I know there are a lot a folks that have been giddy the last few days. Florida State's season-opening loss to Georgia Tech brought in a new wall of sound, full of critiques and ridicule. When the Seminoles got angry over last season's snub to the College Football Playoff, the backlash was resounding. It only became more deafening after the leftover carcass meat got devoured in the Orange Bowl.
To open up a new campaign ranked in the top 10 and lose to a team seen by many as an inferior conference rival isn't going to slience any critics. But I do not come to bury FSU. Personally, I thought they were hosed in December. However, with such a large amount of turnover during the offseason, having an ACC league opponent open up your campaign can't be easy ... or fun. Did the Seminoles disappoint? Sure. Also, maybe, just maybe, the Yellowjackets have gotten better. Maybe, just maybe, this is a sign that the predicted chaos of this new era, along with the bubbling chaos that last season provided.
This is being promised as the return of the SEC, down from its lofty standards of the past two decades. With Georgia leading the way, the league is poised to re-ascend to the throne it abdicated at the beginning of the year. There are a ton of contenders, though (UGA, Alabama, Ole Miss, LSU, Missouri, Texas A&M). Those include new members Texas and Oklahoma. Are they all ripe to pick each other off before we get to Thanksgiving?
This is being promised as the rise of the Big Ten, who supplemented their latest breakout season by adding more perennial contenders and last season's national runner-up to pair with the defending champs. How ready will the new Pacific partners be for the rugged nature of upper midwest football? Plus, I know it gets cold in Pullman and can in Corvallis. That won't prepare you for the cold that might roll through Minneapolis, Madison, the Lower Peninsula, or State College late in the season.
This is being promised as the demise of the ACC. With Florida State and Clemson looking to break their contract with the conference, others will have the help bolster the stature of the whole. Additions Stanford and Cal aren't likely to do that yet. The league may have caught SMU in an upcycle, possibly bringing a boost that North Carolina, N.C. State, and the Ramblin' Wreck are trying to solidfy. Also, while powerhouses Michigan and Alabama lost their superstar coaches, a new voice in Bill O'Brien might make things a bit more intriguing at Boston College.
This is being promised as the downgrade of the Big XII. UCF, Houston, Cincinnati, and BYU aren't juggernauts in the world of college football. The incoming class of Arizona, Arizona State, Utah, and Colorado bring a bit of splash ... but come on. They ain't Bevo or Boomer Sooner. However, this league could be getting the biggest media prize of all. Coach Deion Sanders will bring the Buffaloes to northern Texas, Disneyworld, and Kansas City during Colorado's first season back with some of their former league-mates. And the eyeballs will certainly follow.
And in all of this promise, Washington State and Oregon State stand on an island, all of the comrades gone to "greener" pastures. This will be an interesting case study of how these programs handle their new status and are handled by the sport at-large.
All plans are great ... until they falter. This new era of football has already raised a couple of eyebrows regarding teams hoping to fill lofty goals. Georgia Tech gave us a hint that the storylines we thought would be leading the way this season might have to be shuffled around. Not a bad way to kickoff a new era.
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