Pac-12 coaches select first and second teams that each typically consists of 11 offensive players (a quarterback, two running backs, two wide receivers, a tight end, and five offensive linemen), 11 defensive players (four defensive linemen, three linebackers, and four defensive backs), and four specialists (a punter, a kicker, a return specialist, and a special teams player).
[1][2] Ties result in additional players being selected.
[3] Votes are based on a weighted ranking, and coaches are allowed to select players from their own team.
The preliminary results are then given to the coaches, who may choose to name as many as two additional players from their respective program for honorable mention from the conference.
[1] The conference was founded as the Pacific Coast Conference (PCC), in 1915, which principal members founded the Athletic Association of Western Universities (AAWU) in 1959, and subsequently went by the names Pacific-8, Pacific-10, becoming the Pac-12 in 2011.