Texas A&M Football: Key storylines from the first week of SEC play

ATHENS, GA - SEPTEMBER 2: Quarterback Jake Fromm #11 of the Georgia Bulldogs looks to hand the ball off to running back Sony Michel #1 of the Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium on September 2, 2017 in Athens, Georgia. The Georgia Bulldogs defeated the Appalachian State Mountaineers 31-10. (Photo by Michael Chang/Getty Images) /

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3. The SEC is not the best conference in college football this season

There. I said it. The SEC has reigned supreme for almost a decade behind Nick Saban’s super Alabama teams and Les Miles’ powerful LSU teams, but that is no longer the case. At least, not this season.

Alabama is still super and is still the cream of the crop in the SEC, but they aren’t the Alabama the college football world is used to seeing. And beyond that, there doesn’t seem to be a clear challenger for the SEC West title this year.

Before the season started there was talk of LSU or Auburn. In the first couple weeks of the season Mississippi State looked really good, but then got obliterated by Georgia. Right now the only teams that have a realistic shot at the College Football Playoff out of the SEC are Alabama and Georgia.

The Big 12 is on the rise again with four teams in the Top 25 and two in the Top 10. Oklahoma and Oklahoma State could be legitimate threats this year, although OSU’s surprising loss to TCU at home could knock them out of the race.

Next: 3 Takeaways from Aggies' OT win over Arkansas

The Week 5 AP Top 25 poll (which you can see here) has four teams from the Big 12, four from the Pac-12, four from the Big Ten, four from the ACC and six from the SEC. There is a lot more parity in college football now than there was a decade ago, and the balance of power is shifting.