Pac-12 notes: USC remains tough hurdle for conference foes

PULLMAN – The Pac-12’s most historically dominant team will spend another year watching its former underlings compete for the highest levels of postseason glory without it.

But while USC is to go an eighth consecutive season without a trip to the Rose Bowl or better, the Trojans remain a behemoth looming large in front of other would-be contenders.

Despite its midseason struggles, 2015 is not proving to be a good year to beat USC.

Since coach Steve Sarkisian was suspended and subsequently fired, the Trojans are 2-1 under interim coach Clay Helton. The lone loss was in Helton’s first game in charge, in which the Trojans were still competitive at then-No. 14 Notre Dame.

Sarkisian’s dismissal comes just two years after former USC coach Lane Kiffin was fired in the middle of the Trojans season.

“A lot of credit goes to the players, the guys who have been in this situation before,” Helton said. “Their ability to come together has helped this situation and they’re really doing a great job of having a very successful second half the season.

After that loss the Trojans cruised to an easy victory against then-No. 3 Utah and won at California last weekend.

USC, always a bastion of skilled players, has a particularly talented crop this season that give the Trojans an advantage against nearly any opponent. Wide receiver Juju Smith-Schuster is the Pac-12’s receiving leader and had five catches for 55 yards after fracturing his right hand in the first quarter against Cal.

“He’s always been one of the most unbelievable warriors I’ve ever been associated with,” Helton said of Smith-Schuster. “He wants to be out there every snap and literally went until he was really hurt and we said, ‘That’s it.’ ”

Pac-12 gets unfavorable playoff rankings

The College Football Playoff selection committee released its first set of the rankings it will use to determine the four teams that will get a chance to play for a national championship, and the Pac-12 appears to be on the outside looking in.

Stanford leads the way at No. 11 with Utah right behind at No. 12. No. 22 UCLA is the only other team from the “Conference of Champions” included in the Top 25 ranking.

Oregon was ranked No. 5 in the first set of rankings last season before eventually being included in the four-team playoff field.

No. 1 Clemson, No. 2 LSU, No. 3 Ohio State and No. 4 Alabama would make up the playoff field if the games were played today. No. 5 Notre Dame and No. 6 Baylor are the first teams excluded, although Notre Dame would almost certainly take the place of whichever team loses Saturday’s matchup between Alabama and LSU.

Stanford plays Notre Dame on Nov. 28 and can give itself a shot at the playoffs with a win in that game and a Pac-12 championship game victory. Neither the Cardinal nor the Utes could afford another loss this season and retain any hope of making the playoffs.

Oregon wants Adams to improvise

Vernon Adams Jr. has had to learn in a new offense since transferring from Eastern Washington, one that relies mostly on a star running back. Although Oregon coach Mark Helfrich wants Adams to stay disciplined within the Ducks scheme, he doesn’t want to corral his playmaker too much, lest he lose the improvisational skills that make him so effective.

“It’s like breaking a stallion, which I’ve never done. I don’t know if that’s a good analogy,” Helfrich said. “But the element of playground ball, improvise, he’s done some great things for many years.”

Graham acknowledges signal theft

Coaches from Oregon and Utah, the last two teams to play Arizona State, have accused the Sun Devils of pilfering play signals and using the knowledge to gain an advantage on defense.

On Tuesday, ASU coach Todd Graham responded to the allegations, effectively saying, “Yeah, so what?”

“Do we steal signals? Yeah, we do,” Graham said. “Do people steal our signals? Yeah, (they) do.”

There is no NCAA rule prohibiting teams from attempting to decode the play-calling signals used by their opponents, as long as they do not make video or audio recordings for that purpose.