Months of debate over playoff length, conference schedules and collective bargaining agreements have ended, and games have begun. More teams than usual appear capable of national title runs, while many traditional contenders carry larger question marks. Preseason No. 1 Texas begins the season as an underdog at Ohio State, with Arch Manning facing the Buckeyes and the hosts favored by 1.5 points. A 1988 parallel appears when Florida State opened at Miami as a slight underdog and suffered a decisive loss, illustrating vulnerability for top-ranked teams. Week 1 includes multiple marquee matchups including LSU-Clemson and Notre Dame-Miami.
After months of posturing and debate about playoff length and conference schedules and future collective bargaining agreements, the college football offseason has ended, and the actual games -- the things we live for -- have begun. More teams than usual seem capable of making national title runs, and all the predictable contenders seem to have far larger question marks than usual.
Week 1 gives us a case in point: For the first time, the No. 1 team in the preseason polls is beginning the year as an underdog. Arch Manning and top-ranked Texas will ring in the season against Ohio State in Columbus, and the host Buckeyes are 1.5-point favorites. If history offers us parallels, they aren't kind to the top team.
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