2012 bowl projections: USC slated to play Nebraska in Rose Bowl

When USC lost to Stanford in Week 3, many prognosticators had them tumbling down the Pac-12 standings. Now, after back-to-back impressive wins, at least one projection has the Trojans winning the Pac-12 and playing in the Rose Bowl.

In his latest bowl projections, Jerry Palm of CBS Sports projects USC to face Nebraska in the Rose Bowl. That projection has the Trojans moving ahead of Oregon who would fall to the No. 2 seed in the Pac-12. With one conference loss already, USC would need to jump over Arizona State who currently leads the Pac-12 South. then win the Pac-12 Championship Game to play in the Rose Bowl.

If the Trojans were unable to win the Pac-12 and instead fell to the No. 2 seed, they would face Texas in the Alamo Bowl according to Palm's latest projections. While the projection does have USC playing in a BCS Bowl, it has the Trojans falling short of playing in the National Championship game. Palm currently projects Alabama to face West Virginia in the BCS National Championship Game.