all 4 starting DBs. New head coach Rick Neuheisel, and offensive coordinator Norm Chow hope to bring some new life to the team. But against quality teams with good offensive and defensive lines, they're almost assured to lose.

The rest (alphabetical)...

Arizona
At the end of last season, the Wildcats put up points like it was going out of style. QB Willie Tuitima (3,683 yards), returns to lead the offense, and he has 4 of his 5 returning offensive linemen to protect him. But Arizona lacks a significant rushing threat. They averaged 76.8 yards per game last year, which is bad, even in a pass-crazy offense. The offense will be a strength, but the defense needs to fill some major holes. I'd take the over in any game involving Arizona.

California
The Golden Bears have an experienced defense with a solid linebacking corps. They'll even implement some 3-4 defensive formations this season to exploit their linebackers' strengths. Their defensive secondary, however, isn't as impressive. And their offense is nowhere near good. They'll have a QB controversy if Nate Longshore struggles, which he probably will. No player on the 2008 roster caught more than 5 passes in 2007.

Stanford
The Cardinal is the only team in the Pac-10 I like. They had a decent season (for them) last year with 3 conference wins (1 over Cal, 1 over USC). The goal for Stanford is to make a Bowl game, and they just might do it. They have 9 returning defensive starters, but their '07 defense was 9th in the conference. The offensive line has experience, but the "skill" positions are desperately lacking in that category. Their biggest strength: the 2nd best mascot in the country behind WKU's red blob:



Washington
Qb Jake Locker ran for 986 yards and threw for over 2,000 in his freshman year. He'll have some inexperienced skill players around him, but does a guy like this need much help? Yes! He threw 15 picks to go with his 14 TDs. But he will have a good offensive line in front of him. Unfortunately for the Huskies, their defense is atrocious, which is death in the high flying Pac-10.

Washington State
I'll give credit to Washington State for doing what USC refused to do last year: play Hawaii. But that's about all Wazzou deserves credit for. They actually had the 28th best offense in terms of yardage last year, but only scored 25.7 points per game (73rd in the country). New coach Paul Wulff is installing a no-huddle spread offense, and if the Cougars reduce their turnovers, they'll score lots of points. BUT, their defense allowed 418 yards per game last year, and 8 of their starters are back. They need to hammer out their defensive problems if they want to make a Bowl game.

-The Commodore