The preseason USA TODAY Sports Top 25 Coaches Poll begins with Alabama, of course, winners of three of the last four national championships, and continues with Ohio State, which was ineligible for last season’s coaches poll due to NCAA sanctions. It’s an SEC party: No. 1 Alabama, No. 5 Georgia, No. 6 Texas A&M, No. 7 South Carolina and No. 10 Florida rank among the top 10, with No. 13 LSU close behind.

Then comes the Big Ten and Pac-12, with five teams apiece, followed by the Big 12 (four teams) and the ACC (two teams). The Mountain West Conference and American Athletic Conference have one team apiece. Then there’s No. 11 Notre Dame, of course.

Need a primer for the 2013 preseason coaches poll? We’re here to help. Because you’ve got a lot on your plate, here’s one thing to know about each team in the preseason top 25:

1. Alabama (2012 record: 13-1). The Crimson Tide are 50-0 since the start of the 2008 season when rushing for 150 or more yards.

2. Ohio State (2012 record: 12-0). Coach Urban Meyer is a combined 34-4 during his second seasons with a program (9-3 at Bowling Green in 2002, 12-0 at Utah in 2004 and 13-1 at Florida in 2006). The latter two teams reached a BCS bowl; the 2006 Gators won the national championship.

3. Oregon (2012 record: 12-1). New Oregon coach Mark Helfrich has not coached on the field (as opposed to upstairs in a coaching box) since the 1996 season, when he was the running backs coach at Southern Oregon.

4. Stanford (2012 record: 12-2). The Cardinal have come within one win of an appearance in the national championship game in two of the last three years (2010 and 2012).

5. Georgia (2012 record: 12-2). While the offense is elite, Georgia’s defense returns only four starters – only one along the defensive line and one in the secondary.

6. Texas A&M (2012 record: 11-2). This is where Johnny Manziel goes to school. Also, the Aggies return only 10 starters, the fewest of any team in the SEC.

7. South Carolina (2012 record: 11-2). The Gamecocks are 22-4 during the last two seasons. Carolina recently went six full seasons (1994-99) with a combined 23 wins.

8. Clemson (2012 record: 11-2). Clemson brings back seven starters on offense, including potential All-American picks in quarterback Tajh Boyd and wide receiver Sammy Watkins.

9. Louisville (2012 record: 11-2). Louisville might have a bulls-eye on its back due to the team’s standing as the undisputed American Athletic Conference favorite, but during American media day, coach Charlie Strong said this fact has only made his team hungrier. Clichés!

10. Florida (2012 record: 11-2). Before Florida’s loss to Louisville in early 2013, the last SEC team to lose the Sugar Bowl by double-digits won the national championship the following year – Alabama lost to Utah 31-17 in the 2009 Sugar Bowl and went undefeated a season later.

11. Notre Dame (2012 record: 12-1). The Irish will replace starting quarterback Everett Golson, sidelined for the 2013 season due to academic issues, with senior Tommy Rees, who brings 18 career starts into his final year.

12. Florida State (2012 record: 12-2). FSU will start a redshirt freshman quarterback, Jameis Winston, who has already drawn comparison to past program greats like Charlie Ward – a Heisman winner and national champion. (And a point guard for the Knicks.)

13. LSU (2012 record: 10-3). The Tigers have a new offensive coordinator in former Indiana coach and Baltimore Ravens assistant Cam Cameron. Also, Les Miles rappelled down a building earlier this summer.

14. Oklahoma State (2012 record: 8-5). Like LSU, the Cowboys have a new offensive coordinator. Todd Monken’s replacement is Mike Yurcich, the former coordinator at Division II Shippensburg. That’s in Pennsylvania, by the way.

15. Texas (2012 record: 9-4). The Longhorns have not won 10 or more games since 2009, marking the program’s longest such run since 1996-2000.

16. Oklahoma (2012 record: 10-3). OU coach Bob Stoops holds a career record of 99-23 during Big 12 play.

17. Michigan (2012 record: 8-5). The Wolverines will lean toward a more pro-style offense behind junior quarterback Devin Gardner, the team’s permanent replacement for Denard Robinson.

18. Nebraska (2012 record: 10-4). Last year’s defense allowed 214 points to UCLA, Ohio State, Wisconsin and Georgia, and only 172 points to the remaining 10 teams on its schedule.

19. Boise State (2012 record: 11-2). The Broncos are 51-2 under coach Chris Petersen when returning a starting quarterback. Guess what: Boise brings back its starter, Joe Southwick, in 2013.

20. TCU (2012 record: 7-6). The Horned Frogs’ offensive line is an even bigger question mark after all-conference left tackle Tayo Fabuluje left the program for “personal reasons.”

21. UCLA (2012 record: 9-5). The Bruins might have finished second nationally in total offensive plays last fall, but coach Jim Mora said last week he wants his offense to be dramatically quicker in 2013.

22. Northwestern (2012 record: 10-3). The Wildcats capped last season with the program’s first bowl win in more than 60 years.

23. Wisconsin (2012 record: 8-6). Despite serving as a backup to Montee Ball during the last three seasons, senior James White enters 2013 as the active career rushing leader among FBS running backs.

24. Southern California (2012 record: 7-6). The Trojans lost five of six games to end last season after opening the year ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press preseason poll. (USC was No. 3 in the preseason coaches poll.)

25. Oregon State (2012 record: 9-4). The Beavers have yet to officially name a starting quarterback between Sean Mannion and Cody Vaz, though coach Mike Riley said he has already made his decision.