2015 Pac-12 Expert Picks: Overrated, underrated, predicted order of finish – CBSSports.com

CBS Sports asked our college football staff to lay it all on the line ahead of the season, calling out each of their most overrated and underrated teams, projecting each division’s order of finish and making a bold prediction that will stay with them through the entire 2015 season.

Let’s take a look at what they had to say for the conference that many argued was the best in the nation one season ago.

From USC being overrated to Arizona State being one of the top choices for the Pac-12 South, the opinions are varied and may lead to debate, especially early in the 2015 campaign.

Most overrated team: UCLA. Seventeen starters without a returning quarterback doesn’t make a lot of sense to me in a quarterback league. My lingering memory of the Bruins is that gag job against Stanford.

Most underrated team: Stanford. Unlike half the league, the Cardinal have an established returning quarterback (Kevin Hogan), and the offensive line is typically loaded. Oh, and Oregon comes to town. Why can’t Stanford win the North?

Bold conference prediction: Cal’s Jared Goff will go through his career without playing in a bowl or finishing a season with a winning record. He’ll also be taken in the first round of the 2016 NFL draft.

Most overrated team: USC. Are the Trojans talented? Yes. Are they a top-10 team? We’ll see. I need to see it before I believe it.

Most underrated team: Arizona State. The Sun Devils are capable of winning the Pac-12 and probably deserving of a little higher preseason ranking.

Bold conference prediction: Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez will scream bloody hell that his team doesn’t have a bye week. The Wildcats’ final three games are at USC, vs. Utah, at Arizona State. Good luck with that slate without a week off or a late-season FCS opponent.

Most overrated team: Utah. The Utes look like they’ll take a step back this year. A difficult schedule will make it hard to match last season’s nine win total.

Most underrated team: Cal. By all accounts, the Golden Bears look to be ready to take a step forward this year. They also have a top notch signal caller to lead them in Goff.

Bold conference prediction: The conference champion will have at least two losses, and that will keep the league out of this year’s College Football Playoff.

Most overrated team: USC. I know the Trojans have a ton of talent, but we do this dance every year. The Trojans always have talent, they’re always highly rated, and then they typically disappoint. Until they live up to the hype, I’m always going to be skeptical.

Most underrated team: Arizona. I know the Wildcats had a lot of close calls in 2014 en route to a division title, but they’re being written off too easily this year. Arizona has one of the best defensive players in the country in Scooby Wright III, and Anu Solomon is the first returning starter RichRod has had at quarterback since joining the Wildcats.

Bold conference prediction: Oregon will not only fail to repeat as conference champion, the Ducks will suffer three losses during the regular season.

Most overrated team: USC. On paper, the Trojans should be the Pac-12 favorites (as they were at league media days). They have the conference’s steadiest (and maybe best) quarterback, terrific offensive and defensive lines, and one of the nation’s top secondaries. But the Trojans didn’t handle prosperity well last year (2-6 against-the-spread after a win), get both Oregon and Stanford out of the North, and generally looked in 2014 like a team that was less than the sum of its parts.

Most underrated team: Stanford. Can David Shaw cobble together a defensive line? If so, watch out. The Cardinal offense returns virtually intact, the back seven is dynamite, and Oregon, UCLA and Notre Dame all come to Palo Alto.

Bold conference prediction: USC will finish third in the Pac-12 South. Though I’m not as high on the Trojans as most, this really isn’t as much as knock on Steve Sarkisian’s team as much as it is a vote of confidence for Jim Mora and Todd Graham, who took relatively inexperienced teams in 2014 and still put together 10-win seasons. Both the Bruins and Sun Devils should be even better in 2015.

Most overrated team: USC. There’s a lot of excitement about the 2015 Trojans, and I don’t doubt they could end up being one of the best teams since the Pete Carroll era. But where is all this confidence coming from? The Trojans have to play Stanford and Arizona State in an early back-to-back and then Oregon and UCLA late. Given the inconsistent play of USC a year ago, I’d say chances are good this team loses two games (or more) in the regular season.

Most underrated team: Stanford. Shaw’s first season short of double-digit wins has far too many ruling out the Cardinal as a threat in the Pac-12. Stanford may not be playoff bound, but it’s a team that will have the chance to ruin the title hopes of several of the popular conference title picks.

Bold conference prediction: Arizona State will emerge from the Pac-12 South. First, there was the breakthrough in 2013 with a division title then the expected down year ended up being another 10-win season. Now, the Sun Devils are overflowing with confidence, marching behind the cowboy-booted Graham and seeking a spot at the top.

Most overrated team: UCLA. I think the Bruins missed their window last season, and this season they get leapt by USC. They have a ton of talent, but we just don’t know if they have a quarterback — and Jim Mora Jr. hasn’t exactly been giving a ringing endorsement of freshman Josh Rosen. The schedule also doesn’t do them a ton of favors with trips to Stanford, USC, Arizona and Utah.

Most underrated team: Arizona State. Mike Bercovici gets to be the full-time starter this year, and I think he’s going to have Sparky competitive in the Pac-12 South. Also, the schedule shakes out pretty well for Arizona State with USC, Oregon, and Arizona all visiting Tempe.

Bold conference prediction: USC beats Oregon for the Pac-12 title. For the first time since 2008, a team other than Oregon or Stanford will win the league championship. The Ducks are excellent, but I’m really high on the Trojans and think they win the conference this season.

Is USC overrated or will Cody Kessler lead the Trojans to a title? (USATSI)

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