If somebody asked you to list the best coaches in the country, I'm guessing you'd come up with some fairly obvious answers.

You'd mention Nick Saban. And Les Miles. And Urban Meyer.

You'd probably talk about Chris Petersen. And Chip Kelly. And Bob Stoops.

You might throw in Brady Hoke. Or Frank Beamer. Or Brent Bielema. Or Steve Spurrier.

There's one name you probably wouldn't mention, however: Mark Dantonio.

And you know what? That's a shame. Because Dantonio has done some fairly impressive work up in East Lansing, establishing the Spartans as a consistent Big Ten contender for the first in years, if not decades.

But in 2012, Dantonio faces one of his biggest challenges yet, as he looks to break in a new quarterback, not to mention a fleet of new receivers, and somehow keep his team in the Big Ten title hunt.

Can he pull it off? Find out here, in our 2012 Michigan State preview.

2012 Michigan State Preview

Photo: Mark Dantonio faces a stiff challenge in 2012. (Getty Images)

Outside of all of that playoff talk, of course, it's been the biggest story of the month in college football: The sad downfall of Bobby Petrino at Arkansas.

On April 1, Petrino was injured in a motorcycle accident. At the time, the banged-up and bruised coach was a rather sentimental figure--a beloved (to some, at least) coach who took a bad fall while out innocently cruising around on his bike.

Within a few short days, however, the story changed. Changed a lot, actually. Because we found out that the innocent ride around town wasn't exactly innocent at all.

And so, here we are today, with Petrino out of a job, John L. Smith back in the coaching business, and the Arkansas Razorbacks looking ahead to the once-promising 2012 season with a sense of great uncertainty.

Make no mistake: This is a real mess. And it's one, quite fittingly, that we've been analyzing from all angles. You can read up on the entire sad saga here, in our ever-growing archive of stories about Petrino's downfall.

The Bobby Petrino Scandal

Photo: The future once looked bright for Bobby Petrino and Arkansas. Not so much anymore (Getty Images)

Yes, folks, it's true: College football is going to adopt a playoff system.

When the nation's conference commissioners met in Hollywood, Fla. last week to discuss the future of our beloved game, it seemed as though the single question that has lingered over our game for so long--"Should we have a playoff?--had finally been answered. And it had been answered in the affirmative. Barring some unforeseen circumstance, college football's national champion will be decided via a tournament as early as the 2014 season.

Of course, creating a workable playoff system is not quite as simple as saying, "OK, we have a playoff--have at it." There are intricacies to this thing that need to be worked out. A lot of intricacies, actually.

We'll take a look at some of those issues (issues such as where the national semifinals should be played, for instance, and why Notre Dame still gets a vote) in our special two-part playoff edition of College Football Questions & Answers. Enjoy, folks.

College Football Questions & Answers: Playoff Edition, Vol. 1

College Football Questions & Answers: Playoff Edition, Vol. 2

Photo: When the playoff system begins, what will happen to the storied old Rose Bowl? (Getty Images)

College football has reportedly taken another step toward a playoff system. And if a report from ESPN on Tuesday is to believed, the folks that run the game have demonstrated once more that, more often than not, they have absolutely no idea what they're doing.

According to the report from college football writer Mark Schlabach, the conference commissioners meeting in Florida this week were inching toward the formal adoption of a four-team playoff to determine the national champion. The system would likely not be put in place until 2014, according to the report.

None of that was particularly surprising--it has been assumed for months now that the four-team format would be adopted sooner or later. But then there was this: According to an unnamed source quoted by Schlabach, the commissioners seemed most likely to create a system in which not only the national championship game but also the national semifinals would be played at neutral sites, rather than on campus.

The source said that the idea of playing those games on campus is almost certainly dead because of logistical concerns. In a way, that argument makes sense--it would indeed be tricky for some schools and some college towns to host an event of such magnitude, as hotels and restaurants in some tiny towns might be scarce--but the neutral site idea is just as perilous, as it would demand that fans add yet another weekend of travel to an already packed late-season schedule. I mean, just take a look at some of the attendances for the league championship games of late--outside of the SEC, tickets aren't exactly hot commodities.

And beyond that, there is this: Every school that is currently playing in college football's FBS is already, you know, hosting big college football games. They do this several times each season. And to my knowledge, college football fans who visit these schools do not have to sleep on the streets or beg for provisions. In that regard, the "logistics" argument is a smokescreen.

Anyway, more on this story most certainly to come.

But in the meantime, my advice is this: Prepare for the worst.

Photo: Imagine an LSU-Alabama national semifinal. At Ford Field. Wouldn't that be swell? (Getty Images)