Who Wants to Be a Two-Time Loser?

Whither the Pac-10?

Maybe that should be wither the Pac-10.

Exactly which of the preseason favorites for the Pacific 10 Conference title still has a realistic shot at the Rose Bowl will be decided today at Arizona Stadium.

Will it be once-upon-a-time No. 4 Arizona, still trying to right itself--and tackle somebody--after being trounced by Penn State and Stanford?

Or No. 22 USC, the team that has bobbled every game since its opener against Hawaii but has held on to win all except a triple-overtime loss to Oregon?

“The guys know this is a big one, and we need it,” USC quarterback Mike Van Raaphorst said, calling the Trojans’ week of practice perhaps their best all season.

“It’s one of those things you can’t put a finger on, but there’s a feeling you get,” Van Raaphorst said.

Conventional wisdom says any team that suffers a second conference loss is out of the title hunt.

So who will it be, the Trojans (3-1, 1-1) or the Wildcats (3-2, 1-1)?

“We understand we’re still in this. The season is not over,” said Arizona receiver Dennis Northcutt, whose team is unranked after starting the season with a 41-7 loss to Penn State, opening Pac-10 play with a 50-22 loss to Stanford and beating Washington State on a controversial call on the final play of the game.

“This is the most important game of our season,” Northcutt said. “We’ll take this game like this is our last game of the year.”

Arizona will greet USC with a suspect defense but a veteran offense led by the quarterback tandem of Keith Smith and Ortege Jenkins, with Smith penciled in to start.

USC is still struggling with some of its own bad habits, as well as adjusting to the loss of quarterback Carson Palmer to a broken collarbone two weeks ago.

Most of all, the Trojans hope this isn’t the week Arizona finally puts it all together.

Whoever wins will be expected to try to defend the Pac-10’s honor after early leader Stanford started the conference 3-0--only to lose to San Jose State last week.

Pleading the Pac-10’s case has become standard duty for the league’s coaches and probably will continue to be.

“I’m not as down on the Pac-10 as others,” Arizona Coach Dick Tomey said. “By the time the bowl games are finished, we will have acquitted ourselves well. I do not agree with those that say football is in a sad state. It’s not just the Pac-10. . . . There’s just not as much difference any more [among the haves and have-nots of college football].

“That’s what the people at what used to be the high-profile schools don’t want to admit, but that’s how it is and I don’t know that it’s going to change.”

USC Coach Paul Hackett called the harsh criticism of the Pac-10 “ridiculous,” but in the same conversation acknowledged that the style of play prevalent in the league probably hurts its competitiveness against so-called power offenses.

“If you become a finesse offensive team, and there’s nothing wrong with that, there’s a trade-off,” Hackett said. “In practice, year-round, the defense is practicing against a finesse offense.

“Championships are won with defense. For the defense to prepare properly against a smash-mouth or run-oriented football team, they need to be able to practice against a powerful, physical running team . . .

“Our conference has become very much like Oregon State, where there’s one back or no backs. It’s effective. There are a lot of points scored. But can we make the change, when we have to play against two backs? And then come back to defend against no backs? That’s the real challenge of the defense.”

His defense says it’s ready.

“This is the next step we have to take,” USC linebacker Zeke Moreno said. “This game is very important, our most important game right now.

“It will kind of be hard because they’ve had the bye week, and two weeks to prepare. They might switch things up. We’ve got to go expect the unexpected.”