By TED MILLER
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
LOS ANGELES -- Talk about accolades, trophies, national titles and all the rest, but you know you've arrived when your coach pinches your butt.
That's what happened yesterday as USC quarterback Matt Leinart walked to the podium at Pac-10 media day with Pete Carroll.
Perhaps Carroll just wanted to make sure one last time that the past two seasons weren't a dream. Unfortunately for the rest of the conference, neither of the Masters of the College Football Universe woke up.
For the second consecutive year -- and second time in history -- Pac-10 media reached unanimity in the preseason poll.
Any guess which team inspired such certainty?
The Trojans, the two-time defending national champions and the consensus pick as the preseason No. 1 team in the nation, are competing with history as much as the rest of Division I-A, and Leinart is vying to become the most decorated player in college football history.
USC, winner of 22 consecutive games (and 33 of 34), is poised for a run at a third consecutive national title -- unprecedented in modern college football history -- while Leinart is attempting to join Ohio State tailback Archie Griffin as the only two-time Heisman Trophy winners.
If both happen, Leinart will become a certified legend, a notion that even he struggles to wrap his mind around.
"It's like, 'Wow, that's pretty cool,' " he said. "I don't know how it is for everyone else, but when you're living in it and you're doing it, you don't really appreciate it as much until you're done. ... When I'm playing and living this life, I don't think about 'I could be the greatest player ever.' "
Leinart is one of eight starters returning from an offense that averaged 38 points and 450 yards per game.
"We could probably average more points than any team has averaged in the history of the school," Leinart said. "The type of players we have, it's going to be pretty scary to watch us. It's going to be hard to stop all the weapons we have."
Leinart, aiming for his third first-team All-America honor, famously opted not to enter the NFL draft this spring, but that decision might have been wiser than some have suggested. He needed off-season shoulder surgery and was inactive much of the spring.
That said, he did notice that former Utah quarterback Alex Smith signed a six-year, $50 million contact with the San Francisco 49ers after going No. 1 in the draft, a perch some had projected for Leinart.
"That's a pretty cool number," Leinart said. "It would be nice to make that type of money."
While he said he has no regrets, he also admitted that he's enduring the type of fame that is generally reserved only for NFL All-Pros. Everywhere he goes, people stare. Every meal is interrupted by requests for autographs.
He also is fighting a reputation for hitting the party circuit and running with starlets. He shakes his head at the tabloid headlines.
"Every story I read is like, 'Matt Leinart is a Hollywood playboy,' " he said. "But I'm not at all."
He insisted the hype hasn't jaded or distracted him or the Trojans.
"It's not like we're satisfied with what we've done," he said. "We're not ready to give up our throne."
ARIZONA: Mike Stoops played defensive back at Iowa and was a defensive coordinator at Kansas State and Oklahoma. Defense is where he feels comfortable, but comfort isn't always the ticket for a head coach, particularly when the Wildcats are trying to fix the worst offense in the conference.
"I've switched some of my responsibilities to make sure that our offense feels my personal presence," Stoops said. "Hopefully we can score more than 14 points a game this year."
ARIZONA STATE: Last spring, Arizona State tailback Loren Wade allegedly shot and killed a former Sun Devil outside a nightclub.
"Our football family was wounded," coach Dirk Koetter said. "We are never going to forget about that situation, but we have to at least set it aside."
A university investigation into the matter found "errors in judgment" by Koetter and then-athletic director Gene Smith, now at Ohio State, but ruled that neither could have known that Wade was capable of shooting someone.
CALIFORNIA: There are two reasons Cal was picked second in the Pac-10 despite having just 11 returning starters, fewest in the conference: coach Jeff Tedford and sophomore tailback Marshawn Lynch.
Most folks know about Tedford, but Lynch is the X-factor. He replaces J.J. Arrington, who led the conference with 2,018 yards rushing last year, and figures to end up on the marquee.
Lynch had 628 yards in part-time duty, averaging 8.8 yards per carry with eight touchdowns. He owns explosive speed, good size and catches the ball as well as most receivers.
"When you lose a 2,000-yard rusher, you'd think there would be some concern there," Tedford said. "But Marshawn may be the best all-around football player that I've ever seen."
OREGON: Tailback Terrence Whitehead was one of the conference's most versatile backs last season, rushing for 1,144 yards (5.7 yards per carry) and catching 44 passes for 405 yards, but he may have to fight to retain his touches this season.
Incoming freshman tailback Jonathan Stewart of Lacey was rated the nation's No. 1 prep tailback. He's a 228-pound burner who accumulated 7,755 yards and 95 touchdowns in high school.
"I see (Stewart) accompanying Terrence and being the best one-two punch in the history of our school," coach Mike Bellotti said. "I'd love to see him step him in and play. But Terrence is the starter. I make no bones about that."
OREGON STATE: Mike Hass went from being an unknown to the conference's leading receiver last year, catching 86 passes for 1,379 yards. So perhaps it's understandable that he believes in the underdog and isn't too impressed with favorites. Hass was asked if anyone can beat USC, the two-time defending champions. "No one is invincible," he said. "They lost players just like everyone else. ... I wouldn't be surprised if it (a defeat) happened."
By the way, the Beavers, who battled hard with USC in 2004 before losing 28-20, don't play the Trojans this season.
STANFORD: Looking for a darkhorse? Consider Stanford under new coach Walt Harris.
The Cardinal, tapped ninth in the media poll, welcomes back 17 starters from a team that lost five games by a combined 22 points, including a three-point loss to USC.
They may be better than the pundits think, but outside linebacker Jon Alston was sympathetic to the pundits, rather than grousing about a lack of respect.
"Preseason-wise, some would say it's a lack of respect," he said. "But in my opinion, you don't get respect until you earn respect. In the past three seasons, we've won a total of 10 games. That's not enough to get it done."
UCLA: Karl Dorrell has little patience with critics who are putting him on the coaching hot seat. "I know my job is not in jeopardy," he said.
But it's not the media speculation that bothers him most -- it's hearing about it in living rooms while recruiting.
Dorrell, without naming names, said other schools are bad-mouthing the Bruins, claiming he might be fired at the end of the year. He termed this "telling lies," and noted that he is confident it won't happen while he competes for recruits with new Washington coach Tyrone Willingham.
"I would never bash any other program for my benefit," Dorrell said. "I know for a fact Tyrone won't do that ... but it's happening. That's what is disappointing, when your peers do that to you."
QUICKLY: This is the last season Pac-10 teams will play 11 total games and miss a conference opponent. Starting next year, every team will play a 12-game regular-season schedule and all nine conference opponents. ... Because there are nine conference home games on Sept. 17, two contests won't use the new replay system due to a lack of manpower: UC Davis at Stanford and Grambling vs. Washington State at Qwest Field. ... Bruins quarterback Drew Olson, who underwent knee surgery after the Las Vegas Bowl, is 100 percent and is listed as the starter going into preseason practices. ... In other quarterback competitions, Nate Longshore is No. 1 at Cal in front of JC transfer Joseph Ayoob; UCLA transfer Matt Moore is ahead of Ryan Gunderson for Oregon State; and Trent Edwards leads T.C. Ostrander at Stanford.
Just like nearly every other major conference -- the WAC is the only holdout -- the Pac-10 will use instant replay this year.
The system will employ two replay officials and one technician and will be used only to review calls that can be analyzed objectively, such as plays involving boundaries (sidelines, goal lines, etc.), possession or contact.
The replay officials will decide if a play needs to be reviewed, and they will reverse a call only if indisputable video evidence is available.
There is no time limit for the review. The Big Ten used the same system last year and it averaged about one review every two games, with the reviews lasting about 2 1/2 minutes
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