PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — Oregon has been picked to win the Pac-10 in the preseason media poll, edging longtime favorite Southern California by three points.
A year after the Ducks ended the Trojans’ run of seven straight conference titles, the media chose coach Chip Kelly’s team over USC to win it all again in the second-closest voting since the poll began in 1961.
Oregon beat USC 314-311, with 15 first-place votes to 12 for the Trojans from 35 participating members. Oregon State was picked third with 262 points, with Stanford fourth and Arizona fifth.
A record seven teams received at least one first-place vote in a conference widely perceived as wide-open with the NCAA sanctions leveled against the Trojans. Oregon also dismissed star quarterback Jeremiah Masoli in the offseason.
