Who will be this year’s Mississippi State in the SEC or perhaps TCU college football-wide?

Finding Cinderella starts with looking for teams who may fall just under the radar amongst perceived elites with enough talent to catch fire early in the season.

The Bulldogs and Horned Frogs managed to do so last season with Heisman-caliber quarterbacks in charge as leaders. Not every darkhorse is blessed with a game-changer under center, however and they’ll need to make up for it in other areas.

Here are two teams from each Power 5 conference and a pair from the Group of 5 capable of disrupting what we consider normalcy at the end of the regular season this fall. Preseason league champion picks have been excluded from consideration:

SEC

Despite top-to-bottom depth in the West, the division could cannibalize itself as it did down the stretch last season allowing the Razorbacks or Aggies to jump into the mix in mid-November. Arkansas will be nationally-ranked later this month and Texas A&M has enough firepower on offense to make noise against league competition if improvements are made defensively (insert the offseason hire of John Chavis). It’s not likely either of these teams will be playing for the SEC crown in Atlanta at season’s end, but I’d like my chances in head-to-head matchups this fall against any team on the other side of the conference not named Georgia.

1. Arkansas
2. Texas A&M

Big Ten

We’ve talked at length about the Big Ten’s momentum both on the field and off since Ohio State’s run to a national title last season and I’d say the strength is building. Much like USC and Miami, when Michigan and Penn State are elite, it’s good for college football. Not saying either will find themselves inside the Top 15 this season, but respected coach Jim Harbaugh will turn things around in Ann Arbor and James Franklin is trying to help the Nittany Lions re-establish their footing nationally. Penn State quarterback Christian Hackenberg is a better quarterback than he showed as a sophomore (his gifts are obvious) and could increase his draft stock with a standout junior season. Michigan hopes to solve its dilemma under center during fall camp. Let’s add a third team here and say Wisconsin leaps into the Playoff conversation with a win over Alabama in the opener.

1. Penn State
2. Michigan

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Pac 12

Equipped with one of the nation’s top running backs in standout Paul Perkins, the Bruins are uber-talented on the offensive side of the football even without star quarterback Brett Hundley. UCLA’s best player overall is likely Myles Jack, a versatile threat and All-American candidate at linebacker. David Shaw will ensure Stanford doesn’t suffer another hiccup following four consecutive seasons of at least 11 wins. He has the luxury of senior quarterback Kevin Hogan, whose thrown 48 career touchdown passes, in his arsenal. Both of these teams are chasing USC and Oregon for the Pac 12 title, but there isn’t much ground to make up.

1. UCLA
2. Stanford

RELATED: Power 5s ranked by running backs

ACC

Many believe Florida State’s road trip to Clemson on Nov. 7 will decide the Atlantic Division and ultimately the ACC this season, but there’s another Top 25 team capable of beating both during the regular season — Georgia Tech. Judging by this team’s performance last time out against Mississippi State, the Yellow Jackets are a worthy adversary for other nationally-ranked squads. Georgia Tech won at Georgia last season, beat Clemson and fell by two points to the Seminoles in the ACC Championship Game. The bulk of that run-based option offense is back for Paul Johnson.

1. Georgia Tech
2. Miami

Big 12

Admittedly, it feels a little weird labeling the Sooners as a ‘Cinderella’ considering Bob Stoops’ long success in the Big 12, but a win over TCU or Baylor this season would be an upset based on preseason projections. Any built-in equity Stoops had at Oklahoma dried up last fall down the stretch after his team lost three of its final five contests including a 34-point blowout at the hands of Clemson during bowl season. More Samaje Perine, who set a single-game FBS record for rushing yards last season, is a good idea for the Sooners.

1. Oklahoma
2. Kansas State

Group of 5

Likely ranked inside the Associated Press Top 25 when it releases later this month, Boise State’s a team that could run through the regular season with one loss or fewer and spoil a team’s plans late in the year. Remember one-loss TCU and Baylor’s public griping post-final Playoff poll unveil? What if the Broncos are undefeated and a non-conference champ Power 5 has a loss … chaos. Utah State has Chuckie Keeton, a quarterback who can almost single-handedly win a game by himself.

1. Boise State
2. Utah State