USC Picked to Win Pac-12 in Its Final Season in the Conference

USC is picked to win the Pac-12 title in its final year in the conference, according to a poll of media members released Thursday..

The Trojans who had to best conference record last season but lost to Utah in the Pac-12 championship game, will join the Big Ten in June 2014. UCLA, the other team leaving for the Big Ten after this season, was picked to finish sixth.

Cal hopes to end a streak of 13 straight seasons in which it finished with a losing conference record, but if the media poll is correct, the Golden Bears’ streak will be extended to 14 consecutive losing conference marks, because Cal is picked to finish ninth.

Not much is expected of former Cal quarterback Troy Taylor in his first season as the head coach at Stanford, which is picked to finish last.

USC’s offense is led by 2022 Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams at quarterback, while Washington, picked to finish second, returns quarterback Michael Penix Jr., who led the nation by a sizable margin in passing yards per game a year ago and is a preseason Heisman Trophy candidate too.

Defending champion Utah is projected to finish third and is led by Cameron Rising, who was the first-team all-conference quarterback two years ago but suffered a significant leg injury late last season. Oregon, picked fourth, is led by quarterback Bo Nix, another Heisman candidate

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the preseason poll is that Oregon State, which usually finishes near the bottom of the Pac-12 standings, is picked to finish fifth. The acquisition of quarterback DJ Uiagalelei, a transfer from Clemson, has a lot to do with that.

Here is how the Pac-12 was picked by the media, with first-place votes in parentheses:

Cover photo of USC quarterback Caleb Williams and coach Lincoln Riley by Kiyoshi Mio, USA TODAY Sports

Follow Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jakecurtis53

Find Cal Sports Report on Facebook by going to https://www.facebook.com/si.calsportsreport