Week 9 in the O5

 MWC: Is UNLV for real? Yes, I'll take Maiava to lead the Rebels to a 30-24 win over Keene and Fresno St.

MAC: Intrastate battle! E.Michigan needs this to stay in the MACW race to remain in the hunt. Lots of field goals. EMU 19 WMU 15

Sunbelt: More intrastate action, this time in VA. James Madison holds off a pesky ODU squad 27 -21. McCloud gets it done for the Dukes.

AAC: I remained intrigued by Coach "Biff" Poggi and his Charlotte squad will pull out another squeaker, They beat ECU 10-7 last Saturday. This week CHAR 17 FAU 13.

Oct 28, 2023

Very wrong on Charlotte: FAU 38 CHAR 16. Coach Tom Herman has FAU at 3-1 in AAC play.

Oct 29, 2023

Well the Rebels were restrained 31-24. Keane tossed 3 of his 4 TD passed in the 3Q for the Bulldogs. Maiva threw 2 td passes and 2 INTs for UNLV.

I was also wrong the MAC game WMU 45 EMU 21. J. Buckley (RB - WMU)25CAR 138YDS 2TD

J. Jackson (RB - EMU) 9REC 111YDS 1TD

And finally, my only correct pick. JMU 30 ODU 27.  J. McCloud(QB - JMU) 340YDS 3TD 2INT. Elsewhere in the Sunbelt Troy handled TX ST. Appy outscored USM 34-14 in the second half for a 48-38 win.

In AAC action Tulane made their fans sweat but survived Rice 30-28

Oct 31, 2023

Ok, Maction Tuesday returns tonight. NIU is riding three game winning streak. I'll take them to beat CMU 27-17 tonight. Lombardi will toss a td pass for the victors.

Wrong again: NIU was lackluster for nearly 3 quarters, but the O comeback led by Lombardi wasn't enough. CMU 37 NIU 31

Week 7 in the O5

 Tuesday and Wednesday football started earlier this season, but I don't get to my weekly blog until Thursday so no CUSA games left to pick.

AAC:  Big respect for Tulane but can't go against Henigan and the Tigers at home. MEM 31 TUL 30.

UAB and UTSA are coming off much needed wins. Zeno will return to his birthplace San Antonio Saturday and toss two TD passes for the Blazers. UAB 30 UTSA 27

MWC: Both teams are coming off blowout losses. SDST to AFA and Hawaii to UNLV. Aztecs steal one on the road with Mayden tossing a TD pass. SDST 22 Hawaii 20

MAC: Brown has a good game running the ball for NIU, but home field won't be enough. Ohio 24 NIU 20

SunBelt: Brin has some big passing stats and will lead the GA Southern to a huge road win in Harrisonburg. GA S: 27 JMU 24

Oct 14, 2023

M. Hughes RB - TULN 26 CAR130YDS 1TD, and the Green Wave D shut down Memphis in the 4Q for a 31-21 win.  I'm 0-1 to start the week.

Oct 15, 2023

Let's see if I got any right yesterday. Just one!

 Terribly wrong on GA SO who were pummeled by JMU. UAB didn't do much better against UTSA. Ohio lost to NIU. 

However, I was right on San Diego St who beat Hawaii 41-34. Lucky Sutton ran for 2 TDs, and McCuin added pick-6 to help for the Aztecs. In other MWC news. Colorado St beat Boise St as the clock expired. UNLV (5-1 2-0 MWC) pounded Nevada and is a team to keep your eyes on.

I thought the #herd were coming back when Ali scored on a long pass play to end the 3Q to narrow its deficit to 27-24, but GAST outscored them 14-0 in the 4Q.

Oct 17, 2023

I'll toss in a Tuesday game here.  Rich Rod's Jax St squad ekes out a 24-23 win over WKU tonight. Players to watch: A. Reed QB - WKU 1665 YDS 14 TD 3INT

RUSH: M. Jackson RB - JVST 104CAR 578YDS 4TD

Well, it was Z. Webb QB - JVST (28CAR 146YDS 1TD) who was a big factor in a close game, JAX 20 WKU 17.  

Liberty beat MTSU and South Bama demolished USM.

O5 Week 13

 AAC: Tulane visits Cincy to determine who hosts the title game next week against UCF if they beat USF. Bearcats have re-grouped since a loss to UCF three weeks ago. Tulane lost to UCF two weeks ago and crushed SMU last week. Bearcats nip the Green Wave 24-23.

CUSA: WKU will win at FAU and stay in contention with North Texas for a chance at the CUSA title game against UTSA. Austin Reed will toss three TD passes. WKU 31 FAU 23

MWC:  If Fresno St beats Wyoming, they'll face Boise St in the MWC title game. Jordan Mimms rushes for 125 yards for the Bulldogs. Fresno St 24 Wyoming 20.

Sunbelt: James Madison(5-2) survived a rough 3 game loss stretch to remain in contention with Coastal Carolina(6-1) in the East. CCU's veteran QB McCall hangs tough. CCU 27 JMU 24.  Troy U and South Bama are tied for first in the West.

Nov 26, 2022

A split yesterday. Wrong on Cincy, correct on Fresno St. Spears rushed for 181 yards and 2 TDs for Tulane in a 27-24 win over Cincy. Tulane will host the AAC title game. If UCF wins, it holds the tiebreaker with Cincy and heads to Tulane.

 I'm a bit surprised that Fresno blanked Wyoming 30-0.

Nov 27, 2022

It feels like I've been wrong on JMU since October. JMU 47 CCU 7

WKU went for two in OT to defeat FAU 32-31 in OT. There's never a dull moment when Austin Reed is in the game. I went 2-2 in this blog.

What a wild day of football. I found the UTSA/UTEP game on the Stadium channel in time for the 4th Q. UTSA kicked a FG in overtime to take its only lead of the day and also win the game.

Nov 28, 2022

Fickel to Wisky. I thought Cincy would've made sure they kept him for the move to the Big 12. I'm not surprised Tulsa fired Montgomery.

Nov 30, 2022

Trent Dilfer, the head coach at Lipscomb Academy in Nashville and a former quarterback at Fresno State and in the NFL, is new HC at UAB, which is moving to AAC.

Week 6 O5 conference play

 AAC: I'm keeping my eyes on UCF but missed out on picking that game in which they played a he!! of second half and rolled SMU 41-19. ECU nearly upset NC St, but lost to Navy, while Tulane beat Houston and Kansas St but lost to S.Miss. I'll go with Ahlers tossing 3 TD passes for ECU in a victory over Tulane. ECU 27 Tulane 24

CUSA: In a battle of productive QBs, I'll give Frank Harris(UTSA) the edge at home in the Alamodome over  Austin Reed(WKU) . UTSA 41 WKU 38

MAC: E.Michigan beat Arizona St but struggled to victory of UMass and W. Michigan has been dull. I want to call this one a tie, but EMU will pull out a 17-16 win.

MWC: The passing Rebs have been lighting up the scoreboard this season. I'll roll with Doug Brumfield leading UNLV to a 30 -27 win over San Jose St.

SunBelt:  The Stun Belt has lost some of its shock appeal, but James Madison, the new 1A kid in town,  won at Appy, so I think Centeio and the Dukes pull out a 23 -19 squeaker at Ark St this week.

Oct 8, 2022

I was wrong on the passing Rebs. SJST 40 UNLV 7. Cordeiro, the SJST QB, threw for two TDs and ran for two TDs. 

 Tune woke up late for Houston and they outscored Memphis. 26-12 in the 4th for a 33-32 W.

Oct 9, 2022

I finished 3-2.  I was wrong on ECU who couldn't figure out Tulane's D. UTSA won a shootout over WKU. I was correct on EMU and JMU but guessing they would be low scoring games was off by a mile.

Surprises. Appy lost to TX ST. NIU  keeps losing, yesterday it was 52-32 to Toledo.

Oct 11, 2022

James Madison jumped into the AP top 25.  They're at Georgia Southern this week. Dukes beware of road road life in the StunBelt.

Week 4: O5 OOC 4-Pack

 Once upon a time Houston(AAC) and Rice(CUSA) were SWC members. Houston will get a much needed win but it won't be easy. McCaffrey will catch a lot of passes for the Owls, but it won't be enough. HOU 31 Rice 26.

Both QBs have decent numbers in the North Texas(CUSA)/Memphis(AAC) matchup, but Aune won't outduel Henigan. MEM 34 UNT 23

Both teams are off to rocky starts.  D. Finn will have a solid game carrying the ball for Toledo, but the Aztecs outkick them at home. SDST(MWC) 15 TOL(MAC) 13

I'm not seeing USM pulling a  Stunbelt-style upset against the surprising Green Wave(AAC) who are coming off a 17-10 win over Kansas St (Big12). Neither team has a player with incredible numbers. Perhaps a pick 6 turns the game around. TUL 19 USM 16.

Sept 23, 2022

Road party for Coastal: CCU 41-G State 24 

Air Force crushed Nevada, and Boise St lost to UTEP, who may be a threat in CUSA play this season.

Sept 25, 2022

Owls gave the Cougars a scare, but Houston prevailed 34-27.

NTX couldn't restrain the Tigers. MEM 44 NTX 34

I got darn close on picking the final score correctly on the SDST 17 Toledo 14

Zach Wilcke threw a pair of touchdown passes, and the USM D got a pick 6 in a 27-24 win over Tulane. I was correct on a pick 6 but wrong about which team got that and a win.

3-1 for the week.

App St got a taste of its own "stun" medicine and lost to James Madison, a new SunBelt member.

Big CUSA win by MTSU over Miami (FLA).

Sunbelt 2023 or 2022 expansion reverberates

 Ark-Little Rock, a non-football member of the Sun Belt since 1991, is going to the Ohio Valley Conference on July 1st, 2022.

 UT Arlington, another non-football member is is a candidate to join the Missouri Valley Conference.

James Madison HC Curt Cignetti announced the hire of Matt Transue as the new Senior Director of Football Operations.

 Transue joins the Dukes with five-plus years of experience at the FBS level as it relates to the day-to-day operations of a football program. He spent five years in various positions at Va Tech from 2017-21 then was the DFO at Ga Southern last season. I'm sure Helton, the HC at Georgia Southern, ain't digging losing him to a future SBC opponent.

Division travel shouldn't be bad in the Sunbelt East: Coastal Carolina, Appalachian State, Georgia State, Georgia Southern, Marshall, Old Dominion and James Madison.

Jan 15, 2022

Sunbelt will let #herd, USM, and ODU, know on Jan 26 if they can join for 2022 instead of 2023.

Jan 22, 2022

UTA is set to join the WAC, not the MVC, on July 1, in time for the 2022-23 athletic season. The WAC is getting Texas-heavy. 

Feb 2, 2022

Various news outlets reports that JMU will be joining the Sunbelt in all sports starting in the fall of 2022, and the Dukes are slated to open their football season against MTSU on September 3.

Feb 5, 2022

America East bans Stony Brook Seawolves from conference tournaments because it's moving to the CAA, who did the same thing to James Madison for their move to the Sunbelt. Both schools will need to get at large bids to NCAA tournaments.

Feb 23, 2022

Marshall is suing C-USA in Cabell County, WV in a bid to exit early for Sun Belt and are claiming that the current bylaws on arbitration were not in effect when they joined the conference in 2003.

CUSA may want to move Liberty(Independent in football) in earlier than the planned 2023 date.

March 30, 2022

#herd, USM, and ODU got their wish and will join the SunBelt for 2022 football season. Conference USA will play with 11 members next season and has petitioned the NCAA for health and safety reasons, a lack of bye weeks, to play two football games in Week 0 in 2022.

April 23, 2022

Well, if the Sunbelt schedules more games against division opponents than travel should be reduced.

May 4, 2022

Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF are negotiating a settlement with the AAC to leave the league early and make their Big 12 membership official on July 1, 2023 . And watch the AAC try to speed up bringing in these CUSA teams: Florida Atlantic, Charlotte, North Texas, UTSA, Rice and UAB.

May 21, 2022

Sad news for Jax St , who's transitioning to 1A while it on its way to the CUSA in 2023. Assistant head football coach Calvin Magee(59) died after suffering a heart attack. He was an assistant to HC Rich Rod at several schools over the years and played four seasons at TE for TBay Buccaneers.

May 31, 2022

Georgia Southern (40-18) of the Sun Belt Conference will host a Baseball regional for the first time. East Carolina(AAC) and S.Miss (CUSA) are also hosting. BTW, ECU opens against Coppin St (MEAC), a small inner-city schooi in Baltimore, my home town.

June 10, 2022

It's official on July 1, 2023 :Cincinnati, Houston, UCF will join the Big 12 The Big 12 will field 14 teams in 2023 . The three schools will each pay the AAC $18 million over a 14-year period to leave the conference early. As an FBS independent, BYU will only have to pay $500,000 to leave the WCC for other sports, Six CUSA schools six schools will now officially join the AAC :Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, North Texas, Rice, UAB. and UTSA CUSA will also add four schools: Jacksonville State, Liberty, New Mexico State. and Sam Houston State.

July 21, 2022

I took a nap on the Sunbelt. JMU's Homecoming Weekend October 22: The Dukes will face Marshall, a team they’ve only played to twice in the 1990s. Marshall won both matchups.

July 29, 2022

Coastal Carolina QB Grayson McCall signed an NIL deal with Darlington Raceway( “Too Tough To Tame”). I can see this one working out well.

When I went to a few Nascar races at Dover around from 1998-2000, a lot of the long- time fans told me that Darlington was a track I should visit.