USC football and Lincoln Riley refuted the very skeptical preseason media polls

Never forget: In the summer, #USC was picked 3rd in the #Pac12 by local+national media plus the coaches. Utah and Oregon were picked higher.

Beating the UCLA Bruins is a very sweet feeling for any USC fan. What adds to the sweetness of the win over the Bruins is the berth the Trojans have gained in the 2022 Pac-12 Championship Game, set for Friday, Dec. 2 in Las Vegas.

USC will play in the Pac-12 title game for the first time since 2017 and just the second time overall.

Playing in the Pac-12 Championship Game was a central preseason goal for this team. It means USC will be playing for either the Rose Bowl or the College Football Playoff. This is the expected USC standard. Team goals can be achieved.

However, there’s another dimension to this moment for USC which makes the Pac-12 title game extra special. We’ll give you the answer below, but not until after we rank the Pac-12 teams heading into the final full weekend of the regular season. Read the rankings, then keep scrolling down: