1. Is the SEC still the best?
On its face, this may seem ridiculous. The SEC has been home to every national champion since Vince Young led Texas to a national title in the 2005 season. Alabama crushed Notre Dame in a non-competitive title game this past year. The Tide stands poised to crash down and swallow up a third straight national title.
But if last bowl season is any indication, there are some slight cracks beneath the surface in the SEC. LSU blew a late lead and lost to Clemson. Florida was overrun by Teddy Bridgewater and Louisville. South Carolina barely survived Michigan.
To be fair, Texas A&M scored at will versus Oklahoma and Georgia hung 45 on Nebraska (and of course, the aforementioned Alabama rout), but when the SEC looks like Usain Bolt and the rest of the country's conferences look like the field, you hang onto whatever you can in college football.
2. Where's the juice for Penn State?
I know this will be the topic that puts me in the crosshairs. I'm a big boy. I can handle it. But I'm just not feeling the same level of passion for the Nittany Lions this year. An opener against Syracuse in North Jersey would normally mean a road trip for most of my Philly Penn State fans. I'm hearing none of that talk. And with stories of declining ticket sales at Beaver Stadium -- and declining PSU merchandise sales -- you wonder if the NCAA is finally getting the pound of flesh it wanted from Penn State and if their fans are feeling the impact.
3. Why is scheduling so inconsistent?
Georgia is a team with legitimate national title hopes. The Bulldogs open with Clemson and then face South Carolina. Two top-10 tests in the first two weeks. Their title hopes could be dashed before their season begins.
Ohio State is also a team with legitimate national title hopes. It opens with Buffalo and San Diego State. No dashing of title hopes there. The Buckeyes then play on the road the following week against Pac-12 foe Cal in a game that looks decent on paper. That is until you realize the Golden Bears are picked fifth in the league's North Division -- among six teams. Their final non-conference test is Florida A&M.
The hope here is that the BCS kingmakers remember the schedules for both teams once the season comes to a close and that the Buckeyes are not rewarded for playing such a patsy out-of-conference schedule.
4. Notre Dame: Southern power?
The Irish have an upcoming scheduling arrangement with the ACC. The change means classic games on the college football docket, like Notre Dame-Michigan, are coming to an end.
But it's bigger than that.
The Irish are pushing to schedule a game with Georgia in the near future. They will have five games against ACC opponents beginning next year. The reason is simple: Recruiting. Notre Dame recognizes the overflowing talent coming from football states like Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas. And the Irish want in. The strategy is one that Notre Dame feels will not lessen its foothold in the Midwest and Northeast, but I'm a little wary. Northeast cities like Philadelphia, New York and Washington, DC, lack college football powers. But they don't lack interest in the sport. It's the reason ND is so popular here in the Northeast.
Will playing a schedule against ACC teams weaken the Irish support here in our region? We'll see.
5. Can anyone roll the Tide?
Alabama is gunning for its third consecutive national title. Doing so would place Nick Saban at the very pinnacle of the coaching profession all-time (if he's not there already). A.J. McCarron would move to the rarest of quarterbacking pedestals. There is much at stake for the Tide and they are the favorites again in 2013.
So who can dethrone them? They open at a neutral site against Virginia Tech. The Hokies are always competitive but should pose no real threat to the Tide (remember, Alabama opened on a neutral site a year ago and mauled Michigan).
Then it's a bye week followed by the early game of the year in college football: Sept. 14 at College Station. The grudge match against Johnny Manziel and the only team to beat the Tide last season, the Aggies of Texas A&M.
A few other things to consider:
• We don't know that Manziel will even play in the game as an NCAA investigation into his offseason is an ongoing issue.
• The Tide had this game circled since last season ended. Saban plastered the Tide weight room with the Aggies logo. And he's been playing the loss on monitors so players are forced to re-watch it. Anytime Alabama has been fully engaged over the past two seasons, it's been a disaster for opponents.
• A&M caught 'Bama at exactly the right time a year ago: A week after its classic against LSU. The Aggies jumped on the Tide early, then hung on for dear life. They won't get the jump on Alabama this time.
After that, the schedule looks very favorable for Alabama. Their most significant remaining league test is at home, Nov. 9 vs. LSU. Auburn on the road is always a challenge, but the Tigers are still rebuilding.
So if 'Bama exacts revenge against the Aggies and handles its business at home, there's no reason to believe it won't be back at the SEC title game come early December.