Utah’s nationally-televised loss to Florida in Week 1 certainly didn’t do the Pac-12’s reputation any favors, but in the last couple of weeks the Conference of Champions has picked up some significant victories.

Now with four teams in the top 25 and two more knocking on the door, the Pac-12 could be set up for a highly competitive and entertaining conference schedule in 2022.

Have teams raised their profiles so much that the Pac-12 North is now stronger than the South?

On today’s episode of Locked On Pac-12, I assess how much stronger the conference is looking across the board heading into league play.

Divisions are dead in the Pac-12 but it remains interesting to compare the relative strength of the teams that once comprised those two groups.

The South may have the top two teams in the Pac-12 in USC and Utah, but the depth in the North is unquestionably better with teams like Washington, Oregon State, and Washington State seemingly haven taken significant leaps forward from 2021.

With the next Fall Saturday looming, this week features all 12 teams taking on a Pac-12 foe.

Headlined by USC at Oregon State, the conference games have some fascinating storylines to follow with big opportunities for some mid-tier programs to take a leap forward.

Cal and Arizona could both finish under .500 in 2022, but if either is going to get bowl-eligible their upcoming matchup presents a huge momentum chance to get to 3-1.

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—More from Spencer McLaughlin—

• McLaughlin: Transfer Portal Impacting 2022 Pac-12 Season

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• McLaughlin: Pac-12 Football Winners and Losers in Week 4

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• McLaughlin: Is USC on Upset Alert against Oregon State?

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• McLaughlin: Oregon RBs, Potential Breakout Players at WSU

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• McLaughlin: UCLA’s ‘Slow’ Start, Biggest Week 4 Headlines

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• McLaughlin: CFB Coaches Arizona State Should be Targeting

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• McLaughlin: Winners and Losers from a Big Pac-12 Weekend

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• McLaughlin: Important Week 3 Factors for USC, UW and Cal

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• McLaughlin: Arizona, ASU & WSU Should be on High Alert

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• McLaughlin: Huskies Have Biggest Opportunity in Week 3

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• McLaughlin: Can Lincoln Riley keep the Trojans Rolling?

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• McLaughlin: USC and WSU Win the Pac-12 Football Weekend

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• McLaughlin: Biggest Week 2 Questions for Pac-12 Big Games

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• McLaughlin: Pac-12 Football Might be in for a Rough Week 2

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• McLaughlin: Pac-12 Winners and Losers from Week 1

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• McLaughlin: Are the Pac-12’s CFB Playoff Hopes Gone?

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• McLaughlin: Pac-12 Football Brand takes a Major Hit

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• McLaughlin: Pac-12 could Strengthen its Brand with Big Wins

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• McLaughlin: Is Colorado Being Undervalued this Season?

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• McLaughlin: What ASU and CU Could Show in Their Openers

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• McLaughlin: Pac-12 Coaches Who May Not Survive 2022

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• McLaughlin: The 5 Most Important Pac-12 QBs for 2022

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• McLaughlin: Preseason Pac-12 Football Recruiting Update

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• McLaughlin: What Penix Brings to Huskies as Starting QB

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• McLaughlin: Wins Hard to Find on 2022 Cal Schedule

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• McLaughlin: Why Cardinal will Bounce Back in 2022

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• McLaughlin: Oregon State Football Underrated in 2022

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• McLaughlin: How Ducks can flip script and beat Utah in 2022

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• McLaughlin: Oregon Football Poised for Success in 2022

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• McLaughlin: Can ASU Match its 2021 Win Total?

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