Tag: Pac-12 Preview

Pac-12 Preview: Washington out to prove it’s not a one-hit wonder

Washington is set up to have another really good season on the gridiron, but it would be hard-pressed to repeat last year’s success.

As June starts to roll into July, and July eventually leads us to the start of fall camps at the beginning of August, the 2023 college football season will be here before we know it. What a season it projects to be in the Pac-12 Conference, as well. With a handful of College Football Playoff contenders, and a group of Heisman Trophy candidates leading their prospective teams, we could be set up for one of the best football seasons out west that we’ve seen in decades. To help get us prepared, we at Ducks Wire wanted to go through each team in the conference and give a comprehensive breakdown of each school, breaking down their 2023 outlook. Welcome to our Pac-12 Previews. New editions will be published every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday leading up to the start of fall camp.

Check out our previously published previews: Arizona Wildcats — Arizona State Sun Devils — California Golden Bears — Colorado Buffaloes — Oregon State Beavers — Stanford Cardinal — UCLA Bruins — USC Trojans — Utah Utes

The Washington Huskies surprised the college football world last season by going 11-2 and winning the Alamo Bowl over Texas, 27-20. Nearly everything went right for the Dawgs, which was a far cry from the two previous seasons with Jimmy Lake as coach.

But even then, no one could have expected for quarterback Michael Penix, an average and often injured signal caller from Indiana, to come to Seattle and tear it up. And then he surprised people by announcing he would return for one more season.

Washington also returns one of the best receiving corps in the country with Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan leading the way. But the offensive line doesn’t have a lot of experience and the defense could be a weak point many Pac-12 teams will exploit.

They have a tougher schedule than one would expect, but the talent in Seattle should be enough for another successful season in 2023. They won’t go 11-2 again, but considering where the program was just two years ago, Huskies fans will be satisfied.

Pac-12 Preview: Are Cam Rising and the Utes being overlooked in 2023?

Utah has won back-to-back Pac-12 championships, but I don’t think many people are picking them again in 2023. Is that a mistake?

As June starts to roll into July, and July eventually leads us to the start of fall camps at the beginning of August, the 2023 college football season will be here before we know it. What a season it projects to be in the Pac-12 Conference, as well. With a handful of College Football Playoff contenders, and a group of Heisman Trophy candidates leading their prospective teams, we could be set up for one of the best football seasons out west that we’ve seen in decades. To help get us prepared, we at Ducks Wire wanted to go through each team in the conference and give a comprehensive breakdown of each school, breaking down their 2023 outlook. Welcome to our Pac-12 Previews. New editions will be published every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday leading up to the start of fall camp. 

Check out our previously published previews: Arizona Wildcats — Arizona State Sun Devils — California Golden Bears — Colorado Buffaloes — Oregon State Beavers — Stanford Cardinal — UCLA Bruins — USC Trojans

If you were to ask any semi-knowledgable fan of college football this offseason who the teams to focus on in the Pac-12 were, you’d likely get the same three answers: USC, Oregon, and Washington.

None of those teams are coming off back-to-back Pac-12 championship victories and a pair of Rose Bowl appearances in the last two years. None of those teams arguably have the best single coach in the conference.

The Utah Utes do, though. So why are we not talking about them more?

It’s not as if quarterback Cameron Rising took off for the NFL this offseason. Like Bo Nix and Michael Penix, he also chose to return for one last ride at this level and will look to go out on top. Sure, Rising is coming off of a knee injury, and it’s not a guarantee that he is 100% healthy by the first week of the season, but he’s still the dynamic gun-slinger that we’ve seen dominate the conference over the past two years.

Is there a world in which we see that dominance span three years? It’s incredibly possible. Here’s our full 2023 season breakdown of the Utah Utes.

Pac-12 Preview: UCLA prepares for life after Dorian Thompson-Robinson

Dorian Thompson-Robinson has been the face of UCLA football for five years. Can the Bruins’ QB room find the same production in his wake?

As June starts to roll into July, and July eventually leads us to the start of fall camps at the beginning of August, the 2023 college football season will be here before we know it. What a season it projects to be in the Pac-12 Conference, as well. With a handful of College Football Playoff contenders, and a group of Heisman Trophy candidates leading their prospective teams, we could be set up for one of the best football seasons out west that we’ve seen in decades. To help get us prepared, we at Ducks Wire wanted to go through each team in the conference and give a comprehensive breakdown of each school, breaking down their 2023 outlook. Welcome to our Pac-12 Previews. New editions will be published every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday leading up to the start of fall camp.

Check out our previously published previews: Arizona Wildcats — Arizona State Sun Devils — California Golden Bears — Colorado Buffaloes — Oregon State Beavers — Stanford Cardinal

As they enter their last season in the Pac-12, the UCLA Bruins definitely want to go out on a high note. They loaded up the roster with many transfers and having one of the top quarterback recruits in the Class of 2023 doesn’t hurt either. Dante Moore has some big shoes to fill with Dorian Thompson-Robinson no longer in Pasadena. But it’s likely going to take a while for that many newcomers to gel as a team.

UCLA was a mediocre team just three seasons ago and now they have the makings of being a top-five team in the conference. Unfortunately, teams like USC, Oregon, Washington, and Utah could stifle their chances at playing for a Pac-12 championship. Luckily, the Bruins don’t play the Huskies or the Ducks in the regular season.

Overall, UCLA is in for a good season and it could be special if the team gels quicker than expected. The talent is there. It’s just getting it done in between the hash marks.

Here is our full 2023 season previews for the Bruins.

Pac-12 Preview: Stanford braces itself for a major rebuild project

Stanford heads into a new era with coach Troy Taylor, but the cupboard is close to bare for the 2023 season.

As June starts to roll into July, and July eventually leads us to the start of fall camps at the beginning of August, the 2023 college football season will be here before we know it. What a season it projects to be in the Pac-12 Conference, as well. With a handful of College Football Playoff contenders, and a group of Heisman Trophy candidates leading their prospective teams, we could be set up for one of the best football seasons out west that we’ve seen in decades. To help get us prepared, we at Ducks Wire wanted to go through each team in the conference and give a comprehensive breakdown of each school, breaking down their 2023 outlook. Welcome to our Pac-12 Previews. New editions will be published every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday leading up to the start of fall camp.

Check out our previously published previews: Arizona Wildcats — Arizona State Sun Devils — California Golden Bears — Colorado Buffaloes — Oregon State Beavers

Stanford was once the class of the Pac-12 and competed for Rose Bowl on an annual basis.

Those days are long gone.

Head Coach David Shaw retired after the program went downhill for a variety of reasons and this was even before the pandemic, which set the Cardinal behind the proverbial 8-ball and then some.

After 12 seasons, Stanford was on the market for a new head coach when it finally settled on Sacramento State’s Troy Taylor. Before helming the Hornets, he was offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Utah for two seasons.

Stanford also hired Wisconsin defensive coordinator Bobby April where he led one of the top defenses in the country. But again, the talent has to be there and at this very moment, talent is on short supply.

If you think attendance is a problem in Palo Alto when the Cardinal are good, Stanford Stadium could be a graveyard for the next couple of seasons as the rebuild goes on.

Here’s our complete preview for the Cardinal in 2023.

Pac-12 Preview: Oregon State Beavers try to sustain new-found success

Oregon State football has had a rollercoaster history, but coach Jonathan Smith is on the verge of sustaining success for years to come.

As June starts to roll into July, and July eventually leads us to the start of fall camps at the beginning of August, the 2023 college football season will be here before we know it. What a season it projects to be in the Pac-12 Conference, as well. With a handful of College Football Playoff contenders, and a group of Heisman Trophy candidates leading their prospective teams, we could be set up for one of the best football seasons out west that we’ve seen in decades. To help get us prepared, we at Ducks Wire wanted to go through each team in the conference and give a comprehensive breakdown of each school, breaking down their 2023 outlook. Welcome to our Pac-12 Previews. New editions will be published every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday leading up to the start of fall camp.

Check out our previously published previews: Arizona Wildcats — Arizona State Sun Devils — California Golden Bears — Colorado Buffaloes

Oregon State had one of those years last season that Beaver fans will be talking about for quite some time to come. They finished 10-3, including a huge win over the Ducks and blowing out Florida 30-3 in the Las Vegas Bowl.

The Beavers have had seasons like this here and there before, but it’s sustaining success that has always been the problem. OSU has never been able to capitalize on success.

Until now?

That’s what the administration hopes for head coach Jonathan Smith as they will play in the new and improved Reser Stadium for the first time in 2023. And with a Pac-12 Conference that has a lot of mediocrity in it outside of the top four teams, Oregon State is primed to continue such success.

But going 10-3 again won’t be easy, especially with two very difficult road games to end the regular season. The Beavers don’t have to go 10-3 again to consider the season a success, however. The test will be whether can they beat the teams they should beat and manage to get an upset or two. If they do, Smith might be able to run for mayor in Corvallis and win by a landslide.

Here is our full breakdown of OSU heading into the season.

Pac-12 Preview: Is Justin Wilcox coaching for his job in 2023 at California?

Can the Golden Bears get to a bowl game for the first time since 2019? If they don’t, will Justin Wilcox be around in 2024?

As June starts to roll into July, and July eventually leads us to the start of fall camps at the beginning of August, the 2023 college football season will be here before we know it. What a season it projects to be in the Pac-12 Conference, as well. With a handful of College Football Playoff contenders, and a group of Heisman Trophy candidates leading their prospective teams, we could be set up for one of the best football seasons out west that we’ve seen in decades. To help get us prepared, we at Ducks Wire wanted to go through each team in the conference and give a comprehensive breakdown of each school, breaking down their 2023 outlook. Welcome to our Pac-12 Previews. New editions will be published every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday leading up to the start of fall camp. 

 

Check out our previously published previews: Arizona Wildcats — Arizona State Sun Devils — California Golden Bears

Time might be running out for Justin Wilcox in Berkeley.

After posting a losing record in his six years coaching the Golden Bears, it may be put up or shut up time for the former Oregon Ducks defensive back who reportedly turned down an opportunity to coach at his alma mater a couple of years ago. The talent on the field is not good enough to compete with the top teams in the Pac-12, and the recruiting is nowhere near good enough to build a winning roster down the road.

While there are games on California’s schedule this year that are certainly winnable, it feels like anything short of a bowl-eligible season — something Cal hasn’t had since 2019 — could result in a change at the top next offseason.

There are transfers who could end up being really solid pieces for the Golden Bears this year, but whether or not a few talented players can make a big enough difference to get Cal above six wins is yet to be determined.

Here is our full preview for the Golden Bears ahead of the 2023 season.

Pac-12 Preview: Kenny Dillingham looks to ‘activate the valley’ in first year with Sun Devils

Kenny Dillingham is looking to “activate the valley” in his first year at Arizona State. Will he be able to find any success in Year 1?

As June starts to roll into July, and July eventually leads us to the start of fall camps at the beginning of August, the 2023 college football season will be here before we know it. What a season it projects to be in the Pac-12 Conference, as well. With a handful of College Football Playoff contenders, and a group of Heisman Trophy candidates leading their prospective teams, we could be set up for one of the best football seasons out west that we’ve seen in decades. To help get us prepared, we at Ducks Wire wanted to go through each team in the conference and give a comprehensive breakdown of each school, breaking down their 2023 outlook. Welcome to our Pac-12 Previews. New editions will be published every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday leading up to the start of fall camp. 

When you talk about rising stars in the world of college football coaching, Kenny Dillingham has a chance to be the poster boy before long. After acting as the offensive coordinator at Memphis, and then Auburn, and then Florida State, Dillingham finally became a well-known play-caller in his single season with the Oregon Ducks, where he joined forces with QB Bo Nix and led one of the most prominent offenses in the nation.

A year later, he’s got his chance to really make a mark on the sport, with an opportunity to bring the Arizona State Sun Devils back into prominence.

That will be no small task.

After the firing of head coach Herm Edwards last season left the Sun Devils down in the dumps, there is a spark of life that can be felt throughout the desert. Dillingham’s catchphrase of “activate the valley” is starting to pick up steam, and be it in the recruiting game or via the transfer portal, the roster is starting to look much improved from what it did a season ago.

Will that result in more wins for ASU in 2023? I wouldn’t be too optimistic in that sense of things. However, there is energy that is starting to take root in Tempe.

Here is our full 2023 season preview for Arizona State.