Its possible.. kinda like the effect the losses for Bama to finish 2008 against Florida and Utah.
But I think also too is Thomas is the QB and not Masoli. Dont get me wrong (Nate

) Masoli did a pretty damned good job for a fringe team for a conference title. But DT is miles ahead of Masoli as a passer, so teams cant just key in on the run like the good teams could last year (Boise State, Stanford, and Ohio St) There is a balance this year that has put the offense on a whole nother level. Masoli's inconsistency with his arm made the team one dimensional at times.
But I do think that the Rose Bowl loss woke them up thats for sure. Its no longer just "happy to be there" now its "we are here great, but our work is not done"