Written by Rohit Ghosh

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While it may not have a national title under its belt in the last decade, the Pac-12 conference can arguably justify claiming the moniker of best conference in the country. Both Oregon and USC expect to be powerhouses in the 2015 college football season, but even beyond that, the Pac-12 features a plethora of rosters that will contend for a spot in the College Football Playoffs. AccuScore tips Stanford and Arizona State to exceed expectations.


AccuScore has picks for every NCAA Division 1A game this season: College Football Game Picks

Pac-12 Storylines to Watch for

Pac-12 South: The division features absolute powerhouses this season, including USC, UCLA, Arizona State, Arizona and Utah. According to the computer’s simulations, UCLA and USC project to finish neck-and-neck at 9-3, while Arizona and Utah finish on either side of .500. The struggle for teams in this division will be to stay healthy - with so many contenders in the South, not getting too beat up throughout the regular season is a challenge in itself. According to the computer, Arizona State projects to rise above and finish with a 10-1 record that will surely put the Sun Devils in the conversations for the NCAA college football playoffs.

Stanford: Can the return of QB Kevin Hogan get Stanford back to the top? Despite having one of the top defenses in the nation last season, Stanford just couldn't build any sort of momentum due to their offense, or lack thereof. All that will change this season with the return of Kevin Hogan along with wideout Devon Cajuste. The defensive efficiency may take a bit of a dip since that side of the ball is bringing back just four starters, but the improvement on the other side of the ball will overshadow any potential shortcomings on the defensive end. AccuScore projects Stanford to end the season with an 11-1 record and a clear avenue into an NCAA playoff berth.

Pac-12 vs SEC: Most experts are suggesting 2015 is the year the Pac-12 conference will move past the SEC as the superior conference in college football. With better returning QBs and a division to rival the SEC West, the Pac-12 has enough momentum and depth to challenge the SEC for its supremacy. Keep a close eye on two factors: how potent the Cody Kessler-led USC offense is to start the season, and how Arizona State performs in their opening matchup against Texas A&M.

USC is finally is free from the shackles of NCAA sanctions, projecting to contend for the national title behind the leadership of Heisman candidate Cody Kessler. AccuScore projects USC to finally edge rival UCLA in the rivalry game, but that victory only projects to ruin UCLA’s post season chances rather than propel USC to the summit. Southern Cal is on the right path, but it is still not quite ready to return to the big time.

The ASU-A&M game in Week 1 is the only Pac-12-SEC matchup of the college football regular season; how well the Sun Devils play in that matchup will have a huge domino effect in the debate for which conference is better.

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Pac-12: Games to Watch For

Arizona State hosts Oregon on Oct. 29: No one necessarily looks at this matchup and expects an upset. Oregon has more talent and is practically a lock to finish the season with a better record than ASU. This matchup, however, happens to fall on a Thursday night. Oregon lost in October 2014 against Arizona - on a Thursday night game. The 24-point underdog Wildcats defeated No. 2 Oregon 31-24. Different teams, of course, but ASU has enough talent and the Thursday-night trend could be in effect.

AccuScore currently has the Ducks as 77 percent favorites to win the matchup. The average projected score is 43-28.

USC @ Oregon: In what is expected to be the Pac-12 conference matchup of the regular season, the Ducks host the Trojans in what should be a preview of the Pac-12 title game. Oregon defeated USC 62-51 the last time these two sides back - all the way back in 2012. With this much talent on the field, the entire nation will be watching Pac-12 football in Week 12.