The historical crown jewel in football for the Conference of (real NCAA) Champions is and always has been the University of Southern California. Today’s Pac-12 Friday final entry in this miniseries takes on the Trojans and their illustrious history: winning percentages over .700 for both overall and conference records, capped off with 51 Associated Press poll finishes, 39 conference titles, and 35 bowl victories. Truly amazing!

5. 2002

The start of the Pete Carroll Era dynasty, this Trojans team finished 11-2 after an Orange Bowl victory over No. 3 Iowa. USC earned a No. 4 AP poll ranking, although the team was No. 1 in the SRS overall rankings after playing the No. 1 SOS. The Trojans featured the Heisman Trophy winner as part of the No. 9 offense, but the No. 18 defense wasn’t too bad, either. Two losses were to ranked teams on the road by 10 total points.

4. 2005

A controversial Rose Bowl loss ended a 34-game winning streak for USC, but this 12-1 team still finished No. 2 in the AP poll and No. 2 in the overall SRS rankings. Playing the No. 9 SOS in the country, the offense was ranked No. 2 nationally. The Trojans had been ranked No. 1 from the start of the season as the two-time defending national champions, but the flimsy defense—only 35th in the country—ended up as a fatal flaw.

3. 1978

This 12-1 squad earned our MNC designation, despite getting shafted by clueless mediots. USC had our pick for the Heisman, too, despite the clueless mediots (redux). The Trojans finished No. 2 in the AP poll, No. 2 in the overall SRS rankings, and No. 2 in the SOS ratings. The defense was the 11th best in the nation, and it carried—no pun intended—the No. 36 offense to incredible heights. How did the mediots ignore a H2H win?

2. 2004

Perhaps the greatest college football team in our lifetimes, these Trojans were a perfect 13-0 after a 55-19 shellacking of No. 2 Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl. USC finished No. 1 in the AP poll, No. 1 in the SRS, No. 3 on defense, No. 5 in the SOS ratings, and No. 6 on offense—with the voted Heisman winner. Surprisingly, though, the Trojans won four close conference games by a combined 22 points: familiarity is tough to beat.

1. 1972

The best USC team ever according to the math, this group went 12-0 after beating Ohio State by 25 points in the Rose Bowl. Finishing No. 1 in both the AP poll and the overall SRS rankings, the Trojans were No. 3 on offense and No. 7 on defense—featuring our pick for the Heisman, too. USC played the No. 20 schedule in the nation as well. The Trojans beat six ranked teams during the year by an average of 20.1 points per game.