For the first time in a while, Todd Graham is staying put. He’s not moving his family across the country to a new city for a new job, with  another batch of angry fans trailing the plane with pitchforks and torches. Instead, he's remaining at Arizona State, where the future is brighter than it has looked in some time.

In the case of the 2013 season, things could be very bright. Other teams in the Pac-12 will garner headlines and preseason praise, just like they always do. But  there’s a quiet optimism surrounding a Sun Devils team that will return many key pieces.

Arizona State’s 2012 started on a promising note, thanks in large part to a gift from the scheduling gods, although as the competition increased—especially during a monthlong stretch during the heart of the schedule—the losses began to mount. Still, Graham’s test drive, which culminated in a blowout victory over Navy in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl, was a success given the circumstances.

The term “sleeper” has been beaten to death, although it applies in this case. If Arizona State can stay afloat during a brutal early stretch of its schedule, a breakout season could be on the horizon.

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Regardless of your thoughts on the Wes Lunt situation, the controversy surrounding the quarterback's transfer speaks to the pressing need for a standardized means of handling transfer scenarios.

Friday, news broke that former 4-star quarterback Wes Lunt would see his transfer efforts greatly hindered by Oklahoma State. The Tulsa World reported that Cowboys head coach Mike Gundy is barring the rising sophomore, who was asked to redshirt this season, from transferring to any school in the SEC, Pac-12 and Southern Mississippi. That is, of course, in addition to the standard blocking of in-conference schools and teams on future schedules.

Hence, Central Michigan showing up on the list of places the Pokes will not release Lunt.

Gundy's actions certainly set the criticism world ablaze. ESPN's David Ubben commented on the specifics of the story. Yahoo!'s Frank Schwab also had thoughts on the petty nature of the decision by Gundy. As did Matt Murschel of the Orlando Sentinel.

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Do you hear that? That’s the sound of a lumbering herd of NFL scouts returning to civilization after a few weeks of R and R.

With a fresh crop of future NFL players ready to be gauged, the year-long process of football study is underway yet again. For Johnny Manziel—college football’s great electrifying chain-mover—this dissection (and predictable doubt to accompany it) will be persistent, regardless of how close he comes to matching impossible expectations.

Think Alabama will be Manziel’s biggest obstacle in 2013? Or, perhaps his late November trip to Baton Rouge? Or, if things go exceptionally well, maybe this obstacle will come during the SEC or even BCS Championship Games?

As daunting as these on-field opponents might be, NFL scouts could prove to be his most worthy adversary. Nothing is confirmed that Manziel’s second season as starter will be his last, although he’s not exactly shying away from this talk either.

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If you’re a regular at recruiting websites, a few trends have become apparent in recent years.

There’s been a sudden surplus of 6’5'', 250-pound 17-year-olds capable of running a 4.5 in the 40-yard dash. The athleticism—especially near the pinnacle of these rankings—is consistently astounding but almost assumed at this point. Physical freaks are no longer a rarity, but we still marvel at their presence.

And while size and speed are at a premium with both defensive and offensive linemen now consuming most of the elite prospect levels, the blue-chip quarterback has seemingly disappeared. They exist, although not like they once did.

In the recruiting world, the most important position isn’t grabbing the 5-star, “can’t miss” headliners. In fact, despite being the position fans flock toward and schools market around, the same one which has come home with the Heisman in 11 of the past 12 years, scouting of the quarterback still remains an inexact science.

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Jimbo Fisher has been put in an impossible predicament, one that will spark criticism and controversy regardless of the eventual outcome. Yet, even though Florida State has done absolutely nothing wrong in this instance, it needs to reconsider its position and release 5-star linebacker recruit Matthew Thomas from his letter of intent.

Its firm stance against doing so, while understandable given the circumstances, accomplishes little. The concern over setting a recruiting precedent might actually pale in comparison to the national perception—unfair or not—brought on by the school simply standing its ground.

The situation is well known by now. 

Thomas, the No. 14 player in the class of 2013, according to 247Sports, committed to Florida State on national signing day by submitting his signed letter of intent. As it turns out, this decision was greatly influenced by his mother—something he discussed in a recent interview with The Miami Herald.

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When Bob Stoops spoke about the SEC "mystique" to Tulsa World on Tuesday, it started quite the ripple around the college football world. Barrett Sallee at the SEC Blog hit on not only Stoops' off-base comments but on Nick Saban's rebuttal to Big Game Bob.

Stoops' comments kicked off quite the conversation about whether the SEC was overrated, or if he, like others living the non-SEC life, was just jealous of the monster.

The real issue, what we should be talking about, is not how overrated a league is, but rather, how we evaluate conferences in general. Should the Stoops-ology of measuring the bottom of the conference determine a league's worth? Should the top levels of success be where we focus our efforts when it comes to league rankings? Is quality depth the metric?

If we're looking at the bottom of leagues to determine who is the best, then just not being terrible is what matters. Or, rather, dispersing wins equally throughout the conference is the goal. That is exactly what the Big Ten is looking at in its bottom four, as the 10-team league has three bowl teams in the bottom four of the conference.

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Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron is a good quarterback, and quite honestly, that is all the rising senior needs to be. Actually, at the collegiate level, that is all he will likely be, and that is perfectly all right.

Entering the summer season, the Heisman hype machines start rolling around the college football landscape. With the close of the NFL draft, the 2014 cycle comes into full view for the NFL draft analysts and fans alike. Folks are talking about the best players for the 2013 season and which teams have the best shot at taking home the crystal football.

Oregon's Marcus Mariota, Texas A&M's Johnny Manziel, Ohio State's Braxton Miller and Louisville's Teddy Bridgewater are all being mentioned as the cream of the quarterback crop. Georgia's Aaron Murray and Clemson's Tajh Boyd are also in the mix, especially where draft conversation is concerned.

Yet, Alabama's McCarron, who seems poised to win his third national championship, is lagging behind when the NFL draft and top quarterback talk come up. His Heisman odds are among the best, but the quarterback cannot seem to elbow his way into the elite quarterback discussion.

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A player who has yet to walk out of the tunnel for the first time, let alone participate in his first college practice, is already proving to be a monumental commitment to a program in desperate need. And although quarterback Christian Hackenberg has yet to suit up for Penn State—and his seemingly unlimited potential remains, well, potential—his impact on the program has been nothing short of remarkable.

Despite being hit with the most severe NCAA sanctions since SMU was handed the "Death Penalty" in the late 1980s, Penn State is doing more than simply staying afloat. The Nittany Lions are out-recruiting every team in their conference not named Ohio State and Michigan, and there’s life in a program still on the wrong side of a four-year bowl ban.

The headliner pickup for head coach Bill O'Brien, of course, has been Hackenberg. Picking up a blue-chip quarterback in an era when few exist is a luxury in itself. For Penn State, however, Hackenburg provides more than incredible potential at the most important position for the next three to four years. 

He's the light at the end of the tunnel.

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