Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

The backup quarterback is just a bruised shoulder or broken jaw away from taking over the most critical position on the field -- just ask USC or UCLA.

There's already been plenty of quarterback movement in the conference -- injuries, depth chart changes, etc. -- so it seemed like a good time to see where the Pac-10 QB depth stands.

Ready to roll

Lyle Moevao, Oregon State: Heck, it's hard to even call Moevao a backup to Sean Canfield, who was Moevao's backup last year. Moevao owns an 11-4 record as a starter and is only on the bench because he's still recovering from off-season shoulder surgery.

Tavita Pritchard, Stanford: Pritchard is not going to play in the NFL, but he's a smart and experienced quarterback who started 19 games before being beaten out by talented redshirt freshman Andrew Luck. By the way, his first start was a win over USC.

Matt Scott, Arizona: He started the first three games this season but lost his job to Nick Foles after a poor performance at Iowa. Still, the sophomore has enough experience that if Foles went down the Wildcats wouldn't go into panic mode.

Marshall Lobbestael, Washington State: He started three games last year before a knee injury ended his season and two games this year before coach Paul Wulff opted to go with true freshman Jeff Tuel. He's battle tested, so if he's called upon again, it won't be like he's being fed to the wolves.

Nate Costa, Oregon: Before the 2008 season, Costa was the touted heir-apparent to Dennis Dixon. Then he blew out his knee -- for a second time. A healthy Costa is a nice backup plan for Jeremiah Masoli. And No. 3 Darron Thomas is no slouch -- he nearly led a comeback against Boise State in 2008.

Has the hype

Brock Osweiler, Arizona State: Folks around the Sun Devils program were so excited about the mature, 6-foot-8 Montana native that many thought he'd beat out senior Danny Sullivan for the starting job. The true freshman still might be a factor this season.

Mitch Mustain/Aaron Corp: Corp was the starter coming out of spring. Mustain practically disappeared until reemerging this week as Matt Barkley's potential backup. Both were prep All-Americans. Mustain was good enough to go 8-0 in the SEC at Arkansas, but offenses are more complex in the Pac-10.

Richard Brehaut, UCLA: The true freshman competed -- briefly -- for the starting job during spring practices and was listed as the backup until starter Kevin Prince went down with a broken jaw and coaches opted to go with the more experienced senior Kevin Craft. Brehaut was a top-100 prospect in 2008 and offensive coordinator Norm Chow was supposedly quite taken by his potential. When Prince returns, UCLA would change categories to "Ready to Roll," unless of course Craft implodes at Stanford on Saturday and falls back to No. 3.

Who knows?

Beau Sweeney, California: Sweeney, a redshirt freshman, recently eclipsed sophomore Brock Mansion on the depth chart. He's got great bloodlines. His father, Kevin, was a record-setting QB at Fresno State who had a cup of coffee in the NFL. His grandfather, Jim, was a highly respected college head coach, with tenures at Washington State and Fresno State. But Beau Sweeney hasn't seen any significant game action.

Ronnie Fouch, Washington: New Washington coach Steve Sarkisian went out of his way all through the preseason to praise Fouch, who struggled mightily when he came off the bench to replace an injured Jake Locker for the final eight games last year. He threw 13 picks with just four TDs and was sacked 123 times, plus or minus. But circumstances were awful last season, and Fouch got little support. It's hard to say what kind of player he would be if called upon this season.