The 2017 college football season will begin before Labor Day weekend but, for most of the country, the first weekend in September is the official kick-off for the sport. In 2017, the centerpiece of it all will be a match-up between top-ranked Alabama and Florida State in Atlanta's newly-constructed Mercedes Benz Stadium on Sept. 2.
As you might imagine, the hype train is on the move with regard to Nick Saban's bunch taking on Jimbo Fisher's squad but, regardless of who emerges victorious in the opener, the story doesn't cease there. In fact, Jerry Palm of CBS Sports is now projecting a rematch that would take place in the College Football Playoff Semifinal.
Palm's projections include Alabama finishing as the No. 1 seed in the playoff and they would be joined by Ohio State at No. 2, USC at No. 3 and the Seminoles of Florida State at No. 4. Judging by preseason predictions everywhere, this field does not include a big-time surprise but, in the same breath, it would be wildly intriguing to see the Tide and the 'Noles facing off four months apart to gauge what kind of improvements were made over the course of the season.
This is, of course, just one projection but it would be fun to see a rematch.