Pac-12 Championship Preview: USC & Utah Players to Watch

The 2022 Pac-12 Championship Game is set. The USC Trojans come in ranked No. 4 in the CFP. The No. 11 Utah Utes, the defending Pa-12 champs, will look to end USC’s storybook season. The game will be televised on FOX and played at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas at 5 PM PST (6 PM MST).

Utah publisher Alex Markham and USC publisher Ryan Young have collaborated on a series of Pac-12 Championship Game articles.

Here they discuss each team’s players to watch and pick a game MVP:

Ryan Young

USC quarterback Caleb Williams is the MVP of college football this season, so I’d have to start there. He’s been insanely good down the stretch of the season – really starting with that game in Salt Lake City in mid-October. He’s the presumptive Heisman Trophy favorite and, honestly, the best college quarterback I’ve watched in two-plus decades of following the sport. His pocket awareness is unrivaled as he peripherally notices any impending peril and has a bag of magic tricks to get himself out of harm’s way and either buy time to make a play downfield or take off an run. Pair that with a rifle for an arm while throwing only 3 interceptions (one that should have been caught by his own receiver) all season despite a high volume of passing attempts, a fully healthy wide receiver corps and a strong offensive line and he’s been looking pretty unstoppable of late.

Overshadowed just a bit by Williams’ Heisman campaign the last few weeks has been the re-emergence of running back Austin Jones, who has taken on lead back roles after the season-ending injury to Travis Dye. In the last two games, he’s totaled 274 rushing yards on 5.96 yards per carry, with 2 touchdowns and 73 receiving yards.

Jordan Addison, who was injured during the first game with Utah, is back to full strength again. He put up 11 catches for 178 yards and a touchdown two games ago against UCLA before having a quieter line vs. Notre Dame, as USC made a concerted effort to beat the Irish at their own game, pounding the ball on the ground.

And on defense, edge rusher Tuli Tuipulotu looks like a lock for All-American status, leading college football with 12.5 sacks and making a consistent impact even beyond the numbers. He just makes his presence felt on every defensive series. Safety Calen Bullock is up to 5 interceptions now and has the talent to be a future All-American. And middle linebacker Eric Gentry, who went down with a bad ankle injury in the last meeting with the Utes, is now back and makes an immeasurable difference in the middle of the defense with his 6-foot-6 frame and 7-foot wingspan, disrupting the passing game over the middle and closing on ball-carriers quickly with his length.

As for a game MVP pick, it can only be Caleb Williams.

Alex Markham

For the Utes, they go as quarterback Cam Rising goes. When he’s clicking in big games, there’s a swagger and confidence that spreads amongst the Utes. He’s been dinged up and slowed down since the earlier USC win, but he seemed to be back to his typical self last week against Colorado. USC fans know all too well how dangerous he is, as he’s 2-0 against them.

Back in October, USC had no answer for Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid. He’ll be coming into the game with a pissed off point to prove after bizarrely being left off the finalist list for Mackey Award. Statistically, he’s the best tight end in the country and he’s only had one drop in his entire college career. Kincaid has been dinged up in recent weeks and that’s opened the door for tight end Thomas Yasmin, known by the football program as “YAC-man,” he could cause additional fits for USC as they’ve struggled against opposing tight ends.

Devaughn Vele leads a receivers group that needs to step up on Saturday, but at 6-foot-5, he has an impressive catch radius and great rapport with Rising. At running back, Tavion Thomas and his uninspired 2022 running is out, and the Utes might have recently unlocked a dangerous combo with a finally healthy Micah Bernard and Ja’Quinden Jackson.

Defensively, it all starts with Thorpe Award finalist Clark Phillips III, who leads the NCAA in interceptions with six, including two pick-sixes. Safety Cole Bishop has sacrificed for the team and received a lot of reps recently at nickelback, providing stability to a position that was shaky early on. Karene Reid is a high football IQ playmaker at linebacker.

One of the biggest keys for Utah will be the health of defensive end Jonah Elliss, who missed the Colorado game. He’s so valuable and versatile for this Utah defensive line. He has jaw-dropping sideline to sideline speed with his elite athleticism and 4.5 40 speed.

As for a game MVP pick, I’ve got to go with Clark Phillips III and his clutch playmaking ability.