15 Things Every Fan Needs to Know This Season

Here are 15 things you need to know this college football season.  You won't agree with them all, or maybe any of them, but feel free to bookmark this article and reference it throughout the season to see just how wrong I am.

1. Oklahoma will be out of the championship hunt after week one.  The Sooners lost their last season opener to MWC team at the hands of TCU in 2005.  The “shock” of opening day will see Oklahoma on the losing end.  First it was Appalachian State over Michigan in 2007, then East Carolina of Virginia Tech last year.  While this wouldn’t rank that high, no one outside of Provo will be expecting it from Sam Bradford and Co.
2. BYU opens the season with a win but closes with a loss.  QB Max Hall and company will wreak havoc again this season but won't be able to finish.  After a great season, the Cougars will close with a loss to the up-and-coming Falcons of Air Force, but will finish with 10+ wins yet again.
3. Notre Dame has been picked by Lou Holtz to play for the National Championship but will lose their first game against Nevada in Week 1.  Riding the wave after a huge victory over Hawaii in the post season will bring plenty of hype to the Irish but the Wolfpack will quickly remind them they have work to be done if they want to play for that Crystal Ball.
4. The Big 12 South will be decided by one game and, no, it’s not the Red River Rivalry.  This year it will come down to a Halloween matchup between Oklahoma State and Texas.  Zac Robinson and the Cowboys could be the biggest fright in The Longhorns difficult season.
5. Virginia Tech will be out of the National Title picture after a Week 1 game against Alabama.  The Crimson Tide have had nine months to think about their choke in the Sugar Bowl against a stout Utah team and will take it all out on the Hokies in the Chick-fil-A College Football Kickoff from Atlanta.  The reinstatement of the Tide’s Julio Jones and Mark Ingram will only make the Hokies hurt more.
6. September 26^th will decide the Pac 10 champion.  Chip Kelly and Oregon can win the Pac 10 unless Cal’s Jahvid Best can avoid distraction from Heisman talk and put up the numbers expected of him.  Questions at quarterback will be a huge factor for the Ducks and could end their season before it starts.
7. Bobby Bowden will get one last ACC Championship before he finally retires from a career most college football coaches could only dream of having.  In his final season as a head coach, Bowden will help return the Seminoles to National Prominence before handing the reigns over to Jimbo Fisher.
8. Nebraska and the blackshirts are back and will win the Big 12 North.  This will set up one of the most important matchups of the season likely leaving one last roadblock for Texas to getting to a Big 12 Championship and a ticket to Pasadena.
9. Taylor Potts will calm the nerves of Texas Tech fans and will be even better than Graham Harrell by the end of the season.  He will undoubtedly lead the nation in passing but will have some stiff competition from Houston’s Case Keenum.
10. USC won’t make a BCS bowl for the first time since 2002 bringing their record streak of Pac-10 Championships to an end.  The advancements of California and Oregon will make the Pac-10 a more interesting race than we’ve seen in quite some time.
11. Nevada will be undefeated going into the final game of the regular season against Boise State to set up the game to watch for non- “Big Six” BCS buster.  Boise State will be trying to make up for their only loss against Oregon while Nevada attempts to be the Utah of 2009.
12. Air Force will be the best team in the Mountain West.  Troy Calhoun lost his sure-thing kicker in Ryan Harrison and a number of other prominent seniors, but the defense returns several key players.  The duo of sophomore quarterback Tim Jefferson and tailback Asher Clark (who will likely see several snaps under center himself), will help the Falcons finally crack the Top 25 under Calhoun.
13. South Florida will return to the Top 10 and win the Big East.  In a down year for the conference, the Bulls will step up and work through the Big East and also cause the ACC some headaches this season.
14. Tim Tebow won’t be the only quarterback in Gainesville.  After losing Percy Harvin to the NFL Draft , backup John Brantley will be the X-factor in 2009 like Tebow was for Chris Leak in 2006.  That being said...
15. Florida will play Texas for the National Championship to cap the first undefeated season in school history.  To top it off, Florida will become the first team with three BCS National Championships and the first (USC's AP Champ. doesn't count) with back-to-back National Championships since the BCS format was implemented.