USC Football: 5 reasons why Trojans will stink in 2017

5. The pressure is on for USC to dominate the Pac-12

Pressure can be an interesting thing for a team in transition. How will the Trojans respond to frontrunner status after years of be able to sneak up because of their sanctioned status? Even last year, there was little to indicate that USC was capable of vaulting to Rose Bowl champions. They got the opportunity largely because A) Washington won the Pac-12 over Colorado and B) they beat Washington head-to-head on the road.

Had Colorado won the league last year, they would have played in Pasadena. Washington would have landed an at-large berth into a New Year’s Six bowl, and Southern California would be just another Power Five team that played in a second-tier bowl game last season. We wouldn’t be talking about Sam Darnold as the next great Trojans quarterback, because he wouldn’t have played his one great game of the season.

But we are having this discussion, largely because of a confluence of events largely out of USC’s control. The Trojans now have to deal with being a favorite in a crowded field of hopefuls. But if they hope to be anything more than a regional power, they must win not just their division but the whole Pac-12. And they must do so in convincing fashion reminiscent of the dominant squads of the Pete Carroll era. Anything less will fall short of overbuilt expectations.