ESPN College Football

On Friday, the Pac-10 becomes the Pac-12, and life as we all have known it ends.

But before we move on as a 12-team league, let's look back at the best of a 10-team league.

On Wednesday, we looked at the best players. Thursday, it's the best teams.

We've listed 12 teams because that's the new magic number (Arizona fans, see if you can guess who came in 13th).

Again, no team before 1978 -- when Arizona and Arizona State joined the Pac-8 -- was considered.

1. 1991 Washington: The Huskies finished 12-0 and split the national title with Miami.

Best player: Defensive tackle Steve Emtman won the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award.

Point differential: Washington outscored its foes 495-115.

Best win: Whipped Michigan 34-14 in Rose Bowl. Wolverines finished ranked sixth.

Comment: Four wins over teams that finished ranked in the final top 25, including road victories at No. 15 Nebraska and at No. 8 California. Featured one of the great defenses in college football history, yielding just 9.2 points and 67.1 rushing yards per game. Eight Huskies earned first-team All-Pac-10 honors.

2. 2004 USC: While the NCAA and BCS have nixed it in their own ways, the Trojans finished 13-0 and won the national title on the field.

Best player: Quarterback Matt Leinart won the Heisman Trophy.

Point differential: USC outscored its foes 496-169.

Best win: Crushed Oklahoma 55-19 in the national title game.

Comment: Basically a push for dominance with 1991 Washington. Beat four teams that finished ranked in the top 25, including the bludgeoning of Oklahoma. Eight Trojans earned first-team All-Pac-10 honors.

3. 2003 USC: The Trojans finished 12-1 and split the national title with LSU. Their only loss came in triple overtime at California.

Best player: Receiver Mike Williams was a consensus All-American.

Point differential: 534-239.

Best win: The completely dominant 23-0 victory at then-No. 6 Auburn in the opener set the tone for the season -- and caused many Pac-10 fans to question how good these highly rated SEC teams really are.

Comment: The Trojans finished the regular season ranked No. 1 in both polls but lost out playing in the BCS title game because of the computer polls. LSU fans have been thanking the computers for that glitch ever since.

4. 2005 USC: A 34-game winning streak came to an end with a nail-biting loss to Texas in the national title game. The Trojans finished 12-1.

Best player: Reggie Bush won the Heisman Trophy.

Point differential: 638-297.

Best win: The 34-31 win at Notre Dame -- the "Bush Push" game -- was one of the all-time greats.

Comment: Perhaps the best collection of offensive players in the history of college football: Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, Dwayne Jarrett, Ryan Kalil, Sam Baker and Taitusi Lutui earned first-team All-Pac-10 honors. And don't forget LenDale White, Winston Justice, Steve Smith and Dominique Byrd.

5. 1978 USC: Finished 12-1 and split national title with Alabama. Lost to Arizona State, 20-7.

Best player: Charles White was a unanimous All-American.

Point differential: 318-153

Best win: A 24-14 win over the team that "claimed" the other half of the national title.

Comment: Split national title -- coaches liked the Trojans; AP the Crimson Tide -- despite a decisive 24-14 USC at Alabama. So much for head to head.

6. 1979 USC: Finished 11-0-1 and No. 2 behind Alabama. Tied Stanford 21-21.

Best player: Charles White won the Heisman Trophy.

Point differential: 389-171

Best win: The 17-16 win over Ohio State in the Rose Bowl, in which White ran for a record 247 yards, including the game-winning touchdown with just more than a minute remaining.

Comment: Team featured four future College Football Hall of Famers in White, Marcus Allen, Ronnie Lot and Brad Budde. By the way, THAT undefeated, untied Alabama team was really, really good: Outscored foes 383-67. So no sour grapes on that one.

7. 2001 Oregon: The Ducks finished 11-1 and ranked No. 2 in both polls. The only loss was 49-42 versus Stanford (a really, really weird game, if you recall).

Best player: Quarterback Joey Harrington finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting.

Point differential: 412-256.

Best win: A 38-16 win over Colorado in the Fiesta Bowl.

Comment: The Fiesta Bowl victory caused plenty of folks to bemoan the Nebraska-Miami matchup in the BCS title game, considering Colorado had blown out Nebraska the final weekend of the regular season. As for the Stanford loss, the typically straightforward AP noted the game had "everything but aliens landing on the Autzen Stadium turf."

8. 1984 Washington: Finished 11-1 and ranked No. 2 behind BYU. Lost to USC ,16-7.

Best player: Defensive tackle Ron Holmes was a consensus All-American.

Point differential: 352-145

Best win: Shocked Oklahoma 28-17 in the Orange Bowl. Sooners finished ranked sixth.

Comment: A controversial season. Before the Orange Bowl, Sooners coach Barry Switzer lobbied hard for the winner to be declared the national champion. As it was, BYU won the national title after beating a bad Michigan team in the Holiday Bowl. Does anyone believe BYU was better than the Huskies? No.

9. 2010 Oregon: The Ducks finished 12-1 and No. 3 in both polls, losing the national title game to Auburn.

Best player: Running back LaMichael James finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting.

Point differential: 611-243

Best win: The Ducks handed Stanford its only loss, 52-31, after trailing 21-3 early. Cardinal finished ranked No. 4.

Comment: An innovative, exciting team to watch, one that played faster than perhaps any big-time college team in history.

10. 1996 Arizona State: Finished 11-1 and ranked No. 4 in both polls. Lost Rose Bowl -- and potential national championship -- to Ohio State, 20-17.

Best player: Quarterback Jake Plummer finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting.

Point differential: 488-216

Best win: The Sun Devils trounced top-ranked, two-time defending national champion Nebraska, 19-0.

Comment: The Sun Devils lost one of the most dramatic Rose Bowls, when the swashbuckling Plummer was out-swashbuckled by Joe Germaine, who was raised in Arizona as an ASU fan.

11. 2000 Washington: The Huskies finished 11-1 and ranked No. 3, their only loss coming at No. 7 Oregon. They beat Purdue 34-24 in the Rose Bowl.

Best player: Marques Tuiasosopo finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting.

Point differential: 387-270

Best win: Beat Miami, 34-29. Hurricanes finished ranked No. 2.

Comment: This is not the most talented team on the list. In fact, some have rated the 2000 Oregon State team -- see below -- ahead of the Huskies. And based on NFL results, the Beavers were more talented than the Huskies. But head to head matters, and the win over Miami is better than anything Oregon State did.

12. 2000 Oregon State: The Beavers finished 11-1 and ranked No. 4, their only loss a 33-30 decision at Washington, which finished ranked No. 3.

Best player: Running back Ken Simonton was first-team All-Pac-10.

Best win: Beat Oregon 23-13 in Civil War. Oregon finished ranked seventh in the coaches poll.

Comment: One or two more plays at Washington, and the Beavers would have played for the national title. And they, by the way, were more talented than the Oklahoma team that did win the title. Notable Beavers: Ken Simonton, Chad Ochocinco (the Chad Johnson), T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Chris Gibson, DeLawrence Grant, LaDairis Jackson, Dennis Weathersby and Eric Manning. They spanked Notre Dame 41-9 in the Fiesta Bowl.

On Friday, the Pac-10 becomes the Pac-12, and life as we all have known it ends.

Kaboom!

Before we start looking forward -- oh, well, guess that's all we've been doing this offseason -- let's take a look back at the 10-team conference that started in 1978 when Arizona and Arizona State joined the Pac-8 (and Pac-8 purist grumbled about life ending as they knew it).

Today, we compile an all-time, All-Pac-10 team (No player who graduated before 1978 was considered). Thursday, we'll rank the best Pac-10 teams.

As for picking the players, you might imagine this wasn't easy. Lots of great players over the past 33 years. This list doesn't include many consensus All-Americans, national award winners and players who won multiple All-Pac-10 honors.

I struggled with receiver and offensive line the most. And kicker (UCLA fans will slap their foreheads at my pick). Ten selected players already are in the College Football Hall of Fame.

NFL success wasn't a part of this measure -- just look at the QB. But there were a couple of moments -- tight end and kicker -- when it waved at me from a distance.

As for the per school tally, it should be no surprise that USC led the way with seven players. It might be a surprise that Arizona, with no Rose Bowl berths, was second with four. Neither Oregon nor Stanford have a player on the team.

Feel free to disagree. Or to post your own team.

Offense

QB Matt Leinart, USC (2005): 2004 Heisman Trophy winner. Finished third in 2005. Won two national titles; played for a third. 99 career touchdown passes is 14 more than any other quarterback in conference history.

RB Charles White, USC (1979): 1979 Heisman Trophy winner. Fourth in 1978. Pac-10's all-time leading rusher. College Football Hall of Fame.

RB Marcus Allen, USC (1981): 1981 Heisman Trophy winner. 2,427 yards rushing in 1981 is conference single-season record. College Football Hall of Fame.

WR Dwayne Jarrett, USC (2006): A two-time consensus All-American. Ninth in Heisman Trophy balloting. 41 career touchdown receptions is nine more than any wide receiver in conference history.

WR Mike Hass, Oregon State (2005): Biletnikoff winner. Consensus All-American. His 1,532 yards receiving is a conference single-season record. He also holds the single-game receiving yards record (293).

OL Jonathan Ogden, UCLA (1995): 1995 Outland Trophy winner and consensus All-American. Two-time first-team All-Pac-10.

OL Randall McDaniel, Arizona State (1987): Consensus All-American, two-time first-team All-Pac-10. College Football Hall of Fame.

OL Brad Budde, USC (1979): Lombardi Trophy winner. Three-time first-team All-Pac-10. College Football Hall of Fame

OL Alex Mack, California (2008): Three-time first-team All-Pac-10. Two-time Morris Trophy winner.

OL Lincoln Kennedy, Washington (1992): Consensus All-American. Two-time first-team All-Pac-10. Two-time Morris Trophy winner.

TE Tony Gonzalez, California (1996): Consensus All-American. First-team All-Pac-10.

Defense

DE Terrell Suggs, Arizona State (2002): Bronko Nagurski, Lombardi Trophy and Ted Hendricks Award winner. Consensus All-American. Two-time first-team All-Pac-10. Set NCAA single-season sack record (24).

DT Steve Emtman, Washington (1991): Outland and Lombardi winner. Finished fourth for Heisman Trophy. Consensus All-American. College Football Hall of Fame.

DT Rob Waldrop, Arizona (1993): Outland and Bronko Nagurski winner. UPI lineman of the Year. Two-time consensus All-American. College Football Hall of Fame.

DE Tedy Bruschi, Arizona (1995): Two-time consensus All-American. Three-time first-team All-Pac-10. Morris Trophy winner.

LB Chris Claiborne, USC (1998): Butkus Award. Consensus All-American. Two-time first-team All-Pac-10.

LB Ricky Hunley, Arizona (1983): Two-time consensus All-American. Three-time first-team All-Pac-10. College Football Hall of Fame.

LB Jerry Robinson, UCLA (1978): Two-time consensus All-American. Three-time first-team All-Conference. College Football Hall of Fame.

S Kenny Easley, UCLA (1980): Four-time first-team All-Conference. Three-time consensus All-American. College Football Hall of Fame.

S Ronnie Lott, USC (1980): Consensus All-American. Two-time first-team All-Pac-10. College Football Hall of Fame.

CB Antoine Cason, Arizona (2007): Thorpe Award winner. Consensus All-American. Two-time first-team All-Pac-10.

CB Mike Richardson, Arizona State (1982): Two-time consensus All-American. Two-time first-team All-Pac-10.

Specialists

P Nick Harris, California (2000): A consensus All-American in 2000, he punted a lot and was very good at it. He set NCAA records for most career punts and punting yardage.

K Jason Hansen, Washington State (1991): Consensus All-American (1989). Two-time first-team All-Pac-10. 39 career field goals of 40 or more yards and 20 of 50 or more; both Pac-10 records.

Eighth in a series looking at lineup holes that are important even if they don't make headlines.

USC

Everybody is talking about: Rebuilding the entire secondary, which loses all four starters, including free safety Taylor Mays.

Bigger shoes than you think: Receiver Damian Williams

Receiver is like any other position at USC after years of elite recruiting: On paper, it looks like there's a surfeit of talent ready for its close-up. But ask yourself this: When was the last time USC actually scared people with a downfield passing game (other than the 2009 Rose Bowl pummeling of Penn State)? Probably back when a guy named Leinart was the quarterback. We're completely aware that Williams was first-team All-Pac-10 and is hardly an unknown. What often doesn't seen to come across, though, is to what extent he WAS the Trojans receiving corps last year. Williams caught 70 passes for 1,010 yards with six touchdowns last year. That's twice as many receptions and TDs as any other receiver. In fact, the combined receiving yards for every other wideout -- not tight ends or running backs -- was a meager 822 yards. Fact is, no matter how fast and big the receivers look running around in practice, there's no mistaking the fact the actual on-field production for the returning crew has been unimpressive. Sure, Ronald Johnson got hurt and missed four games, but for all his talent, the rising senior has only caught 12 career touchdown passes.

Who's stepping in: Johnson is eager to prove he's more than just a fast guy, and he's got high expectations for himself. With quarterback Matt Barkley owning a year of seasoning, there's no reason Johnson can't be a 1,000-yard receiver. Sophomore Brice Butler also may be poised for a breakthrough. He ranked third behind Williams and Johnson with 20 receptions in 2009. There's considerable buzz surrounding true freshman Kyle Prater, whose 6-foot-5 frame suggests Dwayne Jarrett and Mike Williams. What the Trojans really need, of course, is multiple threats on the perimeter, not just a single go-to guy as Williams was.

It's signing day eve!

That means a lot of you will be spending more time here than doing your work tomorrow.

Over at ESPN.com, we like to encourage such behavior. It's healthy!

While most conference classes are close to complete, there seems to be plenty of last-minute intrigue with elite recruits, and you'll notice California, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA, USC and Washington are all still in on a number of guys.

ESPN recruiting guru Tom Luginbill might be the busiest man on the planet right now, but he still stopped by for a quick Q&A on Pac-10 recruiting.

How is the Pac-10 doing overall? It seems as though there are more teams in the top 25 than usual.

Tom Luginbill: Overall the conference is very strong on the recruiting front because of the resurgence of Stanford, UCLA and Washington. As per usual, Oregon State gets a certain type of player that fits their mold and it works tremendously despite a lack of star power -- and I love their QB Sean Mannion. Cal and Oregon have a chance to finish really strong, especially Oregon.

Do you expect USC recruiting to be as strong under Lane Kiffin as it was with Pete Carroll?

TL: Yes, as long as they don’t lose their stranglehold on the state of California. Also, when they go national, they need to hit on those guys with the same level of success they have had in the past with the Dwayne Jarretts, Joe McKnights and Taylor Mays of the world.

Which Pac-10 team is having a better than usual or expected recruiting season?

TL: I would not call it unexpected, but what Stanford has been able to do on a national level has been extraordinary, and they have really upgraded in terms of speed and athleticism. To steal away QB Brett Nottingham from UCLA this late and DE Blake Leuders from Notre Dame was key. Going back to the spring, they were a team that seemed to be everywhere in terms of where good players were.

Give me a couple of names of guys who you think will make an immediate impact next year.

TL: WR Robert Woods, USC; TE Asante Cleveland, Washington State; RB Deonte Cooper, Washington.

Great and notable -- and not so-great -- moments of the Pac-10 decade.

Note: Games of the decade comes tomorrow.

10. Le Affair de Neuheisel: Washington fired Rick Neuheisel before the 2003 season amid an NCAA probe into his participation into a high-stakes pool on the NCAA basketball tournament. Neuheisel would go on to win a $4.5 million settlement for wrongful termination. The Huskies subsequently would endure their worst run in program history.

9. Civil War for the Roses: While both teams were ranked higher in the 2000 Civil War, Oregon and Oregon State had never previously played for higher stakes: a Rose Bowl berth for the winner. The game matched the pregame hype as the Ducks prevailed in a 37-33 thriller.

8. Pullman goes nuts: "The ruling on the field was that it was a backward pass. Washington recovered that pass, and the game is over," said the referee presiding over the 2002 Apple Cup. The Huskies' 29-26 upset win over then-No. 3-ranked Washington State in triple overtime ended on a controversial play that was about as inconclusive on replay as a play could be. Fans in Martin Stadium, however, thought they were getting jobbed, and they preceded to bombard the field with bottles and other objects.

7. Oregon left out: The BCS computers preferred No. 4 Nebraska, fresh off a 62-36 loss to Colorado, which knocked the Cornhuskers out of the Big 12 championship game, over No. 2 Oregon for the national title game vs. Miami. The Hurricanes routed Nebraska 37-14 for the national title, while the Ducks stomped Colorado 38-16 in the Fiesta Bowl.

6. Price to Alabama: When rumors started swirling that Alabama wanted to hire Washington State coach Mike Price, it seemed like a terrible match. It was. Price, after leading his listless Cougars to a loss in the 2003 Rose Bowl against Oklahoma, took over the Crimson Tide but would never coach a game. He was fired after an intoxicated afternoon at a strip club became a national scandal.

5. USC left out: USC was No. 1 in both human polls at the end of the 2003 season, but the BCS computers saw differently and matched LSU and Oklahoma for the computer title, even though the Sooners had just been beaten 35-7 by Kansas State in the Big 12 championship game. LSU beat Oklahoma, while USC beat Michigan in the Rose Bowl. The AP and FWAA polls crowned the Trojans national champions. The coaches poll was contractually obligated to name LSU its champion, though three coaches rebelled and voted USC No. 1.

4. The replay screw-up: The scoreboard said Oregon 34, Oklahoma 33 in Autzen Stadium on Sept. 16, 2006, but Sooners fans -- and everybody else, really -- knew differently. In what was surely the worst replay call in history, the Ducks were "awarded" possession on an onside kick in which the kick was illegal -- it touched an Oregon player before going 10 yards -- and was recovered by the Sooners anyway. The Pac-10 office later admitted the call was blown. Bringing it up remains an outstanding method to annoy Oklahoma fans.

3. Bellotti to Kelly announced: On March 13, 2009, Oregon coach Mike Bellotti, the dean of Pac-10 coaches and the fifth-longest tenured coach in FBS football, handed the Ducks over to offensive coordinator Chip Kelly. Bellotti, who became Oregon's athletic director, went 116-55 in 14 seasons as the Oregon coach.

2. Bush push: The play became the defining -- and controversial -- moment of No. 1 USC's 34-31 win at No. 9 Notre Dame in 2005, though a 61-yard pass from Matt Leinart to Dwayne Jarrett on fourth-and-9 on the final drive was just as dramatic. Leinart's initial push on a quarterback sneak for the winning touchdown in the waning moments failed, but running back Reggie Bush jumped into the fray and pushed Leinart into the end zone. A couple of Notre Dame fans through the years have noted that such a play is against the rules.

1. USC hires Pete Carroll: On Dec. 15, 2000, USC made a decision that was almost unanimously panned by the media and fans: It hired Carroll as its head football coach. Things, however, worked out OK for the Trojans.

The assignment: Rank the top-10 Pac-10 players of the decade.

Gulp.

The list of folks not on this list includes numerous consensus All-Americans, award winners and record-setting players. So feel free to disagree.

And, yes, NFL success sometimes functioned as a tiebreaker, which is why Reggie Williams, Mike Williams, Rien Long, Dave Ball, J.J. Arrington, Mike Hass, Derek Hagan and Joey Harrington, among others, are not on this list.

Every player on this list, other than Steven Jackson, was a consensus All-American.

10. Troy Polamalu, S, USC: Pete Carroll's first great defensive player, he was a two-time All-American. The 16th overall pick in the 2003 draft and five-time All-Pro is on track for a Hall of Fame NFL career.

9. Antoine Cason, CB, Arizona: The four-year starter grabbed 15 career interceptions and won the the Thorpe Award as the nation's best defensive back in 2007. He was the 27th pick (San Diego) of the 2008 draft.

8. Haloti Ngata, DT, Oregon: The 345-pounder was the best run stuffer the Pac-10 has seen of late. He blocked seven kicks at Oregon and piled up 17.5 tackles for a loss his final two seasons before becoming the No. 12 pick in the 2006 draft (Baltimore).

7. Dwayne Jarrett, WR, USC: What separates Jarrett from the conference's other All-American receivers is simple: His 41 career touchdown receptions are nine more than any other player in Pac-10 history.

6. Steven Jackson, RB, Oregon State: Jackson's NFL career has proven that he was ridiculously underrated in college. He finished with 3,625 career rushing yards, which ranks 11th on the Pac-10 career list, and 46 career touchdowns.

5. Toby Gerhart, RB, Stanford: The 2009 Heisman Trophy runnerup finished with 3,522 career yards and 44 touchdowns.

4. Terrell Suggs, DE, Arizona State: In 2002, he set an NCAA record with 24 sacks and Pac-10 record with 31.5 tackles for a loss. He won the Lombardi Trophy as the nation's best defensive lineman and the Nagurski Award as the nation's best defensive player.

3. Reggie Bush, RB, USC: He won the 2005 Heisman Trophy after finishing fifth the year before. He led the nation with 222.3 all-purpose yards per game and set the Pac-10 record for total yards from scrimmage with 513 (294 rushing, 68 receiving, 151 return) against Fresno State. And every time he touched the ball, everyone held their breath.

2. Carson Palmer, QB, USC: He won the 2002 Heisman Trophy and his 11,818 career yards passing is No. 1 all-time in the Pac-10.

1. Matt Leinart, QB, USC: He won consecutive national championships and the 2004 Heisman Trophy. In 2005, he finished third in the Heisman voting and lost the national championship game to Texas. He owns the Pac-10 single-season (38) and career (99) records for touchdown passes.