Pac 12 Football: Week 2 Power Rankings

The USC Trojans dismantled the Utah State Aggies with a 45-7 victory, but it doesn’t mean much facing a much smaller school even though they did avoid starting 0-2 since 1997. What must be more important is if the USC Trojans have settled on their starting quarterback.

Max Browne started and tossed two touchdown passes, but backup Sam Darnold also had two TD throws against Utah State. Talented and future pro receiver Ju Ju Smith-Schuster had a breakthrough that he couldn’t find against #1 Alabama. Smith-Schuster finished with seven catches for 56 yards and two touchdowns.

On the season Browne has 37-of-59 passing for 283 yards and two touchdowns, he also has two interceptions as well. With Darnold, it’s a smaller sample size of 9/15 for 91 yards and two touchdowns with zero interceptions.

I am still waiting for sophomore Ronald Jones II to start putting on a show as he did as a freshman. He was limited in the active defense of Alabama, and even though he was hurt last week (ribs) he only rushed for eight yards on five carries.

USC will start their conference play next week against #7 Stanford. The Trojans will have a great chance to commence on a winning streak and display they are not as bad as they were against the Crimson Tide. They will follow up the next week against Utah (2-0) for another tough division foe.

Next: 6. Arizona State