Stanford picked to win Pac-12 in media poll

November 14, 2015; Stanford, CA, USA; Stanford Cardinal running back Christian McCaffrey (5) runs with the football during the first quarter against the Oregon Ducks at Stanford Stadium. The Ducks defeated the Cardinal 38-36. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /

Pac-12 media members select Stanford as heavy favorite to win conference title in preseason poll.

In a vote consisting of 33 media members covering Pac-12 football, the Stanford Cardinal were selected as the favorite to win the 2016 Conference Championship. The Cardinal received 20 of the 33 championship votes to easily earn the status of title favorites.

Stanford also received 24 first place votes to win the North division and a total of 186 points to edge out South division favorite UCLA by just six points. Even though the Cardinal have won the Pac-12 title 15 times (third most) and three out of the last four, this is the very first time in the 56-year history of the Pac-12 preseason poll that Stanford was selected as the conference title.

USC, voted to finish second in the South division, picked up five championship votes to finish in a distant second. Washington, UCLA, and Utah also received championship votes.

The Pac-12 preseason media poll has correctly selected the conference champion 29 of 55 times, but only a meager two times in the last nine polls.

Last season, Stanford finished 8-1 in conference and blew out USC in the Pac-12 Championship Game, 41-22. David Shaw’s team then dismantled Iowa in the Rose Bowl, 45-16, to finish with a 12-2 record.

Stanford will have to replace starting quarterback Kevin Hogan, but will still have the services of star running back and Heisman hopeful Christian McCaffrey, who broke Barry Sanders NCAA single-season record for all-purpose yardage in 2015.

California kickoffs the season for the “Conference of Champions” against Hawai’i on August, 26th.

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