Who's going to play much better than expected, and who'll likely end up pulling off the big upsets, throw wrenches into the system, and hang around conference races longer than anyone thought possible like Idaho, Stanford and Wyoming did last year? What teams in each conference have a shot to go from irrelevant in the offseason to potentially great in November? What teams could go from being underappreciated to elite?
Here are the programs most likely to surprise in 2010.
Sun Belt - Arkansas State
Last year the Red Wolves were a disappointment for three reasons: schedule, a bad year from QB Corey Leonard, and schedule. Leonard is gone, and new projected starter Ryan Aplin should be a great fit for an offense that will change to a no-huddle attack. And while last year's slate was brutal, this year's is a bit better.
The Red Wolves have to go to Troy and to Louisiana as part of a tough start with three of the first four games on the road, but Florida Atlantic and Middle Tennessee have to come to Jonesboro during the key midseason section. Going on the road to deal with North Texas and FIU isn't all that bad, and while there's a tough road game at Auburn to face, on the right day, ASU could hang around in the other non-conference games against Louisville, Indiana and Navy.
The defense was the best in the league last year in both yards and points allowed, and enough pieces are back to be great again. Pass rushing star Alex Carrington is gone, but the ends are solid and there's enough experience and athleticism among the outside linebackers to expect more plays in the backfield. The secondary is the weakest part of the D, but it's not all that bad with good corner prospects and some good options at safety, especially if M.D. Jennings is back from a knee injury.
http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2010/04/16...-surprise/
