Sun Belt Power Rankings (9/5/17)

The Sun Belt featured close calls in week one. Arkansas State gave everything they could handle and the Sun Belt as a whole represented itself as a tough out for nearly any team in the nation.

1. Appalachian State (0-1, 0-0): You could make a case that Arkansas State looked like the best team in the Sun Belt in week one, but I will not hold a poor performance by the Mountaineers in week one against them. They have a chance to regroup and recover with a cupcake game versus Savannah State.
2. Arkansas State (0-1, 0-0): Wait, don’t the Red Wolves normally struggle in non-conference play before kicking it into gear in Sun Belt play? This group looks ready to contend with everyone, but must make it through a gauntlet that includes Miami (FL) and SMU.
3. Troy (0-1, 0-0): The Trojans had Boise State on the ropes at times, but could not string together enough offense to pull off arguably the biggest win in a very long time. With Alcorn State, NMSU, and Akron in the next three weeks, expect the Trojans to be halfway to bowl eligibility when they face #12 LSU.
4. Idaho (1-0, 0-0): The Vandals struggled a bit in a season opening win, but are still easily the fourth best team in the conference. They cannot afford to lose to an angry UNLV squad with a trip to Western Michigan on the horizon.
5. Louisiana (1-0, 0-0): I don’t even know how to describe Saturday night for the Ragin’ Cajuns. They were dominated in nearly every facet of the game, but got two kickoff returns for touchdowns and a stand at the end and got the win. Up next is a Tulsa team looking to prove their doubters wrong.  
6. New Mexico State (0-1, 0-0): Let’s be honest, after the third quarter, the Aggies never really had a chance to win over Arizona State. Still, they fought to the end, put up 31 points, looked respectable versus a PAC 12 program. If the defense is improved, they have a chance to get to six wins.   
7. South Alabama (0-1, 0-0): For a half, the Jaguars looked poised to beat a Mississippi team from the SEC for the second time in two years. Those hopes faded fast as they gave up 27 points in the third quarter and lost big to the Rebels. With Oklahoma State, Idaho, and Louisiana Tech still on the schedule before October, this could be a tough month for South Alabama.
8. Coastal Carolina (1-0, 0-0): The Chanticleers have to earn their way up the rankings, but more wins over FBS opposition will help the cause. They could hypothetically head into October 4-0 with winnable games versus UAB, Western Illinois, and ULM. They could also easily lose all three.
9. ULM (0-1, 0-0): Huge underdogs to Memphis, the Warhawks made things a bit more stressful before bowing down in the rain. Don’t expect Riley Ferguson to be held under 100 yards passing once again, so props to the ULM defense.  
10. Georgia Southern (0-1, 0-0): Look, I know they were playing Auburn, but 78 total yards is embarrassing. I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt this early in the season. Up next is a matchup with FCS program New Hampshire.
11. Texas State (1-0, 0-0): The Bobcats won and that is all that matters. It was not pretty and Houston Baptist had chances, but a win is a win. Colorado, Appalachian State, UTSA, and Wyoming await the Bobcats to end September.  
12. Georgia State (0-1, 0-0): Getting dominated at home versus Tennessee State was not the way to open a new home for the program. There is talent on the roster, so hopefully, this is a blip on the radar like a loss two years ago to Charlotte that led to an eventual bowl berth.

College Football Outpost's Week One In Review

https://www.flickr.com/photos/kenlund/5069579976

Week one of the college football season is over for G5 programs. To be honest, it was an odd weekend with multiple power programs playing well below their expectations. From slightly rebuilding Western Michigan taking USC to the wire to UNLV dropping a matchup to Howard, nothing went according to plan.

With that said, let’s take a look back at week one.

• Most impressive win: Coastal Carolina 38, UMass 28.
• Worst Loss: Howard 43, UNLV 40.

Five storylines heading into week two:

Who will be the quarterback at Boise State?

No one is going to put the Broncos win over Troy in the College Football Hall of Fame. It was ugly and at times, just flat out hard to watch as neither team seemed to find anything positive on offense for a majority of the game.

The problem with Brett Rypien last season was his inability to find consistency. One week he looked like an All-American and the next, he looked like a backup. Partially due to a gameplan by Hasin and company and also due to how the game went, Rypien barely saw the field in the final quarter with graduate transfer Montell Cozart leading the offense. The Broncos (barely) did enough to win, but Harsin will have a whole new group of people to block on Twitter in the coming week due to his handling of the quarterback position.

Now, we have to ask if Cozart is now the #1 and Rypien is spelling him, vice versa or some other decision will be made. It seems like the Broncos will go with the same plan as in week one. Don’t worry, all Boise State has next week is a trip to #24 Washington State. No biggie.

Can South Florida start play at opening kickoff?

Does a team automatically forget how to play football with Charlie Strong as its head coach? For the second straight week, the Bulls came out poor in the opening quarter and never led until 2:43 was left in the third quarter. In the end, it was a somewhat comfortable 14-point win, but this is getting ridiculous.

If USF starts like that versus… ummm… forget that for now because their schedule is soft this year. I wouldn’t be surprised if USF is closer to #25 than #15 when the AP Poll comes out on Monday.

Western Michigan isn’t going away that easily.

Surely, the Broncos couldn’t hang with a USC team expected to play in the playoff this season after losing so many important players. They would still be good, but they were not going to be anywhere near the level of last season.

Not so fast, my friend.

With 4:37 left in the game, the Broncos were within 35-31 and had a real chance to pull the upset. A long run and a pick-six ended those hopes but told the rest of the MAC that Western Michigan isn’t going anywhere this fall.

What is even more impressive is the fact that WMU hung in there despite playing the game virtually one dimensional on offense. Jon Wassink passed for 67 yards, but a three-headed monster at running back rushed for 219 yards on 36 carries and gashed a pretty good USC defense.

Coastal gets an FBS win in its first try.

It took so many other teams multiple years to get their first win over an FBS opponent after making the jump from the FCS. Everyone assumed the Coastal Carolina would need multiple attempts to accomplish that feat, but the Chanticleers. Used a run game that basically gave a carry to anyone on the depth chart and added to the misery that is UMass football with a 38-28 win.

Osharmar Abercrombie finally got his shot at the starting position after racking up nearly 1,200 yards as a three-year backup to De’Angelo Henderson and set a career high with 149 yards on 17 carries. CCU as a whole rushed for 321 yards and four touchdowns in the win.

Service Academies represent.

Navy 42, Florida Atlantic 19. Army 64, Fordham 6. Air Force 62, VMI 0. All three service academies stepped into the 2017 season with dominant performances over outmatched programs. While none of the three teams were expected to be tested, a combined 168-25 is a pretty good weekend.

Three teams that disappointed in week one:

• MTSU: I could go on and on about the lack of defense on the part of the Blue Raiders, but this was another big game that they did not show up for. Blame the players, blame the coaches, blame whoever, but MTSU has shown an inability to show up for games like this in recent seasons and it has to end if they are to be considered an elite G5 program.
• East Carolina: I could have easily gone with South Florida from the AAC, but the Pirates officially hit rock bottom in being completely dominated during a loss to James Madison. ECU looks like a mess under Scottie Montgomery and fans have to be wondering what could have been if Ruffin was still around instead of being let go after the 2015 season.
• Kent State/Akron: I could have picked one over the other, but they were virtually the same program on Saturday. Sure, they were playing the #5 and #6 teams in the nation and there are excuses to be made. I personally watched the first halves of these games and felt like Penn State and Clemson had to make a concerted effort to keep from breaking 40 points in the opening two quarters. It was flat out ugly football.

***Bonus disappointment: Georgia State/UNLV***

Three teams that impressed in week one:

• Marshall: You can make the argument that it was smoke and mirrors that won the game for the Thundering Herd over Miami. The run game was nonexistent, Litton was average, and the defense gave up 429 yards. In many cases, this is the recipe for a blowout loss, but Marshall found a way to win. Keion Davis took two kickoffs to the house and basically won the game for them.
• Western Michigan: As I said earlier, WMU hung toe to toe with one of the best teams in the nation and proved to the MAC that they will be a force to be reckoned with. That run game will be tough for any G5 team to slow down.
• Tulane: Facing a tougher than usual Grambling squad, Tulane raced ahead and easily controlled their FCS foe. Jonathan Banks took the long road from Kansas State to the JUCO ranks and finally Tulane and ran the offense well with 185 yards passing and another 69 on the ground. Overall, the Green Wave accounted for over 250 yards and over six yards per carry in the win.

G5 players of the week:

• Offense: Zach Abey, Navy: 235 yards rushing, 110 yards passing, three total touchdowns versus FAU.
• Defense: Anthony Winbush, Ball State: 7 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 3 sacks versus Illinois.
• Special Teams: Keion Davis, Marshall: Two kickoff returns for touchdowns versus Miami OH.