Rauf Report: Most Underrated Team In Each Power Conference

The funny thing about preseason projections is that, every year, we know a handful of teams make the rest of us look a little silly. Some will underperform and disappoint, while others will overachieve and surprise. 

The hard part is figuring out which teams could end up being those teams.

Last season, Miami came off a 7-24 year and started over with a first-year coach and a roster made up entirely of newcomers. The Hurricanes were picked eighth in the ACC and got no votes in the preseason AP poll. Head coach Jai Lucas went 26-9, finished third in the league, and won a game in the NCAA Tournament.

Bucky McMillan had one player on his roster when he got to Texas A&M. One! By late January, the Aggies were alone in first place in the SEC at 7-1, and they eventually made it to the Round of 32.

Villanova hadn't been to the NCAA Tournament in three years when Kevin Willard showed up. He won 24 games in his first year and got the Wildcats back to the Big Dance.

By February, nobody was overlooking any of those teams. In October, though, they were easy to miss, mostly because they had new coaches, new players, or both.

So who are this year's versions? A few of the teams below have plenty of talent on paper, so I wouldn't call them sleepers — I just think their preseason polls and projections are selling them short. Funny enough, three of the five were picked eighth in their own league.

Here's the most underrated team in every power conference.

Big Ten: USC

Most people remember USC for the eight-game losing streak that closed out last season. That's a big reason why early projections are not very high on the Trojans, along with the uncertainty that comes with a major roster overhaul.

Look a little closer at that collapse, though. USC was 18-6 and comfortably in the NCAA Tournament picture before it all fell apart, and the Trojans went 1-9 against Big Ten teams that made the field. They also spent almost the entire season without Rodney Rice, who played just six games.