Shake off those offseason cobwebs, my friends, because the 2022 college football season will be here in a matter of weeks.
First up, however, is fall camp.
The much-anticipated return to the practice fields annually brings a handful of important storylines. As always, there are QB battles, but the intrigue extends to many other positions, and preseason title favorites always generate the most attention.
While the list is subjective, this is simply a small selection of key topics around the Football Bowl Subdivision.
QBs, QBs, QBs
Quarterback is the most important position, after all.
All around the FBS, programs will be using August to make final decisions on their Week 1 signal-callers. The most notable, of course, involve teams we expect to see in the top 25—and especially top 10—of preseason polls.
Texas A&M has the largest unknown with Haynes King, Max Johnson and possibly Conner Weigman all competing under center. Michigan returns Cade McNamara, but J.J. McCarthy saw regular playing time as a freshman. The same goes for Notre Dame's Tyler Buchner, who's trying to top Drew Pyne—just as Clemson incumbent D.J. Uiagalelei works to hold off Cade Klubnik.
Auburn, Cincinnati, Iowa, LSU, North Carolina, Ole Miss, Oregon, Pitt and Texas are among the other programs that have QB situations worth monitoring.
More Depth Chart Questions
When it comes to top-ranked teams, most spots on the depth chart are generally set as fall camp begins. However, a handful of positions aren't yet decided.
In particular, all of Alabama, Clemson, Miami, Ohio State, Oregon, Texas A&M and Wisconsin are settling on an early rotation of receivers. USC and Oklahoma need to upgrade the offensive line, and a-new-look Michigan State group is unsettled after a spring riddled with injuries.
Georgia is breaking in a fresh defensive line, and Ole Miss has a reshaped linebacker corps. Notre Dame may shuffle the secondary, while Baylor and Oklahoma State are undoubtedly retooling the unit.
And that's all in addition to the quarterback battles we mentioned in the previous section.
Don't expect a resolution for every position—performance and injury will change depth charts midseason anyway—but most starters will be determined in fall camp, for sure.