OVERVIEW
 |
| FAU's Lane Kiffin (Yardbarker.com) |
When you play in a Group of 5 conference, sometimes you need to take drastic measures to stay in the headlines. Florida Atlantic coach Lane Kiffin knows a thing or two about that, and he did his level best to stay relevant -- meeting up with former 2 Live Crew frontman Luther "Uncle Luke" Campbell, getting coaches from Ohio State and Michigan to attend a prospects camp at FAU, tweeted at Kanye West and showed support for former boss Nick Saban and Alabama with some #rolltide tweets. Busy man, that Lane. Yet he still manages to find a way to coach, and he's got a team that could emerge as the darling of this year's season.
Most people know about the offensive trickery and speed Kiffin loves, but he's happiest when he sees running back Devin Singletary toting the rock. And why not? Singletary had 32 touchdowns and over 1900 yards a year ago, and could emerge as a Heisman candidate this year with a big game in the opener against Oklahoma. But it isn't only Singletary. Receiver Willie Wright and tight end Harrison Bryant are both vital parts of the passing game, and should help whomever wins the quarterback job. The Owls return 10 to a defense that allowed just under 23 points per game last year, led by tackling machine Azeez Al-Shaair (147 tackles) and a pair of big-time corners in Shelton Lewis and Jalen Young. FAU's chief rival in the East will be Marshall, which gets the services of strong-armed Wagner transfer Alex Thomson at quarterback. He has a deep stable of backs behind him, and wideout Tyre Brady is one of the best under-the-radar talents in the country. Defensively, the Herd has a playmaker at every level -- DL Ryan Bee, LB Chase Hancock and DB Malik Gant. They will try to be as good as last year's unit, which allowed just 19.9 points per game and held five foes to 10 points or fewer. Middle Tennessee endured a season of what-could-have-beens as quarterback Brent Stockstill missed six games with injury, and the receiving corps had some crucial missed games as well. A committee ground game will keep defenses honest while Stockstill looks early and often for Ty Lee, who emerged last year after Richie James was injured. A good defense returns nine starters, most notably linebacker Khalil Brooks, who disrupted defenses with his tackling ability and a nose for pressuring the quaterback. Safety Jovante Moffatt is a good one, and brings experience to a talented secondary. Old Dominion couldn't get it going offensively last year, averaging just under 21 points per game but return nine starters, including dual threat quarterback Steven Williams. If Williams gets a bit more consistent with his passing the offense could take flight. The Monarchs have a couple of studs on defense in Miles Fox and Oshane Ximines, who form the best D-line combo in the league.
Louisiana Tech took a step back last season while breaking in a new quarterback, but return eight offensive starters and get the nod in the West. J'mar Smith is a solid dual threat who improved as the season progressed, and he has one of the best targets in America in receiver Teddy Veal. The defense is led by pro-ready defensive Jaylon Ferguson, who has a high motor and a great burst off the ball. Often the subject of double-teams, Ferguson impacts the game in ways that don't always show up on the stat sheet. Cornerback Amik Robertson is everywhere -- tackling (62), hitting behind the line of scrimmage (5.5 TFL), breaking up passes (6) and picking them off, too (5). North Texas exploded onto the scene last year, winning nine games and averaging 35 points per contest -- thanks in large part to the quarterback friendly offense of coach Seth Littrell and the quick release and accurate arm of Mason Fine. All three top receivers caught over 45 passes, and the line returns four starters. Defense was a problem, so Littrell mined the JUCO scene for help. The Mean Green play an aggressive, gambling D that allows big plays, but seem to have better talent this year. Linebacker EJ Ejiya is a burgeoning star. How Bill Clark didn't win national coach of the year honors after guiding a program back from the dead to eight victories is one of life's great mysteries. He has UAB poised for another solid year thanks to the return of 10 offensive starters. Chief among them is quarterback AJ Erdely, who is an excellent passer (60.7%, 16 TDs) and sneaky runner (13 TDs). Running back Spencer Brown was a revelation as a freshman (1329 yards, 10 TDs) and should only get better behind a line that returns four starters. The defense is led by end Garrett Marino and safety Broderick Thomas, who has the size and quickness to keep up with the league's top wideouts. Southern Miss is looking for a fourth straight winning campaign, but will have to do it with a rebuilt offense. Quarterback is in the hands of Kwadra Griggs, who was a bit erratic (55.8%) but smart with the ball (16-2 ratio). Linebacker Racheem Boothe leads the way, and the return from injury of Picasso Nelson should help that group.
RISING: UAB
FALLING: FIU
BOWL TEAMS (8): FAU, Marshall, Middle Tennessee, Old Dominion, Louisiana Tech, North Texas, UAB, Southern Miss
CONFERENCE USA PROJECTED STANDINGS
EAST
1 FAU (11-2, 7-1)
2 Marshall (8-4, 6-2)
3 Middle Tennessee (7-5, 5-3)
4 Old Dominion (7-5, 4-4)
5 FIU (4-8, 3-5)
6 Western Kentucky (4-8, 2-6)
7 Charlotte (2-10, 1-7)
WEST
WEST
1 Louisiana Tech (8-5, 6-2)
2 North Texas (8-4, 6-2)
3 UAB (8-4, 5-3)
4 Southern Miss (7-5, 5-3)
5 UTSA (6-6, 5-3)
6 UTEP (2-10, 1-7)
7 Rice (1-11, 0-8)
CUSA CHAMPIONSHIP
CUSA CHAMPIONSHIP
FAU over Louisiana Tech
ALL-CUSA TEAM
FIRST TEAM OFFENSE
QB Mason Fine/North Texas
RB Devin Singletary/FAU
RB Spencer Brown/UAB
WR Tyre Brady/Marshall
WR Teddy Veal/Louisiana Tech
WR Ty Lee/Middle Tennessee
TE Harrison Bryant/FAU
OL Chandler Brewer/Middle Tennessee
OL O'Shea Dugas/Louisiana Tech
OL Levi Brown/Marshall
OL Reggie Bain/FAU
OL James Davis/UAB
FIRST TEAM DEFENSE
DL Oshane Ximines/Old Dominion
DL Jaylon Ferguson/Louisiana Tech
DL Ryan Bee/Marshall
DL Anthony Johnson/FIU
LB Chase Hancock/Marshall
LB Azeez Al-Shaair/FAU
LB Khalil Brooks/Middle Tennessee
LB Josiah Tauaefa/UTSA
DB Shelton Lewis/FAU
DB Malik Gant/Marshall
DB Amik Robertson/Louisiana Tech
DB Jalen Young/FAU
FIRST TEAM SPECIALISTS
K Parker Shaunfield/Southern Miss
P Yannis Routsis/UTSA
KR Isaiah Harper/Old Dominion
PR Andre Wilson/UAB
SECOND TEAM OFFENSE
QB Brent Stockstill/Middle Tennessee
RB Tyler King/Marshall
RB Jeremy Cox/Old Dominion
WR Jovon Durante/FAU
WR Jalen Guyton/North Texas
WR Lucky Jackson/Western Kentucky
TE Kelvin Smith/North Texas
OL Nate Davis/Charlotte
OL Ty Pollard/Southern Miss
OL Isaac Weaver/Old Dominion
OL Rishard Cook/UAB
OL D'Antne Demery/FIU
SECOND TEAM DEFENSE
DL Miles Fox/Old Dominion
DL Hunter Snyder/FAU
DL Roderick Young/North Texas
DL Kevin Strong/UTSA
LB Fermin Silva/FIU
LB EJ Eliya/North Texas
LB Rashad Smith/FAU
LB Jeff Gemmel/Charlotte
DB Kiy Hester/FIU
DB Jovante Moffatt/Middle Tennessee
DB Chris Jackson/Marshall
DB Broderick Thomas/UAB
SECOND TEAM SPECIALISTS
K Jared Sackett/UTSA
P Jack Fox/Rice
KR Keion Davis/Marshall
PR Darrell Brown/Old Dominion
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Devin Singletary/FAU
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Jaylon Ferguson/Louisiana Tech
COACH OF THE YEAR: Bill Clark/UAB
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR: QB Alex Thomson/Marshall
No comments:
Post a Comment