Pac 12 Championship Predictions, Best Sleeper Teams and Busts – 2023 College Football Season
2023 Pac 12 Conference Championship Preview
WagerTalk college football contributor Kyle Kargel gives his Pac 12 Championship betting preview heading into the 2023 college football season! Which Pac 12 team could surprise some, disappoint and who is the best bet to win the conference championship come December? Read up on Pac 12 Championship predictions, sleeper teams and busts now!
Stay on top of the latest free college football picks direct from WagerTalk!
| Pac 12 Teams | Odds to Win Pac 12 Championship |
|---|---|
| USC | +190 |
| Oregon | +300 |
| Washington | +320 |
| Utah | +600 |
| Oregon State | +1100 |
| UCLA | +1400 |
| Washington State | +4000 |
| California | +8000 |
| Arizona | +10000 |
| Arizona State | +12000 |
| Colorado | +14000 |
| Stanford | +25000 |
Past Pac 12 Championship Winners
2022: Utah Utes
2021: Utah Utes
2020: Oregon Ducks
2019: Oregon Ducks
2018: Washington Huskies
2017: USC Trojans
2016: Washington Huskies
2015: Stanford Cardinal
2014: Oregon Ducks
2013: Stanford Cardinal
FREE WagerTalk 2023 College Football Guide!
Click the image below to download your FREE WagerTalk 2023 College Football Guide with 175 pages breaking down each and every FBS team including all Pac 12 teams! Two of the best in Ralph Michaels and Jeff Michaels put this comprehensive guide together so get prepped for the 2023 College Football season with WagerTalk!
Pac 12 Championship Sleeper – Oregon State (+1100)
Six Pac 12 teams finished with between 6-8 wins and Oregon State was one of those teams who’s biggest weakness was shaky quarterback play.
Those issues should be resolved at least for this season with DJ Uiagalelei transferring from Clemson. Between three different Oregon State quarterbacks last season they only produced 16 passing touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
Running back Damien Martinez will be back for the Beavers who rushed for 982 yards at 6.1 yards per carry and seven rushing touchdowns.
Wide receiver Anthony Gould should be the go-to receiver for Uiagalelei who averaged 16.9 yards per catch last season and caught three touchdowns.
Uiagalelei will have a chance to get acclimated before Pac 12 play starts with a very light non-conference schedule playing the likes of San Jose State, UC Davis and San Diego State.
They avoid Pac 12 powerhouse USC on the regular season schedule and the only consecutive road games they play this season are against Arizona and Colorado who are two teams that should finish near or at the bottom of the conference.
The Beavers Pac 12 Championship hopes will likely lean on their last two games of the season against Washington at home and in their rivalry game against Oregon being played at Autzen Stadium this season.
Pac 12 Championship Bust – Oregon (+300)
The Ducks were cruising last season sitting 8-1 (6-0) but only went 1-2 in their last three games including a 4-point loss at rival Oregon State.
QB Bo Nix will be back at the helm this season but the Ducks will need some changes to take place if they want to compete at the top of the Pac 12 heading into the second half of the season. Will Stein enters his first season as Oregon offensive coordinator as the team will need to replace four members of the starting offensive line.
That’s not the only change as the team will miss key defensive players including linebacker Noah Sewell and cornerback Christian Gonzalez.
The Ducks non-conference schedule is a cakewalk this season compared to 2022 which may work against them given the competition is much weaker. Oregon played Georgia and BYU in a three week span in 2022 where this season they’ll get Portland State, Texas Tech and Hawaii.
They do open up Pac 12 play against Colorado and Stanford but their first real competition won’t be until October 14th when they travel to play at Washington.
They play at Washington, at Utah and vs USC in a 5-week span which may be too much for the Ducks to handle before their last game of the season against cross-state rival Oregon State.
Pac 12 Championship Expert Prediction – USC (+190)
It’s no secret that Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams is back at the helm at USC to finish the job this season.
He was hurt during the Pac 12 Championship last season which ended in a 47-24 loss to Utah who was responsible for their only Pac 12 loss during the regular season as well which was a 43-42 barn burner in Salt Lake City.
They get Utah in LA this season as Williams and the Trojans look to avenge the losses to the Utes from 2022. That Pac 12 Championship loss cost USC a College Football Playoff spot, but it’s championship or bust this season for the Trojans.
That effort starts on defense where the Trojans welcome in a slew of top transfers both on the line and at linebacker. They had trouble stopping the run last season and they also loss sack leader Tuli Tuipulotu to the NFL Draft.
Running back Austin Jones should be the bell cow back with Travis Dye also going to the NFL along with wide receiver Jordan Addison who was the Trojans leading pass catcher last season.
However USC returns their next three leading receivers who caught a combined 15 touchdowns last season.
USC knows they were a play or two away from winning the Pac 12 Championship and advancing to the College Football Playoff. That feeling won’t go away until the Trojans can ensure themselves a Pac 12 Championship in 2023.
College Football and NFL Week 1 Betting
Steve Merril and Teddy Covers run through betting tips and advice when it comes to betting the first week of college football and NFL action. Which type of approach should you be taking and how should you be betting? Listen to their insightful betting knowledge now!
WagerTalk Live Odds Screen
WagerTalk’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books. Track the run spreads, totals and betting percentages for all games across the Pac 12 and other sports leagues from your desktop or phone.
**************************************************
Looking for more free sports picks and sports betting tips?
- Latest Betting Odds and Public Action: Vegas lines updated in real time, including who the public is betting on.
- Last Minute Handicapping Advice: Check out our extensive library of handicapping tips and advice from professional Vegas handicappers (we also recommend taking the time to look over our sports betting tips video library)
- Want an expert opinion? Check out the latest Free Sports Picks and Best Bets from our team of expert sports handicappers.
Make sure to bookmark all the above!
