Now that SEC Media Days are behind us, the countdown to the start of football season has officially begun.

Another big hurdle to jump before toe finally meets leather is the release of the preseason Top 25 polls. The coaches are up before the media, as their poll will be released Thursday. Fans wait with bated breath.

The validity of the coaches poll is admittedly debatable. Too many of them don’t take their responsibility seriously enough. They’re too interested in breaking down tape of next week’s opponent — very little time remains to study box scores and highlights from a time zone or two away. It’s technically part of the profession, though.

Nevertheless, even if sports information directors are putting together Top 25s just as often as coaches do, preseason polls help make the college game unique from the professional product played every Sunday.

RELATED: Saturday Down South’s Preseason Top 25

Here is how we think voting will go. Plan on plenty of representation from the best conference in America.

PROJECTING THURSDAY’S PRESEASON TOP 25 COACHES POLL

1. Alabama
2. Clemson
3. Florida State
4. Oklahoma
5. Michigan
6. Ohio State
7. LSU
8. Tennessee
9. Notre Dame
10. Stanford
11. Michigan State
12. Iowa
13. TCU
14. UCLA
15. Baylor
16. Ole Miss
17. Washington
18. Louisville
19. Houston
20. Georgia
21. Miami
22. Boise State
23. USC
24. Nebraska
25. Texas

SEC teams also receiving votes: Florida, Texas A&M

Still celebrating a fourth national title in seven years, there is no reason to remove Alabama from No. 1.

LSU is the Crimson Tide’s primary threat in the West, while Tennessee is the clear frontrunner in the East — fewer potential pitfalls, too. Expect both teams to get it done most weeks with powerful ground games.

If there’s a wild card in the West, it’s Ole Miss. With Chad Kelly at the controls, the Rebels might tilt a few scoreboards this season. As for the East, there’s a lot to like about Georgia with first-year coach Kirby Smart. If blue-chip freshman Jacob Eason is the real deal at QB, suddenly the Bulldogs are balanced.

Shut out of the voting, defending East champ Florida has certainly felt the snub this offseason — players talked about it liberally at Media Days. Texas A&M is capable of upsetting any team based on talent alone.

Still, these are only projections. Last year, Auburn was No. 7 and Jeremy Johnson was a Heisman candidate.

John Crist is the senior writer for Saturday Down South, a member of the FWAA and a voter for the Heisman Trophy. Send him an e-mail, like him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter.