The Favorite: Troy was my favorite last season and they ran the table in conference. This season, I'm calling MTSU to overtake them. While Troy did beat them soundly last year, I think the Blue Raiders get their revenge this time around. Another ten win season is going to get head coach Rick Stockstill a lot of attention in the offseason.
The Challenger: Troy is not going to give up its position at the top of the conference without a fight. They only return nine starters and lost their OC again, this time to Texas Tech. They have enough going against them to put them in the role of hunter instead of hunted.
The Sleeper: Not a lot to choose from here with the conference looking like a two-horse race. FAU won five conference games last year, but getting swept in the non-conference slate gave them a losing season. FAU has to travel to three road games and a neutral game out of conference, so they may need to win more in conference to get to a bowl game.
The Letdown: Louisiana-Monroe finished 6-6 for the second time in three years. They just barely missed going to their first bowl in school history. Then for some reason the administration fired their head coach and replaced him with Todd Berry (career record 5-36.) I think it was a bad move and the WarHawks will regret it.
Conference Player of the Year: MTSU QB Dwight Dasher of MTSU returns for his senior season. Last year he had 36 total TDs and almost 4000 combined yards on his way to leading MTSU to ten wins and the program's first bowl victory.
I Wrote What?: In last year's preview, I missed badly on MTSU, not expecting their breakout season. I also predicted Arkansas State and FAU to be bowl-eligible. Arkansas State lost five games by eight or fewer points, and FAU lost three close games and had lost their QB (my preseason POY) for much of the year.
Non-conference Games to Watch:
* Minnesota at MTSU, Sept 2 - MTSU has knocked off an AQ the last two seasons, and Minnesota is expected to be down. This is a great opportunity for MTSU and the Sun Belt conference.
* Louisville at Arkansas St, Oct 2 - Arkansas State beat Texas A&M two years ago when they were breaking in a new head coach. Now Louisville has a new head coach and has to travel to Jonesboro.
* Oklahoma St at Louisiana-Lafayette, Oct 8 - Oklahoma State is one of the least experienced teams in the country. The Ragin' Cajuns will be looking for a upset at home on a Friday night.
* Kansas St at North Texas, Nov 27 - Kansas State lost last year when they traveled to Louisiana-Lafayette. Now North Texas gets a shot at them at home.
* Troy @ Oklahoma St, Sept 11 - Oklahoma State makes another appearance on the list. This series is tied at one win apiece.
MTSU | 10-2 | 7-1
Troy | 8-4 | 7-1
FAU | 5-7 | 5-3
Louisiana-Lafayette | 4-8 | 4-4
Arkansas St | 5-7 | 4-4
North Texas | 3-9 | 3-5
FIU | 3-9 | 3-5
Louisiana-Monroe | 3-9 | 2-6
Western Kentucky | 1-11 | 1-7
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