Official '12-'13 PAC-12 Football Thread

[The Gemini Method]

Since it is almost that time--I do believe that there isn't a thread dedicated to the upcoming PAC-12 season (granted, there isn't many that many fans of the conference being this is BIG-12 country...) and it could be a BCS bust season for the Trojans and Ducks as they're considered by the experts to be the two best teams in the conference. If you're a fan of the PAC-12, what are your teams' expectations and personal outlooks for the season.

With that being said, the Trojans have announced Silas Redd, probably the most well-known player on the Penn St. roster, has picked USC as his school of choice for transfer. This bolsters one of the weaker spots on the Trojans roster and he will definitely be a upgrade over the backs that were going to be behind McNeal. While he won't evoke memories of the cheater Bush and LenDale White, he won't have to be premiere as Barkley, Woods, and Lee are the stars on the O side of the ball. The O-Line will miss Kalil but they do return the remainder of the line and they held up pretty well. That will be the most important thing to do: Protect possible top-3 pick Matt Barkley and give him the time to utilize the weaponry he came back to Exposition Park to play with.

The defense returns a very talented group of linebackers and are another year under the tutelage of Old Man Kiffin. They will need to see if the replacements for the DEs will provide a rush that will allow the Tampa 2 to be successful. I am guessing there will be more packages for LB blitzes until a clear definement of DLine pressure is established.

Good luck to all the PAC-12 teams out there and to all the fans as well.

[shyne]

Whatever happened to Dillon Baxter?

[DesignatedT]

USC gun dominate

[The Gemini Method]

Whatever happened to Dillon Baxter?

He couldn't keep himself out of trouble off-the-field, so USC had enough and nixed him. Very talented but can't seem to keep himself out of trouble. He was one of those that was able to leave and go to a FBS school due to the amnesty clause because of the probation and tried San Diego St., but was a bust there (funny how that works for someone who is a malcontent). Apparently, he is going down to the NAIA level and trying a school in Kansas called Baker.

Would be the starter if he had kept his cool and not gone the thug route.


USC gun dominate

I would hope they'll live up to the hype. However, I don't really 100% trust Lane Kiffin yet. I know he coached well last year and if it weren't for a couple turnovers against Stanford--he might've had one loss. The game plan for Arizona St. was pitiful and I know he is capable of throwing a stinker out there from time to time.

Oregon is going to be a pretty tough team to dethrone from the PAC-12 catbird seat. Yeah, they lost James and Thomas, but they still have DeAnthony Thomas and Kenjon Barner--two stellar RBs in the backfield. The D did lose some pieces but with the athletes that the Ducks pull, this shouldn't be that big of a deal.

[DUNCANownsKOBE]

UofA predictions:

vs. Toledo - W
vs. OK State - L
vs. South Carolina State - W
@ Oregon - L
vs. Oregan State - L
@ Stanford - L
vs. Washington - L
vs. USC - L
@ UCLA - L
vs. Colorado - W
@ Utah - L
vs. ASU - L

3-9 followed by a bunch of retards saying, "Just give Dick Rod a chance! He went 2-10 his first year at Michigan and look how well that turned out...er.....wait.....what happened at Michigan was a fluke Dick Rod is gonna dominate next year! We're gonna load up on 2 star recruits from Florida over 4 star recruits from the South West!"

[DesignatedT]

I would hope they'll live up to the hype. However, I don't really 100% trust Lane Kiffin yet. I know he coached well last year and if it weren't for a couple turnovers against Stanford--he might've had one loss. The game plan for Arizona St. was pitiful and I know he is capable of throwing a stinker out there from time to time.

Oregon is going to be a pretty tough team to dethrone from the PAC-12 catbird seat. Yeah, they lost James and Thomas, but they still have DeAnthony Thomas and Kenjon Barner--two stellar RBs in the backfield. The D did lose some pieces but with the athletes that the Ducks pull, this shouldn't be that big of a deal.

I agree with this. On Paper USC>> Oregon but when it comes to coaching you have to give the nod to Kelly. I like USC though because their D compared to Oregon.

[DesignatedT]

Pac 12 champion(USC/OREGON) and SEC champion(LSU/ALABAMA play for the MNC.

[The Gemini Method]

UofA predictions:

vs. Toledo - W
vs. OK State - L
vs. South Carolina State - W
@ Oregon - L
vs. Oregan State - L
@ Stanford - L
vs. Washington - L
vs. USC - L
@ UCLA - L
vs. Colorado - W
@ Utah - L
vs. ASU - L

3-9 followed by a bunch of retards saying, "Just give Dick Rod a chance! He went 2-10 his first year at Michigan and look how well that turned out...er.....wait.....what happened at Michigan was a fluke Dick Rod is gonna dominate next year! We're gonna load up on 2 star recruits from Florida over 4 star recruits from the South West!"

Could very well be the case--Will be interesting to see what he does in Tucson. Who would've you wanted as the replacement for Stoops?

[DUNCANownsKOBE]

Could very well be the case--Will be interesting to see what he does in Tucson. Who would've you wanted as the replacement for Stoops?
Leach, but more specifically anyone other than Dick Rod. He's a proven failure as a head coach when he's not coaching in some bullshit conference with a weak schedule. I know there are countless stories about how :crythe big meanies at Michigan made it hard for poor Dick Rod:cry, but he already fucked up on some major recruiting opportunities last season and thinks his 3-3-5 defense is gonna work against schools like USC and Oregon.

[The Gemini Method]

So USC is ranked #3

Oregon #5

and Stanford is 18#

I think that is a good position to be in--no team has gon the wire in quite some time when ranked in the preseason I believe. LSU and Alabama better play a better game this eason if it comes down to it. Both of their matches were not fun to watch but that's the way they like it in the South. Will be interesting to see how Texas A&M and Mizzou get acclimated to the new conference.

[tlongII]

I just want 7 or 8 wins and a bowl game this year. We'll definitely be better than last year, but that's not saying much. Next year we should be pretty good though.

[vander]

Pac 12 gonna be back to normal, USC dominating, all other teams pathetic and/or disappointing

I predict USC vs. SEC in the NCG

[symple19]

USC, despite their talent, just doesn't have a good enough HC to win a natty

[symple19]

Pac 12 gonna be back to normal, USC dominating, all other teams pathetic and/or disappointing



What about Oregon? Washington, maybe?


Utah?

Somebody has to at least push USC a bit...lol, or maybe not

[The Gemini Method]

Every team in contention in the Pac-12 has issues:

Oregon: Starting a new QB is always a tough thing to call. They have the horses @ RB to ease the transition, but their O is predicated by spreading the whole D out. You see what happens when a strong D is able to contain the run and put pressure on the QB (see: Auburn and LSU).

USC: Defensive Line is the unproven commodity of the team. Will they generate enough pressure to keep offenses honest? the Linebacker corps proved last year they are warriors and you're going to get great coverage from McDonald and Robey. It will all depend on the DL providing some heat.

Washington: Got a new D-coordinator and has the talent on the O-side. Don't know, though, if they'll be able to stop anyone enough to really challenge the top teams.

Utah: May be the darkhorse as they begin their 2nd season in the Pac-12. I think the question remains in the talent they've recruited. I would circle the the 10/04 showdown @ Rice-Eccles Stadium as their only potentially non-winnable game. They don't play Oregon or Stanford this time around, so Washington and UCLA may be their biggest test outside of USC.

[Girasuck]

Utah just lost it's second best defensive lineman for the season, Junior Salt. We're still pretty deep on the D-line but that was a huge blow.

I expect about the same kind of year from my Utes this year as last, especially since we're still stuck with that weasel Jordan Wynn as our QB. Our running game is solid and we have the second deepest receiving core in the Pac-12. The problem is our QB is incapable of getting the ball to them.

We played USC tough last year and I expect the same this year. A lot of the talking heads say USC's toughest task will be the Thursday nighter in SLC. I'll be there 7 rows behind the USC sideline screaming my head off, but I expect USC to win a close one.

We're looking at an 8-4 or 9-3 season with a second place finish in our division and a nice bowl win, again. Give us a couple more years to get our depth up to par with the rest of the Pac-12 and then we can start talking about winning the Pac-12.

[symple19]

^ good stuff. I simply cannot wait for football to start.

[tlongII]

I think Oregon will take the Pac again this year. Their QB's are actually better than Darron Thomas was. They just need to settle on one QB to be the leader (Bennett or Mariotta). They will also have the best defense in the conference this year. USC is close to them, but I don't think they have the depth to keep up.

[The Gemini Method]

I think Oregon will take the Pac again this year. Their QB's are actually better than Darron Thomas was. They just need to settle on one QB to be the leader (Bennett or Mariotta). They will also have the best defense in the conference this year. USC is close to them, but I don't think they have the depth to keep up.

Brand new QBs and the D that was shredded by Barkley for the majority of the game and the Nov. 3rd showdown is in L.A. Yeah, no, USC is taking it this year and it's not even going to matter after Nov. 3rd because the Ducks will end up playing the role of spoiled by a team they don't have any right losing to. Mariota and Bennett may be physically better than Thomas but they sure are not game smarter, experienced and have that intangible of leading the offense that Darron Thomas had. This offense needs quick and smart decisions and that will take some time for either one of the starting QBs for the Ducks.

[leemajors]

You can watch Pac 12 games on the iPad, pretty jealous seeing as I won't be getting LHN anytime soon:

http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/31/pac-12-conference-streams-come-to-ipad/

[DUNCANownsKOBE]

I think Oregon will take the Pac again this year. Their QB's are actually better than Darron Thomas was. They just need to settle on one QB to be the leader (Bennett or Mariotta). They will also have the best defense in the conference this year. USC is close to them, but I don't think they have the depth to keep up.
I have a hard time believing any of those QBs will be as good a fit for Oregon as Darren Thomas was. Maybe they're better prototype QBs but Thomas was the perfect fit for Kelly's system.

[The Gemini Method]

You can watch Pac 12 games on the iPad, pretty jealous seeing as I won't be getting LHN anytime soon:

http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/31/pac-12-conference-streams-come-to-ipad/

Not sure I'll be getting the Pac-12 Network anytime soon as I have Verizon FiOS and they have yet to come to terms, or, at least that's what I've read. Good thing USC is on national T.V. more often than not.

[Girasuck]

Hopefully the Pac-12 Network will get all the bugs fixed and present a better quality broadcast. I had the Utes game cut out 3 different times last night and the sound quality was horrible. Announcers sounded like they had their hands over the mics as they talked.

[leemajors]

Hopefully the Pac-12 Network will get all the bugs fixed and present a better quality broadcast. I had the Utes game cut out 3 different times last night and the sound quality was horrible. Announcers sounded like they had their hands over the mics as they talked.

Might be the stadium setup, a good friend of mine works camera for LHN and has worked for FoxSW in the past. Some of the stadiums just aren't wired right for high def. He said pulling cables for setup at Kyle Field was a nightmare a few years ago but they have fixed it since.

[tlongII]

Fucking Nicholls State chickened out of coming to Corvallis. No football game for me this weekend. :depressed

[The Reckoning]

lol darron thomas. what an idiot.

[symple19]

Here we go again?

USC to investigate report of gifts

http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/ncf/story/_/id/8326828/usc-trojans-investigate-report-gifts-ex-athletes-joe-mcknight-davon-jefferson