(01-09-2012 03:13 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  Everything could change between now and next season. The best any of us can do is guess. My best guess is :

Top teams- ULL and ASU

Second tier- WKU and maybe FIU

Middle of the pack- UNT, and maybe Troy

The bottom- ULM, FAU, MTSU, and USA

Just my opinion.

Thats basically what happened this year. Hardly ever does the same thing happen twice from top to bottom.

(01-09-2012 12:03 PM)Atlanta Trojan Wrote:  ASU
TROY
WKU
UL
MT
UNT
FIU
FAU
USA
ULM

Troy will be back next year. CLB has never had back to back losing seasons. We may not win the SB. But we will have 7+ wins

Btw this is my season end prediction. Not pre
Season prediction from the coaches

You really think MT is going to be better then UNT next season? You do know we blasted them 59-7?

Also, Troy has to come to Apogee next season.

(01-09-2012 02:31 PM)Atlanta Trojan Wrote:  

(01-09-2012 02:19 PM)slappycajun Wrote:  

(01-09-2012 11:46 AM)Arrowhead Wrote:  Should be interesting next year. ULM should be stacked too.

Not trying to be an ass, but really? I thought the reason ULM was supposed to be good this year is because you had a ton of upperclassmen.

Ya they were. They were picked to be Top 3 this year and that didn't happen for them. Troy was also picked to be 2nd and that didn't happen either....

We did not have a ton of upperclassmen. We played mostly freshmen and sophomores. What ULM had a bunch of returning starters who were mostly freshmen in 2010. We now have a bunch of returning starters who will be sophomores and juniors in 2012.

Most of our #1 ranked conference defense is coming back and nearly our entire offense will be back.

(01-09-2012 06:35 PM)SOT1977 Wrote:  

(01-09-2012 02:31 PM)Atlanta Trojan Wrote:  

(01-09-2012 02:19 PM)slappycajun Wrote:  

(01-09-2012 11:46 AM)Arrowhead Wrote:  Should be interesting next year. ULM should be stacked too.

Not trying to be an ass, but really? I thought the reason ULM was supposed to be good this year is because you had a ton of upperclassmen.

Ya they were. They were picked to be Top 3 this year and that didn't happen for them. Troy was also picked to be 2nd and that didn't happen either....

We did not have a ton of upperclassmen. We played mostly freshmen and sophomores. What ULM had a bunch of returning starters who were mostly freshmen in 2010. We now have a bunch of returning starters who will be sophomores and juniors in 2012.

Most of our #1 ranked conference defense is coming back and nearly our entire offense will be back.

I know you're not trying to be an ass, just misinformed. This is the season our coach has been pointing too. We are stacked this year. As SOT said, we return the majority of the conference's number 1 defense and lose maybe one starter on offense. This from a team that had the Cajuns, WKU, and ASU beat, but blew it. Will we blow it again this year? Maybe, but to put us last is absurd with what we bring back.

(01-09-2012 06:22 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  

(01-09-2012 12:03 PM)Atlanta Trojan Wrote:  ASU
TROY
WKU
UL
MT
UNT
FIU
FAU
USA
ULM

Troy will be back next year. CLB has never had back to back losing seasons. We may not win the SB. But we will have 7+ wins

Btw this is my season end prediction. Not pre
Season prediction from the coaches

You really think MT is going to be better then UNT next season? You do know we blasted them 59-7?

Also, Troy has to come to Apogee next season.

It's just my opinion. I think MT will improve.... And on good years when has Troy ever had problems playing SBC away games...

(01-09-2012 01:16 PM)FIU Panther Fan Wrote:  I think having 19 of 22 starters back and losing no one on defense will be very helpful for this team. We are going to be even deeper next year with our first FULL recruiting class in 5 years. Go F I U!

I, for one, am not looking forward to seeing #12 take over at QB for your Panthers. He gave us fits this season and I hate the fact we have to deal with him for the next three years.

I think looking at out schedule with ASU, UL, USA and Troy at home with trips to WKU, FAU, MT and ULM, I feel safe saying 5 conference wins is highly possible. The OOC is still not definite yet, but if it remains we'll end up 1-3 and have to win at minimum 5 conference games. I think we can beat FAU, MT, USA and Troy next year, I just don't know if we'll be able to take down UL, ASU, WKU or ULM, although we beat ULM pretty easily this year. I thought their team was loaded with seniors, it's always great news to hear conference foes have young players performing well, because you know they'll be back next year. I don't want to see that TE from Western Kentucky picking us apart for 5 yard gains over and over again next year, but it's good for the conference all teams have young talent that means the future is bright, looking foward to next year.

Too early to say, need to see who adds what.

From what I have heard there is a chance that Dyer will be available next year for ASU, and that will impact how good they can be.

I want you guys to rate ULM last. You guys are clueless if you feel that ULM is the worst to second worst team in this league. We had the no. 22 defense in the nation in 2011 and the defense is going to be even better this year. So will our offense that hit the second year wall, and our special teams. But, keep under rating us...I luv it.

(01-10-2012 09:22 AM)Seminole Indian Wrote:  Too early to say, need to see who adds what.

From what I have heard there is a chance that Dyer will be available next year for ASU, and that will impact how good they can be.

Dyer means nothing if we don't find some good O-linemen. We couldn't run the ball worth a flip this year with the linemen we had.

ULM had a few Seniors and the rest sophomores and freshmen.

ULM fans. I don't think you will be the worst team in the league. But you keep getting ranked high and keep disappointing. At some point you will have to step up and step over the hurdle.

(01-10-2012 09:31 AM)statefanatic Wrote:  

(01-10-2012 09:22 AM)Seminole Indian Wrote:  Too early to say, need to see who adds what.

From what I have heard there is a chance that Dyer will be available next year for ASU, and that will impact how good they can be.

Dyer means nothing if we don't find some good O-linemen. We couldn't run the ball worth a flip this year with the linemen we had.

I think ASU will be much more physical on the OL next year. This year’s group was just a patched together group that did 'ok' until the bowl game. Don't think it helped ASU in that game that the coach knew he was not coming back.

Those senior RBs really came up a little short in the talent department. The two young backs, if they are healthy, will be a serious upgrade in talent at that position even if Dyer is not available.

(01-10-2012 09:36 AM)slappycajun Wrote:  ULM fans. I don't think you will be the worst team in the league. But you keep getting ranked high and keep disappointing. At some point you will have to step up and step over the hurdle.

Now that is some realism that I can agree with.

(01-10-2012 12:39 PM)bluephi1914 Wrote:  

(01-10-2012 09:36 AM)slappycajun Wrote:  ULM fans. I don't think you will be the worst team in the league. But you keep getting ranked high and keep disappointing. At some point you will have to step up and step over the hurdle.

Now that is some realism that I can agree with.

Slappy's right.

(01-10-2012 09:36 AM)slappycajun Wrote:  ULM fans. I don't think you will be the worst team in the league. But you keep getting ranked high and keep disappointing. At some point you will have to step up and step over the hurdle.

(01-10-2012 01:05 PM)SOT1977 Wrote:  

(01-10-2012 12:39 PM)bluephi1914 Wrote:  

(01-10-2012 09:36 AM)slappycajun Wrote:  ULM fans. I don't think you will be the worst team in the league. But you keep getting ranked high and keep disappointing. At some point you will have to step up and step over the hurdle.

Now that is some realism that I can agree with.

Excellent point
Slappy's right.

Since I am biased and think ASU will repeat, I'll leave them out.

1. Cajuns - Hudpeth was a great hire and led a great turnaround season much like Freeze. The Cajuns made some noise and had great fan support. I expect Hudspeth will make them a perennial contender.

2. WKU - In non conferene the Toppers competed with in-state rival Kentucky and hung with SEC champ LSU for the first half but laid an egg against Indiana St. After they lost a close one to stAte they impressively ran the table in conference. It will hurt to lose Rainey but have had top recruiting classes. I expect them to have a chance to win the conference the next several years and they should be going to their first bowl game very soon.

3. North Texas - McCarney appears to be another good hire but was unable to turnaround the Mean Green as quickly as Freeze and Hudspeth did with their teams (mainly because he had less to work with.) Look for UNT to build on to the momentum they gained late in the season and to be in the upper half of the conference and bowl eligible.

4. FIU - As quickly as FIU rose to the top of the Belt, I expect them to fall to the middle of the pack just as quickly. They will still be a good team and tough to beat, but will not be the same team without Hilton. The Panthers looked great in the first half of the season but when TY got injured and was hampered the rest of the season, they did not look as good. Cristobal is a great coach and will continue to bring in players and put a competitive product on the field.

5. ULM - The Warhawks will look good on paper with having all their contributors returning but have been a perennial underachiever and have yet to show they can compete with the top of the conference. Look for this to continue unless they can find a way to overcome this like ASU did.

6. Troy - The Trojans looked very unimpressive this year to everyone's surprise. While Troy had a down year, something else happened, the other teams and coaches got better. This is not your older brother's SunBelt anymore. There are high calibur coaches and players and no team will be able to dominate anymore. With Paterno gone Blakeny is the longest tenured coach in FBS. He put Troy on the map and built them up from a D2 team to a team that shared a conference title the previous 5 years. As much as he's done he might want to consider allowing a change of the guard. I think Troy needs some fresh blood to get them back to competing for a title.

7. Middle Tennessee - much can be said about the Blue Raiders as was just said about Troy. While Stockstill doesnt have the titles as Blakeny, he was the only SunBelt coach up until this year with double digit wins. He has unfortunately been plagued with a high turnover with coordinators which has hurt with consistency. These spots are interchangeable and will depend on who comes out with more fire after their very disappointing seasons.

8. FAU - The Owls were dreadful this year and I don't think Schnelly has been motivated the past couple years. Pelini has his work cut out for him as the cupboards are bare.

9. USA - While the Jags will officially be independent, they will play a full conference schedule. Their team has been a winner so far, but should experience a rude awakening playing FBS teams. The state has a lot of talent and their transition should be faster than others. I look for them to be competitive in 3-4 years.

Overall I think the Belt has made great strides as evidenced by the amount of teams bowl eligible and the amount of non conference FBS wins. I expect both of these to increase and hope we can hire a new commish that can lead the way.

123 WKU ... UL... Ark. state, mix these three anyway you would like

4. ULM
5. North Texas
6. FIU
7. Troy
8 MTSU
9. FAU
10. USA

I think it will be hard to keep WKU off the top if these 4 and 5 star transfers mesh well with the returning guys. I think it will be a race between WKU and UL

Quote:USA - While the Jags will officially be independent, they will play a full conference schedule. Their team has been a winner so far, but should experience a rude awakening playing FBS teams

Not to nit-pick but we've already played some FBS teams and have a feel how our current talent stacks up.

(01-10-2012 09:43 PM)Tiguar Wrote:  

Quote:USA - While the Jags will officially be independent, they will play a full conference schedule. Their team has been a winner so far, but should experience a rude awakening playing FBS teams

Not to nit-pick but we've already played some FBS teams and have a feel how our current talent stacks up.

Playing 'some' isn't the same as playing 11 or 12.