Every year it's something. There are tweaks and twists in everything from the rules to the bowls to the schedules to, of course, the BCS.

The Dirty Dozen
It's college football's version of an eclipse. Thanks to an odd twist in the calender -- there are 14 Saturdays from Labor Day until Nov. 30 -- teams were able to schedule 12 regular season games. While this doesn't happen often (it will occur again in 2003, 2008, 2013 and 2014), it allows -- with the addition of a preseason game, conference championships and bowl games -- Nebraska, Texas Tech and Iowa State to play up to 15 games this season. And many teams could easily play 14 games this year.

	Frank Solich and the Huskers could play as many as 15 games.

"It's a lot longer of a season," said Maryland OL Todd Wike. "There will be more injuries, more missed classes and you have to stay focused longer. We'll have to work harder in the weight room to avoid injuries. The other key is taking some breaks just to stay fresh mentally and physically."

The good news is we can say goodbye to the preseason games after this season. What started out as a good idea -- matching up the best teams from the previous season to kickoff the new one -- turned into an overblown buffet of mediocre games.

The bad news is with extra games this year, comes extra chances of losing. A perfect season could be more difficult. Heck, reaching a bowl could become tougher. The rule is teams still need to finish about .500 to be bowl eligible. The tweak the NCAA made to avoid bowls being forced to scramble to find matchups, teams with a 6-6 records to play in bowls if their conferences have commitments to fill. In other words, instead of forcing, say, the Independence Bowl to search a lesser conference for a school with a winning record, a .500 SEC team will still be eligible to play.

All of which leads us to . . .

Another Year, Another BCS Tweak
After the controversy over the last two seasons, there was some sentiment to scrap the BCS Rankings and once again allow the polls to decide the nation's top-two teams. Instead, the BCS formula was altered to increase the overall impact of the polls. This was achieved through eliminating margin of victory as a factor in the computer ratings, leaving only poll voters with the ability to give significance to scores of games.

Also, the quality wins component was diminished by reducing the potential for bonus points. This year, teams will earn credit only for wins over top-10 opponents -- down from top-15 last season. The result is that the bonus earned for any victory will be one-half of a point less than it was a year ago. And, as we saw last season, a half point can mean a great deal in the BCS Rankings.
-- Brad Edwards

Rules and Regulations
A couple of new rules could impact college football this season.

The first affects the "halo rule," which states no player from the kicking team may be within two yards of a player on the receiving team positioned to catch a punt, kickoff or field goal. The penalty for non-contact violation goes from five to 10 yards. The penalty remains 15 yards when contact is made and flagrant offenders may be disqualified for the rest of the game.

Also, flagrant personal fouls during possession by the defensive team can now carry from one extra period to the next. It used to be the player committing the foul would be disqualified for the remainder of the game, but the 15-yard penalty against his team was not assessed. Now, the player's gone and the penalty yardage is assessed at the start of the next overtime.

So, it's possible a team could start from the 10-yard line if there's a flagrant foul at the end of the overtime. The design is to send a clear message flagrant fouls won't be tolerated and here's guessing coaches will make sure it's sent.

Watch for officials to call more penalties on hitting players in defenseless positions (quarterbacks after releasing the ball, receivers extended for passes, and kickers and punters in their follow-throughs). It's a point of emphasis from the rules committee which means officials will likely be a little tougher on it this season.

Other rules approved in the offseason were: