What's left of O5 bowl games

SERVPRO FIRST RESPONDER BOWL:  WKU(CUSA) has a knack  for pulling games out thanks to a solid D. WMU (MAC) has plenty of O Jon Wassink WMU (222-371, 2904 YDS, 19 TD), LeVante Bellamy WMU (248 CAR, 1412 YDS, 23 TD) . I'll roll with the Hilltoppers D.
WKU 19 WMU 17
AUTOZONE LIBERTY BOWL: #23 Navy(AAC) will get rushing TDs, but Kansas State QB Skylar Thompson will get in gear for a KSU 30-28 win
NOVA HOME LOANS ARIZONA BOWL: Wyoming(MWC) takes advantage Georgia State's (Sunbelt) weak D in a 26 -13 win . Valladay rushes for a 100+ for the Cowboys.
TICKETSMARTER BIRMINGHAM BOWL: Boston College vs #21 Cincinnati(AAC). I love Cincy in this onewith Michael Warren rushing for 125+ in  a 33-20 win.
FAMOUS IDAHO POTATO BOWL: Ohio(MAC) Nevada(MWC) Rourke by ground and air leads the Bobcats to a 27-23 win.
LOCKHEED MARTIN ARMED FORCES BOWL: Southern Mississippi(CUSA) Tulane(AAC)  He!! of a regional matchup being played in Fort Worth, TX. McMillan lifts the Green Wave to a 31 -29 win over USM
LENDINGTREE BOWL: ULL(Sunbelt) Miami (OH)(MAC) The Redhawks flying pattern is erratic so I'm banking on the the Cajuns QB, Levi Lewis to lead ULL to a 37 -20 win.
dec 30- Correct on WKU but just barely. The Hilltoppers  were given the final play after a five-yard defensive substitution penalty by WMU and made a FG with no time on the clock. Before that they made a FG with 1:36 on the clock. WKU 23 WMU 20
Jan 1- I was wrong on Navy who got a last second FG to beat KSt 20-17. Valladay did better than I guessed with 204 yards rushing and 2 TDS against GaSt. Freshman QB Levi Williams was a bit wild but was involved in four TDS. Props to Ellington , the Ga St QB, who accounted for 236 yards and two touchdowns despite playing with a torn right ACL. WYO 38 GA St 17

jan 3

I'm not sure why BC was there. Cincy dominated the entire game in a 38-6 win. 

jan 4

 They dumped fries on Ohio Coach Solich after the Potato Bowl win over Nevada and he ate one. LOL

jan 4 afternoon

On a roll lately as the bowl season winds down. Green Wave started slow but crested by the 3rd quarter.  J. McMillan(13-18, 215 YDS, 3 TD)had a great game for Tulane in the 31-13 win over USM

Jan 7

I went 6-1 in this bunch of games . Levi Lewis, ULL QB, tossed for 246 yards and 2TDs in a 27-17 win over Miami O.
Final O5 conference bowl standings. AAC(4-3) cusa(3-5), mac(3-4) MWC(4-3) SUNBELT(3-2)

March 30

 Not much news but I saw this: Georgia State lands Noel Ruiz, a grad transfer and FCS All-American kicker from NC A&T .

May 29, 2020

   Wyoming (MWC) will square off Sept.  25, 2021, at UConn. And this came about because of the Georgia/Clemson game announced earlier this year.  While I try to figure out why, I noticed that UConn has scheduled some big $$ future games, UNC, Michigan, and Ohio St, in its Independent future.

June 20, 2020

For you southern boys: Duke’s Mayo replaces Belk as a Bowl sponsor of the annual game in Charlotte which features an ACC team versus a team from either the Big Ten or SEC. Kentucky(SEC) beat Virginia Tech(ACC) 37-30 in the Belk Bowl on 12/31/19.

July 6, 2020

Here's the final payout for the MWC schools allowing Clemson & UGA to play in the "Kickoff" game. Clemson will pay Wyoming $1.1 million, and Georgia will cut San Jose State a $1.8 million check

Dec 27- 30 O5 bowl games

Military Bowl: Two erratic teams. Temple (AAC) VS UNC(ACC). UNC got within a point of Clemson in a loss but fell to AppST. I suspect the ground game with Carter and two guys named Williams will do enough for a Heels  24-20 win over Temple, who lost to Buffalo but upset Memphis this season. I get the feeling the Owls aren't completely confident in their QB Russo.
Cheez-It Bowl: Air Force ground attack against Wazzoo aerial show in the first ever metting of these squads on the football field. Maybe Easop Winston , WSU WR, kicks it in gear. Washing St(PAC12) 41 AFA(MWC) 35
Cotton Bowl: Memphis(AAC) has some solid tools on Offense led by the passing of Brady White and running of Gainwell, but the don't see them getting by the tough Nittany Lions. Penn St (B10) 37 Memphis 27

dec 28

A Friday split: wrong on AFA, right on UNC.
AFA rushed for 378 yards with Remsberg getting 178 and Birdow 108. WSU rolled  the dice and lost on a few 4th and short attempts. AFA 31 WSU 21
Howell (25-34, 294 YDS, 3 TD) , UNC QB,  and the rest of the Tar Heels O had a great day in a 55-13 romp over Temple.

dec 29

Roy Patterson, the Memphis kicker , hit six FGs including a 51 yarder, to keep the Tigers close, but the Lions D scored a key TD at a crucial point in the 2nd half and Journey Brown rushed for 202yards  and 2 TDs on 16 carries in a 53-39 Penn St win.
I finished 2-1 in this set.

april 21, 2020

Both Memphis RBs, Gibson and TaylorJr, are getting a lot of consideration in mock drafts, but don't forget Darrell Henderson, a rd3 pick from Memphis in 2019  fell flat for the Rams last season. My favorite O5 RB in this draft is I, #ElijahMitchell from Louisiana Tech(CUSA) averaged 5.8 yards per carry for 1,092 yards and 15 touchdowns. 

Chi-town area pre xmas 2019 hoops

Sometimes reading a print edition of the paper wakes me up to items I've missed.
The Coppin St Eagles , a Baltimore City university, who've been floundering in the MEAC for a few seasons beat Loyola of Chicago (MVC) early in November and just as I thought the Ramblers had stumbled in to a ditch, they upset Vandy(SEC)  76-72 last night .Krutwig  (22 pts, 10 assists)
DePaul (BIG East) has done well in pre conference play with wins over Iowa, Cincy, and Minnesota. Their sole loss was to Buffalo (MAC).
UIC Horizon) and Chicago St(WAC) have struggled big time.
Northwestern(Big10) had a nice win over Providence in November and came close against Sparty last night.

dec 21

It never fails:  I mentioned UIC's struggles and they go out out and beat UC Irvine(BIG West) 76-67. Ottey scored 18 for #UIC .

dec 25

On Sunday Dec 22 Chicago St Cougars lost to Indiana St(MVC) 85-64.Xavier Johnson and Isaiah Lewis led each scored  17 points in the defeat. Cougars head to Missouri(SEC) for a game on Dec 30
Loyola of Chicago lost to Davidson (A10). Marquise Kennedy scored 16 points off the bench for the Ramblers in  the loss.

DEC 29

#GodrenBoahen scored 21 points off the UIC bench in a 71-66 win over Cleveland St

jan 5, 2020

#depaul is missing those pre Xmas days. They're 0-2 in the Big East. Paul Reed had 24 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks for the Blue Demons in a 66-65 loss to Providence who won when Nate Watson sank a free throw with a second left. Depaul lost to Seton hall 74-63 on Dec 30.

jan 19

DePaul got its first Big East win this season by knocking off # 5 Butler . #paulreed was the top Blue Deacon (23 PTS, 9 REB, 1 AST) 79-66. Northwestern(B10) hung close but lost to Illinois 75-71. Tarkus Ferguson(16 PTS, 9 REB, 9 AST) led UIC to a 75-66 win in Horizon Conference action.

feb 6

Loyola of Chicago only scored 16 points in the second half of  68-39 loss  to Indiana St in MVC game . Both teams are tied for third with 7-4  records. NIU (9-2) SIU( 8-3) are ahead of them in the MVC

feb 15

My occasional interest in Chicago area teams caused me to check in on the UIC((12-15, 7-7)/Wright St(22-5, 12-2) game last night. Tarkus Ferguson scored 18 points  for UIC in its 75-58 loss. Wright St has a one game lead over Northern Kentucky(19-7,11-3) , who hasn't appeared to be miss  a beat since Coach Brannen moved on to Cincy,  in Horizon League.

March 10

 Tarkus Ferguson scored 25 points for Illinois-Chicago in 73-56 win over Wright St to  advance to its first Horizon League title game since 2004. They'll face Northern Kentucky. Wright St finished first in Horizon in regular season play but may miss the Dance.

March 11

UIC made a run at NKU late and their press did some damage , but NKY punched the Horizon Dance ticket with a 71-62 win. 

T. Ferguson (ILLCH)I15 PTS, 7 REB, 3 AST

T. Sharpe (NKY)16 PTS, 3 AST March 26 UIC has been talking a lot about getting to the Dance since they haven't punched a Dance ticket since 2004. They hired LukeYaklich, an assistant coach at Texas and a native of Illinois, to replace Steve McLain, who had three consecutive winning seasons. I bet McLain gets another HC gig soon. april 3  #DaveLeitao received a contract extension through 2023-24. I guess Depaul ADMIN saw signs of improvement, but after starting 12-1 last season they  finished16-16 overall. The Blue Demons  had solid victories against Iowa, Texas Tech and Butler but collapsed during the Big East Conference season. may 19, 2020  I was reading through my blog to see if I missed any hints that  Green Bay would fire Linc Darner who had a winning record in three of the past four seasons and took them to Dance in 2016, his first season. He was 96-80 in five seasons and  had Amari Davis,  Horizon League Freshman of the Year, returning this season.The "Zoom" coach search begins. June 9, 2020

Green Bay(Horizon) announced Will Ryan , the son of former Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan, as its next HC. He was HC at Div II Wheeling U in West Virginia last season. I'm still looking for published reasons as to why Darner was canned.

June 17, 2020

Robert Morris(NEC) is joining the Horizon League beginning in the 2020-21 academic year for everything except football. The school is  located in  Moon Township, Pennsylvania and most of the Horizon League is located in the Midwest. RMU will join Fort Wayne as the conference’s 11th and 12th members this fall.

July 15, 2020

Robert Morris stays in the news. They will replace Fordham on Hawaii's 2020 football schedule. The football team is a 1AA Independent this season before moving to the Big South.

Nov 22, 2020

 #carmitacoleman , a former Chicago State University professor, faces federal charges for allegedly embezzling over $650,000 from Student National Pharmaceutical Association, a national organization geared toward providing opportunities to minority students.  Perhaps this is one of many reasons Chicago St, a WAC member, has so many financial problems.

Feb 14, 2021

Checking back in with Chi-town hoops. It's appears  those Catholics at Loyola-Chicago are getting into Dance mode. Aher Uguak sparked the Ramblers (18-3, 13-1 MVC) scoring eight points in a two-minute span and finishing with 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting in 81-54 win over Drake (19-2, 10-2 MVC).

UIC  was swept by IUPUI, a Horizon League foe.

DePaul Blue Demons (3-9 Overall | 1-9 Big East - 11th) lost to Providence and sits alone in the Big East cellar.

Chicago St (0-9) hasn't played since just before Xmas 2020 and did play a WAC opponent. It sure appears as if  its sports program is nearly dead.

Feb 15, 2021

In the season of back to back matchups, Tremell Murphy scored 17 points, for Drake who rallied past No. 22 Loyola Chicago 51-50 on Sunday.

Aug 1, 2023

Appears NW football is setting up Skip Holtz, now a special assistant, to be the HFC in 2024. Somehow NW hoops HC Chris Collins has escaped the "hazing " storm?

Loretta Lynch will likely try to emasculate football at NW. Big 10 may need to raid another conference.

She stayed loyal to the Clintons during email scandal etc.

Aug 4, 2023

Here come the lawyers: Packers CEO Mark Murphy, the NW AD from 2003-07, is a defendant in a lawsuit by two former players, who both filed under "John Doe," were at Northwestern from 2004 to 2008.

Aug 10, 2023

'Cats Against the World' t-shirts," worn by players. NW AD says tone deaf. HC says I don't censor.

Sept 4, 2023

Rutgers 24 NW 7. It going to be a long season in Chicago. UTEP(CUSA) comes to NW- Cats looking at (0-2)?

Also, NW plays Chicago St in hoops this December.

Dec 23-26 O5 bowl games

BAD BOY MOWERS GASPARILLA BOWL- #herd  has a  decent D and Knox, a solid RB, but they won't keep pace with the Black Knights O. UCF(AAC) 38 Marshall (CUSA) 27
SOFI HAWAI'I BOWL- Zach Wilson will get back in gear and toss a few TD passes against Hawaii in a squeaker. BYU 27 Hawaii(MAC) 26
WALK-ON'S INDEPENDENCE BOWL Which Canes squad blows into Shrevport? The one that lost to FIU(CUSA) or the one who beat ACC opponents, UVA and Louisville? I suspect the Canes D will contain J'Mar Smith and beat Louisiana Tech (CUSA) 26 -17
QUICK LANE BOWL: I don't underrate the ACC as most of the national pundits do and like Pitt to roll over Eastern Michigan(MAC) 31-16. Kenny Pickett will toss two TD passes for the Panthers and the Pitt D will contain EMU QB, Mike Glass III.

dec 24

I got close on the Herd's point total and picked the game correctly. UCF 48 Marshall 25 . Knights controlled this game except for the 3rd quarter.

dec 25

BYU fought back from Hawaii's fast start to to only trail 31-24 at halftime and fell 38-34. Big game for  Cole McDonald HAW (28-46, 493 YDS, 4 TD) Incorrect pick on this one .

dec 27

I end up with a 2-2 split in this batch of picks
Canes get blanked by La Tech 14-0. The U has issues and J'Mar smith did enough for the Bulldogs on O. 
Pitt 34 EMU 31. Glass tossed for 311 yards with two touchdowns and ran for 83 yards and a TD for EMU, but he also threw punches at the end, too. Pickett completed 27 of 39 passes for 361 yards and 3 TDs, including the game winner to Taysin Mack with 47 seconds to go.

Jan 14, 2020

 Washington St  names Hawaii's Nick Rolovich head coach. Rolovich runs an Air Raid type offense similar to the one runby Mike Leach, the man he's replacing.
Feb 4: Here's a rare move: #ObiObialo , #herd Wr, transfers to Oklahoma.

feb 13, 2020

The first ever BYU football game in the state of Illinois will not come in DeKalb. NIU has scheduled it for SeatGeek Stadium, a soccer venue is in the Chicago suburb of Bridgeview.

feb 22, 2020

 Marshall's(CUSA) game vs. East Carolina(AAC), originally scheduled for Sept. 5 in Greenville, NC, has been moved to Aug. 29 at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium(ECU home field) as a feature game in Week Zero. The game will honor the the 50th anniversary of the airplane crash on Nov. 14, 1970,when so many #herd players and coaches died on a return trip from playing ECU.

march 19

Marshall(CUSA) and UNLV(MWC) will be on Notre Dame's 2022 schedule.  Rare matchups

april 22, 2020

All the doom and gloom from Covid 19 and  the Independence Bowl  lands Radiance Technologies as its new title sponsor.

June 18, 2020

I'm pretty sure this is a first:  University of Kentucky moved its  2020 opener against Eastern Michigan(MAC) from Sept 5 to Sept 3 to avoid a conflict with the Kentucky Derby.

Dec 21 O5 Bowl Games

NEW MEXICO BOWL SDST(MWC) has found various ways to put together a solid season. CMU has been erratic . Aztecs D get a pick 6  and a narrow 19-17 win
FBC MORTGAGE CURE BOWL- Tough call . Can  Flames D contain Werts, the Georgia Southern QB? Nope! I'm looking for a wild won with Hickson of Liberty rushing for two TDs in a 36-34 win
CHERIBUNDI BOCA RATON BOWL Kiffin is gone so FAU falters to SMU(AAC)  34-22. Shane Buechele will strafe the  Owls D for three TD passes.
CAMELLIA BOWL You never know which FIU(AAC) teams will show up. Arkansas St(SunBelt) QB Hatcher will have a solid day.  Ark St 29 FIU 26
MITSUBISHI MOTORS LAS VEGAS BOWL: Harsin has Boise St(MWC) nearing the heights it was at Peterson left for UW.  Peterson goes out on a winning note at UW with 23-22 win. Ahmed rushes for 100  + and a TD for the Hiskies
R+L CARRIERS NEW ORLEANS BOWL UAB's (CUSA) offense tends to disappear. App St(Sunbelt) survives losing another HC. App St 20 UAB 16

dec 22 review

Five out of six. Only incorrect pick was SMU (AAC). Robison tossed for 305 yards and two TDs for FAU in a 52-28 win.. I thought UAB was going to make it a big day for the CUSA, but App St with Boynton rushing for 157 yards and two TDs roared back for  the 31-17 win. Then FIU(CUSA) couldn't slow down Hatcher, the  Ark St QB, and lost 34-26 giving the Sunbelt a 2-0 day against the CUSA.
Another Sunbelt squad , Georgia Southern , fell to Liberty 23 to 16. Calvert's 57 yards TD pass to a wide open Huntley was a huge play for the Flames.
MWC got a split. Aztecs controlled CMU the entire game  in a 48-11 win. Boise got rolled by UW 38-7.

Jan 8:

It turns out the Aztecs win over CMU was HC Rocky Long's last victory. He was 81-38 as head coach at SDSU and before that 65-69 in eleven seasons at New Mexico which makes him the winningest HC in MWC history. Brady Hoke, the man he replaced at SDSU nine years ago, is the new HC.

Jan 27

And  Rocky Long returns  to be the Lobos DC. Man, WTH happened at SDSU? I thought he'd retire or go to a different conference as a consultant.

May 21, 2020

 Props to UAB: Georgia is on their schedule in 2021 and 2023 and LSU in 2022. UAB is 2-25 versus SEC schools. In 2000 they beat Saban's LSU squad, and they beat Miss St in 2004.

July 14, 2020

Four-star QB Shedeur Sanders, son of Deion Sanders, commits to FAU (CUSA). Big nab for Coach Taggart.

Dec 20 O5 Bowl Games

Charlotte (CUSA) and Buffalo (MAC) hit the road for  Nassau. 49ers QB Reynolds has been a pass/run threat  during the their five game winning streak and Lemay has proven to be a solid rusher. Buffalo season has been a seesaw  but  Jaret Patterson has been amazing rushing for 1626 yards.  CHAR 29 Buff 20
Utah St (MWC) and Kent St (MAC) visit Frisco, TX for a Smoothie. Kent St finished the season winning three in a row with a solid rushing attack while Utah St stumbled a bit in November.  Jordan Love , the Utah St QB, will have a big bowl game. USU 34 Kent St 19

Dec 13:

 coaching note:  UNLV(MWC) new HC is  Marcus Arroyo, former Oregon OC

dec 21

I got Macked opening Bowl day. Buffalo's D and the excellent rushing of Patterson
(32 CAR, 173 YDS, 2 TD) were the main reasons for a 31-9 win over Charlotte.
Kent St won a wild one 51-41 over USU. Love put up big passing numbers  for USU (30-39, 317 YDS, 3 TD) in a losing effort, but Dustin Crum, the Flashes QB tossed for 289 yards and two TDs plus he rushed for 147 yards and a TD.

april 7, 2020

 Kent State(MAC) opened the 2019 season  with a 30-7 loss  at Ariz St, but they're not shying away from future Pac12 road trips. They scheduled a game against Washington in Seattle on   9/3/22. Then three weeks later they 'll travel to Georgia (SEC).

april 17

 Nebraska WR Jaron Woodyard moves on to #Marshall . He doesn't have great stats but he's fast. He's a native of Bethesda, MD, which is near DC, who went to Arizona Western Community College out of high school.

april 18

 Ty'Kieast Crawford, a four-star OL, ex-Arkansas commit, signed with Charlotte(CUSA), but they have to gets his academic status repaired quickly

CUSA 2019.20 Hoops predictions

1) Western Kentucky are shaping up well for the CUSA conference play. Hollignsworth led the way with 22 points in a nice win over Arkansas(SEC) yesterday
2) North Texas Mean Green hit 19 treys in win over Ark-LR. Mohamed and Draper are over 50% in 3P%
3) Southern Miss Golden Eagles. Harper-Baker has played well. Eagles will be hanging around the CUSA  top 4
4) Charlotte 49ers upset Wake Forest. Freshman guard Jahmir Young led the way with 24 points.
5) Louisiana Tech Bulldogs: Amorie Archibald and  the Bulldogs are going to be in the hunt. Nice win over Miss St.
6) Florida International Golden Panthers: Andrews will be top scorer
7) Marshall Thundering Herd played FLA tough in a loss on Xmas eve but have looked ragged in most games. Kinsey and West are averaging 14 PPG
8) Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders has had a rough start. They'll need a ton of  treys from Antonio Green the rest of the season.
9) UAB Blazers played UK, Memphis, and Texas tough in losses. They'll need more points from Jalen Benjamin in CUSA play
10) UTEP Miners: Bryson Williams has played well and they look a little better than last season
11) Old Dominion Monarchs-Xavier Green will need to get to a 20 PPG for them to get in to the middle of the CUSA pack. Stith graduated.
12)  UTSA Roadrunners- J Jackson will need to hit a lot of treys again this season
13)  Florida Atlantic Owls- Scoring has been low. Maybe Cornelius Taylor will get into gear
14) Rice Owls will be hanging on a cellar limb again. TJ Atwood  score about 20 PPG

Jan 10, 2020

#usm (0-3) stands out as my worst prediction so far . Eagles lost 76-64 to UTEP (1-2) last night. Iran Bennett (17 points , 11 rebounds) led Marshall(2-1) to a 79-75 win over MTSU(0-3). Tavin Lovan scored 16 points for UAB(1-2) in a 72-62 mild upset of WKU(2-1).
UTSA (1-2) blew out La Tech (2-1). Fau(3-0) beat Rice(0-3) 81-76 NTX(2-1) blew out FIU(2-1) 74-56.

Jan 17

It's getting crowded at the top. Charlotte (4-0) edged Marshall 77-75. Taevion Kinsey had  29 points and 11 rebounds for the losing Herd.  FAU(4-1) beat MTSU. La Tech (4-1) beat Rice. WKU (4-1) beat ODU. NTX(4-1) beat USM.

Jan 21

In rare Monday night CUSA action Charlotte(4-2) fell to ODU(3-3) led by  Jason Wade's 23 points, and Javion Hamlet  scored 24 for NTX in a win over Rice, That's NTX sixth win in a row  and puts them alone atop the CUSA with half game lead on WKU(5-1)

Jan 24

I thought MTSU, a loser to La Tech(5-2) last night, would struggle but  not still be winless in CUSA play.   NTX is up to 7-1 with its 98-73 blowout of UTSA(3-4).  #JamirYoung scored 24 points for Charlotte(5-2) in its 70-68 win over FAU. .Eric Lovett hit six treys  for FIU(5-2) in its narrow win over ODU.

Jan 28

I'm not doing too bad on my pre-season top 4 in the CUSA.
1)NTX(8-1) I picked them second. 2)WKU (7-1) I had them first.  La Tech and Charlotte are tied for 3rd at 6-2. I had Charlotte fourth and La Tech fifth. NTX has won eight in a row and it's last defeat was to WKU who has a five game winning streak and it's last loss was to UAB.

Jan 31-

LaTech got a big win over Charlotte while WKU lost  to FIU and the #herd (4-5) is hanging around after a win over FIU . NTX 8-1, WKU and La Tech are 7-2. Charlotte is 8-3

Feb 9

Hamlet and Gibson each scored 13 points for NTX(10-2) in a win over UAB   that kept them in first place, one game ahead of WKU(9-3) a winner over USM.

 Feb 16

The top three teams NTX(12-2) , WKU(11-3), and La Tech(10-4) won yesterday. I was stunned to see Rice(5-9) beat Charlotte(8-6) and took note of Marshall(7-7) reaching .500 with it's win over UTEP(4-10).

feb 24

 The top three teams NTX(12-3) , WKU(11-4), and La Tech(11-4). La Tech's narrow win over NTX tightened up the standings and #wku  's loss to Charlotte  added to the tension. WKU faces La Tech on Thursday.

feb 28

Taveion Hollingsworth  (43 PTS, 6 REB, 3 AST) led WKU to a big win over LATech to keep them within a game of NTX who beat FIU. NTX(13-3) , WKU(12-4), and La Tech(11-5).

March 2

 Javion Hamlet (25 PTS, 4 REB, 9 AST) led NTX(14-3) to a win over WKU(12-5) and the CUSA regular season crown with one CUSA game left.

March 8

 Mikel Beyers  (20 PTS, 5 REB, 1 BLK) helped Marshall(16-15, 10-8 C-USA) to an 82-77 win over UTSA while Charlotte(10-8) lost to LA Tech which leaves  them tied with Marshall for fourth in the CUSA after NTX,WKU, and La tech. Top four get a round 1 bye.

March 12

 Taevion Kinsey had 26 points as sixth-seeded Marshall beat No. 11 seed UTEP 86-78 in the first round of the CUSAT and will play third-seeded Louisiana Tech on Thursday. FAU beat ODU. UAB beat UTSA. FIU beat Rice
 

O5 Title games 2019

AAC: Rematch of last week's game won 34-24 by Memphis. Coach Fickel will focus  on special teams to prevent another  Claybrooks KO return for  Memphis, but Memphis will eke out a narrower win 17-16 over Cincy.
CUSA: UAB at FAU UAB has shifted into a higher gear lately, but FAU hasn't lost since the Marshall game on Oct 18. FAU QB Robison will throw 2 TD passes in a 34 -22 win
MAC: Mami (OH) vs Central Michigan: Red hawks were flat in a 41-27 loss to Ball St while  the Chippewas rolled Toledo  49-7 last week.  Kobe Lewis will rush for 100 plus yards  in 28-23 CMU win over Miami O.
MWC: Hawaii at Boise St - Hawaii has a big time passing attack but Boise St will match it and  and win  30-20. I expected Highgtower, a Boise St WR, to have a big game.
Sunbelt:ULL at App St: Both teams have solid passing and rushing attacks . App St gets a pick six and wins a close one AppSt 20 ULL 19
Dec 4: On a side note: Mike Bobo parts ways with Colorado St (MWC)
Dec 6-More MWC news:  Tedford to step down at Fresno St. He was 22-6 in his first two years with a No. 18 finish in the final AP poll in 2018. He was 4-8 this season.
Dec 7: Coaching rumors :Kiffin from FAU to OL Miss. Norville from Memphis to Florida St . I just don't see how Kiffin merits an SEC gig.

Dec 8

Antonio Gibson came up big for Memphis, particularly in the game winning drive. His stat line for the game  130 yards rushing  and 1TD and 32 yards receiving and one TD . MEM 29 Cincy 24
Robison tossed 4 TD passes in for FAU in a 49-7 romp over UAB. 
Boise St D held Hawaii to ten points and got two TD passes from Jaylon Henderson in a 31-10 win
App St jumped out a big halftime lead and then hung on at the end. Levi Lewis tossed four TD passes for ULL during the comeback effort. App 45 ULL 38.
My sole incorrect pick was CMU, who couldn't overcome a solid Miami Ohio D in a 26-21 loss.

Dec 9

South Florida hires Clemson OC Jeff Scott as new head coach. Bobo, ex Colorado St HC,  is the new OC at S.Car. I'm stunned the App St HC got the Missouri gig, that's a huge leap.

dec 12

Taggart, ex FSU Hc, takes the FAU job.  Addazio, ex BC HC, takes Colorado St job  

april 28, 2020

   Troy (Sunbelt) and UAB(CUSA) , two schools in Alabama  separated by less than 140 miles., will play a home and home series later this decade.

June 12, 2020

CMU  (MAC) announced future matchups with Michigan St (B10) and this caught my attention:
Sparty  own an 8-3 advantage over the Chippewas.  The three wins for the CMU Chips came in 1991, 1992 and 2009.