Away We Go: The Five Most Compelling College Football Stories of 2008

With the lights finally shining and the players finally hitting, we can finally put the words "preseason" behind us.  College football is here, and the fall has officially begun.

You've most likely read the bold previews, predictions from experts, and reasons why certain teams will cruise through their respective conferences into a BCS bowl game.

But instead of trying to forecast the crazy storm that is college football, (see last season) here are the five most noteworthy questions of 2008—we can sit back with drink in hand, pizza in front of us, and watch to see how they are answered.  In the end, we are spectators, right?

5. How deep will the Big 12 be?

The Big 12 is always a strong conference, annually combining athletes who have near-Big Ten strength and near-SEC speed.  That's just how they breed them in Oklahoma and Texas, folks.

Historically this conference has been dominated by those two states, Oklahoma and Texas, but last year demonstrated that the other 10 teams were just as "Big."  Kansas really was a pleasant surprise, and Missouri proved to be better than "experts" originally believed.

With Jeremy Maclin again taking classes at Missouri, along with flamethrower Chase Daniel, the Tigers will be offensively flammable but will have a target on their backs.  Todd Reesing returns to Lawrence, and the Jayhawks should fly high in 2008.

Then there are the participants in the Red River Shootout.  Texas isn't expected to contend as they normally do, but I would never count out the 'Horns behind Mack Brown.  Bob Stoops again reloaded, and on paper the Sooners should only get better as now-sophs Sam Bradford and DeMarco Murray have a year under their deep red belts.

Nebraska faithful are thinking that a resurgence toward the mid-'90s dominance is on the horizon, and defensive coordinators should be losing their jobs after they face the boys from Lubbock this year.

All this says to me is that the Big 12 shouldn't be a two-team race this year—it's more like a six-team race.  Even the so-called "bottom" of this conference will most likely play spoilers all year long, and that could add up to seven or eight wins for a few teams.

It will be very interesting to see how everything plays out.  Stay tuned to the men out west.

4. Will anyone in the Pac-10 challenge USC?

At first glance one may think...there's no way.  But this is the first year in which USC doesn't have a superstar runner or an experienced leader behind center.  Agreed, Mark Sanchez is a solid quarterback, and Joe McKnight displayed flashes of his electric speed in the Rose Bowl, but the offense still needs to fully prove itself.

USC is indeed the class of the conference, but it will be intriguing to watch if more than one "Stanford Upset" occurs this season.  UCLA is as golden as they have been in a while, no one wants to play at Autzen, Oregon State's athletes are poised to radiate, and Rudy Carpenter will look to heat it up in the desert.

Lastly, don't forget about Jake Locker out of Washington.  Basically the poor man's Tim Tebow, Locker can make everyone around him better with his tree trunk-like legs and rocket arm.

Can this conference-wide upset happen?  Will a new champion be crowned in the Pac-10?  Remember to stay up late and watch.

3. Will the Heisman Race be up in the air going into November?

Some people like Heisman runaways, and some don't.  I don't.  Watching someone live up to expectations and completely dominate competition like no one else in the country is great, agreed.  But why isn't it better to see three or four dominant players that can draw even your aunt into the game?

This year we have the best opportunity to do so than in recent memory: Maclin gaining yard after yard in Mizzou, Tebow doing it all in the Swamp, Wells stomping over the Big Ten, Harrell slinging the ball all over the field...to another candidate, Crabtree.

Even with that group I'm leaving out Bradford, Murray, and the twin killers in the Death Valley backfield, Davis and Spiller.  All these players have potential to turn a loss of three into six points in the blink of an eye.  ESPN Gameplan would probably be a good idea here.

2. Can Ohio State and Georgia live up to hype?

This is obviously the case every year with the number one and number two teams in the country—but 2008 has added intrigue for a few reasons.

First, can Georgia really escape from the NFL farm league that is the SEC and run to the national title game?  It sure will be tough.  If they pull off the feat, they most likely will be stumbling into the title game as the favorite.

Secondly, Ohio State has a little bit more hype and buzz around them than No. 2 teams from the past, seeing that they have been near the top of the rankings for the past three years now without delivering.  If they can handle their fluffy schedule (minus the showdown in Hollywood), they could remove the gorilla from their backs, and Jim Tressel will totally gain the respect of his coaching peers.

Watching these teams' journeys should keep all of us glued to our seats, from the South to the Midwest.

1. Will there be another controversy to determine BCS title game participants?

Yes.  We feel sorry for you Cadillac Williams, Jason Campbell, Ronnie Brown, Tommy Tuberville, and the rest of the '04 Auburn Tigers.  Though everything played out correctly, seeing Michigan and OSU again in the title game in '06 would have been very interesting, uplifting their rivalry to a whole new level.

Lastly, LSU and OSU's meeting to end both of their respective seasons not only rubbed Georgia Bulldog fans the wrong way, it rubbed me oddly to call the LSU Tigers national champions.

I want a crazy, upset-filled, comeback, last-second field goal-winning season, but please...pretty please, let the two teams playing in the national championship game be the consensus two best teams in the country.  Please do not let a computer with an obviously flawed formula plug in the entrants.

Now tell me all these stories won't have you glued to your TV sets on Saturdays this fall.  It most likely is the case every fall, but seeing the stories unfold this year will especially remind us why we love college football.