I sifted through the ratings for Pac-12 football games to identify any trends, good or bad, or interesting one-offs … and ended up contemplating the nature of competition within the conference.

That contemplation is below, after the list of the 10 highest-rated games of the season.

First off, many thanks to Sports Media Watch and site editor/creator Jon Lewis, who compiles an invaluable college football database.

It includes both ratings and household viewership numbers for hundreds of games.

(He tracks ratings for all major sports, by the way.)

Quick and simple conclusion:

Of the 10 most-viewed college football broadcasts this season across the major networks, the Pac-12 contributed … zero games.

Of the 10 highest-rated broadcasts this season across the major networks, the Pac-12 contributed … zero games.

Not good, also not that surprising given the schedule, the results and the lack of a true playoff contender.

As for the top games within the conference, one team is involved in six of them.

Not hard to guess which team.

Many fans across the conference don’t want to hear this, but USC’s success is vital to the overall health of the Pac-12 football product, to the conference’s reputation nationally and its fiscal well being.

Setting the Trojans up to fail, as the conference did with the Saturday-road/Friday-road back-to-back in late September ,was not smart business, in addition to being questionable policy for player welfare.

(Those points hold for all teams, of course — competitive disadvantages are never a good thing; player welfare should always have a position of primacy.)

So let’s examine the top-rated games, keeping in mind that network and time slot matter, as well. Times are Pacific, and conclusions are at the bottom.

Thanks to Lewis, the Sports Media Watch editor, for sharing his thoughts, as well.

1. Stanford-Notre Dame

Date: Saturday, Nov. 25

Network: ABC/5 p.m.

Rating: 3.0 (viewers: 5.3 million)

Note disparity between the Pac-12’s top game and No. 10 on the season’s overall list, which was Georgia-Auburn: 4.4 rating and 7.4 million viewers.

2. USC-Texas

Date: Sept. 16

Network: FOX/5:30 p.m.

Rating: 2.9 (viewers: 4.9 million)

3. USC-UCLA

Date: Saturday, Nov. 18

Network: ABC/5 p.m.

Rating: 2.5 (viewers: 4 million)

4. Stanford-USC (conference title game)

Date: Friday, Dec. 1

Network: ESPN

Rating: 2.3 (viewers: 3.7 million)

5. UCLA-Memphis

Date: Saturday, Sept. 16

Network: ABC/9 a.m.

Rating: 2.2 (viewers: 3.2 million)

6. USC-Utah

Date: Saturday, Oct. 14

Network: ABC/5 p.m.

Rating: 2.0 (viewers: 3.2 million)

7. USC-Cal

Date: Saturday, Sept. 23

Network: ABC/1 p.m.

Rating: 2.0 (viewers: 3.1 million)

8. UCLA-Texas A&M

Date: Sunday, Sept. 3

Network: FOX/4:30 p.m.

Rating: 1.9 (viewers; 3.2 million)

(Note: Same slot on ABC, West Virginia-Virginia Tech did 2.7 rating and 4.6 million viewers.)

9. USC-Notre Dame

Date: Saturday, Oct. 21

Network: NBC/4:30 p.m.

Rating: 1.8 (viewers: 3 million)

10. UCLA-Washington

Date: Saturday, Oct. 28

Network: ABC/12:30 p.m.

Rating: 1.8 (viewers: 2.9 million)

What does it all mean?

Clearly, the top Pac-12 games in any given season, on any given week, aren’t going to draw as many eyeballs as the equivalent showdowns in the SEC or Big Ten.

But I’m not sure that’s the only explanation for what were tepid numbers compared to 2016, when several more games drew ratings of 2.5+ and 3.0+. (The schedule is a factor, for sure.)

I asked Lewis, who tracks ratings in all sports for a living, for his impressions.

He zeroed in on the fight for eyeballs in a cluttered marketplace:

“One thing I would recommend, if it was feasible: the Pac-12 should try to take advantage of those rare days without a lot of competition, like Sunday and Monday of Labor Day weekend,” he said.

“College football schedules are so crowded that the conference gets lost in the shuffle.”

Some Hotline readers might faintly recognize the Labor Day Sunday concept. In the spring of 2016, I suggested the Pac-12 play a doubleheader of conference games that day.

Lewis also made a broader observation about the level of play in the conference, at least at the top tier.

“The Pac-12 is hampered right now by a lack of true contenders.

“Even though USC was mentioned as a playoff dark horse, it has been a few years since the conference’s biggest names were in the national title conversation. (I wouldn’t count Washington last year — low-profile team that kind of snuck into the final four.)

“As a result, not a lot of marquee matchups this season, a big reason why the ratings were so middling compared to the SEC or Big Ten.”

That comment, and the ‘middling’ ratings it references, strike at an essential question for the conference:

Is it better off with one or two elite teams, or with parity?

Commissioner Larry Scott was asked about that ying-yang at a press conference prior to the championship game. His preference is quality depth: The more good teams there are, the healthier the conference is.

Applied practically, that would suggest the Pac-12 is better off with no playoff participants but nine or 10 bowl-eligible teams … essentially, what we’ve seen in 2017. Related Articles Hotline in the spotlight: Grading my preseason projections for each team (some hits, a few whiffs and general competency)

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For many, however, the playoff has reshaped the nature of the sport, combining with the competition for eyeballs to place the focus squarely on excellence.

One could make the case, especially from a financial standpoint (given the paychecks issued to conferences with playoff participants), that the Pac-12 would be better off with two elite teams and no parity.

That the football product would be healthier if there were only six or seven bowl-eligible teams but two schools in the championship hunt — with one getting into the playoff, let’s say, and the other nudged out.

(In other words, teams ranked No. 3 and 5 by the selection committee. Yes, 3 and 4 would be better, but let’s not get greedy.)

Parity or excellence? It’s exceedingly difficult to have both. The Pac-12’s ethos oozes the former. But do the evolving realities of the sport demand the latter? Get Pac-12 Conference news in your inbox with the Pac-12 Hotline newsletter Sign Up

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