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As much as I hate to admit it, USC COULD win the Pac 10.
(but so could Oregon or OSU)

USC:
-loaded with talent and have a great staff
-get Oregon, UW and Cal at home

Oregon returns tons of playmakers but has Q's at QB
OSU returns 16 starters but is breaking in a new QB

On the downside (for USC - lol)
-play AT OSU and UCLA (definite loss!)
-UW should be even better and MAY win at the Coliseum

Personally, I see USC losing to UCLA and either OSU or UW.
So that would give them 2 conf losses.

BUT, I also believe Oregon and OSU have very tough roads to the Pac Championship.

OSU plays AT UCLA, UW and Stanford - (could be 2 losses there)
Oregon has the brutal stretch of UCLA, @USC, UW, @Cal, and UA - (could be 2 losses there)

So it could come down to tie breaker rules but I wouldn't be surprised if a 7-2 (conf) USC wins (BARF!) the Pac.

And this should be USC's last year of being preseason Pac favorites, as all those great recruits start heading south on the 110 for a REAL school!!
(though we've been recruiting very well the last few years)

Not that I'd rub in the SCHOLARSHIP LOSSES on my rival or anything! - lol!

QUOTE(#2):

Originally posted 04:02 AM ET  07.01 by BALCU

USC:-loaded with talent and have a great staff-get Oregon, UW and Cal at home
Oregon returns tons of playmakers but has Q's at QB
OSU returns 16 starters but is breaking in a new QB
On the downside (for USC - lol)-play AT OSU and UCLA (definite loss!)

Overall, the analysis is good, but I wonder at the perspective on USC. This is a team that allowed 55 points to Stanford, 47 to Oregon and 27 to Notre Dame in 2009. In a 9-4 season, when they finished the regular season unranked, the Trojans began their decline in style. I don't think that "loaded with talent" tells the whole story about USC in 2010. In order to win the conference championship, they need to improve over last season.
Has the defense improved sufficiently? Monte Kiffin should do a good job as DC, but here is what he inherits: the defense made 35 sacks last season, but none against OR, Stanford or AZ. In those three games, they managed only 2 tackles for loss against Stanford, 3 against OR, and 5 against AZ. Pressure against good teams was an issue last year. Stanford and OR both picked up over 300 yards rushing. No one else even got 200 yards rushing against USC, but those two had a feast.
On offense, Matt Barkley has a full year of experience under his belt now, but how is the offensive line and how are his receivers? The O line gave up only 18 sacks last year, and Seantrel Henderson is certainly a great talent to add for 2010. They should be fine on paper. The receiving corps at USC gained 2,890 yards in 2009, but the secondary gave up 2,760 yards. The secondary made 11 interceptions, but Barkley threw 15. WA and Stanford managed a +3 turnover advantage against the Trojans. In several areas, "needs improvement" is the watchword for 2010.

Yeah, they could win it this year. They'll have extra incentive, too, knowing that they'll probably be taking a Pac-10 title break for a little while.

I am curious to see how they do. As much flack as Kiffin (deservedly, usually) gets, he does have a solid staff. A good year would help solidify his position even during the relatively poor (sanction-induced) seasons to come. By the time they come out the other side, Kiffin may have even learned a few HC tricks.

They have the most talent and good experience on both sides of the ball. They should be considered the favorite to win on that alone. However, does the imposibility of playing in a bowl game cramp their motivation a bit? While a lot of those players are gunning to play on Sundays and a conference title is still nice, will knowing they aren't playing for a premier bowl spot hurt the team's psyche?

Seriously.. You think that USC could/will win the Pac 10?.. I will not deny that USC has talent aplenty.. but your biggest drawback is your headcoach... who has yet to prove anything and when he loses a game.. calls it a "moral victory".. Monte May have his defense ready.. but I would not be surprised if USC went either @.500 or below.. Kiffen couldnt prove himself with Tenn.. I doubt it will be any better in Cali.

QUOTE(#9):

Originally posted 01:04 PM ET  07.01 by ktg8rgrl

Seriously.. You think that USC could/will win the Pac 10?.. I will not deny that USC has talent aplenty.. but your biggest drawback is your headcoach... who has yet to prove anything and when he loses a game.. calls it a "moral victory".. Monte May have his defense ready.. but I would not be surprised if USC went either @.500 or below.. Kiffen couldnt prove himself with Tenn.. I doubt it will be any better in Cali.

He went over .500 with UT players in the SEC East. I'm thinking he'll be above .500 inheriting USC talent and playing in the Pac-10. He may not have proven yet that HE is the real deal, but his staff did pretty well, all things considered.

It will be interesting to see what Kiffin can do at USC.

He took a Tennessee program that was headed downhill fast and began to resurrect it - nearly taking down the 2 top SEC teams (on the road) in the process. ... All that in his 1st year, and with somebody else's players.

He has shown he can be a great coach. Now it's time to see what he can do with a great bunch of players at a storied program.

It will definitely be interesting, either way...

Does it matter? They can't go near the bowl games anyway.

Yes. I said it. :P

QUOTE(#5):

Originally posted 09:25 AM ET  07.01 by Goal Line Stand

Overall, the analysis is good, but I wonder at the perspective on USC. This is a team that allowed 55 points to Stanford, 47 to Oregon and 27 to Notre Dame in 2009. In a 9-4 season, when they finished the regular season unranked, the Trojans began their decline in style. I don't think that "loaded with talent" tells the whole story about USC in 2010. In order to win the conference championship, they need to improve over last season. Has the defense improved sufficiently? Monte Kiffin should do a good job as DC, but here is what he inherits: the defense made 35 sacks last season, but none against OR, Stanford or AZ. In those three games, they managed only 2 tackles for loss against Stanford, 3 against OR, and 5 against AZ. Pressure against good teams was an issue last year. Stanford and OR both picked up over 300 yards rushing. No one else even got 200 yards rushing against USC, but those two had a feast.On offense, Matt Barkley has a full year of experience under his belt now, but how is the offensive line and how are his receivers? The O line gave up only 18 sacks last year, and Seantrel Henderson is certainly a great talent to add for 2010. They should be fine on paper. The receiving corps at USC gained 2,890 yards in 2009, but the secondary gave up 2,760 yards. The secondary made 11 interceptions, but Barkley threw 15. WA and Stanford managed a +3 turnover advantage against the Trojans. In several areas, "needs improvement" is the watchword for 2010.

Good analysis.
Yes, the trojan defense was in ruins at times last year. Stanford and Oregon were excellent rushing teams last year due to playmakers and talented QB's, but the USC D DID allow those 2 to run all over them. --- As every fan and coach knows, YA GOTTA STOP THE RUN! - lol.

Word is the O-Line has a few new starters. Receivers-wise, they lost Damian Williams. But the recievers they have are supposed to quite talented - if they want to be. So we'll see how that pans out for them. I'm sure a lot of it will depend how well the running backs produce also.

All that being said, I still see them losing a game or two that they are favorited in.

I foresee @Arizona as a possible 'trap' game, since they are @OSU the following week. And they ARE 2-2 with OSU over the last 4 years.

QUOTE(#12):

Originally posted 12:12 AM ET  07.02 by Ms. G

Does it matter? They can't go near the bowl games anyway.Yes. I said it. :P

Let's put it in perspective. If PSU played USC in the regular season, which would matter to you more - losing to USC or missing out on a bowl game?

USC still has 13 games this year and believe it or not each of those opponents has fans that hate the Trojans just as much as you do.

Nothing like, going on a date and knowing there is no sex afterwards!

QUOTE(#16):

Originally posted 07:02 AM ET  07.02 by PAPA ROCKS

Nothing like, going on a date and knowing there is no sex afterwards!

A woman always knows.
It's the poor dumb **** she's with that has no clue.

Bugs says Happy 4th of July to all!!

Actually, USC can't win the Pac 10 this year. Putting aside their incredibly inconsistent play last year, the sanctions they were hit with won't allow for them to be the Pac 10 champs. They're barred from playing in the postseason (so if a championship game were added, they wouldn't be allowed to play in that either), and since the Pac 10 champ gets an automatic Rose Bowl bid, that means USC can't be named the PAC 10 champs. Theoretically, they can have the best record in the PAC 10, but they still wouldn't hold the title. The only way to change this would be for USC's appeal to postpone the start of the sanctions. Since their appeal doesn't include the loss of postseason play this year, however, I don't see why even that would matter. So, they'll serve one year of their postseason ban this year, and hope the other gets overturned on appeal. In other words, no Pac 10 title this year at least, no matter how many games they win.

QUOTE(#15):

Originally posted 01:27 AM ET  07.02 by Tribute to Troy

Let's put it in perspective. If PSU played USC in the regular season, which would matter to you more - losing to USC or missing out on a bowl game? USC still has 13 games this year and believe it or not each of those opponents has fans that hate the Trojans just as much as you do.

Probably not. But I don't care. It's my right to hate and have an opinion.
And that comparison isn't really putting anything into perspective. It does mean something to me that USC can't go near a bowl game for two years, but losing would be worse, of course.

For as long as I've been here I've been saying USC is cheating/cheated. I'm vindicated, so too bad if no one likes it.

Grow tough skin, like I was told.

OH, and TnT, that wasn't really aimed at you. Just a general little thing, I suppose...but wasn't aimed at you.