It’s hard to believe, but the start of the next college football season is beginning to creep up on us. It’s the height of the summer right now, but before you know it, American tackle football is going to kick off in earnest. I can’t wait. Over the course of the next several weeks, I’m going to be surveying the college football landscape, conference by conference, and previewing the upcoming season. Up next, we’re talking about the Pac-12.
PAC-12: BURNING QUESTIONS HEADING INTO 2023
What’s next? It really has nothing to do with the product on the field in 2023, but you know it’s going to come up in every single broadcast this season – what on Earth is this conference going to do? Member programs have fled for the Big Ten and the Big 12, and it won’t be long before this is the Pac-4 with just Stanford, Oregon State, Cal, and Washington State left standing. No one’s going to be surprised when those four teams end up elsewhere either. I’m distraught at the thought of losing our beloved #Pac12AfterDark. This should be a pretty solid conference in 2023, but beyond that, your guess is as good as mine.
Can USC make another run at the playoffs? I try to do my best NOT to call teams soft, I promise. But, the way that this USC team was pushed around by Utah, and then allowed Tulane to get back into the Cotton Bowl, I can’t help but wonder what the psyche of this program is like right now. And, unlike some of the other contenders in the Pac-12, I feel like people are just glossing over what this team lost to the NFL Draft. They have Caleb Williams and a potent offensive system under Lincoln Riley, but there are some tough-minded teams and some good defensive lines in this conference. I wouldn’t be surprised to see this team regress a bit in 2023. Back-to-back Heisman-esque seasons for Williams? You just don’t see that too often with players.
Special season in store in Seattle? That said, I think the Huskies are built to take the Pac-12 this season. Michael Penix Jr. is back at quarterback. They have some NFL talent at wide receiver, and they’re built well from the trenches out. The November schedule is absolutely brutal (at USC, Utah, at Oregon State, Washington State), but if they can get to it at 8-0, there could be some extra motivation to finish the job. Kalen DeBoer has done a fantastic job in correcting course for that program. A Pac-12 Championship is definitely on the table, but this could be a dark horse contender for the College Football Playoff.
Tough schedule too much for Utah to overcome? The Utes program has so much going for it in its pursuit of a third consecutive Pac-12 Championship, and you definitely can’t rule this team out of the race. It’s a contender in 2023 – Kyle Whittingham has built an incredible culture at Utah. This is a tough, physical team that arguably has the best home environment in the entire conference. It’s a tough place to play a tough team. But, they have non-conference games against Florida and Baylor, and they have some daunting road trips on their schedule in the Pac-12 – to Oregon State, to USC, to Washington. It’s not going to be easy for the Utes, but perhaps, that’s just how they like it.
Will DJ Uiagalelei open up the Oregon State offense? The Beavers make for arguably the most interesting team in the Pac-12. Jonathan Smith has built a strong foundation of running the ball and playing sound fundamental defense at Oregon State. It yielded 10 wins in a fantastic season in 2022, but for the program to take the next step, does it need to open things up and be a little more dynamic on offense? Uiagalelei transferred from Clemson, and gives the offense more of a deep threat arm than it had a season ago. If they can throw the ball down the field successfully and open that offense more, could this be a legitimate Pac-12 Championship contender?
Coach Prime at Colorado – I’m already tired of the Colorado hype myself, but buckle up because it’s only going to get worse until this team starts 1-5 or 0-6 and it’s not a story anymore. Deion Sanders has name value, of course, but people are sleeping on just how barren this roster was when he took over. It’s a shot in the arm, for sure, but it’s going to be 2025 before we really see the results of this hire start to take form.
Where’s the middle class? The disparity between the contenders and the basement dwellers is substantial in this conference. You have a middling UCLA team that will be looking at life after Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and you have a solid Washington State squad that might surprise, but there’s not really anybody else in this class. It makes any game between some combination of Washington, Utah, USC, Oregon State, and Oregon can’t-miss television because the ramifications are going to be huge on the conference race. But, for everybody else, *barf noise*. Arizona could be a fun surprise because of their offense, but they, along with Arizona State, still look like they’re a year or two away from really being factors in this conference. I’ve already said I’m not buying in on Colorado this season. Stanford is back to pre-David Shaw Stanford. And, Cal is entering the season with its head coach, Justin Wilcox, on the hot seat. There’s a wide gap between the top and the bottom of this conference.
My projected order of finish:
- Washington
- Utah
- USC
- Oregon State
- Oregon
2023 COLLEGE FOOTBALL SEASON PREVIEWS
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Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley.
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