The writers of Go Joe Bruin once again got together to discuss Pac-12 Football and predict the outcome for the conference in 2017.
Pac-12 Football became a very interesting storyline last season and it will be fun to see where it heads into 2017. From a playoff team to a team in bRuins to a new beholder of roses, it was quite entertaining.
In trying to analyze the UCLA Football team, we must also try and analyze the teams that they will be playing, specifically in their conference. To defeat your enemy, you must know your enemy.
So what will happen with UCLA and the rest of the Pac-12 Conference? Let’s get into that.
Go Joe Bruin’s Pac-12 Football Predictions
| North Division | South Division |
|---|---|
| 1. Washington | 1. USC |
| 2. Stanford | 2. Utah |
| 3. Oregon | 3. UCLA |
| 4. Washington State | 4. Colorado |
| 5. Oregon State | 5. Arizona State |
| 6. Cal | 6. Arizona |
Related Story: 100 days to UCLA Football: 100 things to look for in 2017
So what do we have here? In the North Division it was unanimous among Go Joe Bruin that the Washington Huskies would once again win the division. Despite losing a lot of talent, this Ccollege Football Playoff team has solidified themselves as a national power.
Stanford is Stanford. Even if they have a rough stretch of games, they always finish the season strong and could be the only contender aside from the Huskies to win the North.
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It is hard to say how Oregon will do but they’re trending towards the opinion that they will be playing some good football this fall. Washington State surprised a lot of people last year and will try to stay atop the division, but this season they’re going to be tested and it will be tougher than before for Mike Leach.
In the South Division, it was nearly unanimous that USC would win it all. One rogue writer actually picked UCLA to finish first, stating that their end of the season matchup will determine the division winner.
But in reality, UCLA averaged a third-place finish, with rankings as low as 5th by two writers. Utah was nearly unanimous as the second-place finisher. The Utes play some consistent football but they just cannot get over the hump and they might not be able to get over the hump that is the Trojans.
It seems the consensus is that the UCLA Football team will improve next season but not to the level that would have them contending for the division. Colorado is a tough choice because, yes they won the division last season, but they also got brutalized towards the end of the year. If they can fix that then they will definitely have a chance to contend for the South.
As for Oregon State, Cal, Arizona State and Arizona, well, you can understand why these four teams will not be contending for their divisions.
Here are the individual standings for the contribution writers:
Michael Chavez
North
- Washington
- Washington State
- Stanford
- Oregon
- Cal
- Oregon State
South
- USC
- Utah
- UCLA
- Arizona State
- Colorado
- Arizona
Nathan Eberhardt
North
- Washington
- Stanford
- Washington State
- Oregon
- Cal
- Oregon State
South
- USC
- Utah
- Colorado
- Arizona State
- UCLA
- Arizona
David Goldman
North
- Washington
- Stanford
- Oregon
- Washington State
- Cal
- Oregon State
South
- USC
- Utah
- UCLA
- Colorado
- Arizona State
- Arizona
Andrew Goodman
North
- Washington
- Oregon
- Stanford
- Cal
- Washington State
- Oregon State
South
- USC
- Utah
- Colorado
- UCLA
- Arizona State
- Arizona
Michael Hanna
North
- Washington
- Stanford
- Oregon
- Washington State
- Oregon State
- Cal
South
- USC
- Utah
- Colorado
- Arizona State
- UCLA
- Arizona
Jake Merrifield
North
- Washington
- Oregon
- Washington State
- Stanford
- Oregon State
- Cal
South
- UCLA
- USC
- Utah
- Colorado
- Arizona State
- Arizona
Mike Regalado
North
- Washington
- Stanford
- Washington State
- Oregon
- Oregon State
- Cal
South
- USC
- Utah
- UCLA
- Colorado
- Arizona State
- Arizona
Ashley Tellier
North
- Washington
- Stanford
- Washington State
- Cal
- Oregon
- Oregon State
South
- USC
- UCLA
- Colorado
- Utah
- Arizona State
- Arizona
Matt Wagner
North
- Washington
- Stanford
- Oregon
- Washington State
- Oregon State
- Cal
South
- USC
- Utah
- Colorado
- UCLA
- Arizona State
- Arizona
Next: 100 days to UCLA Football: 100 things to look for in 2017
What is your take on Pac-12 Football in 2017? Comment below.