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Kevin Gemmell talks with the Washington State coach about the Cougars' spring practice and his reaction to the new playoff system.

We're starting a new series: Under the radar.

The idea is to pick out a player who is not a big name but who may be underrated. Or, at least, a guy who will need to step up and play a critical role in 2012.

We're going in reverse alphabetical order on this one.

Washington State: CB Damante Horton

2011 production: Horton, a true junior, led the Cougars -- and was tied for the Pac-12 lead -- with four interceptions and tied for the team lead with seven pass defenses. He also forced two fumbles and recorded 31 tackles.

Making the case for Horton: The Pac-12 blog is aware that some Coug fans are not huge fans of Horton. Some, in fact, have created a name -- a "Damante Horton" -- to describe an easy interception. Well, I know of no coach who makes the distinction between a "hard" or "easy" interception. Shoot, if QBs want to make things easy on Horton for some mystical reason, well, then that's even better. Lucky and mystically beguiling are good things to have going for a defender. Oh, and I'm sure that the two fumbles that Horton forced were luck, too. That Horton was involved in six of the Cougars 17 total takeaways in 2011 clearly is a case of right-place, right-time and has nothing to do with Horton's instincts or efforts. That fumble Horton forced in the final series of the win over Colorado? Right place, right time. First career interception against UCLA, which earned team "Big Play" honors? Right place, right time. That interception against Stanford? If only the Cardinal had a good quarterback! A 76-yard interception return for a TD against Oregon? Yeah, well, can the guy do anything against good teams? Are we extending our sarcasm a bit long? Yes. Was Horton perfect last year? Not by a long shot. But a guy who seems to find himself in the right place at the right time so many times might just also be the right player in the right place. The Cougars welcome back all four starters and all four backups from their 2011 secondary; that's the good news. It's one that ranked 11th in the Pac-12 in pass efficiency defense; that's the bad news. (A better pass rush certainly might have helped, by the way). Opinions may vary on where Horton ranks among them, even if he was the only one to receive honorable mention All-Pac-12 honors. But what is indisputable is the Cougs would benefit greatly if he duplicated his 2011 playmaking, while perhaps cleaning up a few mistakes we'll chalk up to youthfulness.

Recognition is so important for an offense. Think Andrew Luck -- or Peyton Manning -- wildly gesticulating at the line of scrimmage.

Or, for that matter, Oregon quarterback Darron Thomas doing the same thing.

That was something that stuck with me after I chatted with Oregon sophomore center Hroniss Grasu a couple of weeks ago. We were talking about how he improved at making line calls during the 2011 season, but he went out of his way to note how good Thomas was at helping out, at identifying last-second changes a defense made that perhaps hinted at its ill intentions.

The point: Centers and quarterbacks are the brains of an offense. The center typically makes the calls at the line of scrimmage that make sure everyone is accounted for. And quarterbacks communicate to both the skill players and the line about checks and audibles.

The QB and center work in tandem. They need to be in sync. And having smart, experienced signal-callers and centers is a big deal for an offense. It means an offense can go to the line with more options, and it can check into the right option more often than not. That breeds confidence, both among players and with their coaches.

So which Pac-12 teams are experienced at QB and center? Who has both back, one back or neither?

Thanks for asking.

Arizona: Center
Skinny: While Nick Foles was the Wildcats' quarterback last year, Matt Scott has started five games, so the offense is not in inexperienced hands. Senior center Kyle Quinn did a solid job in 2011, earning honorable mention All-Pac-12 honors. On the downside, the Wildcats are installing a new offense with coach Rich Rodriguez, so past experience isn't as helpful.

Arizona State: Neither
Skinny: QB Brock Osweiler is gone as is center Garth Gerhart. Kody Koebensky likely takes over at center, while the quarterback competition continues to be wide-open. Of course, the Sun Devils are installing a new offense under new coach Todd Graham, so being green isn't as much of an issue.

California: Both
Skinny: QB Zach Maynard should be much more in control as a second-year starter. While center Dominic Galas is back, he's sitting out spring due to a shoulder injury, and it appears he will switch over to guard. Galas, some of you Bears fans might recall, did have some issues with shotgun snaps last year. Chris Adcock or Mark Brazinski could end up winning the job.

Colorado: Center
Skinny: Tyler Hansen is almost certainly going to be replaced at quarterback by Texas transfer Connor Wood, a sophomore with no game experience. It should help Wood, however, to have junior Gus Handler back making the line calls. Daniel Munyer, who's slated to start at guard, also has starting experience at center.

Oregon: Center
Skinny: Center Grasu's first start as a redshirt freshman was against LSU's beastly defensive front. That was a baptism by fire, but he consistently improved throughout the season. QB Bryan Bennett has some experience, including one start, but he will be challenged this spring by redshirt freshman Marcus Mariota.

Oregon State: QB
Skinny: Sean Mannion is back at QB, but center Grant Johnson is gone. The frontrunner to win that job is sophomore Roman Sapolu. The Beavers have injury issues on the line this spring, and that likely will slow down the unit's -- and Sapolu's -- development.

Stanford: Center
Skinny: You might have heard that Andrew Luck is gone. Brett Nottingham and Josh Nunes look like the favorites to replace him, but neither has significant experience. Senior Sam Schwartzstein did a fine job stepping into Chase Beeler's shoes in 2011, but life was, naturally, easier with Luck at QB. More will fall on Schwartzstein in 2012.

UCLA: QB
Skinny: The Bruins have two quarterbacks with significant starting experience back: Kevin Prince and Richard Brehaut. But redshirt freshman Brett Hundley might end up winning the job. All three are learning a new offense this spring under new coach Jim Mora and offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone. Sophomore Jacob Brendel -- or perhaps junior Greg Capella, who mostly started at guard last year -- are the frontrunners to replace Kai Maiava at center.

USC: Both
Skinny: You've maybe heard of Trojans QB Matt Barkley and his receivers, Robert Woods/Marqise Lee, being the best pass-catch trio in the nation. Well, Barkley and senior center Khaled Holmes are the perhaps the best QB-center combination in the nation. Holmes was second-team All-Pac-12 in 2011, and he's probably the best center in the conference.

Utah: Both
Skinny: Junior Jordan Wynn, a three-year starter, only needs to stay healthy for the Utes to get at least solid QB play. Center Tevita Stevens is solid, but he will be breaking in a pair of new OTs.

Washington: Both
Skinny: Junior QB Keith Price was a revelation last year as a first-year starter, far eclipsing the production of his celebrated predecessor, Jake Locker. Senior center Drew Schaefer is a 30-game starter. So this is a strong combo for the Huskies.

Washington State: Both
Skinny: Jeff Tuel feels like a decided frontrunner to retain his starting job at QB, while junior Matt Goetz returns at center. A junior-college transfer in 2011, he started the final nine games of 2011. A year of seasoning -- and in the weight room -- should help Goetz in 2012.

Ted Miller takes a look at USC QB Matt Barkley on offense and Arizona State and Washington on defense.

Pac-12 blogger Ted Miller looks at four big issues heading into this weekend's games.

Ted Miller’s One Good Thing for Week 5 is Washington and Washington State winning road conference games on the same day for the first time since 2003.

What would a Pac-16 mean for the Northwest schools in the conference?

Arizona: There has been a lot of speculation about receiver Juron Criner's absence this summer and the potential of him even playing this season. Coach Mike Stoops said the all-conference player was back participating with the team after having "some personal and family issues with his mother that he had to attend to."

Arizona State: If Arizona State were to finish second behind USC in the South Division, they would still advance to the championship game because of the NCAA sanctions levied upon USC. If that were to happen, coach Dennis Erickson and quarterback Brock Osweiler agreed that they wouldn't care. "If you get in the game and you win it, you're going to the Rose Bowl," Osweiler said. "So whatever it takes to get there."

California: Oregon isn't the only Pac-12 team tied to scout/street agent Willie Lyles. California also did business with Lyles. "I have no concern whatsoever about it," coach Jeff Tedford said. "We have the videos, we have the prospect list, and so I have absolutely no concern about it." What Tedford is concerned about is his first losing season, and he said he understood that Bears fans are unhappy with the recent trajectory of the program. "We have created a standard and expectation at Cal over the last nine years," he said. "Last season we fell short of that, and we're not hiding from that."

Colorado: The Buffaloes have not won on the road since 2007, a span of 18 games. That second number was provided by new coach Jon Embree when asked about the first. He said it's a "sticking point" with him and one that he's noted -- probably more than once -- to the team. "I believe there is no one on our team that's played in a road win," he said. "Good teams win on the road. Obviously we haven't been a good team or I wouldn't be here. The thing I'm excited about is our first game's on the road [at Hawaii] because we need to address that issue immediately. I'll leave it at that. We need to address that issue immediately. It does not sit well with me." Sounds like Hawaii is circled in red ink on the schedule.

Oregon: Ducks coach Chip Kelly had high praise for quarterback Darron Thomas. "I don't know if there's a ceiling with Darron," he said. "To come in as a first-time starter and go undefeated in the regular season, and undefeated in this conference and lead his team to a berth in the national championship game. And threw for the second most yards ever in a national championship game, I think the one thing that I remarked and I said it a lot last year is that it almost seemed like every week he just got better and better." Oh, and Kelly also said Thomas was "the toughest quarterback I've been around."

Oregon State: Beavers coach Mike Riley provided a cautiously optimistic update on receiver James Rodgers, who blew out his knee last season at Arizona. "The one thing that you can never do with James is count him out," Riley said. "He had two major knee surgeries. He is running. He has always been deemed ahead of schedule. But I'm going to really play this conservatively. I'm going to see where he is. He's got a major doctor's appointment, kind of a last check up before camp coming up. We'll see what they say when he comes home from that. Then we'll go into fall camp and see where he is." Riley also said that he expects tight end Joe Halahuni (shoulder) to "be practicing the last couple of weeks of fall camp, then we'll see about game ready after that."

Stanford: The Cardinal has plenty of questions at receiver, but a healthy return of Chris Owusu would answer many of those questions, including giving Stanford one of the conference's best deep threats. Said coach David Shaw, "Since Chris' last surgery I haven't said anything to him besides play every game. That's all I said to Chris. I said nothing else. I said, 'Chris, … we'll practice accordingly.' We will make sure we take the pounding off him in training camp. We need Chris to play in every single game." As for young receivers stepping up, Shaw didn't provide any names, though he did say if none did, he'd just throw more to the Cardinal's deep collection of tight ends.

UCLA: Coach Rick Neuheisel hopes to take to the air this year, no matter who he has under center. Juniors Kevin Prince and Richard Brehaut will compete for the starting gig during fall camp, with each looking to bolster an anemic passing attack that ranked 116th out of 120 teams nationally last season. "Somewhere along the line, we lost our ability to throw the ball," Neuheisel said. "I don't think you can point to one factor."

USC: If USC's new-look offensive line ends up being any good this season, a lot of the credit will go to Khaled Holmes, a converted guard who moved to center this offseason because of his cerebral nature. "This is an important move for us," coach Lane Kiffin said. "We do a lot of stuff on our offensive system. Khaled's a very smart football player, so he'll help us up front, because he's going to have two new guards next to him."

Utah: Utes coach Kyle Whittingham didn't mince words when talking about the importance of QB Jordan Wynn, who is coming back from shoulder surgery. "Job 1, in fact, is keeping Jordan Wynn healthy throughout the course of the season," Whittingham said. Whittingham said Wynn's shoulder is "100 percent from a medical standpoint," but that doesn't mean the coaches won't be cautious with him. "[Offensive coordinator Norm] Chow has a plan in place to limit his throws early in camp and progress from there," Whittingham said. "What that number is, we're looking at is it 100 throws a day? Is it 80 throws a day? But we'll have a plan in place to make sure we don't wear him out early on in camp."

Washington: The Pac-12 blog recently rated Washington in "great shape" at defensive tackle. That probably is no longer accurate, particularly with some injury issues at the position. Sione Potoa'e and Semisi Tokolahi will be limited early in camp, coach Steve Sarkisian said. Potoa'e has a sprained knee that needs to be watched, while Sarkisian previously said Tokolahi (ankle) likely won't be back before conference play begins on Sept. 24 against California. Toss in the retirement of Chris Robinson due to knee issues, and the Huskies have some issue at the position, at least beyond 330-pound Alameda Ta'amu. The depth, at least, figures to be young, with redshirt freshman Lawrence Lagafuaina and incoming freshman Danny Shelton.

Washington State: While the return of QB Jeff Tuel and a top-flight receiving corps is good, the Cougars struggled on the offensive line in 2010, both pass blocking and run blocking. But coach Paul Wulff believes that might change this fall due to continuity, with four starters back as well as some other experienced backups. "I think a lot of things are solved," Wulff said. "Our running game, we're a lot more physical on the offensive line. We're athletic. We have experience. Our running backs are better. Our quarterbacks and then the continuity with some of our young receivers and Jeff are better. So all of those ingredients are going to equate to higher productivity."

Ted Miller talks about why Washington State's secondary will be a factor this season.

Ted's on vacation. The links are not.

• Jon Wilner reacts to recent news in college football, including USC and the new Pac-12 bowl lineup.
• Washington has added a receiver to its 2011 recruiting class.
• One of Washington State's recruits is planning on a position change, from linebacker to receiver.
• Utah is raising its ticket prices to keep up with the rest of the conference.
• Oregon State added a receiver to its recruiting class.

Ted Miller looks at the Pac-10’s top storylines in Friday Four Downs.

Wow. Jake Locker and the Washington Huskies just laid a colossal egg.

Locker, with the press box full of NFL scouts, completed just 7 of 14 passes for 64 yards with two interceptions in a 41-0 loss.

Stanford's Andrew Luck didn't exactly put up huge numbers. He completed 19-of-26 for 192 yards with a TD and an interception. He also ran for a 51-yard TD.

But the QBs weren't the difference. The difference was Stanford rushing for 278 yards, while the Huskies had 107.

Total yards.

Stanford (7-1, 4-1) made a big statement and should move into the top-10 before it plays host to Arizona on Saturday in a marquee showdown between once-beaten teams.

The Huskies, shut out at home for the first time since 1976, fall to 3-5 overall and 2-3 in the Pac-10. UCLA's visit next weekend becomes a must-win for bowl hopes.

Ted Miller looks at his “not” game of the week.

Ted Miller looks at the biggest storylines in Friday Four Downs.

How many BCS conferences play four nonconference road games in one weekend? How many BCS conferences play four ranked nonconference foes in one weekend? Heck, how many BCS conferences play nine respectable nonconference foes in one weekend?

Not many.

But that's what the Pac-10 has this weekend, which we're calling "Measuring Stick Saturday" (even though California is at Nevada on Friday night).

Here's the slate (Oregon plays Portland State, an FCS team):

No. 9 Iowa at No. 24 Arizona
Arizona State at No. 11 Wisconsin
No. 8 Nebraska at Washington
California at Nevada (Friday)
Wake Forest at No. 19 Stanford
No. 23 Houston at UCLA
No. 18 USC at Minnesota
Washington State at SMU
Louisville at No. 25 Oregon State

The Pac-10 team is the underdog in five of the nine games. USC, Oregon State and Stanford are big favorites. Washington State and Arizona State are big underdogs. The expectation, at least according to Vegas, is the Pac-10 will go 4-5.

But 4-5 won't cut it. It would inspire smirks from fans and college football pundits. It would hurt the perceptions of the conference, and 4-5 certainly would come into play if a Pac-10 team is trying to get into the discussion for the national championship or a second BCS bowl berth.

Argue that it's unfair that the Pac-10 gets judged instead of praised for its tougher nonconference scheduling compared to other BCS conferences all you want. It won't do much good.

What will change minds -- even the stubborn ones -- however, is nice, shiny Ws. Five would be solid. Six should be enough to put the conference on par with the SEC, Big Ten and Big 12 in the national discussion.

Assuming the four Pac-10 favorites take care of business -- Cal, USC, Oregon State and Stanford -- and struggling UCLA and Washington State don't pull upsets, the weekend mostly turns on the troika of Iowa-Arizona, ASU-Wisconsin and UW-Nebraska.

In other words, the Pac-10 needs to upset at least one top-10 (11) team.

The Sun Devils will have their hands full in Camp Randall Stadium, but it's unlikely new starting quarterback Steven Threet will be afraid of the Badgers, and not just because he's a former Michigan starter familiar with Big Ten play and stadiums. In 2008, you see, Threet led Michigan to the second biggest comeback in school history when he rallied the Wolverines from a 19-0 third-quarter deficit to a 27-25 win.

Over Wisconsin.

The red-letter the matchup, though, is the Sun Devils defense vs. the Badgers veteran offense that welcomes back 10 starters from last year's 10-3 team, including 250-pound running back John Clay and fifth-year senior quarterback Scott Tolzien. The Badgers offensive line is among the biggest in the country, averaging 6-foot-5, 320 pounds. The Sun Devils will counter with speed.

Still, you'd think the the home teams -- Arizona and Washington -- with veteran quarterbacks have the better chance.

Nick Foles came off the bench last year at Iowa and threw a touchdown pass in a 27-17 defeat. He's been the Wildcats starter ever since. He has plenty of weapons, and he's going to need them against what is widely considered one of the nation's most talented defenses, particularly a defensive line that returns all four starters, including All-American end Adrian Clayborn.

Speaking of QBs matching up with talented defenses: Jake Locker figures to have his hands full with Nebraska, another candidate for "nation's top defense." While the Hawkeyes are strong up front, the Cornhuskers area of strength is their secondary, which is led by All-American Prince Amukamara.

The Pac-10 spent the summer touting its quarterbacks. Well, it's time for Foles or Locker to come through and post a marquee victory.

If either does, "Measuring Stick Saturday" will be a success for the conference.