Conference USA steps into the preseason limelight Wednesday for its annual Media Days Kickoff in Irving, Texas, and the league is set to bring the noise.

This offseason ushered in some big-name head coaches into a conference that won four bowl games to close last year, setting up 2017 for a lot of parity, especially at the top of the standings. Coaches and two players from each of the 14 schools will field questions from media members during the two-day event, starting Wednesday afternoon.

Perhaps the most anticipated start to the season less than two months away, here are five storylines for arguably the biggest C-USA Media Days.

1. The Lane Kiffin Effect

Media will be swarming the DFW Marriott Hotel Thursday morning as Lane Kiffin asserts his personality and bravado for Florida Atlantic as its new head coach into the C-USA preseason event for the first time.

After leading Alabama’s offense to back-to-back national championship game runs as offensive coordinator the past two years, as well as previously being the head guy at USC and the Oakland Raiders, Kiffin’s hire in Boca Raton was not only undoubtedly FAU’s biggest hire in program history but maybe the league’s biggest splash, too.

Despite his elite offensive prowess and two seasons of tutelage under Nick Saban, nobody knows what to expect from the Owls in 2017. The 42-year-old coach seems to be more mature, but the fun is still always in the answers to the questions.

Let us not forget about FIU, the other Florida school in the league and FAU neighbor, going out and getting a proven winner in Butch Davis. He’s won everywhere, so it’ll be interesting to see how he pans out with the Panthers.

2. Is this the strongest C-USA has ever been?

Seven teams are coming off bowl bids, and easily at least five enter 2017 thinking they’ll be the team hoisting the league championship trophy come December.

Western Kentucky won its second straight title last year, outlasting Louisiana Tech, 58-44. Senior quarterback Mike White returns to lead the Hilltoppers, along with seven other preseason conference award players.

Tech’s offense has the potential be even more explosive than it was during last season’s runner-up finish and will be legitimate contenders this fall. Predicted to win the East division last year, Middle Tennessee also welcomes back an experienced signal caller in Brent Stocksill, but will have to fit the pieces together on defense.

Old Dominion’s breakout to 10 wins, seven in conference play, in its third season in Conference USA caught everyone by surprise. The Monarchs are searching for their next quarterback and were picked to come in third in the East this year by the media.

After garnering its first bowl berth last year, UTSA wears the C-USA media darling crown as 2017 approaches. Head coach Frank Wilson has raised expectations after just one season and with one of the easier conference schedules, the Roadrunners look primed to continue their ascension.

With Kiffin coming in at FAU and Davis at FIU, the depth of quality of teams is on the uptick and it could be possible the C-USA beats each other up en route to the title game showdown this season.

3. Can Tech complete the C-USA summit?

Three straight nine-win seasons and three straight bowl game victories will elevate expectations, but will also place the target squarely on your back.

Skip Holtz enters his fifth season as head coach of Louisiana Tech, which has lost two league championship games in the last three years. Will 2017 be the year of the Bulldog?

The path to Tech’s first C-USA championship under Holtz begins with rising sophomore quarterback J’Mar Smith, who wowed everyone in his debut last season with helping the team nearly pull off the upset at Arkansas in his lone start.

Running back Jarred Craft enters his senior campaign off a 1,000-yard season along with nine scores. Defensive end Jaylon Ferguson, who set the school single-season sack record in 2016, has the motor and ability to take over games against the pass-happy attacks in the conference.

This year’s version of the Bulldogs could be the most talented, but can they put it all together and complete the championship summit?

4. The Return

Two years after school president Ray Watts shut down the program, UAB makes its reinvigorated and triumphant return to college football.

Impressively, the athletic administration somehow convinced incredibly talented head coach Bill Clark to stay on and wade through the six-month catastrophe. Now, UAB currently works on a $22.5 million operations facility, attached to a brand new covered practice field, that should be ready and available for use this year.

Everyone loves a good underdog story and this is the best one in college football in quite a while, and everybody will be talking about UAB’s return as kickoff approaches.

On Sept. 2, Blazer players will run out of the locker room at Legion Field for the 2017 season opener versus Alabama A&M. After staring down the program’s death, then the overwhelming resurgence in the involvement from the Birmingham community, those players will try to use their second chance to win, and win big.

5. Home-field advantage?

When Power Five Conference commissioners cracked down on non-conference strength of schedule a couple of years ago, the ripple effect flooded down to Group of Five programs.

In 2017, six different Conference USA teams will host a P5 opponent, marking for some, the biggest games on campus in history. And if you believe in home field advantage, C-USA members have a great shot of capturing marquee wins.

Louisiana Tech hosts the SEC’s Mississippi State in Week 2 (Sept. 9) before travelling to another SEC foe South Carolina two weeks later. Middle Tennessee plays Vanderbilt in the season opener at Floyd Stadium in Murfreesboro. Old Dominion welcomes North Carolina in Week 3 (Sept. 16) and Southern Miss gets Kentucky at home to kick off the season. UTEP somehow convinced Arizona to come play at the Sun Bowl on Friday, Sept. 15 and UTSA hosts Houston in the Alamodome for its season opener.

Rice and Pac-12 power Stanford will open the season down under in Australia for an out of this hemisphere neutral site contest.

If these schools can win the majority of these home site games, C-USA will garner much-deserved attention for the rest of 2017.

Follow Cory Diaz on Twitter @CoryDiaz_TNS and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CoryDiazTNS/