The USC Trojans are No. 12 in the new US LBM Coaches Poll, presented by USA TODAY Sports. The Trojans dropped one spot from No. 11 due to their ugly and unimpressive 42-35 win at Rutgers on Saturday.
USC is ranked four spots ahead of the Oregon Ducks, who are No. 16 in the poll. USC plays Oregon this coming Saturday in the biggest game of the Trojans' season and in Lincoln Riley's USC tenure. The Trojans, if they beat Oregon, will have a real chance of going 10-2 this season, which should be good enough to make the College Football Playoff. Moreover, beating Oregon will give the Ducks a second loss. Given that Oregon has to visit Ohio State later this season, a USC win over Oregon would make it likely that the Ducks will miss the playoff outright
this year. No one predicted that before the season began.
The upside for USC with a win over Oregon is enormous, but the downside is immense as well. If the Trojans lose to Oregon, they would have to go 3-1 in a four-game stretch against Washington, Penn State, Ohio State, and Indiana. Given everything that we have seen from USC so far this season, it is very improbable that the Trojans would be able to pull that off. They probably will beat Washington, but Penn State on the road looks like a tough task right now. USC does not seem to be in the same league as Ohio State or Indiana.
USC could beat Oregon only because the Ducks have not looked very good in their own right so far this season. The Ducks were No. 2 in the preseason edition of the US LBM Coaches Poll. They plummeted out of the top 15 after their disastrous loss to Oklahoma State earlier this month.
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This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USC falls to No. 12 in US LBM Coaches Poll after Rutgers debacle
