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Most Pac-12 teams will have new faces on hand this spring -- early-entry high school or JC players or transfers -- who are expected to provide immediate help, if not win starting jobs.

Here are seven we expect to make a mark in 2012 (feel free to comment on how you can't believe we left out so-and-so).

LB Brian Wagner, Arizona: Wagner was prolific tackler at Akron, collecting at least 100 stops in three years as a starter and earning All-MAC honors in two out of his three seasons with the Zips. He might not have top-flight Pac-12 speed, but the Wildcats are fairly desperate at linebacker.

QB Connor Wood, Colorado: Wood, a Texas transfer, was expected to win the job even before Nick Hirschman re-injured his foot. But with Hirschman out, it's Wood's offense -- at least for the spring. In the fall, Jordan Webb, a two-year starter at Kansas with two years of eligibility remaining, is expected to join the fray.

DE Arik Armstead, Oregon: The true freshman arrives in Eugene this spring after one of the more closely watched recruiting sagas on the West Coast. While more than a few folks believe the 6-foot-8, 280 pounder is a prototypical left OFFENSIVE tackle, he's going to at least start off on defense at Oregon. He's athletic enough to play end, and could immediately be in the picture to replace the departed Terrell Turner.

TE Caleb Smith, Oregon State: The Beavers use both a tight end and an H-back, and Smith, a touted recruit from Kentridge High School in Renton, Wash., looks like a good candidate to replace departed -- and productive -- H-back Joe Halahuni. He could challenge sophomore Connor Hamlett, the backup tight end in 2011, for the starting job.

DE Brandon Willis, UCLA: Willis' wanderlust has been almost comical -- he's transferred between UCLA and North Carolina twice -- but he was once a touted recruit and could compete for immediate playing time on an experienced but underachieving Bruins D-line.

RB Kelvin York, Utah: York, a 5-foot-11, 225-pound transfer out of Fullerton College, picked the Utes over a host of suitors. At the very least will be Robin to John White's Batman. It's also possible they could be 1A and 1B, almost splitting carries equally.

RB/WR Antavius Sims, Washington: Sims is a JC transfer who signed with the Huskies in 2011 but didn't qualify academically. He was expected to play cornerback, but has been shifted to offense so he can use his speed both as a runner and receiver.

It was about this time last year that people started predicting that Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck would hoist the Heisman Trophy. How'd that work out, by the way? Still, it's not too soon to start looking at some odds.

Odds maker Danny Sheridan -- as originally reported with Alabama flavor by Izzy Gould of al.com -- released his 2012 Heisman odds Tuesday and his list includes three Pac-12 candidates in total and one obvious front-runner.

• USC quarterback Matt Barkley tops the list at 5-1 odds.
• Oregon running back De'Anthony Thomas checks in at 25-1 odds.
• Washington quarterback Keith Price is the darkhorse at 40-1.

At first glance, Barkley is the obvious choice. He has a very good offensive line protecting him -- including the nation's top center in Khaled Holmes (just once, I'd love to see a center get Heisman love). The running game will come together, but until it does, you might see Barkley pass a little more. And why not? With his receivers he should put up crazy good numbers. A little surprised not to see Robert Woods on this list.

Thomas is going to do what Thomas does -- run really, really fast and score a lot of touchdowns. His chances might be hampered a bit by splitting carries with Kenjon Barner (by the way, shouldn't he be on this list also?). But with the amount of plays Oregon runs per game, that shouldn't be too much of a concern. Because Thomas is a speed guy, he's also going to have to get over the national stigma that he can't run between tackles. LaMichael James had the same label, but was quite good this past season at going up the middle.

Price is the wild card of this bunch. Last year, he spent the season with a lot of nagging injuries that forced him to be a better pocket passer. But when healthy -- as we saw in the Alamo Bowl with his three rushing touchdowns -- he can be just as explosive with his legs. Next season he should be a true dual threat and a player that should warrant serious consideration.

Other players picked by Sheridan include:

• Wisconsin running back Montee Ball: 6-1
• Oklahoma quarterback Landry Jones: 7-1
• Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson: 7-1
• West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith: 10-1
• Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray: 12-1
• Arkansas quarterback Tyler Wilson: 15-1
• Kansas quarterback Dayne Crist: 25-1
• Nebraska running back Rex Burkhead: 25-1
• Clemson wide receiver Sammy Watkins: 25-1
• Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron: 30-1

But as we've seen in recent years, there is always an out-of-nowhere candidate that was off the radar. Just looking at this awfully impressive lineup, however, it seems like it's going to be tough for an unknown to wiggle his way in.

Can we talk about defense?

No, not quarterbacks. They're great. The best in the nation. No, not running backs. They're great, too. Or tight ends or receivers or NFL-quality offensive linemen. The Pac-12 is fine on offense.

Yes, defense. Let's take a look at the numbers. Yeesh.

Hey, did you say something about quarterbacks?

Defense, the part of football they say wins championships, has been mostly lousy in the Pac-12 as we close in on the midseason mark.

No team ranks among the top-25 in total defense (Stanford is No. 26 and California is No. 27). Eight rank 50th or worse.

Well, scoring is really what defense is about, right? Right. And nine conference teams rank from No. 55 to No. 112 in scoring defense. Nine teams give up between 24.3 and 37.6 points per game. (Stanford is No. 6 in scoring defense, while Utah is 25th and Arizona State is 32nd).

And we can't entirely excuse these numbers by pointing to the super-awesomeness of Pac-12 offenses. We're only two or three games into the conference slate.

Arizona might own the second-worst defense among AQ conferences (Kansas is almost comically bad). The Wildcats' numbers are so bad writers spent much of the weekend finding fun ways to illustrated their badness -- here and here.

USC ranks 67th in total defense and 68th in scoring defense, terrible numbers for a unit with tons of talent that is coached by Monte Kiffin, a certifiable coaching legend. Things are worse across town, where UCLA ranks 105th in scoring and 98th in total defense. Who was stupid enough to write about UCLA's defense being "sneaky good" anyway? Never listen to that guy again.

So what gives? Does the conference just not care about defense?

Injuries are a legitimate excuse. The Wildcats have been missing three starters and a key reserve the entire season, and defensive tacle Justin Washington is now hurt. Arizona State is missing four top players. In fact, there are lots of big names out, including Washington defensive end Hau'oli Jamora, Stanford linebacker Shayne Skov and USC defensive tackle Armond Armstead, to name a few.

Still, every team has injuries.

Some guys who looked like budding stars have been disappointing so far: Washington, Washington defensive tackle Alameda Ta'amu, Oregon cornerback Cliff Harris and UCLA defensive end Datone Jones come to mind.

But, really, it comes down to this: No Pac-12 team has scary talent on all three levels. I'm not talking about LSU in 2011 scary or USC under Pete Carroll scary or Washington in 1991 scary. I'm talking Stanford in 2010, UCLA in 2006, Washington State in 2003, California in 2004 or Oregon State in 2000 scary.

If Arizona State had cornerback Omar Bolden, defensive back James Brooks, linebacker Brandon Magee and defensive back Junior Onyeali, it probably would be a top-25 defense. Stanford is good but took a step back when its leader and best player, LB Shayne Skov, was lost for the season with a knee injury.

Who has a pair of lockdown corners who are able to press at the line of scrimmage and handle man-to-man coverage? Who can consistently get pressure with a four-man rush? Who can stonewall an opposing running game and force a team to throw to win? Who can beat you without using risky stunts every other play?

In the early going, it appears Stanford has the conference's best defense. Oregon's defense is probably better than its early numbers suggest (its yards per play -- 4.84 -- is better than Kansas State, which ranks 16th in total defense and is a top-30 number). California has young talent on all three levels. Washington has shown improvement he past two weeks. Utah is well-coached and solid across the board. USC can't possibly be this mediocre. Arizona State has been above average, despite the injuries.

Defense might not win championships in the Pac-12, but here's a bet that the two teams playing for the Pac-12 title on Dec. 2 will rank in the top-third of the conference and top-50 in the nation in most major defensive statistical categories.

And when the smoke clears on the 2011 season, conference teams might need to figure out a way to kick up the defensive recruiting a notch or two.

To remind us that the expansion game -- it is such a fun game, isn't it -- is all about surprises, the ACC decided to be the conference that crossed the Rubicon as we head toward a superconference future.

Syracuse and Pittsburgh are bolting the Big East for the ACC. It's a done deal, unlike the just-about-done deal for Texas A&M to the SEC, which is only being held up by Texas folks who hate free markets and love frivolous lawsuits when their self-interests are involved.

So, at this moment, the ACC is at 14 and the SEC is just about 13. That means the days of 12 are numbered, not unlike the precarious existence of the Big 12 and Big East.

Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott has repeated the same series of phrases -- politely and with an admirable energy that almost makes his message seem fresh -- over and over. He likes the Pac-12. He's perfectly happy staying at 12. Heck, the Pac-12 is the world's richest college sports conference! But the conference won't be left behind. If others start the superconference trend, the Pac-12 will then play its strong hand and add teams.

And so we have Texas' and Oklahoma's boards of regents meeting Monday. Here's a guess that the subject of expansion is going to come up, though the regents won't specifically vote to jump conferences or not, but only to tell their president to do what he thinks is best for the institution.

First, no one knows the endgame. Did you read anything about imminent moves to the ACC from Syracuse and Pittsburgh before this weekend?

But the general feeling is Oklahoma is tired of Big 12 instability and wants to join the Pac-12 and that Oklahoma State would follow. So that's 14, which for a variety of reasons isn't a good number for a conference (which is why we should assume the ACC and SEC aren't done).

What about Texas? The smart move for Texas, as it was when it was first approached by Scott during the previous round of expansion madness, is to join the Pac-Whatever.

I do not know how the parties compromise on the Longhorn Network. I only know smart people know how to reach compromises in business deals that enrich themselves.

And if Texas wants to go its own way, then Scott will look elsewhere, perhaps Kansas and Kansas State.

Or is the ACC about to pull the big whammy and get Texas and Kansas, too (and allow Texas to keep the LHN)?

Or does the Big 12 stage a miraculous 11th-hour rally and save itself?

As Scott told me at the USC-Utah game, no one knows the endgame, even him. There's too much "need-to-know-basis" information out there, with insiders owning disparate bits and pieces they can't put together any better than reporters, as well as plenty of misinformation and gamesmanship.

But it feels like each week the plot thickens. Which typically means in a thriller that we're getting closer to a dramatic climax.

Or an unsatisfying one.

Oregon has retained lawyer Mike Glazier to watch out for its interests as the NCAA looks into the Ducks football program and its business with Willie Lyles, reported George Schroeder of the Eugene Register-Guard.

Schroeder notes that some call Glazier “the Cleaner,” so this decision by Oregon "signaled that this NCAA inquiry is a very significant matter," and "Oregon is taking this thing very, very seriously -- and has been from the start." Glazier has, in fact, been working for the Ducks since March.

Again, there is some distance here, during a preliminary investigation by the NCAA, between the present undefined situation, a formal letter inquiry and then a potential fight in front of the infractions committee. Months. And it may not even happen. But its clear the Ducks are covering their proverbial bases.

Writes Schroeder:

The party line remains that the Ducks operated within the rules. The confident chatter is that the Ducks have nothing to worry about.

The reality is when you retain the law firm of Bond, Schoeneck & King, you’re plenty concerned.

After that unpleasant call from the NCAA, an athletic director hangs up the phone and immediately punches in Glazier’s number. Some probably have him on speed-dial. All of them know what he does, which is not so much defending against NCAA charges as responding to them.

Schroeder points out that by going this route, Oregon will be penalized for the football program's relationship with Lyles. How so? Billable hours. This is a "prudent" decision -- to use athletic director Rob Mullens' term -- but it's also an expensive one.

Even if Oregon gets off scot-free, that $25,000 payment to Lyles is going to wind up costing much more. In recent years Kansas and Ohio State paid around $500,000 to Bond, Schoeneck & King.

But Oregon's got money. What it wants to preserve and protect is a highly functioning football program unburdened by NCAA sanctions.

Every team has hope heading into the offseason. And every team has concerns.

Ergo, we're going to run through the conference and look at the chief matters -- on the up and downside -- for each Pac-12 team.

Next up:

Colorado

Biggest reason for hope: Plenty of guys back from a team that just missed bowl eligibility.

Why exactly are so many folks so sure that the Buffaloes are going to get pushed around in the Pac-12 next year? Sure, they got pummelled at California, 52-7, but use schizophrenic California as a measuring stick at your own risk. Colorado also beat some good teams -- Hawaii, Georgia and Kansas State -- and finished one win short of bowl eligibility. Two losses were by a total of nine points, and, of course, there was that epic collapse against Kansas. So things could have been different in 2010, a season that cost Dan Hawkins his job. The Buffaloes have 14 starters back in 2011, including a veteran QB (Tyler Hansen) and a 1,000-yard rusher (Rodney Stewart). They also have an impressive young receiver (Paul Richardson), an NFL prospect on an experienced offensive line (guard Ryan Miller) and a key starter returning from injury (linebacker Jon Major). Further, they figure to be highly motivated for three reasons: 1. They will seethe over a lack of respect; 2. They will be energized by new coach Jon Embree; 3. They will be fired up for playing in the new Pac-12.

Biggest reason for concern: The secondary looks shaky.

Colorado started two cornerbacks last fall, Jimmy Smith and Jalil Brown, who were NFL draft picks, yet they somehow were terrible against the pass. They ranked 112th in the nation in pass-efficiency defense, with opponents throwing 27 TD passes, which would have ranked ninth in the Pac-10 in 2010. Even more stunning: Opponents completed 68 percent of their passes against Colorado. That would have ranked last in the conference. Injuries were an issue, but that doesn't obscure the fact that Smith and Brown are now gone and it's unclear who will replace them. Two players listed No. 1 on the post-spring depth chart, cornerback Parker Orms -- a safety last year before blowing out his knee -- and strong safety Anthony Perkins, missed spring with knee injuries. Toss in the quality of quarterbacks in the Pac-12, and questions in the secondary are grounds for concern.

USC has hired Nebraska receivers coach Ted Gilmore to fill the same position for the Trojans, the school announced Thursday.

He replaces John Morton, who was hired away by the San Francisco 49ers.

Gilmore, 43, who was also the Cornhuskers recruiting coordinator, has been at Nebraska six years. In 2008, he was given the title of assistant head coach for offense.

“I’m thrilled to welcome Ted Gilmore to the Trojan football family,” coach Lane Kiffin said in a statement. “For years, he has been regarded as an outstanding recruiter and wide receivers coach. He comes to us highly recommended by a number of very prominent coaches. I’m excited for him to start working with our talented group of receivers.”

Gilmore arrived at Nebraska after spending the 2003 and 2004 seasons at Colorado. Before that, he spent two years at Purdue, one at Houston, one at Kansas and four at his alma mater Wyoming -- the first two as a GA -- where he played receiver from 1988-89.

For every love won, there is love lost. For every thrill of victory, there is an agony of defeat.

While we only wish you happiness on Valentines Day, here are six top heartbreaks from the Pac-12.

6. Cal gets Polked: Jeff Tedford had never had a losing season since he took over at California in 2002. And all his Bears had to do to maintain that impressive run was stop Washington on a fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line with two seconds left, which would then earn them a bowl berth. Nope. Chris Polk scores a TD for a 16-13 Huskies win. The Memorial Stadium crowd, with no postseason to look forward to, goes home grumbling. The Huskies ride the win to their first bowl game since 2002.

5.Thomas spurns USC for Oregon: DeAnthony Thomas, widely considered one of the most dynamic athletes in the 2011 recruiting class, was a long-time USC commitment. He was expected to be one of the jewels of the Trojans' top-five class. But he took a late visit to Oregon just before signing day, when he broke USC hearts by signing with the Ducks.

4. Trojans get kicked: USC lost consecutive games the first two weekends of October -- 32-31 to Washington and 37-35 to Stanford -- on last-second field goals. And there was much gnashing of teeth.

3. Buffalo slaughter: Colorado led Kansas 45-17 with 14:52 left. Stick a fork in this one, right? Hey, maybe there was some life in Dan Hawkins' Colorado team. And Kansas, after all, was a bad team in turmoil under first-year coach Turner Gill, having lost 11 consecutive conference games. But no. Kansas scored the final 35 points in the fourth quarter and won 52-45. Epic collapse or epic comeback? Either way, it was stunning.

2. James Brooks swats Alex Zendejas twice: A blocked extra-point attempt is rare. Two in one game -- by the same guy -- is even more rare. And two PATs blocked by the same guy in game-deciding situations in a rivalry game? Well, that's great theater. But the thrill for Arizona State's James Brooks -- the mad swatter -- was pure agony for Arizona kicker Alex Zendejas. Brooks rejected Zendejas' PAT late in the fourth quarter, which forced overtime. He then turned away a Zendejas PAT in the second overtime, giving the Sun Devils an improbable upset win, 30-29.

1. Dyer circumstances: Auburn's freshman running back Michael Dyer looked down, tackled by Oregon rover Eddie Pleasant. If you watch the replay, you can interpret it any way you want, as many have. But the bottom line is Dyer's apparent short run late in the national title game turned into a controversial 37-yard scamper, which set up the Tigers' winning field goal as the clock expired in a 22-19 victory. One word: Ouch.

Washington State's 31-14 win at Oregon State was impressive and significant in many ways, not the least of which was it ending a 16-game Pac-10 losing streak.

But let's face it: Planets often align in strange ways in the college football universe. Just in the past few years we've seen FCS teams win at powers such as Michigan and Virginia Tech. We saw Stanford, as a 41-point underdog, win at USC with its backup quarterback. We saw Alabama get physically manhandled by Utah in the Sugar Bowl.

This year, we've seen Kansas lose to North Dakota State in its opener, beat then-No. 15 Georgia Tech in Week 2, then lose to Baylor and Kansas State by a combined count of 114 to 14 on consecutive weekends, then score 35 consecutive fourth-quarter points to beat Colorado 52-45.

So freaky, unpredictable stuff happens all the time.

But nothing about the Cougars win feels "freaky." And this victory -- their first on the road since 2007 -- is about more than a long-awaited payoff for the Cougars. They have repeatedly played well into the second half and even the fourth quarter this season.

To me, the most significant reference point that highlights their improvement is the 42-0 loss at Arizona State on Oct. 30. That's the point in which many, including me, thought the Cougars were waving the white flag over coach Paul Wulff's tenure.

That game seemed to indicate exhaustion and malaise had set in. It seemed to say that Wulff's players had lost their faith and, subsequently, their will. On the Tuesday Pac-10 coaches conference call after that dreadful performance, Wulff said a number of things that could have been used to make a case against him.

Said Wulff, "It felt like we played with a tank that was empty with emotion."

Said Wulff, "We just didn't get a response."

Said Wulff, "That ultimately comes back on me. I've got to get us ready emotionally."

Said Wulff, "I try not to gauge the state of the program on one game."

Said Wulff, "I'm not really worried about retaining for next year. We're in year three of a major rebuilding project. I don't know if I'd state it we have to win these games. Were playing in a lot of ways to our potential and what we are capable of doing. We're close."

All of that could could easily fall into a column about why Wulff shouldn't be back in Year 4. Wulff was being himself -- an honest, stand-up guy -- but it wasn't hard to construe "ultimate defeat" from his words.

But, instead, this is a column about why the only sensible decision is to retain Wulff.

In a nutshell, he got the feckless team that lost 42-zip at Arizona State to become the team that won at Oregon State 31-14 two weeks later. One word: leadership. Wulff got his players, who had fought hard all year -- until the Arizona State game -- to reinvest after they'd hit an emotional nadir. If you've ever been in charge of a group of people, you know how hard that is. Wulff could offer them little incentive; a bowl game wasn't a possibility. His players probably were aware his job status was shaky, so if they quit on him, they'd get a fresh start in 2011 with a new coach.

All Wulff could say was, "We're in this together. Let's show some pride and compete." And guess what happened? The message stuck and then resonated in what was produced in Reser Stadium.

According to the Sagarin Ratings, Washington State has played the second-toughest schedule in the nation, one that has included No. 1 Oregon, No. 6 Stanford, No. 10 Oklahoma State, No. 20 USC (AP) and No. 22 Arizona. Moreover, they've played 11 consecutive weeks without a bye.

That's at tough road, period. But the Cougars have done it playing a bevy of young players. Of the 60 Cougars who played at Oklahoma State in the season-opener, 24 were making their college football debuts. The Cougars have played 10 true freshman this season. Of the 113 players on the Cougar roster, only 17 have been in the program more than three years, or prior to head coach Wulff’s arrival in December of 2007. On defense alone, 14 of the 22 players on the current depth chart are freshmen or sophomores.

Oh, and that defense, which is statistically terrible based on the entire season, held Oregon, Arizona and Stanford below their season averages for both points and yards. It held California to just 20 points. And it completely stuffed Oregon State.

In other words, maybe we should have seen the Corvallis Cougars Crusade coming.

Wulff inherited a disaster -- things were much worse than the average fan realized -- and his first two seasons ended up exactly that way. But the black smoke is clearing, and a program appears to be reemerging.

Every coach in the Pac-10 has remarked that the Cougars are different this year -- faster, more physical and less sloppy. The list of young talent coming back in 2011 is impressive: quarterback Jeff Tuel, wide receiver Marquess Wilson, Safety Deone Bucannon, defensive end Travis Long, defensive tackle Brandon Rankin, linebacker C.J. Mizell, etc.

We're not ready to proclaim a return to the run from 2001-2003 when Washington State finished ranked in the the final top-10 three consecutive seasons. The Cougars in a bowl game in 2011, in fact, probably will be seen as a longshot.

But you saw what just happened, didn't you? We just typed "Cougars" and "bowl game" in the same sentence and you read it without flinching or doubling over in laughter.

Hey gang, what do you say we check in with our new friends, Colorado and Utah, and see what the two teams that will make our super-cool conference the Pac-12 in 2011 are up to?

Let's take a gander at those box scores!

D'oh.

Go look at this box score from the Colorado-Kansas game. See if you notice anything, er, interesting. I'll wait here.

You might have noticed that the far right side of the box is much different than the left portion.

The Buffaloes, you see, yielded 35 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to lose 52-45 to Kansas, which opened the season with a loss to North Dakota State.

The Buffaloes led 35-10 at halftime. They led 45-17 with 11 minutes left.

And they lost.

The defeat dropped Colorado to 3-6 overall -- and one of their nonconference wins doesn't even count because it was over a patsy called "Georgia" -- and 0-5 in the Big 12.

Hmm. Sort of yucky. In fact, there is now metaphysical certainty that coach Dan Hawkins will never get the privilege of being on the Pac-12 teleconference next year, which is too bad because he surely was eager to field all the profound questions I ask, such as, "Your long-snapping, coach: Thoughts?"

Well, as Humphrey Bogart once memorably said to Ingrid Bergman, "We've always got Utah." What happened with the Utes last weekend?

Er, Utah got schlenackered -- no, that's not a word, but it's what happened -- by TCU, 47-7 at home. The Utes entered the game unbeaten and ranked fifth. They exited the game on a gurney. Considering they lost 55-28 to TCU last year, it's likely they are eager to say goodbye to the Horned Frogs for good.

And, really, Utah, how much are you going to miss a team whose fans all have arthritis?

TCU's 40-point victory was the second-largest margin in a regular season game between two top-5 BCS teams. The Horned Frogs outgained the Utes 558 to 199.

Double-hmm. Sort of yucky.

Of course, old-school Pac-10 teams, you better not laugh. At least, not too hard.

Every Pac-10 team, other than unbeaten Oregon -- duh -- and Oregon State (which was originally left out by me) has lost a game by at least 21 points this year. And not just to Oregon.

Washington State has lost by 49, 34 and 42. Washington has lost to Nebraska by 35 and Stanford by 41. Arizona State got whipped at Cal by 33. Cal got whipped at USC by 34 and at Oregon State by 28. Arizona is fresh off a 25-point loss at Stanford. UCLA went down by 28 at Cal, which sure seems to appear a lot on both sides of lopsided results.

Such as a 52-7 win over Colorado.

USC? I also seem to remember you laying an egg twice last year -- 47-20 at Oregon and 55-21 versus Stanford.

So while there surely were some yuck-yucks at the new Pac-12 pledges, my take is Utah and Colorado are going to fit right in.

Lane Kiffin thinks USC deserves a break. And not just from media and USC fans who have been beating up on the Trojans for their performances in the first two games.

Kiffin also thinks the Trojans deserves a break from Kiffin.

After all, he's the one who said this after USC improved to 2-0: "I hope you can tell the disappointment. We're not getting it done. It's the most miserable 2-0 locker room I've been in, which is good."

After a few days in which he could digest that being one of 43 2-0 teams isn't the worst thing ever, Kiffin took a longer view.

"Our standards are so high because we are at 'SC and because we have high standards in general, coaches and players," he said. "I think everyone, including ourselves, forgets that it is our first year. We expect our players to have picked up three new systems. There's only one coach here from last year out of all the 10 coaches. We do sometimes forget that because we expect our guys to play great and never make mistakes in our new schemes."

So is Kiffin talking about the "P" word? You know: Patience?

Yep.

"Were probably not doing a very good job of that because we have our expectations set so high," he said. "We do probably need to have a little more patience with them."

Though it seems like most of Kiffin's motivational coaching shtick involves directly challenging his players in person and through the media, he changed tack this week and gave them a little bit of positive reinforcement when he pinned a printout on every door of Heritage Hall, which compared the season to a 13-round heavyweight boxing match and featured a picture of Muhammad Ali glowering over a fallen Sonny Liston. It exhorted the Trojans to "Stay focused!" and "Toughness and Discipline!"

USC faces another long trip Saturday to an opponent that should be overmatched. Minnesota, after all, lost at home to South Dakota last weekend.

When asked if his team might yawn at the prospect of facing the wounded Gophers, Kiffin was quick to point to the Kansas case study: Bad enough one week to lose to North Dakota, but good enough to beat No. 15 Georgia Tech the next.

And if USC plays as bad on defense as it did against Hawaii, and as bad on offense as it did against Virginia, it could lose this one.

But that's seeing the glass as half-empty. The offense played great at Hawaii, while the defense was solid vs. the Cavaliers.

"The positive on that is we know we can play well on both sides of the ball," Kiffin said.

Two things are particularly hurting USC. In both games, the Trojans seemed to get tired. Kiffin said that was due to playing starters too many snaps. The plan is to play backups more, even if that makes the coaches nervous.

The second issue: penalties. USC ranks 119th in the nation in penalties, averaging 12 flags for 120 yards per game.

Kiffin said penalties have been an area of emphasis -- avoiding them, not getting them -- since he started in the spring. He said the coaches talk about limiting penalties endlessly. So his new approach is this: silence.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said when asked about the penalty issues.

Perhaps that's an answer in itself. Kiffin and USC need to lighten up a bit and recognize that he's a first-year coach leading a depleted roster during a tumultuous time for the program. Things are much different than when Kiffin was the offensive coordinator back in 2005.

So, as the wise men of Guns N' Roses once noted: Maybe we all just need a little patience.

Of course, selling that to demanding USC fans might not be that easy.

Bruce Feldman takes on a topic dear to Pac-10 fans' hearts: Nonconference scheduling.

While it's an "Insider" story, I'm going to pull out this revealing quote from Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops -- made to the Denver Post -- who doesn't feel like tough nonconference schedules are worth it:

"I don't think in today's world you're rewarded for it," he told John Henderson. "Look at the AP poll last year. We beat Oklahoma State at the end of the year, 27-0, and beat another ranked team in Stanford. Well, Oklahoma State's ranked ahead of us. Why? At the end of the day when they go ranking teams, look at how it's ranked every year. AP as well as the coaches all look at the loss column and if one team has one less loss than you they're ranked ahead of you. Oklahoma State was ranked ahead of us. We just played. Please don't make it look like I'm worried about Oklahoma State. But in the end I don't know if you're rewarded for it. You're not. Everybody talks about it early. By the end of the year everyone's talking about wins and losses and you're ranked accordingly."

Stoops is touching on one of the fundamental flaws in the national polls: The failure to punish cowards and reward teams that seek out competition.

Let's say you, Pollster X, think Team A is pretty good. So you rank that team 10th in the preseason poll. But let's also say that team plays Central Michigan, Southeastern Louisiana, Toledo and Florida International in its nonconference schedule.

To me, that team needs to punished. First, even if it starts 4-0, it can't move up. And if it doesn't blow out those teams, it should be dropped a few spots behind teams that record quality wins.

A team shouldn't be allowed to schedule its way to an elite ranking. Pac-10 fans know the formula used by other conferences. Play an eight-game conference schedule -- instead of nine, as the Pac-10 plays -- and then play either three or four teams with no pulse.

A 4-0 nonconference record means a team is just three conference wins away from bowl eligibility. And then when, say, nine teams from that conference are bowl eligible, coaches and fans from said conference shake their heads with serious looks and talk about how deep their conference is and how there are no weeks off.

Balderdash: They took four weeks off. And we have no idea just how good those 7-5 and 8-4 teams are as their records help bolster the computer rankings of the 10- and 11-win teams in the BCS standings.

Now let's be clear: We're not expecting teams to schedule multiple Top-25 programs in their nonconference schedule. Consider Alabama in 2009. The Crimson Tide played three patsies, but they also opened with an impressive win over Virginia Tech. To me, that was enough to validate Alabama as legitimate: It beat a quality foe outside of the closed system of its conference.

And that's why if Boise State beats Virginia Tech and Oregon State, it figures to get a pass for its soft remaining schedule. The Broncos have proven themselves through the years against teams like Oregon, TCU and Oklahoma and shouldn't be marginalized for the conference they play in.

The good news is there's talk in the Big Ten and Big 12 of going to a nine-game conference schedule, like the Pac-10. That means more legitimate tests for teams to validate their rankings and fewer cases like Kansas in 2007, which went 12-1 purely because it didn't play Texas or Oklahoma and played the nonconference schedule noted above.

And let's not forget these guys: fans.

It's a disservice to fans that there aren't more quality intersectional games. As much as I enjoy rivalry games within conferences, there's nothing like the anticipation of two top-10 teams from opposite sides of the country meeting.

And, as fans, if you agree, you should voice your opinion to your athletic directors.

The Oregon Ducks have ventured into Florida to find its future quarterback.

Oregon got a commitment from Jerrard Randall of Chaminade-Madonna (Hollywood, Fla.). The 6-foot-1, 190-pound Randall is ranked 139th on the ESPNU 150 and rated No. 8 nationally among quarterbacks. He picked the Ducks over offers from Florida State, Kansas, Michigan, Nebraska, Purdue, Rutgers, South Carolina, West Virginia, Florida International and Florida Atlantic, among others.

Randall passed for 1,800 yards and 18 touchdowns, and rushed for 1,074 and 14 TDs as a junior.

Here's the headline from last year's Pac-10 meetings: "Cost Containment Proposals Highlight Pac-10 Meetings."

Things are a bit more interesting this year.

A report that the Pac-10 is now looking to expand to 16 teams, with the new six all coming from the Big 12 -- Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Colorado -- sent shockwaves through college football on Thursday.

The Pac-10, according to the reports, would then split into two divisions, with Arizona and Arizona State joining the Big 12 six and the old Pac-8 forming the other division.

(One of my first thoughts was I know two guys who hate the idea: The Stoops brothers, Oklahoma's Bob and Arizona's Mike, who would suddenly be playing not only in the same conference but also in the same division, which means playing every year. Mike Stoops has repeatedly told me he has no interest in playing a game against brother Bob.)

Two immediate questions arise: 1. Is this about to happen? 2. And if it is not imminent, is this still the most likely endgame?

I do not know the answer to either, but my feeling is: 1. No; 2. I'm not sold. Yet.

Before all of this hullabaloo started, Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott told me that nothing of significant news value would happen this weekend. Yes, he said, expansion was on the agenda and a variety of scenarios would be discussed. Yes, he said, the conference is looking into creating its own network but that can't come into fruition until it first negotiates with its present contracted broadcast partners.

In a lighter moment, he told me he didn't want me to end up like other reporters who wrote about imminent blockbuster expansion scenarios that turned out to not be that imminent after all.

After all of this hullabaloo started, Scott still told other reporters the exact same thing: No invitations have been extended. Nothing has been decided.

Is the "Pac-16" a possibility? Absolutely. Will that scenario be discussed this weekend during the Pac-10 meetings in San Francisco? Without a doubt. And it already has been discussed, according to a source. But so have other scenarios.

Expect expansion to play out over the next few months like a coaching search. Conference presidents and commissioners are working behind the scenes, looking for tango partners. They also are aware of how the media works, so there will be a considerable effort to create plausible deniability. Such as:

Reporter: Has Conference X contacted University of Z?

Commissioner: No.

But, of course, there has been some contact through some sort of back channels using representatives with some sort of authority to represent their organization.

Consider this interesting story on the Big Ten side of things from the Columbus Dispatch. If the Pac-10 has "contacted" Texas -- despite denials -- well, it's not alone. From the Dispatch: "Ohio State University President E. Gordon Gee sent an e-mail to Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany on April 20 saying that he had spoken with Texas President William Powers."

You can read Big Ten blogger Adam Rittenberg's amusing explication of the story and the e-mails here, but know that the Big Ten's Jim Delany has maintained -- much like Scott -- that the conference hasn't made official contact with any other university.

What should you take away from all this as of Friday, June 4?

Know how Scott has repeatedly said -- to me at least 20 times -- that everything is on the table.

It is. And the endgame options range from no change (still not completely unrealistic) to huge change (more realistic now than it was 24 hours ago).

And now, our expansion links!

• Jon Wilner gives a very reasonable take. Wilner is going to a family wedding on the East Coast this weekend, so he won't be providing on-the-scene updates when things conclude on Sunday. Drat.
• All reports at this point are still speculative.
• Here's a good destination for you expansion-obsessed folks.
• Ray Ratto considers the Pac-10 "meet market."
• Texas, the key to everything, can save the Big 12.
• The Pac-10 and Big 12 were talking alliances. Now they are adversaries.
• Why Texas Tech and not Kansas?
• Colorado doesn't know it's going to be invited to join the Pac-10 (it may just think that it will).
• Does the Big 12's silence speak volumes?
• The Pac-10 pros and cons for Oklahoma and the same for Oklahoma State. (Doesn't that sound strange?) Conclusion: It's a good thing.

Garrett Gladd of Sallisaw, Okla., a member of the ESPNU 150 Watch List, has committed to Stanford.

Gladd, 6-foot-4, 280-pounds, picked the Cardinal over Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Kansas.

Stanford now has 11 commitments -- the most of any Pac-10 team -- including three from the 150 Watch List.