Pac-10 Football Media Day was held in Los Angeles earlier today, and there weren’t any huge surprises other than Stanford running back Toby Gerhart’s decision to forego a suit and rock a Stanford polo shirt casual Friday-style. Pretty standard coach-speak from all parties involved, but here are some of my preliminary reactions to Thursday afternoon’s goings-on:

Everyone is gunning for USC: For the first time in a while, the Trojans (although picked to finish first in the conference by the media) feel a little vulnerable. After junior Mark Sanchez jumped ship early for the NFL Draft, USC’s probable starter is Aaron Corp who only has 28 career passing yards. And although they bring back the beastly safety Taylor Mays, they also lost three of the best defensive players in the country to the Draft.

Several coaches were asked what it would take to beat the Trojan juggernaut. Arizona coach Mike Stoops gave a wildly roundabout answer that in no way addressed how to beat USC but only acknowledged how good the Trojans are and how it isn’t “easy.” (Click here to read more…)

Although he’s still listed on the official Cal athletics website, word around the net is that Cal baseball hitting coach Jon Zuber has been fired.

Considered one of the greatest players in Cal baseball history during his playing days, Zuber served as the Bears’ hitting coach for the past five seasons. This past year, the team under his direction batted .298, third-best in the Pac-10. At the end of the season, five Cal hitters were drafted in the MLB Amateur Draft, including three in the first two rounds.

The Bears finished the season with a 24-29 record overall and a 9-18 conference record, second-worst in the Pac-10.

But the question remains: Will Evans Diamond announcer Ed Zuber (father of Jon Zuber), resume duties next season even after his son got the axe? Stay tuned…