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LOS ANGELES -- The target remains squarely attached to the Southern California Trojans.
Coach Pete Carroll loves it.
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"It's cool, it's a beautiful thing," Carroll said with a smile Thursday at Pac-10 media day. "That's exactly what you hope for. Think of the alternative."
The alternative would mean the Trojans aren't dominating the conference, something they've done since Carroll's second season as their coach. He'll begin his eighth campaign Aug. 30 when USC plays a nationally televised opener at Virginia. A mega-matchup with Ohio State follows Sept. 13 at the Los Angeles Coliseum before the Pac-10 opener Sept. 25 at Oregon State.
"Everybody's shooting at them," Oregon State coach Mike Riley said. "When we beat them a couple years ago, that was a landmark win for the Beavers. That was another game for the Trojans.
"They've recruited well and they've coached the players well. That's a lethal combination."
USC, which has won or shared the last six conference titles, was a near-unanimous favorite to make it seven in a preseason poll of media members who regularly cover the league, picking up 38 of a possible 39 first-place votes. California, picked to finish fourth, got the remaining first-place vote.
"It's an honor," Trojans linebacker Brian Cushing said. "But you can't put too much into it. That's not going to do it for us."
As far as being the team everyone wants to beat, Cushing said: "It's something you want. If that's the case, it means you're doing something right."
Riley said he believes the Trojans have contributed to making everyone else in the Pac-10 better.
"If other teams in the conference didn't grow, you'd be left way behind," he said. "I think our conference is more competitive top-to-bottom than ever."
As much as the Trojans have dominated the Pac-10 in the past six years, going 44-6 against league opponents, they've been even better against nonconference foes, going 26-2, losing at Kansas State in 2002 and to Texas in the Rose Bowl for the national championship following the 2005 season.
"Obviously USC has set a high standard, that's the reality of it," said Arizona State coach Dennis Erickson, whose team finished it a tie for the title with USC last season but lost out on the Rose Bowl berth because the Trojans beat the Sun Devils.