Middle Tennessee and Troy joined elite company this weekend in several ways.
First, both teams are receiving votes in this week's USA Today/ESPN Top 25 Coaches Poll. The two teams are among 42 in the nation ranked in the top 25 or receiving votes and both teams are ranked ahead of or are tied with the likes of Oklahoma, Arkansas, Ole Miss, and Navy.
Additionally, both teams tied the Sun Belt record for wins in a season with nine (North Texas also recorded 9 wins in 2003). The nine wins also makes Troy and Middle Tennessee two of just 25 teams nationally to own at least nine wins this season and two of just 10 non-AQ teams.
After surrendering a 24-point lead, the Trojans battled back to take a 48-31 victory over Louisiana-Lafayette to complete a perfect 8-0 run though the Sun Belt Conference to claim the outright league title for a second straight season. It is Troy's fourth straight Sun Belt crown overall.
Troy is also the first team to go undefeated in Sun Belt Conference play since North Texas went undefeated during the 2004, 2003 and 2002 seasons.
Sun Belt Conference Recent Results
Nov. 28 * Arkansas State 30, North Texas 26 * Florida Atlantic 29, WKU 23 * Middle Tennessee 38, ULM 19 (Sun Belt Network) * Troy 48, Louisiana-Lafayette 31
Nov. 21 #1 Florida 62, FIU 3 Army 17, North Texas 13 (KTXA) * Troy 47, Florida Atlantic 21 (Sun Belt Network) * Middle Tennessee 38, Arkansas State 14 (ESPN360) * Louisiana-Lafayette 21, Louisiana-Monroe 17
Sun Belt Conference Upcoming Games
Dec. 3 * Arkansas State at WKU (Sun Belt Network) - 6 p.m.
Dec. 5 * Florida Atlantic at FIU (Sun Belt Network) - 6 p.m.
Sun Belt Conference News & Notes
Sun Belt Attendance on the Rise Teams from the Sun Belt Conference helped the league to a new all-time single season attendance record for both overall and per game average attendance last year. Last season's numbers were also the largest increase in average in all of the Football Bowl Subdivision. The league also averaged nearly 2,000 more fans per game than the Mid-American Conference.
Sun Belt in the BCS The Sun Belt Conference is a BCS Conference. In fact, the Sun Belt Conference is one of just 11 BCS Conferences. The Sun Belt Conference champion will earn an automatic berth in a BCS bowl game if that team is ranked in the top 12 of the final BCS standings or if that team is ranked in the top 16 of the final BCS standings and its ranking is higher than that of a champion of a conference that has an annual automatic berth in one of the of BCS bowls. In the first 10 years of the BCS arrangement, more than $100 million was distributed to conferences that do not have an annual automatic berth to one of the BCS bowls. In 2009, nine percent of the net revenues from the BCS arrangement (approximately $9.5 million) is guaranteed in aggregate to Conference USA, the Mid-American, Mountain West, Sun Belt, and Western Athletic Conferences for their participation in the BCS arrangement. When a team from one of those five conferences plays in BCS bowl game, those conferences receive an additional nine percent of net revenues. When more than one team from those conferences play in a BCS bowl game, those conferences will receive an additional $4.5 million for each additional team.
Sun Belt Football Membership
The Sun Belt Conference is currently comprised of nine football playing members - Arkansas State (founding football member in 2001), Florida Atlantic (joined league as football member in 2005), FIU (joined league as football member in 2005), Louisiana-Lafayette (founding football member in 2001), ULM (founding football member in 2001), Middle Tennessee (founding football member in 2001), North Texas (founding football member in 2001), Troy (joined league as football member in 2004) and Western Kentucky University (will begin full competition in 2009) The league will expand to 10 football playing members when South Alabama enters in 2012.
Sun Belt Boasts Winning Bowl Record in Last Three Seasons Over the last three seasons the Sun Belt Conference has represented itself well in the postseason. In fact the Sun Belt Conference boasts a winning record of 3-2 in its five bowl appearances in the last three seasons.
2006 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl - Troy 41, Rice 17 2006 Motor City Bowl - Central Michigan 31, Middle Tennessee 14 2007 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl - Florida Atlantic 44, Memphis 17 2008 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl - Southern Miss 30, Troy 27 (OT) 2008 Motor City Bowl - Florida Atlantic 24, Central Michigan 21
Sun Belt Ties Conference Mark for Bowl Eligible Teams A record tying number of teams reached bowl eligibility last season when four teams (Troy, Florida Atlantic, Arkansas State, and Louisiana-Lafayette) reached the six-win plateau to become eligible for a postseason bid. In 2006 the Sun Belt also had four bowl eligible teams (Troy, Middle Tennessee, Louisiana-Lafayette, and Arkansas State) and two of those teams were selected to bowl games. 2008 also marked the first time that a 6-6 Sun Belt team (Florida Atlantic) was selected for a postseason bowl game.
Sun Belt Sends Two to Bowls For the third time in the Sun Belt Conference's brief eight year history of football the league sent multiple teams to postseason bowl games in 2008. Outright league champion Troy represented the league in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl. It was the Trojans second trip to that bowl game, having played in the Superdome in 2006 as well. Troy has played in three bowl games since joining the Sun Belt in 2004. In their inaugural season in 2004 the Trojans played in the Silicon Valley Football Classic. Joining Troy in the postseason was Florida Atlantic, which rolled to a victory over Central Michigan in the Motor City Bowl. The Owls made their second postseason appearance in as many years, having defeated Memphis in the 2007 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl. The two other seasons the Sun Belt sent two teams to bowl games were 2006 (Troy - R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl, Middle Tennessee - Motor City Bowl) and 2004 (North Texas - R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl, Troy - Silicon Valley Football Classic).
Notable Wins Bolster Sun Belt Conference By playing at the highest level of collegiate football - the Football Bowl Subdivision and the Bowl Championship Series - Sun Belt Conference teams continue to face noted big name programs. Sun Belt teams don't just compete though - teams from the SBC are consistently notching wins in these contests. In the opening week of the season last year, Arkansas State defeated Texas A&M which snapped the Aggies' 20-game winning streak in home openers and handed them just their fourth loss over their last 50 non-conference home games. The next week Middle Tennessee won its first-ever home game against a team from a BCS guaranteed conference with the win over Maryland. In previous season teams from the Sun Belt have taken down powers such as Alabama, Missouri, Minnesota, and Oklahoma State.
Sun Belt Conference Sweeps Mid-American Conference in 2008 Season A year after finishing ahead of the Mid-American Conference in the USA Today Sagarin Ratings, the Sun Belt Conference took advantage of its opportunities against teams from the MAC in 2008. Louisiana-Lafayette defeated Kent State 44-27 on September 13 and FIU took a 35-16 win at Toledo on September 27. To cap off a perfect season against the MAC, Florida Atlantic defeated Central Michigan 24-21 in the Motor City Bowl.
Sun Belt Conference Bowl Partners In addition to the Sun Belt Conference's tie-in with the BCS, the league has been a proud and successful partner with the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl since its inception in 2001. A team from the Sun Belt Conference will play a Conference USA opponent on December 20th in the Louisiana Superdome in that game. Additionally, teams from the Sun Belt Conference can be selected to play in the Papjohns.com Bowl, St. Petersburg Bowl, and Independence Bowl if the primary contracted partners are unable to fulfill their obligations to those bowl games.
Florida Atlantic Takes Back-to-Back Bowl Wins Florida Atlantic became the first team to win bowl games in back-to-back seasons since the Sun Belt began sponsoring football in 2001. The Owls defeated Central Michigan 24-21 in the 2008 Motor City Bowl and defeated Memphis in the 2007 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl for the front end of the achievement.
Sun Belt Conference and ESPN Agree to New Deal A new agreement with ESPN will give the Sun Belt Conference's rising football league a minimum of two games on either ESPN or ESPN2 each season. Additionally, ESPN Regional Television will have the right to produced, distribute and syndicate up to five football games each year. ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPNU, the 24-hour college sports network, will also be granted additional opportunities to select games to air. This trio of networks will be granted a 12 day rolling window during the season to select additional games to televise. Games available for selection are after the third Saturday of the season. This provides the Sun Belt Conference additional opportunities for exposure previously not available.
Five Trojans Named to Lombardi Watch List Oklahoma, Florida, and Troy. How is that for a 1, 2, 3 ranking? When the 40th annual Rotary Lombardi Award Watch List was announced this preseason that is exactly how teams in the FBS ranked based on the number of players on the list. Five members of the Troy squad were listed and only Oklahoma (7) and Florida (6) had more players on the list, which included 153 players from 79 teams and 11 conferences. The five Trojans on the list are senior defensive ends Brandon Lang and Cameron Sheffield, senior linebackers Boris Lee and Bear Woods and senior center Danny Franks.
Blakeney a Hall of Famer Larry Blakeney entered his 40th year as a football coach this fall as he leads the Troy University Trojans onto the field. But the veteran coach added to his list of accomplishments this offseason as he was named to the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame. Joining Blakeney in the class of 2009 are Steve Bolt, Tommy Brooker, Jimmy Key, Janelle Godfrey, Charley Hannah, Lee May and John Mitchell. The class will bring the total number of members of the Hall of Fame to 281, a list that includes five of the top 15 all-time athletes, according to ESPN.
Sun Belt Conference Alumni In the 2008 NFL Draft the Buffalo Bills selected three time All-Sun Belt Conference performer Leodis McKelvin from Troy with the 11th overall pick in the first round of the Draft. McKelvin signed a five-year, $19.4 million contract with the Bills with up to $12.6 million in bonuses. McKelvin, a defensive back and explosive kick returner, was named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month for November 2008. In the five November games, McKelvin compiled five tackles, three pass breakups, two interceptions including one that he returned 64 yards for a touchdown in a win at Kansas City. McKelvin also exploded onto the national stage as a premier kick returner taking one back for a 98-yard touchdown in the Monday Night Football game against Cleveland.
2007 Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Year Tyrell Johnson from Arkansas State was drafted by the Vikings in the second round of the 2008 NFL Draft. Johnson, a safety, finished his rookie season starting 7 of 16 games, recording 31 tackles. His seven starts helped propel the Vikings to the NFC North Division Championship and a playoff berth for the Vikings - the first playoff appearance for the Vikings since 2004.
2004 Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Year DeMarcus Ware from Troy was drafted 11th overall by the Dallas Cowboys in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft. Ware has quickly turned into one of the NFL's premier defensive players as he has been selected to the Pro Bowl in three of his four seasons with the Cowboys. So far in Ware's young career he has recorded 299 tackles, 53.5 sacks, 61.0 tackles for a loss, 18 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries (one of which he returned 69 yards for a touchdown) 13 passes defended and 1 interception which he returned 41 yards for a touchdown in 64 NFL games. Ware had a league-high 20 sacks in 2008 and finished second in the voting for the NFL Associated Press' Defensive Player of the Year Award.
Osi Umenyiora is another noted talent making headlines in the NFL. Umenyiora played for Troy and is currently a member of the New York Giants defensive front. Umenyiora, a two-time Pro Bowl selection, had 13 sacks in 2007 and helped the Giants to an NFL regular season-leading 53 sacks. This pass rush was pivotal in the Super Bowl XLII victory over the New England Patriots.
Louisiana-Lafayette has a history of sending talented players to the NFL. Brian Mitchell was one such player to make an impact in the NFL from Louisiana-Lafayette. Mitchell is the NFL's second all time leader in total yardage. In his second season with the Washington Redskins, Mitchell led the NFL in punt return yards (600) and punt return touchdowns (two), assisting his team to a championship appearance in Super Bowl XXVI, where Washington defeated the Buffalo Bills 37-24. Mitchell continued to play for the Redskins until 1999, leading the NFL in punt return average(14.1) and touchdowns (two) in 1994, and making a Pro Bowl selection in 1995.
Another former Louisiana-Lafayette player to make and impact in the NFL is Jake Delhomme of the Carolina Panthers. Delhomme was selected to the 2005 Pro Bowl and led the Panthers through to Super Bowl XXXVIII to face the New England Patriots. Charles Tillman of the Chicago Bears was selected with the 35th overall pick, third in the second round, of the 2003 NFL Draft from Louisiana-Lafayette.
Notable former professional football players from Sun Belt schools include Joe "Mean Joe" Greene (North Texas), and Stan Humphries (Louisiana-Monroe). Former Cleveland Browns Head Coach Romeo Crennel is a graduate of Western Kentucky University.
Sun Belt Conference Team News & Notes
Arkansas State Red Wolves ASU extended its longest winning streak against a Sun Belt Conference opponent to five games with the victory over North Texas. Dating back to the 2007 season, ASU has now won its last six games against teams from the state of Texas.
ASU finished the home season with a winning home record for the seventh time under eighth-year head coach Steve Roberts. With its victory over North Texas, ASU improved to 29-10 all-time at ASU Stadium under Roberts. ASU is now 14-4 in conference home games since the 2005 season.
ASU's 27 first-half points were its most against an FBS opponent since its sixth game of the 2008 season (Oct. 11, 2008 vs. ULM). Reggie Arnold posted his 17th career 100-yard rushing game, which is the second most in school history. Arnold recorded his team-leading 12th rushing TD of the season, which was also the 33rd of his career that ties the second most in school history. Arnold's 12 rushing touchdowns ties the sixth most for a season. Arnold finished the game with 111 yards, leaving him just 62 shy of breaking the school record for career rushing yards.
Ryan Aplin recorded his first career 100-yard rushing game (122 yards) and also posted a career-high two rushing touchdowns. Aplin threw for a career-high 240 yards. He posted a career-high 362 yards of total offense, which is the fifth most in school history for a single game and the most ever by an ASU freshman.
Two ASU players (Arnold and Aplin) rushed for 100 yards in the same game (North Texas) for the second time this season. The other game was against Florida International when Corey Leonard and Arnold both went over 100.
Florida Atlantic Owls Florida Atlantic University put together a solid performance to defeat Western Kentucky University improving FAU's record to 2-0 versus the Hilltoppers and to build a 2-0 home win streak heading into the off season. Jeff Van Camp led the offense with 266 passing yards and a total of 427 yards of offense. The Owls continued to enjoy a strong running game with sophomore Alfred Morris tallying 122 yards, his fifth 100+ yard performance of the 2009 season. Junior Lester Jean led the receivers with 99 yards on four catches, two ending with a touchdown. Defensively, sophomore Marcus Bartels tallied a game high 13 tackles. Erick McIntosh added 10 in his third start of the season, second consecutive. Brentley Harstad grabbed his first career interception and returned it 15 yards and FAU took advantage of two other fumble recoveries in the win.
FAU will next travel to FIU for the eighth annual Shula Bowl. The game is scheduled to be played at FIU's new stadium with the last meeting between the two teams hosted by FIU being played at the Orange Bowl. The game continues to build intensity with FAU taking the 2008 meeting 57-50 and needing extra time for the victor to be decided. The 7 p.m. game will be carried by CSS in the Boca Raton area.
FIU Golden Panthers FIU went into Florida Field with an upset on their mind, but the top-ranked Florida Gators scored early and often to leave no doubt and beat the Panthers 62-3, Saturday afternoon in Gainesville.
For the Panthers, T.Y. Hilton looked to be back to his old self as he led all FIU receivers with four catches and 75 yards. He also returned four kicks for 92 yards giving him 167 all-purpose yards, the most he has had since racking up 224 against ULM on October 3. On defense, underclassmen led the way as freshmen Jonathan Cyprien and Markieth Russell had nine and seven tackles, respectively while sophomore Aaron Davis had eight stops.
Scott Bryant's fourth quarter tackle was his fifth of the game and 295th of his FIU career, which tied him with John Harritan for second on FIU's all-time list. He then passed him with his sixth tackle of the game. He finished the contest with six stops, giving him 296 for his career. Keyonvis Bouie is the all-time leader with 299.
The 62 points is the second most ever given up by FIU and the 59-point loss matches the worst defeat in FIU history (59-0 at Penn State - 9/1/07).
FIU will enjoy a bye week before hosting Florida Atlantic on December 5 at 7 p.m. for the 2009 Shula Bowl. Last year the Owls beat the Panthers 57-50 in overtime.
Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns Chris Masson posted nine games of 200+ yards of total offense, just one game shy of tying the school single-season record. Masson ranks ninth all-time in total offense (2,694). His 222 completions in 2009 rank as the third-best single-season total - just two shy of the school record. Masson posted 2,406 yards passing, the fourth best single-season output. He ranks eight all-time in passing (2,478).
Brad McGuire and Ladarius Green combined for the third longest passing play in school history with a 91-yard TD strike vs. Troy. Green (119) and Luke Aubrey (130) became the eighth Cajuns teammates to each have 100 yards receiving in the same game - last done in 2003.
Andrew Joseph had a 33-yard blocked punt return - the second longest such play in school history.
Antwyne Zanders finished his career with 308 total tackles, the third most by a linebacker in school history. His 27.5 tackles-for-loss were just shy of the career top 5.
Dwight Bentley's 70-yard INT return vs. North Texas was the sixth longest in Cajuns record book.
Spencer Ortego finished the season with a 40.6 punting average, the best by a Cajuns punter since 1998 and the fifth best single-season average in the last 50 years, dating back to 1960.
Cajun Field not only set a single-game attendance mark with 41,357 vs. Southern, but also saw 111,998 for the season - the most since 1988.
ULM Warhawks The Warhawks finish Sun Belt play with a 5-3 record. It is the fourth time ULM has posted a winning record in Sun Belt play since joining the conference in 2001.
Greg James' first quarter interception was returned 78 yards, making it the fifth-longest interception return in ULM history and the longest non-scoring interception in school history. James' interception was the 17th of his career, extending his ULM and Sun Belt records. It was his fourth interception of the season.
ULM registered two interceptions against Middle Tennessee, giving the Warhawks five games with two-or-more interceptions this season. ULM's season-high of three came at North Texas on Nov. 7.
Radi Jabour recorded seven points against the Blue Raiders, giving him 71 for the season, the fourth-best single-season mark among ULM kickers and the ninth-best scoring season overall.
Darrell McNeal recorded one catch in the contest, giving McNeal at least one reception in 34 consecutive games. McNeal's streak is the 13th-longest active in the country.
Frank Goodin had 40 rushing yards in the contest, giving him 1,126 rushing yards for the season, moving past Roosevelt Potts (1,103 yards, 1991) into fifth on ULM's single-season rushing yards list.
Luther Ambrose finished the contest with seven catches for 107 yards and two touchdowns, all three are career-highs.
With eight tackles against Middle Tennessee, Cardia Jackson increased his Sun Belt record for career tackles to 381. Jackson is currently fifth on ULM's career tackle list, two behind Chris Harris (2001-04).
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders With the win today over Louisiana-Monroe, Middle Tennessee ran its record to 9-3 on the season and reached the 9-win total for the first time in the FBS era (since 1999). The last time Middle Tennessee won nine regular season games was in 1992 when the Blue Raiders finished 10-3.
Middle Tennessee has now won an FBS era record six games in a row to break the previous mark of five in a row set by the 2001 team. The six straight wins are the most by the Blue Raiders since they won six consecutive games in 1990.
Dwight Dasher registered two touchdown passes against ULM to run his season total to 21. The 21 touchdown passes equals the most in a single-season at MT with Mickey Corwin who set the school mark in 1984. Dasher now owns 32 career touchdown passes to rank sixth all-time at MT.
Dasher rushed for 88 yards against ULM to set a new career rushing record for quarterbacks at Middle Tennessee. Dasher now has 1,676 career rushing yards and broke the previous mark of 1,652 yards by Marvin Collier from 1985 to 1988.
With four sacks today against ULM, Middle Tennessee set a new single-season quarterback sacks record. Alex Suber's sack in the third quarter broke the record. The Blue Raiders broke the previous mark of 36 set by the 2006 team. MT now has 38 sacks for the season.
Junior Jeremy Kellem scored his second touchdown of the season when he returned an interception in the fourth quarter 58 yards. It marked Kellem's third interception of the season and the eighth of his career with two of them being returned for TDs. In 36 career games played, Kellem has been responsible for 23 turnovers (eight interceptions, four fumble recoveries, seven forced fumbles, four blocked punts).
North Texas Mean Green North Texas allowed an Arkansas State touchdown on the Red Wolves first offensive possession. Six of North Texas' 12 opponents this season scored a touchdown on their first possession of the game.
North Texas starting quarterback Riley Dodge was knocked out of the game in the first quarter when he hurt his arm trying to make a tackle after throwing an interception.
The Mean Green defense allowed touchdowns on four of Arkansas State's first five possessions. All four of those possessions came in less than three minutes of game time.
North Texas did not convert a third down in its first six tries.
Sophomore safety John Shorter made his first interception of the season and the second of his career late in the second quarter which set up the Mean Green's first touchdown of the game.
Sophomore running back Lance Dunbar rushed for a 39-yard touchdown in the second quarter, giving him 17 rushing touchdowns and 19 total touchdowns this season.
The 43 yards of offense by North Texas in the first half was the fewest yards the Mean Green has gained in a half this season.
North Texas allowed 286 yards of offense in the first half which was more than it allowed in games this year against Ohio and Florida International.
Junior linebacker Craig Robertson recorded his first interception of the season when he picked off an Arkansas State pass early in the third quarter to thwart a Red Wolves scoring drive.
Senior wide receiver Kevin Dickerson recorded the second touchdown of his career when he picked up a Lance Dunbar fumble and took it 25 yards for a score.
North Texas allowed its third blocked field goal attempt of the year.
Lance Dunbar recorded his eighth 100-yard rushing game of the year and finished with 1,378 yards - the fourth-best single-season rushing performance in North Texas history.
Troy Trojans Freshman running back Shawn Southward continued his remarkable rookie season with a career-high 152 rushing yards against ULL on just 15 carries. He also ran for two touchdowns, giving him 10 rushing scores this season, which ranks as the fifth most in the nation among all freshmen backs.
Troy improved to 42-24 under Larry Blakeney in November games and 60-1 all-time under Blakeney when scoring at least 35 points.
Troy has now scored at least 40 points in six straight Sun Belt Conference games. The Trojans averaged 41.25 points per game in eight league victories this year.
Troy improved to 26-3 vs. Sun Belt Conference foes over the last four seasons. The Trojans' .896 winning percentage in league games going back to 2006 ranks as the fourth best in the nation over that time, trailing only Boise State (30-1), BYU (29-3) and Ohio State (30-3).
Troy teams under Larry Blakeney improved to 30-10 all-time when the team has a player pass for at least 250 yards in a game. Senior Levi Brown hit that milestone for the 15th time in his 20 career starts and is 11-4 when he passes for at least 250 yards in a game.
The Trojans had four scoring drives against ULL that took less than two minutes off the game clock to complete. The drives (three for touchdowns and one for a field goal) give Troy 30 such scoring drives this year, which is fourth in the nation. The group included the quickest scoring drive of the year, a four second drive that covered three yards for the Trojans' opening touchdown.
WKU Hilltoppers WKU announced the hiring of former Hilltopper All-American quarterback Willie Taggart as its new head coach last Monday. Taggart set 11 school records during his time under center for WKU from 1995-98. He then served as an assistant coach on the Hill from 1999-2006 before spending the last three seasons as the running backs coach at Stanford.
Casey Tinius went a perfect 3-for-3 on field goal attempts Saturday at Florida Atlantic, hitting all three tries in the second half. That included a career-long 47 yard kick in the fourth quarter. It also tied a career-long attempts, as Tinius has missed a pair of 47-yard tries earlier in the season against Troy.
Seth Tamme caught his first career touchdown pass last week against Florida Atlantic. That scoring grab came on a throw from fellow wide receiver Derrius Brooks.
Bobby Rainey rushed for a career-high 144 yards against the Owls on Saturday. That came on the heels of a 134-yard performance in the previous outing at Louisiana-Monroe. Rainey enters Thursday's season finale against Arkansas State needing 131 yards for a 1,000-yard season.
