BringTheBlitz.com | 2007 C-USA Preview

2007 C-USA Preview

By Eric Hyde
BringTheBlitz.com
08/09/07 at 08:52AM

C-USA was one wacky conference last year. Rice comes out of nowhere, UAB and UTEP self-destruct, Houston lost to UL Lafayette, and Memphis does terrible much to everyone’s surprise. What is in store for the conference this year/

5 Burning C-USA Questions:

1. Who replaces Kevin Kolb at Houston?

The Answer: Blake Joseph or Case Keenum

Analysis: No starting QB has been named yet for Houston, but Blake Joseph is probably the frontrunner for the job. He can throw the ball pretty well. He’s no Kevin Kolb, but he’ll get the job done for Houston. Houston has some other athletes that they can rely on if the passing game doesn’t go according to plan like Anthony Aldrige in the backfield.

2. What about Rice? Can they continue the Cinderella story?

The Answer: No chance.

Analysis: First, they have a new coaching staff. David Bailiff comes in from Texas State because Todd Graham, the mastermind of this turnaround, left for Tulsa. The offensive line is leaky. The defense is extremely slow. They pulled out the close games partly because of their turnover margin. C-USA will also get better around Rice while they play a more difficult schedule. Add this all up, and we’re probably talking 5 wins max.

3. Who is this year’s UAB?

The Answer: ECU.

Analysis: Maybe not to the extent of winning 3 games and looking terrible in the process, but ECU will suffer from a ton of departures. Aundre Allison is now in the NFL, James Pinkney is gone, as is RB Brandon Fractious. The guys replacing them? QB Rob Kass, RB Dominiqe Lindsay, and WR Alex Taylor. The lines come back and it will help out ECU, though. They’re an interesting team to watch this year.

4. Between last year’s bottom feeders (UAB, Tulane, Memphis, UCF), who has the best chance at a turnaround?

Answer: UCF.

Analysis: 8 guys are back on offense while 9 come back on defense. The QB position is a liability though with Kyle Israel. He did play a bit last year and he is a senior. He should be adequate. The receivers also must perform better this year than they did last year. On defense, Dave Baldwin has looked awesome in the spring at CB. The LB corps is very experienced and the same could be said about the rest of the defense.

5. Does Southern Miss have a shot to crash the BCS-party?

Answer: Possibly.

Analysis: Southern Miss is probably a top 10 non-BCS school. But it looks like C-USA will not offer a BCS-contending team. Southern Miss would be the best bet with Damion Fletcher at RB. The now sophomore was outstanding last year. Jeremy Young isn’t the greatest passer in the world and they lose 3 of their top 4 WRs. The defense is very good, but the passing game will hold them back. They might wind up about 9-3 this year. If they do turn out better than most imagine though, there will be 2 big statement games against Boise State and Tennessee, both on the road.

BTB All-C-USA Team:

QB: Justin Willis (SMU)

RB: Damion Fletcher (Southern Miss)

RB: Anthony Aldrige (Houston)

WR: Jarrett Dillard (Rice)

WR: Duke Calhoun (Memphis)

TE: Shawn Nelson (Southern Miss)

OT: Brandon Pearce (Memphis)

OG: Jeff Akeroyd (Houston)

C: Doug Legursky (Marshall)

OG: Adam Truitt (UAB)

OT: Chris Clark (Southern Miss)

DE: Albert McClellan (Marshall)

DT: Martavius Prince (Southern Miss)

DT: Terrel Nemons (Tulsa)

DE: Cory Muse (SMU)

LB: Reggie Carrington (SMU)

LB: Gerald McRath (Southern Miss)

LB: Nelson Coleman (Tulsa)

CB: Kenneth Fontenette (Houston)

S: Brandon Sumrall (Southern Miss)

S: Sha'reff Rashad (UCF)

CB: J.J. Johnson (Marshall)

K: Clark Fangmeier (Rice)

P: Thomas Morstead (SMU)

5 Potential Statement Games (in no particular order):

1. Sept. 27, Southern Miss @ Boise State

While Southern Miss has always been really good over the years, they have rarely been to the level that Boise State has reached. Or TCU, BYU, Utah, and Hawaii for that matter. This is their chance to make an announcement that everybody’s non-BCS darling, Boise State, needs to make way for the Southern Miss Golden Eagles. This would garner instant respect should they win this game.

2. Sept. 15, BYU @ Tulsa

Revenge will be a factor in this game. Tulsa got spanked by the Cougars in Provo last year. Paul Smith and his gang will try to enact some retribution and take one away from BYU. Even though this is another non-BCS/non-BCS match up, it’s a big game for the league.

3. Sept. 1, Ole Miss @ Memphis

The Tigers didn’t get much luck last year and what better way to say, “I’m back” than a win over an SEC team? Ole Miss beat Memphis last year and now Memphis has a chance to get back at ‘em. It’ll be interesting because Memphis has been getting a lot of hype with the way finished 2006. Duke Calhoun could be primed for a big game.

4. Sept. 1, UCF @ NC State

UCF failed many people’s expectations after a stunning 2005 season. They could try and bounce back against a rebuilding ACC school. Tom O’Brien-coached teams have a tendency to never blow anybody out, so UCF should be hanging around in this game. NC State lost to Southern Miss and Akron last year, could this be UCF’s turn to pull off an upset?

5. Sept. 8, North Carolina @ ECU

North Carolina has gotten a ton of hype since the hiring of Butch Davis. ECU has often been slammed for the loss of spectacular skill players (me included). They could make a statement here against another ACC school since they got Virginia and NC State last year. North Carolina could be next on the list. It would be a nice way to remind folks that maybe ECU is still in the C-USA picture for 2007.

Take These to the Bank (at your own risk!):

1. Marshall will experience another under par season.

The Thundering Herd will continue to be mediocre. At least for this year. Ahmad Bradshaw leaving will devastate the rushing game. Bernard Morris isn’t an extremely skilled passer so the passing game won’t see much improvement. They also have the 101^st ranked total defense. That isn’t really going to change that much for the better either. C.J. Spillman, Ashton Hall, and Albert McClellan are the bright spots defensively.

2. Justin Willis will be the best player in the conference.

26 TDs, 6 picks, and a 158.42 QB rating. These stats are lights-out, and keep in mind, Willis was only a freshman. SMU also returns 9 guys and if DeMyron Martin can step up and become the RB he’s capable of being, Willis will have all the help he needs.

3. UAB will not do anything this year.

As a matter of fact, they will probably win 2 games. UAB was atrocious last year, and this go-around, only 8 starters on the entire team are coming back (4 on each side). Rashad Slaughter at RB will probably be the only positive on offense. Last year, they gave up too many sacks, they didn’t run the ball well enough (73^rd) and they didn’t pass well enough (78^th). The defensive side was mediocre as well giving up about 360 yards a game on defense. Watch out for Kevin Sanders though, he’s a good one at CB.

4. The Price isn’t right in UTEP.

Well, maybe it isn’t Mike Price’s fault, but UTEP is going to miss out on a bowl game. The defense is extremely inexperienced only getting 4 guys back. The offense loses Jordan Palmer and Johnnie Lee Higgins so the offensive production will wane. even with this said, there's a good shot that they can get to a bowl game but one game that they need to win is the opener against New Mexico and they need to not get upset against Tulane or Rice.

5. Expect Southern Miss to win the conference.

They probably have the best defensive squad in C-USA led by Gerald McRath and Martavius Prince. The offense is good in most areas expect WR. That’s okay though because passing isn’t a necessity for the Golden Eagle offense. Damion Fletcher probably won’t be the C-USA POY, that might go to Justin Willis, but he’ll be a close 2^nd. Jeff Bower just knows how to win and this year, expect USM to go all the way and take home a conference crown.