2011 College Football Conference Previews- The PAC-12
The PAC-10 is another major conference that expands this season with the addition of Colorado from the Big 12 and Utah from the Mountain West. The end result is a new name; the PAC-12 and six-team North and South Divisions that pave the way for a conference title game in early December.
The following is a brief preview of each team in the PAC -12 along with their current odds to win the conference as provided by BetUS.com.
North Division
California +1500
The Golden Bears return seven starters on offense but question marks surrounding the quarterback position will most likely go unanswered until the start of the regular season. Right now it appears that Buffalo transfer Zach Maynard will get the nod, but that could change if he gets off to a slow start. The defense, which returns just five starters from last year’s team, will be led by All-Conference LB Mychal Kendricks.
Oregon +175
Last year’s 12-1 record and trip the BCS Championship has raised the bar pretty high for the Ducks in 2011. They will have QB Darren Thomas and Heisman Trophy hopeful RB LaMichael James back along with five other starters from last season’s No.1 ranked scoring offense. Defense could be a whole other story with just five starters returning from a year ago. CB Cliff Harris will anchor a secondary that remains pretty much intact.
Oregon State +160
The Beavers will look to bounce back from a disappointing 5-7 record in 2010 behind QB Ryan Katz and WR James Rodgers, the brother of departed RB Jaquizz Rodgers. Replacing the latter will be a tall task after he led the team with 1,184 yards rushing last year. Oregon State could have much more difficult task on defense with just four starters returning from last year’s squad combined with the loss of Gabe Miller and Steven Paea, who are now in the NFL.
Stanford +250
The Cardinal lines up to be Oregon’s primary competition for the North as these are clearly the two best teams in the entire conference. Their chances rest squarely on the shoulders of QB Andrew Luck, who put off the NFL for one more season to try and lead this team to a championship. This task will be made that much harder with only 10 other starters back from last year’s 12-1 squad and a new head coach in David Shaw.
Washington +1000
QB Jake Locker is off to the NFL, so the focus for the Huskies’ offense will shift to RB Chris Polk, who rushed for 1,415 yards on 260 carries in 2010. He will most likely see those numbers increase with an untested Keith Price behind center. The defense is loaded with talent including eight starters from last season as well as a couple of key recruits that are ready to step up and make their mark.
Washington State +7500
The Cougars were a dismal 2-10 last season with just one win in the conference and while it is highly doubtful they can improve enough to have a winning season, a .500 mark is within their means. The key to improvement will hinge on the ability of QB Jeff Tuel to continue to develop under the watchful eye of Head Coach Paul Wulff. The team does return seven other starters on offense and seven on defense, so hopefully some of the strides they made at the end of last season will carry into this one.
South Division
Arizona +800
The Wildcats remain the only original team in the conference to never make it to the Rose Bowl and you pretty much have to believe it will remain that way this year as well. They will have five new starters on the offensive line as well as losing a good chunk of their defensive line as well. Fortunately Arizona does have some talent in the offensive skill positions with QB Nick Foles and WR Juron Criner and seven starters returning on defense. This should give this team a shot at the South title, but that will be as far as it gets this year.
Arizona State +600
This year’s team will look almost identical to last year’s with 11 starters back on offense and nine starters returning on defense. QB Brock Osweiler returns as the starter after replacing Steven Threet midway through last season as does RB Cameron Marshall, who led the team in rushing with 787 yards last year. The defense remains intact, but will have to improve upon the 25 points a game it allowed on average in 2010.
Colorado +1800
The Buffaloes may be in a new conference, but the results this year in the PAC-12 could be very similar to last season’s 5-7 record overall and 2-6 record in the Big 12. They have a new head coach in Jon Embree and 16 starters back from last year, but will need to drastically improve upon a team that was ranked 84th in the country in scoring and 91st in points allowed.
UCLA +1500
The Bruins won just two conference games last season and went 4-8 overall to cap off a decade of mediocrity for a program that has had just one 10-win season since 1998. This year could be somewhat different with the relative weakness of the South Division and USC still out of the title picture, but UCLA would need every break to bounce its way to turn in a winning record and seriously challenge for spot in the PAC-12 title game.
USC
The Trojans remain ineligible to compete for any postseason consideration, so they will have to spend one more season taking pleasure in playing the role of spoiler. The most exciting aspect of the 2011 team could be the pass and catch combination of QB Matt Barkley and WR Robert Woods. These two hooked up 65 times in 2010 for 792 yards and six TD’s. Look for these numbers to possibly explode this season as this combination remains the crux of the offense attack.
Utah +250
The second new-comer to the conference comes in with high expectations after finishing its last season in the MWC with a record of 10-3. The Utes return seven starters on offense including QB Jordan Wynn and WR DeVonte Christopher. There are several question marks on the defensive side of the ball as just five starters return from last year’s team, but look for Chaz Walker to step in and anchor this unit from the middle linebacker position.
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