It’s out there, now. Theirs for the taking.

USC is the overwhelming No. 1 in the latest polls, picking up all but a handful of first-place votes in the AP (61 of 64) and coaches’ (57 of 61) polls.

After crushing Ohio State, the Trojans clearly have convinced everyone they are serious players in the national scheme of things.

And this, with what from here on out looks rather like USC’s easiest schedule in the Pete Carroll era.

The question that will be answered is this:

Can Pete keep his guys focused?

USC will be double-digit favorites in every game it plays. And should be.

The Pac-10 appears as weak as it ever has been, and the Pac-10 comprises nine of the Trojans’ next 10 games. The other is Notre Dame.

UCLA just took its worst defeat since 1929. Washington is awful, and so is Washington State. Arizona State just lost to UNLV and Arizona lost to New Freakin’ Mexico.

Stanford certainly isn’t all the way back, after getting roughed up by TCU’s Horned Frogs. Cal just lost to Maryland, which the week before lost 24-14 to Middle Tennessee. Yes, Middle Tennessee. Oregon State is 1-2 with a victory over Hawaii.

Only Oregon (3-0) looks even mildly formidable, but it now appears almost certain the Trojans will get the Ducks with their No. 3 QB, as of a month ago. No. 1 being out for the season with a knee, and No. 2 out for 3-4 weeks — which takes the Ducks past Oct. 4, which is when they visit the Coliseum.

Also, the teams that pass for “competent” in the Pac-10, this season — Arizona State, Oregon, Cal — all have to come to the Coliseum to play USC. The Trojans also gets Notre Dame at home. UCLA is on the road, but the Bruins don’t have a fraction of USC’s talent. Worse than usual. The Bruins winning this year would be even more shocking, far more shocking, than the 2006 games.

USC constructed this schedule quite cleverly, too. An extra week off before the Ohio State game. An extra five days off before the game after the Ohio State game (at Oregon State). An extra week off before the Notre Dame game.

Only two consecutive road games all season — at Washington State on Oct. 18 and at Arizona on Oct. 25. The first sometimes can be tricky, but the Cougars are awful. The second? Competitive if Arizona plays about 100 times better than it did against New Mexico.

USC should win every game in the regular season. But that has been the case for about six years now.

Barring injuries, of course. Which reminds me: The one player who would be difficult to replace, right now, is quarterback Mark Sanchez. Carroll should think in terms of getting him out of lopsided games sooner than later.

To wit: Up four touchdowns on Oregon State in the third quarter? Let Sanchez come stand on the sidelines and get Aaron Corp out there.

The reality here, though, is that six of USC’s seven most-recent defeats have been in the Pac-10 — at Washington State in 2002, at Oregon State and at UCLA in 2006, home against Stanford and at Oregon, last year.

None of those defeats should have happened.

This season, USC is so good, and its competition so shaky, no valid reason exists for not winning out. Aside from just not mentally showing up to a game.

Making sure your guys are ready is a big part of coaching. That will be Pete Carroll’s biggest job, from now until Dec. 6.