What the Pac-12 really needs is a national title. It hasn't won one of those since 2004, and every other Power 5 conference has captured at least one during that 12-year drought. And yes, this is not the first time that has been typed by a person situated in the western third of the college football nation.
But what the Pac-12 could benefit from in the immediate future is what might very well be in the process of happening: The simultaneous rises of USC and Washington. In fact, the two -- benefits and teams -- might be connected.