The Pac 12 has had a rather disappointing year in 2018, mostly due to their lack of a CFB playoff contender and growing conference concerns including officiating and fan relations. However, it still remains to be one of the most dangerous conferences in the nation that will be fielding multiple teams that can vie for top-10 national positions in the upcoming 2019 season. Washington in once again expected to be a behemoth while the likes of USC and Stanford have potential to get themselves back into winning their division again. Arizona, Colorado, and Washington State are also sleeper options to get promising bowl bids. Here are the full TCP Rankings for the Pac-12 with analysis. Down below there is also a distribution chart for how each and every team stacks up.

Jacob Eason will look to push Washington into the CFB Playoffs (Credit: The Seattle Times)

Washington (11.0 Points) – The Washington Huskies are expected to push themselves into the conversation for a CFB playoff bid, once again under the guidance of the highly successful Chris Pedersen, but now with the assistance of coveted Georgia transfer Jacob Eason. The 2018 season for this program started out slowly but progressed into a Rose Bowl bid for the first time since 2001, and hopes are even higher going forward. Salvon Ahmed looks to be a significant breakout candidate behind a Washington O-line which will have All-American candidate Trey Adams back at full speed on the left side. The defense loses a lot of its top producers such as Pac 12 DPOY Ben Burr-Kirven and lockdown corner Byron Murphy, but there is more than enough talent to help the younger defense stay keen. Stanford (9.6 Points) – The David Shaw era at Stanford, which has been typically one of the most consistent regimes in the Pac 12 had an unusually down year in 2018. Star quarterback KJ Costello has the potential to reach Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year honors while the running game retools with a committee of backs that include X-factor freshman Austin Jones. The defense should still remain strong with Sophomore Paulson Adebo and Junior Gabe Reid looking to continue to make big time impacts. USC (8.8 Points) – USC had easily the most disappointing year in recent memory, with the team tumbling to a 5-7 record and no bowl games, but there still is a lot of talent to work with. After hiring and losing Kliff Kingsbury within the span of two months, Clay Helton turned around and managed to land another respectable high velocity offensive coordinator in Graham Harrell to groom sophomore quarterback JT Daniels. The defense looks like it will need several former depth options to step up into respectable starters to stay consistent after a string of transfer portal entries, but if things start looking up for this program then they could surprise make a quick turnaround. Utah (8.6 Points) – Utah has a habit of flying high, as they do here. With great odds to win the South for a second consecutive year, they will have better chances at reaching Rose Bowl or even greater with a healthy Tyler Huntley and Zach Moss in charge of arguably the toughest run offense in the Pac-12. Jaylon Johnson and Bradlee Anae Jr will continue to keep a top shelf defense as stifling as ever even as it loses top linebackers Chase Hansen and Cody Barton. Oregon (8.2 Points) – Justin Herbert returning to Oregon for one final run makes it a do or die season for the Ducks to win the North after talented backup Braxton Burmeister opted to transfer to Virginia Tech. The offense will pick up right where it left off, replacing the draft-departed Dillon Mitchell for former Penn State wide receiver Juwan Johnson while running back CJ Verdell looks to build on his 1,018 yard freshman campaign. This previous recruiting class for Oregon was a conference best, with crown jewel Kayvon Thibodeaux having the potential to instantly become a pass rushing threat for the defense. Oregon has the potential to even end up in the College Football Playoff conversation if they can string together great performances against its conference. Washington State (6.4 Points) – Pac-12 coach of the year Mike Leach was thisclose to putting together an excellent argument for his squad to make a College Football Playoff appearance in 2018, but instead the program settled for a close win over Iowa State in the Alamo Bowl. Next season it will be a lot tougher to make a similar run as offensive anchors including offensive player of the year Gardner Minshew II as well as James Williams and Andre Dillard will be departing. Luckily, they will still be coming into 2019 with momentum, talented transfer quarterback Gage Gubrud, and a defense likely to keep its place from the year before. Arizona State (6.2 Points) – Arizona State almost secured an upset for the Pac-12 South crown in 2018 and will continue to develop both sides of the ball in 2019. Top quarterback prospect Jayden Daniels will battle backup Dillon Sterling-Cole to start for the Sun Devils while First Team All-Conference Eno Benjamin looks to be a serious option to win Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year. The defense will continue to rely on youth and development to keep the team afloat for another bowl appearance in Herm Edwards’ second season. California (5.4 Points) – The Bears managed to get themselves a bowl bid for the 2018 season despite poor offensive play and next year expectations are similar. A positive for this team is that once again an Evan Weaver led defense should be among the top groups in the conference while the offense can get ahold of itself, but a major breakthrough will have to come from Justin Wilcox and his more experienced quarterback group this cycle that includes UCLA transfer Devin Modster. UCLA (5.0 Points) – Chip Kelly’s first year for UCLA was rough, but leaves just a tiny window of hope for the program. Beating USC in the battle for LA shows that there is some resiliency at play for the offense but the loss of late-blooming Wilton Speight hurts. Dorian Thompson-Robinson will have to upgrade his performance from 2018 but will not be alone as he lines up next the explosive Joshua Kelly. The defense lost its star in Jaelen Phillips to Miami and may have to find its identity over the course of next season. Arizona (4.8 Points) – Khalil Tate made the drastic shift from the most dangerous dual threat QB in the nation to a pocket passer, and while this change didn’t reflect well in Arizona’s 2018 season, at least they will return him for 2019 to attempt to get the program into a bowl for Kevin Sumlin’s second year. All conference selection JJ Taylor still looks like an elite running back and young linebacking duo Colin Schooler and Tony Fields Jr is about as good as it gets. There is a lot of talent to work with, but if the defensive secondary and ball security on offense can get back in check then the Wildcats are a good pick to be sleepers this upcoming year. Colorado (3.0 Points) – Mel Tucker is the Pac-12’s only new coach for 2019, but luckily, he will be utilizing experienced players at key positions. Quarterback Steven Montez, Wide Receiver Laviska Shenault Jr, and Linebacker Nate Landman are high level players and could push Colorado into sleeper territory for a bowl bid. Additionally, the influx of new talent will have a chance to make a key impact such as Jashua Allen from Arizona Western Community College as well as Auburn transfers Jalen Harris and Jauntavius Johnson. Oregon State (1.0 Points) – Oregon State fails to dig itself out of last place in any of the TCP ranking areas, but they should still be considered a team on the rise. Johnathan Smith has done a great job of making his offense effective and currently building up the defense to match. Star running back Jermar Jefferson should again be one of the top backs in the entire nation. Nebraska transfer quarterback Tristan Gebbia will battle returners Jake Lutton and Jack Colletto to see if anyone can stick around as a starter for the entire season. On the flip side, the defensive line will need to step up for this squad to start consistently win games, and win 4 incoming Junior College plus transfer players coming to the team for the upcoming season, they are certainly building the help in that area.

South TCP Distribution Chart:

The TCP Ranking Distribution for the Pac 12 South

North TCP Distribution Chart: