4 UNDERACHIEVERS IN THE G5

UTEP: When UTEP hired Sean Kugler to replace the retiring Mike Price, AD Bob Stull, who coached Kugler when Kugler was a player at UTEP, had but one directive, just win. Kugler who was 46 at the time of his hiring in 2012, took over a UTEP team that lacked both talent and vision. UTEP has a very loyal and proud fan base. If Kugler can turn the UTEP program back into a winner, UTEP fans will be eternally grateful. UTEP's last bowl appearance was in the 2010 New Mexico Bowl. They lost to BYU 54-24. We know UTEP can do better.

TROY: The Troy Trojans are  5 time winners of the Sun Belt Conference. But um, what have you done for me lately Troy? It's also been since 2010 that Troy last played in a Bowl game, a 48-21 victory over MAC opponent Ohio. To borrow a line from country music singer Barbara  Mandrell, Troy dominated the Belt, when the Belt wasn't cool. Head coach Larry Blakeney needs to get his Mojo back if the Trojans are going to live into their full potential.  Troy is located in talent rich Alabama and has  a supportive and hungry to win fan base. We know that Troy can do better .

ARMY: College football needs a competitive Army squad. In fact college football needs all of the Service Academies to play well. Why? because  Army and the Service Academies represent the last school' in the sports world where scholar athletes  are really scholar athletes. Army recently hired Georgia  Southern coach and option guru Jeff Monken to lead the Golden Knights. Army is a team that every college football fan should cheer for and support.   We know that Army can do better.

TEMPLE: The Temple Owls are located in sports hungry Philadelphia and football hungry Pennsylvania. Temple should benefit from this right? They don't of course and the reasons are many. In fact the struggles of Temple football have been well documented throughout the years. Coach Al Golden gave the Owls a glimpse of what is possible with their football program. Temple has landed in the top G5 conference, the American. Owl fans are hoping their new conference affords them room and time to grow thier football program. New coach Matt Rhule has the Temple fan base hoping for better things to come. We know that Temple can do better.

HONORABLE MENTIONS:
FIU
FAU
AKRON
UAB
AIR FORCE

NEW VIDEO TRAILER FOR NORTH TEXAS 2014

G5 SPOTLIGHT: TEXAS STATE

BOBCAT FACTS:
*Started playing football in 1904
* Played in 3 different conferences in the last 3 years: 2011 Independent, 2012 WAC, 2013 Sunbelt
*Important rival: UTSA
*Home Stadium, Capacity and Average Capacity: Bobcat Stadium, 30,000, 18,062
* Head Football coach: Dennis Franchione

Texas State became the 11th D1 school in Texas, claiming that spot just two short years ago. Texas State however, is no stranger to football having started their program in 1904. To coincide with Texas State's jump to D1 status, the Bobcats hired journeyman Dennis Franchione to a 5 year  $350,000 contract. Franchione immediately went to work recruiting and preparing the team for the FCS to FBS jump.

The Bobcats have some good things   going for them as they begin another year in their very young  FBS life. For starters, the school is not new to winning and competing as Bobcat baseball has traditionally been strong. The school is also located in  talent rich Texas and Dennis Franchione has proven he knows how to win football games and turn programs around like he did at TCU.

The Bobcats improved on their 2012 season, with two extra wins in 2013. Looking ahead to 2014 season, Texas State fans are excited to have an  experienced OL return ,  3 solid rb's in the backfield, options at QB and a very good Lb corp, especially in players Michael Orakpo and David Mayo.

There are however, many challenges Texas State will need to overcome before they can make a name for their  football program. For starters, Texas State is late to the FBS game. Texas of course is a huge state, still, 11 FBS programs makes for challenging recruiting battles. Texas State will need to distinguish themselves from the other G5 programs in the state. North Texas, Rice, UTEP, as well as UTSA, will all be going after the same recruits Texas State does. Texas State made a smart choice in hiring Dennis Franchione, if for no other reason than he is a known entity in Texas football circles. Still, Texas State faces an uphill battle in creating brand recognition and separation from the other G5 Texas schools. Texas State had a nice win over Houston in 2012, they need to continue to play Houston as well as SMU and beat them to improve their standing among the G5 in Texas.

Look for Texas State to finish somewhere in the middle of the Sun Belt this year. They have a chance to turn some heads this season, if they can beat Navy, Illinois or Tulsa.  Either way, Texas State will have to continue to build their program one win at a time, one recruit at a time. It's hard work, but work that the loyal and small  Texas State fan base seems willing to do.

NEW COLLEGE PLAYOFF A LONG SHOT FOR G5 ACCORDING TO CBS JEREMY FOWLER

  

UCF PLAYERS CELEBRATE

One gets the sense that the  NCAA meetings in Dallas this week are the equivalent  of the Yalta Conference for College Athletics. The Big 5 , clearly the winners in the recent mash up of college athletics, are busy dividing their spoils and theifdoms , while the G5 can only wait and hope to  find a way forward to  negotiate this new and expensive  playing field. 

Further complicating matters for the G5 is that the new playoff system in College Football, a playoff system that was created to nullify the often criticized BCS system, seems to offer little  relief to G5 schools desperate for  exposure and a chance to compete on a level playing field. CBS College sports reporter and insider Jeremy Fowler, in his recent article entitled, "In playoff era , Group of 5 sees big payouts and big expenses", all but rules out the ability of any G5 school making the new playoff system in College Football. Fowler writes,  "it's structured in such a way that will make a small-conference team making the playoff doubtful at best".  

This "structuring" is designed to reward teams with strong strength of schedule resumes and punish those who don't. Going forward, G5 AD's will need to work the phones hard to convince competitive P5 schools to play them. This will more than likely mean more so called one and done games, where G5 schools travel to play a P5 school at their home stadium with no hope of a return game.

What is becoming clearer and clearer, is that to survive in this new sports landscape, G5 schools will need to have  excellent leadership, fans who are willing to empty their pockets for financial support and people who show up for games. Those G5 schools that manage to check all three of these boxes will survive  in this new landscape, those that don't, however,  will find themselves quickly outmatched and unable to compete.

FIVE SCHOOLS THAT SECRETLY WORRY THEIR P5 INSTATE BROTHERS

Arkansas State: Whatever Arkansas State has recently  put into their University water system , I would like to bottle and sell internationally. The Red Wolves have been nothing short of impressive for the past 3 years.  With 27 wins in three years, under 3 different coaching staffs no less, it is hard not to be excited about the long term potential for  Arkansas State. With only one other  school in the state, Arkansas, vying for recruits in the talent rich deep south, the Razorbacks are no doubt keeping a sharp eyed trained on what is happening in Jonesboro. Blake Anderson, head coach number 3, looks to be like another good hire for the Red Wolves.

Georgia Southern:  If only someone at Georgia Southern would have had  the vision  in the mid to late 80's to push for D1 status, Georgia Southern would now easily hold the number 2 football position in Georgia, instead of Georgia Tech. If only someone at Georgia Southern would have capitalized on the enigmatic and legendary Georgia Southern Coach, Erk Russell, Georgia Southern might actually be comfy, cozy, sitting fat and happy in a P5 conference. Erk's teams in the 80's were hotter than Georgia asphalt in August. Alas, the faithful in Statesboro, now join the ranks of those who failed to invest in the bottled water explosion in the late 20th century, that is , they are lamenting the lost opportunity. All is not dark  however for Eagle fans, as their brethren in Athens are well aware that you are now part of the D1 world. They are however, breathing a sigh of relief that it finally happened in 2014 not 1989. Still, they are a bit worried. Don't believe them when they say they are not.

ODU: 757, 757, 757, did I mention 757. Has there ever been a team born in the midst of so much football talent.  Head Coach Bobby Wilder, has to be the happiest start up coach in the history of sports. Oh, and um, ODU is also the only D1 football program in the Va Beach/Norfolk area, also known as Hampton Roads for all you geographically challenged fans.  This large area covers 5 counties and 9 cities and has 1.7 million people who call  this region home. No wonder Wilder smiles all the time.  ODU might be the first  pre-fab football school in history,  add a few nails, put in some piping and boom, you have a school that Va Tech, and UVA are looking at with a nervous twitch. Be nice to them  Mr. Wilder, they have feelings too.

MEMPHIS: Let's begin with a line from the  Pat Benatar song , "Hit me with your best shot" shall we. Memphis, "your a real tough cookie with a long  history, of breaking little hearts like the one in me". Okay, I feel better now, don't you. With only one competitive SEC school in Tennessee, Memphis has no right to struggle in football the way they do. Basketball of course, is another story. Football however, has been the achilles heel of this fine institution. Still, the Volunteer coaching staff, has to breathe a sigh of relief every time Memphis puts a bad product on the football field. If, and that is a big if, Memphis ever lives into their potential in football, not only will they be an excellent candidate to join a P5 league, but they also have the potential to be the heart burn in many coaching careers at that other school in Knoxville. Come on Memphis, hit me with your best shot..or er, um something like that.

UMASS: Okay, wait before you get that superior sports grin on your face buddy. What is not to like about UMASS football? Let's do the check list before we pretend we know more than the guy writing this column shall we:
Located in sports hungry state: check
Located in a populous state or region: check
Located in a region or state where there is limited D1 competition: check, or should I say, check mate, oh in your face.

UMASS has everything needed to make it a school on the rise and one that would make its fellow D1 competition at Boston College stand up and take notice. UMASS needs a couple to things to come together before it can fully live into its full potential. All the ingredients however, are there for UMASS to be a very good football team. (Hey Sun Belt, if you are are absolutely OCD on getting a 12th member how about UMASS. UMASS did not fare well in the MAC, but maybe they have learned from their mistakes.)

FOUR G5 SCHOOLS TO WATCH IN 2014

ULL: One word, Mark Hudspeth. Hudspeth is simply a winner. Ull right now is the second best team in Louisiana. Ull should win the Sun Belt this year and could even be a dark horse for the Access Bowl . How long however, will ULL be able to hold onto Hudspeth? If ULL has another good year in 2014, don't look for him to stay long.

ECU: Ruffin Mcneill came to ECU with high expectations. A well liked coach and alumni of ECU, winning is personal to Coach Ruff. His first years in Greenville ,however, were hard ones, as he inherited a team depleted with talent. Ruff has spent the last few years stockpiling good athletes who are team centered and molded in Ruff's own image. Last year's 10 win season has given Pirate fans much to be thankful for. Look for ECU to surprise the AAC this year and win it.

MARSHALL: Marshall head coach, Doc Holliday, may be the best recruiter in the G5 world. At the very least he has an excellent pipeline to Florida ball players and he and the Marshall AD, Mike Hamrick,  have learned how to work the Prop loophole to their advantage. With a good season last year topped off with a win against Maryland in the Military Bowl, Marshall is looking like a team that could be very dangerous. Look for them to easily win Conf USA.

BOISE STATE: What is life going to be like post Chris Peterson, the zen football guru who guided Boise State to the pinnacle of the  G5 world. Bryan Harsin, the 37 year old new Boise State head coach, takes over a team where fan and player expectations are high. Boise State has officially become an unknown entity in the football world. Can they continue their impressive winning ways, or are they destined to go the way of all great teams who lose their mojo when their coach/ architect leaves. We shall see.

SUNBELT

SUNBELT SHOULD STAY AT 11 TEAMS

Karl Benson and the Sun Belt Conference are busy looking for a 12th member to add to its ranks. The Sun Belt, like many of the G5 conferences, is somewhat in flux right now because of ongoing realignment issues. With the recent losses of MTSU, North Texas,FIU and FAU, as well as the future loss of WKU, the Sun Belt is looking for both stability and a way forward as a cohesive conference.  The Belt has looked at several schools recently but none have worked out so far. The Sun Belt set its sights on JMU, but have been rebuffed by the FCS school. JMU would have been a feather in the cap of Sun Belt. JMU maybe holding out for an offer from Conf USA or the MAC, neither however, have come  for JMU. EKU recently announced that their application for the Sun Belt had been  turned down. EKU represented an interesting choice for the Sun Belt, but one that in the end , was not what  the Belt was looking for. Current rumors continue to swirl around Liberty University, as a possible for 12 member.

Perhaps however, the Sun Belt should not be so anxious to add a  12th school, as recent signs point to the NCAA allowing conferences to hold championship games without a 12th member. 11 members allows  each of the members schools to keep more  tv money( although it is the  lowest amount among the  G5 conferences) and to build the conference brand with its new schools. Karl Benson, however, maybe feeling the pressure to add a 12th school soon in case Conf USA decides to take from it ranks again. Unless however, the Sun Belt can somehow pull a rabbit out the hat and convince  a team like Southern Miss or even UAB to join , it should wait and pick up a quality school, rather than make a desperate choice in bringing in unproven FCS schools. With schools like Ga Southern, App State, Ark State and ULL, the Sun Belt has a good nucleus of football centric schools. Mr. Benson should cool his heels and wait for the right school to come along that can compliment the hard working schools the conference already has in its stable.