Tag: Pac-12 Conference

North Carolina State changed its vote on Stanford, Cal, SMU joining the ACC

Reporting from Ross Dellenger of Yahoo! reveals N.C. State changed its vote from no to yes, giving the ACC enough votes to pass the Stanford-Cal-SMU plan.

We mentioned in August that North Carolina State was holding back the Stanford-Cal-SMU expansion vote for the ACC. The conference had 11 yes votes out of 15, but that was short of the 75-percent threshold needed to approve the plan. The ACC needed 12 votes. It had to change an 11-4 vote total to a 12-3 vote total.

Reporting from Ross Dellenger of Yahoo! Sports reveals that North Carolina State was indeed the school which changed its position:

“’What does this do to the political landscape of NC State and UNC?’ asks one official working in the state.

“NC State’s football team and athletic administration arrived home after 3 a.m. Friday after playing Thursday night at UConn to open the 2023 season. Four hours later, the school casts the deciding vote.

“’It is insane,’ says one ACC athletic administrator.”

Reaction to the ACC approving the Stanford-Cal-SMU expansion plan was colorful and explosive. In a world of surprises, no one should be surprised about that particular detail:

2023 Heisman Trophy predictions

Five #Pac12 football writers gave their 2023 Heisman Trophy picks.

USC Trojan quarterback Caleb Williams won the 2022 Heisman Trophy. He dazzled in the 2023 season opener against San Jose State as he tries to repeat. There are plenty of other intriguing options as Heisman contenders this year, including some fellow Pac-12 players. Bo Nix and Micahel Penix stand out, as well as others around the country.

The Pac-12 College Wire team put together a series of predictions, and one set of predictions revolved around the 2023 Heisman Trophy winner.

Zachary Neel and Don Smalley of Ducks Wire, Matt Zemek and Matt Wadleigh of Trojans Wire, and Jack Carlough of Buffaloes Wire all gave their predictions below:

Pac-12 football title game predictions for 2023

Five #Pac12 writers gave their predicted matchups for the Pac-12 Championship Game in Las Vegas.

The Utah Utes have won back-to-back Pac-12 titles and are going for a three-peat. However, a number of teams stand in the way, with Oregon, Oregon State, Washington, and USC ready to cause problems.

The Pac-12 College Wire team put together a series of preictions, and one of them was for the Pac-12 title game this December in Las Vegas. Zachary Neel and Don Smalley of Ducks Wire, Matt Zemek and Matt Wadleigh of Trojans Wire, and Jack Carlough of Buffaloes Wire all gave their predictions.

Here is how each of them voted for the Pac-12 title game in what appears to be the final year of the conference.

Pac-12 preview: Colorado football 2023 game predictions

How will Deion Sanders do in Year 1? We predict every game for Coach Prime and his Buffaloes. #Pac12Preview

Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes are the biggest wild card in all of college football. With a roster full of transfers, there are so many question marks as to how good or bad this team will be.

In this latest edition of our Pac-12 football preview predictions, Jack Carlough of Buffaloes Wire, Matt Wadleigh and Matt Zemek of Trojans Wire, and Zachary Neel of Ducks Wire gave their predictions for the Buffs, and there is a common theme: It will be a difficult year for Coach Prime in Boulder.

(Missed our USC game predictions? They’re here. Missed our Oregon picks? This is where you want to go.)

Here are the game-by-game predictions, although two writers picked the Buffs to finish 6-6.

Pac-12 preview: Oregon football game predictions for 2023

We predicted #USC to go 11-1. Let’s now predict the outcome of each Oregon game this year. #Pac12Preview

The Oregon Ducks are being pegged as one of the biggest contenders to knock off the USC Trojans and win the Pac-12. Bo Nix is a Heisman contender, and Fresno State transfer Evan Williams was one of the biggest gets of the portal season.

In this latest edition of predictions, Jack Carlough of Buffaloes Wire, Matt Wadleigh and Matt Zemek of Trojans Wire, and Zachary Neel and Don Smalley of Ducks Wire gave their predictions on the Ducks season. UO will win plenty of games in Dan Lanning’s second year in Eugene.

(Missed our USC season picks? They’re right here.)

Here are the picks for you to evaluate and consider:

Big Ten and Big 12 travel comparisons on the new college realignment map

Making travel plans? Consult these distances (and some comparisons) between localities in the new conference maps.

Our friends at Ducks Wire are getting used to what life will be like in the Big Ten. It’s weird and it will require an adjustment, but this is the reality we are about to step into.

“Whether you love the news or hate the news, it appears the future has been set, and the Ducks will join the USC Trojans, UCLA Bruins and Washington Huskies in a conference with Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State and Penn State.”

What a brave new world.

Fans in the Pac-12 footprint will have to make adjustments to the Big Ten and Big 12 if they are to plan road trips to see their favorite football team play. Fans will have to be selective in the trips they take, picking their spots and making sure that when schedules rotate, they get the games they either want or feel they can reasonably make (or both).

Let’s provide some distances and comparisons for the new Big Ten and the new Big 12:

Pac-12 football analyst sees potential, not proof, in USC defensive line

#Pac12 football analysts are skeptical the #USC D-line will be good enough to maximize the team’s potential. It’s a prove-it season.

The USC Trojans’ positional rankings have been pretty good as a collective survey of the full roster. However, the defensive line is where there are a lot of question marks, and Jack Follman of SuperWest Sports ranked this defensive line group as the sixth-best in the Pac-12. Here’s why:

“This group has a lot of potential. (Bear) Alexander was breaking out at Georgia and (Anthony) Lucas is a former five-star recruit. (Kyon) Barrs had a great early career with Arizona.”

From one to five is Utah, Washington, Oregon, UCLA, and Washington State.

It is true that USC’s defense won’t have to be spectacular this season, given how much firepower and potency the offense is expected to bring to the table. However, the defense certainly has to be good enough — far better than 2022 — for the offense’s resources to be maximized. USC was so awful in its most important games last season that the Trojans missed a golden opportunity to sneak into the College Football Playoff.

If the defensive line isn’t up to par this year, the Trojans will not make the most of the Caleb Williams era.

[lawrence-auto-related count=1 tag=696092282]

Despite downfall, Pac-12 enters season as 2nd strongest conference in 2023

The Pac-12 will cease to exist as we know it following the 2023 season, but it enters the year as one of the strongest conferences around.

The Pac-12 may be ending as we know it after the 2023 season, but it is doing a good job of trying to go out on top.

Defections from USC, UCLA, Colorado, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Arizona State, and Utah all left the Pac-12 on life support over the past month. However, if you were to treat the imminent death of the conference as a problem for tomorrow, then the more pertinent outlook for the Pac-12 in the 2023 season alone is incredibly encouraging.

USC, Washington, Oregon, Utah, and Oregon State are all consensus top-25 teams going into the year, and other schools like UCLA, Washington State, and Arizona are all hovering around the basket as well.

When looking at overall rankings for the Power 5 conferences in college football, the Pac-12 at least has a good argument to be near the top of the pack.

According to CBS Sports’ conference power rankings, Barrett Salee has the Pac-12 in the No. 2 spot.

This might come as a shock to people on the East Coast, but the Pac-12 is loaded and may be the most entertaining league to watch in 2023. The conference boasts at least four teams that have a legitimate shot at making the CFP: No. 6 USC, No. 10 Washington, No. 14 Utah and No. 15 Oregon. Can any of them actually win it? Probably not. But the conference’s depth is as strong as it has been in more than a decade. When you throw in No. 18 Oregon State and a well-coached UCLA squad, “Pac-12 After Dark” is going to be must-see TV in 2023.

The conference has only had two teams make it into the College Football Playoff before, with Oregon and Washington standing alone. There seems to be a good chance that the winner of the conference in 2023 will have a good claim for a playoff spot, though.

It’s unfortunate that the Pac-12 will cease to exist as we know it following this year, but at least it’s going out with a bang.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

USC offensive line is elite in the Pac-12, as long as it stays healthy

Oregon State is the only #Pac12 program with an O-line as good as USC’s.

The USC Trojans’ offensive line has perhaps the most important role on the team: protecting Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams. The good thing is this group is loaded from top to bottom, even after losing a few payers to the NFL, including Andrew Vorhees.

Jack Follman of SuperWest Sports continued his preseason position gropu rankings. He has the Trojans’ offensive line as the second-best group in the Pac-12, just behind the Oregon State Beavers.

“Transfers really bolster this group with Florida transfer (Michael) Tarquin looking like all-conference (material) and Washington State transfer (Jarrett) Kingston one of the better in the conference,” Follman wrote. “Homegrown talents (Jonah) Monheim and (Justin) Dedich could be the best of the group, though.”

If you talk to USC insiders, many will tell you that with Justin Dedich knowing the line calls at the center position and having an established relationship with Caleb Williams, he becomes the most important non-Caleb player on the whole roster. If USC can keep Dedich and Caleb healthy the whole season, the offensive line could suffer one or two injuries at the other positions (particularly guard) and not suffer a big drop-off. If Dedich goes down, however, then it might be time to worry.

[lawrence-auto-related count=1 tag=696092335]

USC backfield has depth, quality and experience — what’s not to love?

USC is either No. 1 or No. 2 in a lot of offensive position group rankings as we enter the 2023 #Pac12 season.

The USC Trojans have produced a ton of big-name offensive players. With Lincoln Riley in town, that won’t change anytime soon.

The running back room in Los Angeles is loaded once again, and the 1-2 punch of MarShawn Lloyd and Austin Jones is going to be fun to watch, not to mention Raleek Brown, who has been re-slotted to wide receiver in a different role for the ultra-fast sophomore.

Jack Follman of SuperWest Sports ranked the best backfield units in the Pac-12 Conference, and USC is second behind the Oregon Ducks. It is worth noting that Follman took the quarterback into consideration, bundling the quarterback position with the running back room.

“Having Williams at QB obviously makes all the difference here. South Carolina transfer Lloyd would make a huge impact if he comes in and is able to be a star. Veteran Jones provides excellent depth.”

Washington, Oregon State, and Arizona round out the top five, and this Trojan backfield is going to be extremely fun to see.

[lawrence-auto-related count=1 tag=696092269]