Dec. 05--Pac-12 championship game
TV: 6:45 p.m. at Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara, Calif.; ESPN.
Line: Stanford by 4.5.
Records: Stanford 10-2, 8-1 Pac-12; USC 8-4, 6-3.
Last meeting: Stanford won 41-31 on Sept. 19, 2015, in Los Angeles.
On the offensive: Stanford's Kevin Hogan is a savvy dual-threat QB who has the "clutch" gene. RB Christian McCaffrey also has great genes to go with Heisman-caliber production (1,640 rushing yards and 37 catches).
Getting defensive: Stanford will try to contain USC's Justin Davis, who gashed Oregon and UCLA for a combined 271 rushing yards. Neither team has a great pass defense, so the Cardinal must be wary of Cody Kessler (27 TDs, 6 INTs).
The number: 7. The Cardinal's position in the College Football Playoff rankings. They're poised to climb to No. 4 if Clemson or Alabama goes down.
The talk: No one expected USC to get here once the Trojans fell to 3-3 after a loss at Notre Dame. But they rallied behind coach Clay Helton, who had the interim tag lifted Monday.
Teddy Greenstein's pick: The Trojans will benefit from an aggressive, go-for-broke mentality. USC 33, Stanford 31.
