Pac-12 Football Schedule 2012: The Must-Win Game on Every Team's Schedule

The Pac-12 released its entire football schedule for the 2012 season this week, and judging from the slate of games, it seems like this is the perfect time for the conference to start branching out and becoming a big media force on the college football scene, because there are definitely some must-see conference contests next season.

The huge showdown between USC and Oregon on Nov. 3 will obviously be the most talked about Pac-12 game during the offseason, but there are plenty of other important matchups as well.

Here's a look at each Pac-12 team's most important 2012 conference game.

Arizona Wildcats

Sept. 29: vs. Oregon State

New Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez probably won’t fare too well in his first Pac-12 game, as his new squad will likely be extremely overmatched by Oregon on Sept. 22, but Rodriguez will have a great opportunity to notch his first conference win at home against Oregon State the following week.

Both the Wildcats and the Beavers had disastrous seasons in 2011, but both will be looking to get back on the right foot next season, and this is the type of game that could propel the winner to success in the final two months of the season.

Arizona State Sun Devils

Nov. 23: at Arizona

Arizona only beat two BCS teams in 2011, but one of those victories came over in-state rival Arizona State.

The loss was one of the many setbacks for the Sun Devils in the second half of the season.

It will now be up to new coach Todd Graham to right the wrong in 2012.

Arizona State has lost three out of the last four times it's played its in-state rival, and another defeat next season won't be looked on favorably.

California Golden Bears

Oct. 20: vs. Stanford

Be prepared to hear plenty of complaints about "The Big Game" being played in October in 2012, but regardless of the date its played on, this matchup has the chance to be one of the most entertaining Pac-12 games of the 2012 season.

California will be on the rise next year, while Stanford will be expected to come back down to earth after the departures of star quarterback Andrew Luck and All-American linemen David DeCastro and Jonathan Martin.

If Oregon unexpectedly stumbles early in the season, this North division battle could take on even more importance and significance.

Colorado Buffaloes

Nov. 11: at Arizona

After a brutal three-game stretch that includes games against three of the strongest teams in the Pac-12—Oregon, Stanford and USC—Colorado will limp into a road game against Arizona.

If the Buffaloes aren’t too battered by then, they should be able to give the Wildcats a run for their money, and hopefully salvage a season that could get ugly in a hurry.

Oregon Ducks and USC Trojans

Nov. 3: The Showdown

Set your DVR’s now folks, because if there’s one college football game you can’t miss next season, it’s the huge Pac-12 showdown between USC and Oregon.

The Ducks will still have that 38-35 defeat in the back of their minds when they head to Los Angeles next year, but USC will have plenty of reinforcements to deal with Oregon’s attack.

This may only serve as a simple preview to the 2012 Pac-12 championship game, but don’t be surprised if both of these teams are ranked in the Top 5 when they meet in early November.

Oregon State Beavers

Sep. 22: at UCLA

2011 was a season from hell for Oregon State, as head coach Mike Riley watched as everything he had built up in Corvallis came crashing down.

The Beavers struggled through a terrible 3-9 campaign this season, but they'll have the chance to get back on track in their first conference game of the 2012 season, when they travel to Los Angeles to take on UCLA.

If they can notch an early Pac-12 victory, it could help the Beavers gain some much-needed momentum for the rest of their conference slate.

Stanford Cardinal

Nov. 17: at Oregon

Stanford was embarrassed by Oregon the past two times the teams met, and remember, that was with one of the best quarterbacks in college football history, Andrew Luck, under center.

Now, without Luck, the Cardinal will have an even tougher time hanging with the Ducks, but don't count out the boys from Palo Alto.

Stanford will definitely have enough motivation to win this North division clash, but it remains to be seen if the Cardinal will have enough talent to hang with the Ducks in Eugene.

Washington Huskies

Nov. 2: at California

The North division looks like it will once again be Oregon and everyone else in 2012, but there will be other second-tier teams fighting for bragging rights next season, and two of them will be Washington and California.

The early November tilt between the Huskies and the Bears could be a battle that determines which team will unseat Stanford as the second-place team in the North.

Washington State Cougars

Nov. 23: vs. Washington

Washington has beaten in-state rival Washington State 12 out of the last 17 times in the annual Apple Cup matchup, but now that new Cougars coach Mike Leach has taken over in Pullman, that trend could change in the coming years.

Leach has some work to do, changing a losing culture at one of the least successful BCS programs of the last decade, but he's definitely got some talent to work with, including potential breakout star candidate QB Jeff Tuel and one of the conference's best players, WR Marquess Wilson.

If Leach can beat the Huskies in his first year, it will win him a lot of supporters amongst the Washington State faithful.

UCLA Bruins

Nov. 10: at Washington State

UCLA finished with a disappointing record of just 6-8 this season, but somehow the Bruins managed to win the Pac-12 South division basically by default, since the Bruins’ big brother USC wasn’t eligible for postseason play and since the rest of the division came to the conclusion that getting slaughtered by Oregon in the inaugural conference championship game probably wasn’t worth the trouble.

The team won’t be in the running to repeat as division champs next year, but it’s not inconceivable to think that the Bruins could make it to a bowl game in new coach Jim Mora’s first year.

The game that might end up being the make-or-break matchup for the Bruins to become bowl eligible could very well be their road trip to Washington State.

With USC and Stanford at the tail-end of their schedule, it’s going to be crucial for the Bruins to earn a victory in Pullman if they want to become eligible for postseason play.

Utah Utes

Oct. 4: vs. USC

Statement game.

That phrase gets thrown around way too often in college football these days, but it's one that definitely applies to the 2012 Thursday night battle between Utah and USC.

The Utes will host their Pac-12 South foe in front of the entire country, and they'll have a chance to show the world that they belong in the same class as the Trojans.

Utah is certainly a team to watch in 2012, and if Kyle Whittingham's squad can find a way to pull off an upset over USC, there's no telling how high the Utes could climb next season.