For years, it has felt like a certainty, one of those guarantees in life. 

Death, taxes and the SEC determining the college football national champion. 

The powerhouse league has been represented by the last four champions and five of the previous six. It has had a team in the final game in the last eight years and 16 of the last 17 if you include the Bowl Championship Series finals.

The question wasn’t whether the SEC will have a team in the College Football Playoff, but how many. 

Early on this year, however, the conference appears to be diminished. The teams at the top aren’t unbeatable. Depth isn’t there. You can list a number of contenders who have been more impressive than anyone from the SEC, from Michigan to Washington and USC to Florida State. 

Saturday was the latest example.

Alabama, coming off an ugly loss to Texas, was anemic offensively for much of its pedestrian 17-3 win over AAC also-ran South Florida.

Georgia, the back-to-back champion, had to rally from 11 points down to beat mediocre-at-best South Carolina in its first non-cupcake contest of the year.

Tennessee, which was supposed to be Georgia’s stiffest test in the SEC East, was wiped out by Florida.

Remember, LSU already was given a beatdown by ACC contender Florida State in Week 1, and last weekend Texas A&M was gashed by Miami for 48 points and 451 total yards.

Undefeated Missouri and Ole Miss have been unexpected bright spots, it should be noted, particularly the former which stunned defending Big 12 champion Kansas State on Saturday. The Tigers, however, were picked second-to-last in the SEC East, and likely won’t be a factor once November arrives.

The biggest surprises come at the top, particularly with Alabama and LSU, two legitimate preseason title contenders. Alabama seemed headed in the wrong direction, following up the setback to Texas with an even more underwhelming performance against USF. Nick Saban has gone through all three of his quarterbacks already, and seems to be back at square one, saying the trio will be evaluated all over again ahead of next Saturday’s matchup against Ole Miss after being asked for his current starter.

When you have three quarterbacks, you really don’t have one.

While LSU was impressive in its 41-14 beatdown of Mississippi State on Saturday, that lopsided loss to Florida State gives it no margin for error since no two-loss team has ever reached the playoff and the Tigers have trips to Ole Miss and Alabama remaining. 

Then, there is Georgia, my pick to win it all and make history for a three-peat.

This wasn’t the untouchable Bulldogs of last year, finding themselves in a 14-3 hole to underwhelming South Carolina. Georgia did reel off 21 unanswered points to prevail.

Maybe part of this was facing a real opponent for the first time this year after opening with UT Martin and Ball State. It also could be the result of losing 25 players to the NFL Draft in the last two years. New starting quarterback Carson Beck settled down after a shaky start, and the Bulldogs were dominant up front, piling up 189 yards on the ground while allowing only 53. 

But Georgia showed flaws Saturday as a huge favorite. It may not be automatic anymore, despite its current 20-game winning streak. The same can be said for the SEC, which is now 6-7 in non-conference games against power five opponents. The league isn’t a given to determine this year’s champion. 

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Week 4 is reality week. When we start to differentiate fact from fiction, actual contenders from those merely playing the part.

Next Saturday alone will feature six games of two teams ranked facing one another, and that doesn’t include the mega ACC showdown between Florida State and Clemson. 

Three of the aforementioned matchups come from the loaded Pac-12, highlighted by undefeated Colorado visiting Oregon is by far the biggest test to date of the Deion Sanders era in Boulder, Colo. Penn State will face its first legitimate challenge from visiting Iowa. 

The game that will draw the most eyeballs happens in South Bend as Notre Dame hosts Ohio State. It’s a fascinating showdown. Neither team has lost yet. Neither team has even played a tight game. Neither team has faced anyone of consequence, either. The Irish, led by Wake Forest transfer Sam Hartman, have the better quarterback. The Buckeyes, most experts believe, have the better team. 

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It really is remarkable what has happened at Colorado.

A year ago, this program won one game. It was beyond irrelevant. Nobody cared. One man’s arrival has changed everything. Celebrities flocked to Boulder this weekend. All the big pregame shows were on site, as was ESPN’s “First Take.” It was the Saturday night showcase game on ESPN.

Think about that. Colorado-Colorado State drew The Rock, Kawhi Leonard, Offset, Lil Wayne, Master P, Rob Gronkowski and more.

It makes you wonder if other programs will follow this model and hire someone similar to Sanders with swagger, cache and celebrity reach. It certainly has worked for Colorado so far.