Chiming in late here but what these lists lack is a more comprehensive view.
USC will be good with a solid QB in Kessler, good receivers and a good O Line.
UCLA No real QB and questions everywhere else.
Arizona should be near the top but they do have to replace both Tackles
ASU. Berco is good if he is protected well Not too mobile so he will need solid O lIne play and they also lost their two best receivers from last year.
Utah. Poor QB and not that great at receiver should be much lower.
Oregon: Really a running team so should be viewed from that point of view.
CU Decent QB need better O Line and not too many receivers but a good one back in Spruce.
Oregon State: They should be last unproven QB and no matter what a step back from Mannion. Decent receivers but not great and they are all in a new system.
Cal: Very good and maybe the best QB , but their receivers are middle of the road. Good running backs which helps them.
Stanford: Not sold on Hogan although he has done well against us. He is kind of an inaccurate passer. Need to replace some in O line. I don's see them near the top
UW: Kind of think they will be a mess this year. Lindquist is ok but is kind of inaccurate when protected, so what will he be with less experience in the O LIne. Lost their best receiver, and may be in a lot of games where they are playing catch up. Should be close to last on this list.
WSU: Good very experienced O LIne. Very good group of experienced receivers. QB with some good experience running the system. I think Luke Falk will win the job this Fall and will perform at a level putting him near the top of the QB list by years end. If we get some defense, and much better special teams play we should be happy with the results.
High praise here for Golden, who tries to actually bump the discussion back to actual football.
I tend to agree with 1990 - this list is stupid and pointless. It's a puff piece just intended to create content while there's nothing of substance to discuss. But following Golden's lead, and in an attempt to support it, here's my 2 cents:
1. USC - Kessler is the most proven at the position at this point, with the most talent around him. The Trojan's QB situation looks pretty solid.
2. Cal - Goff is talented, and will get his numbers. He lost some targets and doesn't have a stud receiver to look to, but their offense is like ours - they don't need a star, they need solid depth. If they have it, he'll be OK. If not, he falls to the middle of the pack.
3. Arizona - Solomon is a stud. There's always the risk of a sophomore slump, but if that doesn't happen, he could go to #1. Should have much better support from the run game than Goff or Falk, and is a greater talent than Kessler.
4. Stanford - I'm not putting Hogan up here because I think he's that good. I don't, and he's not. But, he's a known quantity, and that's better than most teams have. He's a game manager for Stanford - and in that offense, that's OK.
5. ASU - Bercovici looked pretty good in relief - better than Falk did. Still, it was only a couple games, who knows what he'll do in a full season. Enough talent around him to minimize his mistakes though, so he gets a bit of an edge...and maybe he should be ahead of Hogan.
6/7. Oregon - Adams or Lockie? Either way, not really sure what they're going to get. Lockie has never really played, Adams has never played FBS (although he's looked good in a couple games against FBS). There's enough talent around them that the ducks will still be a bowl team, and that's why I'm putting them in the middle of the pack. The QB will decide what bowl they get.
6/7. UCLA - Two unknown quantities, no idea what will happen here. Should be a pretty decent team (although it would not surprise me at all if Mora/UCLA inexplicably implode), but QB is a complete mystery. I don't expect either of them will be an immediate star - a game manager type like Neuheisel isn't going to win games for them, he'll let the rest of the team do it. The freshman phenom may win some, but will also probably lose some. Also a likely bowl team based on team play, not dependent on the QB, but again the QB will decide which bowl.
8/9. WSU - Falk hasn't proved he's a star, he hasn't even proved he's consistent. He should be a bit better, but he'll be young and will make young mistakes. Might even cost us games. But, seems like he has the tools, should have good protection and good targets, is more of a threat with his legs than Halliday ever was.
Might be a bowl team with good QB play, that's definitely not a certainty.
8/9. CU - Liufau hasn't proved to be a star either, but he was an upgrade over recent history, and CU is improving. If he can take care of the ball a bit better, they might sniff a bowl.
10. Utah - WIlson isn't a very good QB. Inconsistent. Even when he has a run game, he struggles to move the ball. Even when Utah has a decent team around him, he's the one who's most likely to keep his team
out of a bowl...not necessarily due to mistakes, but due to plays he doesn't make. I'm only putting him at #10 because there there's too much uncertainty at UW and OSU.
11. UW - Almost no game experience at QB, and not all that much returning around him. Lots of holes to fill. I don't really expect to see the Huskies in a bowl, regardless of who plays QB.
12. OSU - Similar to UW, except they have zero returning experience. I don't see any reason to think the Beavers won't be this year's North cellar dweller.
