But for many college football fans, the season — or at least the preseason — starts today in, of all places, a hotel conference room in Hoover.

It’s Southeastern Conference Media Days, a three-day extravaganza that serves as the unofficial kickoff to the SEC season. It all happens at Hoover’s Wynfrey Hotel, which will be swarming with fans, media members and famous faces until Friday afternoon.

The league’s 12 coaches will be in attendance. So will 24 players, two from each school. They’ll be answering questions from around 800 reporters, from newspapers, Internet sites and TV and radio stations.

Between interviews, the assembled media members will pick an all-conference team. They’ll also vote to predict the league’s champion; the media has gotten it right a whopping two times in 17 years.

Auburn — represented by head coach Tommy Tuberville, quarterback Brandon Cox and defensive end Quentin Groves — is one of four schools taking its turn today. Arkansas, South Carolina and Kentucky are the others.

The Media Days return of Alabama head coach Nick Saban is expected to be the highlight of Thursday’s session. The Crimson Tide’s $4 million man joins the coaches from Vanderbilt, Mississippi State and Florida on Thursday’s schedule.

Offensive lineman Antoine Caldwell and cornerback Simeon Castille are Alabama’s player representatives.

Friday’s schedule features Georgia, Ole Miss, Tennessee and LSU.