SI Pac-12 Preseason Power Rankings: Are Sun Devils Ranked too low?

In Sports Illustrated's first Pac-12 power rankings, the Arizona State Sun Devils find themselves lower than fans would expect them to be.

Author:
Donnie Druin
Publish date:
Aug 23, 2021 7:00 PM EDT

Sports Illustrated's first Pac-12 power rankings were revealed Monday.

The rankings, composed by six different publishers for Sports Illustrated's Pac-12 channels, come during the last week of the preseason for the conference as UCLA begins its 2021 season on Saturday, August 28.

As expected, powerhouses in the likes of Oregon, USC and Washington topped the list, as all three schools expect to be in title contention deep into the season.

12 teams. 6 publishers. 1 list. Here's your preseason SI Pac-12 power rankings:

SI PAC-12 PRESEASON POWER RANKINGS

1. Oregon (4) 68 points

2. USC (1) 67 points

3. Washington 59 points

4. Utah (1) 53 points

5. Arizona State 51 points

6. UCLA 40 points

7. Cal 35 points

8. Stanford 30 points

9. Colorado 26 points

10. Oregon State 17 points

11. Washington State 14 points

12. Arizona 8 points

How AllSunDevils Voted

DONNIE DRUIN, ALL SUN DEVILS

1. Oregon; 2. USC; 3. Washington; 4. Arizona State; 5. Utah; 6. UCLA; 7. Cal; 8. Colorado; 9. Stanford; 10. Oregon State; 11. Washington State; 12. Arizona

Comment: The Pac-12 is the only conference to not have an odds-on favorite to bring home the title heading into the season. Heavyweights such as Oregon/USC/Washington are a must in any preseason top-three, while programs such as Arizona State and Utah have the ability to make a push for a conference title as well. Watch out for UCLA and Colorado as sneaky dark horse teams.

Notes

Oregon lead your preseason power rankings with 4 of 6 total first place votes. USC and Utah garnered the other two votes for the Pac-12's top spot.

5 of 6 voters placed Arizona State at number four, with the other voter ranking the Sun Devils at number seven in their power rankings.

Traveling a bit further down south, Arizona gained 5 of 6 last place votes in the initial poll. The Wildcats finished at eleven in the lone power rankings that did not have them last.

USC never ranked lower than second throughout the respective power rankings, while Oregon once found itself ranked third.

Donnie Druin is a Deputy Editor with AllSunDevils. Follow Donnie on Twitter @DonnieDruin, and AllSunDevils @AllSunDevils. Like and follow AllSunDevils on Facebook, and for more ASU news visit https://www.si.com/college/arizonastate/