No. 4 USC can carry Pac-12 banner into CFP, however Utah desperate to play spoiler

Bryan Fischer

School Soccer Author

Kyle Whittingham understands the place Lincoln Riley is in. He is been there earlier than.

Again in 2019, the Utah head coach traveled to the Pac-12 Championship Sport in Las Vegas going through a easy proposition: win and in. The league was already two seasons into an ignominious School Soccer Playoff drought, and the Utes have been primed to finish a number of narratives about West Coast soccer in the event that they have been capable of make it into the sphere at 12-1.

As has been the case lately when a Pac-12 member has discovered itself knocking on the door of a playoff bid, Whittingham's crew fell flat simply shy of the summit. Oregon gained in a rout, transferring on to seize a Rose Bowl victory that served because the spotlight of the Mario Cristobal period in Eugene. Geese QB Justin Herbert rocketed up draft boards and ultimately landed throughout city with the Los Angeles Chargers.

In the meantime, Utah slid down the rankings from No. 5 to No. 11 — exchanging a possible semifinal berth for a visit to the Alamo Bowl. And the Utes' fall opened the door for Riley's Oklahoma facet to land a 3rd straight CFP bid, the place the Sooners confronted subsequent nationwide champion LSU.

What's outdated is new once more this Friday (8 p.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports activities app), solely Whittingham's Utes are on the opposite facet this time as underdogs hoping for a second consecutive journey to Pasadena as they defend their convention crown. Riley and No. 4 USC make the journey as much as Sin Metropolis going through that very same, easy predicament: win and in.

A pleasant byproduct, even when the Trojans will not admit it, is they will additionally extract a measure of vengeance for his or her solely blemish of 2022 — an emotional 43-42 loss in mid-October due to Utah's go-ahead two-point conversion with 48 seconds left.

"It is nice that it is labored out that method," Riley stated on Tuesday. "This isn't a revenge sport. That is not what that is. We performed a very good soccer sport, as did Utah up in Salt Lake. It was an elite faculty soccer sport that got here down to 1 play right here or there.

"It is a new sport, a brand new problem, a brand new setting. The groups have developed and altered — that is about that."

For Riley's facet, the largest driver of that progress within the seven weeks since has undoubtedly been star quarterback Caleb Williams. The sophomore is on the verge of not solely profitable his first ring in faculty however enters the sport because the prohibitive favourite to win the Heisman Trophy. Friday can be his third straight weekend taking part in prime-time soccer for a nationwide viewers, and his 44 whole touchdowns are already a faculty document at a spot that boasts a number of different bronze stiff arms within the foyer of Heritage Corridor.

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There is a well being issue at play, too. Tailback Travis Dye (76 yards, one landing within the first assembly) stays out for the season after a leg harm towards Colorado, however backup Austin Jones has not skipped a beat. The Stanford switch gives a barely totally different type out of the backfield and has accounted for not less than 170 all-purpose yards in every of the previous two video games.

Then there's reigning Biletnikoff Award winner Jordan Addison, who was wanting borderline unstoppable towards Utah till he injured his ankle early within the second half of the primary assembly. He was introduced again slowly to make sure he was 100% for giant moments like Vegas and notched 178 yards and a landing within the convention finale towards UCLA.

Toss in a protection that, whereas criticized for bending by way of yardage, enters championship weekend +22 in turnover margin (eight higher than anyone else in FBS) and the Trojans are definitely peaking on the proper time as they give the impression of being to knock off a 3rd straight top-15 opponent.

"Just about everybody has obtained them profitable and going to the playoffs, and Caleb profitable the Heisman," Whittingham stated a bit facetiously on Monday. "We love that position. We love the chip on our shoulder, the no person giving us the prospect. We appear to thrive in that capability and in that world."

The third-longest tenured head coach within the nation does have some extent, given this system's historical past of exhibiting up towards loads of blue bloods and sometimes getting a end result regardless of being on the opposite facet of the road set by these simply up the Strip.

Whittingham might want to depend on each little bit of that magic, too, given how his personal roster has modified since getting caught in the midst of a discipline storming at Rice Eccles Stadium in the course of the first assembly towards USC.

Junior quarterback Cam Rising injured his leg on the finish of that contest and missed the Utes' subsequent sport towards Washington State. The Southern California native — who initially dedicated to Riley at Oklahoma — has performed up and down by way of the month of November, wanting ineffective in a loss to Oregon (170 yards passing, three interceptions) or middling in wins over Arizona and Stanford.

Utah followers rush discipline after defeating USC

The Utes beat the Trojans on a two-point conversion with 48 seconds left after they met in October.

Utah nonetheless ranks eighth within the nation in third-down conversions and sports activities a top-10 scoring offense however can be sans main rusher Tavion Thomas, who injured his toe towards the Geese two weeks in the past and lately declared for the draft. Tight finish and main receiver Dalton Kincaid might also be restricted, although he's not less than anticipated to play after limping off in final week's blowout of Colorado.

That is notable in itself given the Mackey Award semifinalist who hails from Las Vegas already terrorized USC's protection to the tune of 16 catches for 234 yards plus a landing. The standing of Thorpe Award finalist and nationwide co-leader in interceptions, Clark Phillips III, is a little more up within the air. He could be an enormous loss if he cannot go given the wealth of attacking choices within the passing sport any person like Williams has at his disposal.

Nonetheless, the Utes are a veteran-laden crew that always performs higher than the sum of its components. Eleven upperclassmen are listed on the two-deep as starters for the title sport and all however three have been part of the crew that emerged victorious in final 12 months's version.

"To have the ability to be in that sport now for 4 years (within the final 5) is an actual testomony to our soccer crew, the expertise stage of gamers that we've in this system, simply how devoted they're to what they do and the way purchased in they're," Whittingham added. "Expertise in that regard is an efficient factor. I believe that that can play in our favor."

In the meantime, the remainder of the Pac-12 finds itself between a rock and a tough place with regards to what needs to be the most effective convention title sport matchup in a number of seasons in entrance of a sold-out Allegiant Stadium. For these followers with out a rooting curiosity, conflicting feelings might find yourself swinging by the play.

On one hand, the league has a uncommon bona fide Playoff contender with an offense able to hanging worry into both No. 1 Georgia or No. 2 Michigan. The mere indisputable fact that Riley's facet may very well be introduced within the discipline on Choice Sunday would assist put to mattress stereotypes in regards to the state of affairs for the game out West.

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Issues will not be so easy, nevertheless. Neutrals might have pulled for Utah to make it to the promised land again in 2019 for no purpose aside from having a standard-bearer within the sport's most prestigious postseason invitational. Again then, the Pac-12 might have been seen in a constructive gentle by these alongside the other coast and into the Midwest — in lieu of each speaking level as an alternative being about an ignominious streak.

Alas, this time round it is USC that's in the identical place with the identical speaking factors. Solely the Trojans will not be a newcomer atop the standings however somewhat a lame duck member of the league, certain for the Large Ten in a number of quick years and a big purpose why the previous 4 months have berthed an existential convention realignment disaster that has impacted each different member of the Pac-12. A cardinal and gold departure has actually taken some inexperienced and gold out of the coffers.

Is that sufficient to guide some to tug for the Utes, who've an opportunity to make it back-to-back Energy 5 convention crowns as they sit on their eleventh marketing campaign of not less than 9 wins prior to now 18 years? For some, it positive can be.

Others? They could effectively choose that the convention be seen extra by way of the lens of getting half the league ranked within the Choice Committee's prime 20 and a CFP bid because the rightful reward for the most effective seasons in latest reminiscence on the left coast. The extra payday that comes with it being shared amongst all 12 faculties definitely is a pleasant facet profit.

Both method, it will not be a straightforward process regardless of the place rooting pursuits lie. Whittingham can attest. Riley is quickly to search out out.

"More often than not, in video games like this, I do not suppose both facet goes to go fully change what they've carried out, proper? I imply to get to this sport, you have had some success," the first-year USC coach stated. "You have to get able to go play once more. I believe that possibly the way in which the primary one performed out isn't essentially the way in which the second performs out."

Can the Pac-12 keep out of its personal method and see Troy return to nationwide prominence? Or will Utah reprise the position of the underdog as soon as once more and make sure the street to the Rose Bowl nonetheless runs by way of Salt Lake?

We'll discover out Friday night time when one of many weekend's few convention championships with actual stakes kicks off.

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Bryan Fischer is a university soccer author for FOX Sports activities. He has been masking faculty athletics for practically 20 years at retailers similar to NBC Sports activities, CBS Sports activities, Yahoo! Sports activities and NFL.com amongst others. Observe him on Twitter at @BryanDFischer.

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