PAC 12 2019 Season Thread

[CatsbyAZ]

I had the Trojans 4-8 I think?

Outside of this season’s expected upper tier - UW, Oregon, Stanford, WSU & Utah - everybody else is about a 4-8 team in any other P5 conference. What helps the Trojans (and ASU, UCLA, Cal, Colorado, etc) is that the conference schedule is so watered down that merely being less incompetent than your middling opponent will keep you afloat for a 6 or 7 win type of bowl season. Pac 12 feels like a lot of teams playing not to lose.

[ELA]

Yeah, if your front isn't holding up against Kent State, you are in trouble.

The big dude ASU had in the middle last year, when we had a couple OL out, was the most man on boys thing I've seen on the defensive interior since Suh in college.

I'm not going to apologize if we are able to return the favor this year.

[DevilFroggy]

The big dude ASU had in the middle last year, when we had a couple OL out, was the most man on boys thing I've seen on the defensive interior since Suh in college.

I'm not going to apologize if we are able to return the favor this year.

Wren was strong as a bull and had a motor, but it only went full speed half the time. I'm glad he had it turned on for most of the Michigan St game but there's a reason he was only drafted in the 4th round despite having all the measurables.

His replacement, DJ Davidson, was coming on pretty strong last year and even taking some snaps away from Wren before he got a season ending injury in week 8. He won't straight up bully your center the way Wren did but he's a lot more agile and has a more consistent motor.

[847badgerfan]

Good to see you back in the fold, Frog Face. The joint ain't the same without ya.

[DevilFroggy]

Yeah, if your front isn't holding up against Kent State, you are in trouble.

I missed seeing your GIFs of that player of theirs going beserk.

[Brutus Buckeye]

I missed seeing your GIFs of that player of theirs going beserk.

Yes, if Jon "The Velociraptor" Cunningham were still anchoring the middle of the D-Line, the struggles would be a little more understandable. 

[CWSooner]

The Utes are going to emerge atop the mountain this year.

Or perhaps atop the anthill.

[CatsbyAZ]

After a long offseason of hearing Helton say he’s got everything “fixed and figured out” look to USC’s late game minutes Vs Fresno St to realize Helton hasn’t learned Jack.

Up 31-23 w/ about 5 minutes left in game Helton decides to go with the no huddle, meaning snapping the ball with a running clock at about 20 left on the play clock. Now why go no huddle right when the clock is turning into a big, late-game advantage??

So when Fresno stops USC another set of downs later, with less than 3 left, Helton decides to go for it on 4th & 1. The play he picks gets blown up in the back field because the QB was handing off 6 yards deep!

Lucky for USC that Fresno didn’t play with much poise, tossing a pick soon after. A smarter team would’ve beat USC last night - Fresno State couldn’t finish drives or step up when the pressure was on.

Edit: Two more Helton blunders of note: 

The opening kickoff (long return) was called back because two USC players were both wearing #7


Helton called a late first half timeout that allowed Fresno State to set up for the FG

[847badgerfan]

Urban Meyer is gonna kill it at USC starting next year.

[CatsbyAZ]

Urban Meyer is gonna kill it at USC starting next year.

Since you brought it up this was exactly something I heard from fans all Saturday on the USC campus – that once this season runs its course Helton will be fired (next 5 games could send him packing – Stanford, @ BYU, Utah, @ Washington, @ Notre Dame) and next season Urban Meyer will have everything fixed.

I’m not sure hiring Meyer will be as easy as the optimists assume. USC is in the wake of a half decade of campus scandals that includes Sarkisian’s firing, the Med School dean hosting ecstasy parties, Vice President forced down due to sexual harassment, lawsuits upwards of $500 million expected over USC’s version of Nasser, and the admissions scandal. Hiring Meyer as the face of your university ignores the mess of USC’s last five years and I can’t imagine that Meyer's baggage won’t be met with disruptive protest from the raging politically correct warriors bent on hijacking the coaching search.

In related news - USC starting QB JT Daniels out for the season with torn ACL. 

[DevilFroggy]

The decision to put true freshman Slovis over Sears (who played well when given the chance last season) was quite baffling, and it cost them Sears sitting on the depth chart. Slovis was an interesting recruit for USC, he played in ASU's backyard but they barely pursued him, in fact USC was by far his best offer. Somebody I know and trust quite well who is very familiar with HS football in the Phoenix metro doesn't think too highly of Slovis, and thinks this especially spells doom for the Trojans.

[CatsbyAZ]

Slovis played fantastic against Stanford last night: 28/33 377 yds 3 TDs 1 Int.

After UCLA’s lifeless home showing Vs San Diego St yesterday, to a chorus of Boos in a half empty Rose Bowl, I was fully expecting to declare the Bruins, along with the Trojans losing after being down 17-3 Vs Stanford, the worst football LA has ever seen. But congrats to USC for rolling up 500 yds against a surprisingly careless Stanford D to win 44-20.

Stanford’s OL held up very well against the pass rush but couldn’t create running lanes for their RBs.

The bigger point in all this is I think USC could easily win the South with Slovis and yet it won’t go to prove that Helton is any better of a coach. Remember all the Slovis praise was coming from the assistants whereas Helton kept his sights on JT Daniels who, let’s face it, shows zero improvement and acts like his high school accomplishments will carry him to the NFL.

If Slovis takes over the season as well as he did last night I think we’re looking at Helton riding the heels of another Sam Darnold equivalent resurrection.

[847badgerfan]

Lots of schools are happy they dodged the Chip Kelly bullet right now.

[CatsbyAZ]

UCLA giving away tickets to this week’s prime time home game Vs Oklahoma. I think the admin is embarrassed by how few fans are present in the Rose Bowl these days - from last Saturday Vs San Diego State:


https://twitter.com/TheShowSDSU/status/1170430594737528832

From the LA Times: “UCLA’s average home attendance of 51,164 last season at the 80,616-seat stadium was its smallest since 1999, continuing a steep decline that started in 2017. Last season’s crowds were down 33.2% from the school-record 76,650 the Bruins averaged in 2014, when they went 10-3 and were ranked as high as No. 7 in national polls.”