PAC 12 Power Rankings: a old pecking order re-emerges

2016 is in the books. As we take stock of the status of each PAC 12 team, we consider both how they closed the season and what their momentum going into the off season feels like.

The top end of the rankings will be no surprise to anybody. When you look at the top two spots, it is hard to not harken back to a different era. Between 1976 and 1995, either Washington or USC won the old PAC 10 conference 15 times (counting the tie in 1995 as one). Both seemed poised to embark on a new era of competitiveness that will only be amplified by the fact that they reside in different divisions of the new PAC 12.

Here are my final power rankings for the 2016 season.

USC ends the 2016 team at the top of the…