Reaction to Pac-12 developments on and off the field (and court) …
1. And that’s a wrap …
In the aftermath of Oregon’s lopsided loss in the Fiesta Bowl, which came in the aftermath of Colorado’s blowout loss in the Alamo Bowl, our lasting takeaway of the 2020 Pac-12 football season is as follows:
It existed.
The conference played football this fall.
Above and beyond that, there’s little to chew on and even less to carry forward.
Put another way …
Imagine the college football season as a party and every Football Bowl Subdivision conference a guest.
(Also imagine that some of the neighbors are greatly disturbed by the party.)
The Pac-12 showed up late, stood quietly in the corner, completely unnoticed, and then left through the back door without saying goodbye and leaving behind zero evidence of its presence.
That was the 2020 season:
— Just 5.5 games per team
— No playoff contenders
— No top-10 teams
— No Heisman finalists
— Two bowl teams
— Two bad bowl losses
The final two weeks, especially, were a horror show for the conference.
The stretch began with the decision to elevate a second-place team into the championship — and giving that team (Oregon) a significant competitive advantage over an actual division winner (USC) — and ended with losses to Big 12 teams (Texas and Iowa State) by a combined 49 points.
2. Oregon was, well, Oregon
This is not to fault the Ducks for their showing this afternoon in the Fiesta Bowl: That was who they are.
They were not a good team this year.
They nearly lost at home to UCLA (3-4) and its backup quarterback.
The lost to Oregon State (2-5).
They lost to Cal (1-3).
Then, after Washington was unable to represent the North in the title game, the Ducks were handed extra rest and preparation time while their opponent, USC, was playing its third game in 13 days.
The Ducks were faster, fresher, better prepared and the better team in the conference championship.
But that was the outlier, folks.
What we saw today was the mistake-prone, mediocre Oregon team that we saw most of the season, only matched against an opponent far more capable than any the Ducks faced during the season.
As soon as we saw Oklahoma run Florida off the field in the Cotton Bowl, the Hotline knew Oregon was in trouble:
Two weeks ago, Iowa State took those same Sooners to the wire in the Big 12 title game.
The Cyclones aren’t physically superior to Oregon, but they are savvy, they’re smart, they love to grind, and they’re built to feast on the mistakes of others.
Oregon committed four turnovers.
So yes, the last appearance by the Pac-12 in the 2020 season was a clunker — the last two appearances, in fact, were clunkers.
But again, let’s not lay this all on Oregon and Colorado.
Five bowl-eligible teams declined invitations.
There hasn’t been a playoff-worthy team in years.
The conference office did the title game all wrong.
The university presidents restarted the season too late.
It was all a big mess — Colorado and Oregon were simply the last ones at the scene.
Now, it’s time to forget and move on.
3. USC’s big catch
The second day of the year wasn’t all bad for the Pac-12.
In one regard, it was very, very good: Defensive end Korey Foreman, considered the No. 1 recruit in the country in the class of 2021, announced he has signed with USC.
Foreman, from powerhouse Centennial High School in Corona, is a massive pickup generally for the Trojans and specifically for coach Clay Helton, whose tenure remains stuck in purgatory.
The Trojans aren’t good enough to achieve blue blood-level success or bad enough to cost Helton his job.
Foreman’s announcement — he signed weeks ago but kept it secret from the public — elevates USC’s class into the top 10 in the 247sports composite rankings.
Nor was he the only pickup of the day: The Trojans also secured a commitment from four-star cornerback Ceyair Wright.
And they’re leading for four-star linebacker Raesjon Davis, a top-50 player nationally.
By the close of business on National Signing Day (Feb. 3), the Trojans just might overtake Oregon for the best class in the conference.
4. The broader impact
Foreman’s decision is significant for the Pac-12 writ large, for it slows the exodus of elite players to other Power Five leagues.
That talent drain was never more evident than this week:
— Bijan Robinson, a tailback from Tucson, rushed for 183 yards for Texas in its victory over Colorado in the Alamo Bowl.
— Spencer Rattler, a quarterback from Phoenix, passed for three touchdowns for Oklahoma in its victory over Florida in the Cotton Bowl.
— Najee Harris, a tailback from the Bay Area, rushed for 125 yards for Alabama in its victory over Notre Dame in the Rose Bowl.
— Haskell Garrett, a defensive lineman from Las Vegas, led a dominant performance by Ohio State in its victory over Clemson in the Sugar Bowl.
Oh, and let’s not forget Brock Purdy, a quarterback from Phoenix, who directed Iowa State’s victory over the Ducks.
Impact performances on the sport’s biggest stage — all courtesy of players from the Pac-12 footprint who aren’t playing for Pac-12 teams.
Foreman, it seems, is more exception than rule.
5. Refund request
Far off the radar comes a development worthy of monitoring.
The UCLA basketball team traveled to Oregon two weeks ago, only to have its date with the Ducks called off because of COVID-19 issues with the officials.
At that point, athletic director Martin Jarmond did something unusual:
He asked the conference to reimburse the Bruins for their travel expenses.
Makes sense, right? The conference is in charge of the officiating program and has established the testing plan for each crew.
The postponement had zero to do with the Bruins or Ducks.
The Pac-12 doesn’t have a policy when it comes to the conference office picking up the tab for a game not played — until this fall, games were never not played.
But in football and now basketball, we have seen cancellations at the last minute, we’ve seen road games added to schedules, and we’ve seen teams uprooted for weeks at a time.
The Hotline doesn’t know exactly how much UCLA spent for its flight, lodging, food and transportation, but a typical basketball trip likely would be in the $75,000 to $100,000 range.
The Pac-12 should make this happen, not only for the Bruins but for all the teams in all sports that spend money on travel, only to have the game postponed or canceled.
Formalizing the process shouldn’t be difficult:
Set aside a sliver of the conference’s $250+ million in annual media rights revenue — the schools would have to approve the move — and then reimburse any athletic department that incurred expenses for COVID issues outside its control.
This spring, at the end of the college sports season, dole out the cash to make the departments whole.
Support the Hotline: Several Hotline articles will remain free each month (as will the newsletter), but for access to all content, you’ll need to subscribe. I’ve secured a rate of $1 per week for a full year or just 99 cents for the first month, with the option to cancel anytime. Click here. And thanks for your loyalty.
*** Send suggestions, comments and tips (confidentiality guaranteed) to pac12hotline@bayareanewsgroup.com or call 408-920-5716
*** Follow me on Twitter: @WilnerHotline
*** Pac-12 Hotline is not endorsed or sponsored by the Pac-12 Conference, and the views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the views of the Conference.
Leave a Reply