Conference USA Preview

By Steve Herzog
Don Best Associate Editor

Conference USA is an underrated conference, at least in terms of entertainment value. While there isn't any team that jumps out as a Top 25 certainty there are a number of interesting teams with enough talent to gain bowl bids in a conference that had six teams gained bids last season. Most of the power in the conference resides in the Western Conference with teams like Tulsa, Houston, UTEP and SMU. In the Eastern Division, East Carolina looks to be the best of the group but Marshall could surprise.

Western Division

Tulsa
Projected Record (9-3, 6-2)- Tulsa has been a Conference USA power over the last few seasons and that figures to be the case this season. The Golden Hurricane return nine starters on offense including senior running back Tarrion Adams who rushed for 1271 yards last season. Senior David Johnson should be the new quarterback and he played very little last season but he has some terrific weapons including Brennan Marion, Charles Clay and Trae Johnson, each of whom gained over 1000 yards receiving last year. The defense returns just five starters although that may be a good thing after allowing 33.4 points per game last year. The schedule is manageable, especially early and Tulsa could very well be 5-0 heading into what figures to be a big game at SMU on October 11th.

UTEP
Projected Record (7-5, 5-3)- The Miners started off 4-2 last season but then dropped their last six games to finish 4-8, their worst season under Mike Price, who enters his fifth season in El Paso. This year's team should be improved behind sophomore quarterback Trevor Vittatoe who threw for 3101 yards and 25 touchdowns against seven interceptions last season. Jeff Moturi was a 1st team C-USA wide receiver last season and should be Vittatoe's top target again this season. The defense should be better with seven starters back and what looks to be a deep line controlling play up front. The Miners will also benefit from home games against Rice and SMU. Look for a return to bowl play in Price's fifth season.

SMU
Projected Record (6-6, 5-3)- No Conference USA program got more publicity over the off-season than SMU, who brought former Hawaii head coach back to the mainland. Jones will institute his high-octane offense with quarterback Justin Willis taking the helm. Despite the team's 1-11 record last season, Willis threw for 2944 yards and 25 touchdowns while rushing for 951. He will throw to last year's leading receiver junior Emmanuel Sanders who had 74 catches for 889 yards in 2007. Like most defensive units in the conference, SMU has a lot of room for improvement. All Conference USA punter senior Thomas Morstead will handle kicking and putting duties this season. Without question SMU will be better than they were in 2007 and they should be one of the more interesting teams to watch in the nation, especially offensively.

Rice
Projected Record (7-5, 4-4)- Rice should be a vastly improved team this season. They have nine starters back on offense including senior quarterback Chase Clement who has thrown for 5666 yards and 55 touchdowns and 27 interceptions in his career. Nine of the team's top 10 receivers return as well as all of their top rushers so Clement will have plenty of options on offense. The defense allowed 42.9 points per game last season but with eight of their top nine tacklers back they should show improvement. The Owls face a tough three-game road trip following their opener at home against SMU. If they can take two out of three on their trip to Memphis, Vanderbilt and Texas, Rice could have an outstanding season.

Houston
Projected Record (7-5, 4-4)- Houston has been a solid program under Art Briles, making bowl games in four of the last five seasons. Briles is off to Baylor and Kevin Sumlin comes over from Oklahoma to try and lead the Cougars back to post season play. Houston will play a pretty tough schedule with five of their first eight games on the road including conference trips to East Carolina, SMU and Marshall. The Cougars lost last season's two best offensive players, Donnie Avery and Anthony Aldridge, but they should be very strong at quarterback with both Case Keenum and Blake Joseph back. The Cougars had one of the stronger defensive units in the conference last season and there are seven starters back on that side of the ball. There is plenty of talent on both offense and defense and the Cougars could be a surprise team in the Western Division, but lack of experience will be a problem for both the coaching staff and the offense as the season begins.

Tulane
Projected Record (3-9, 1-7)- Despite returning 15 starters, 2008 figures to be a long season for Tulane. The Green Wave lost the focus of their offense, 2200 yard rusher Matt Forte and will need to find a solid replacement to pick up the load. Andre Anderson is the leading returning rusher, gaining just 95 yards last season. Quarterback will be a battle for playing time between junior Anthony Sceflo and sophomore Kevin Moore while C- USA Honorable Mention wide out Jeremy Williams is the leading returning receiver. The defense returns four of the five leading tacklers from last season including middle linebacker Evan Lee and cornerback Josh Lumar. The Green Wave play a tough schedule including trips to Alabama and LSU, as well as UTEP, Houston, Tulsa and Memphis in conference play. They will likely be underdogs in each of those games and should experience another season in the cellar of the Western Division.

Eastern Division

East Carolina
Projected Record (7-5, 6-2)- The Pirates have 16 starters back from a team that went 8-5 and beat Boise State in the Hawaii Bowl last season. East Carolina may be the most talented team from top to bottom in Conference USA but a very difficult non-conference schedule will probably keep them from cracking the Top 25 this season. They begin their season in Charlotte, NC against Virginia Tech, then come home to play West Virginia then hit the road again for a conference game at Tulane and then a non-conference test at North Carolina St. They also go to Virginia in non-conference play. East Carolina has great depth at quarterback and on the offensive line and they have virtually their entire defense back. Look for East Carolina to find a spot in the Conference USA Championship Game at season's end, despite possibly losing all of their non-conference games.

Marshall
Projected Record (6-6, 5-3)- It's been a long time since Chad Pennington and Randy Moss played for Marshall and last year really showed it as the Thundering Herd finished 3-9. The low point was a 48-35 loss to New Hampshire at home in their third game. Things began to turn around toward the end of the season though, as Marshall won three of their last five games, including a 26-7 win over East Carolina. Marshall should be vastly improved this season as 17 total starters return. On offense there is a lot of talent back at running back and wide receiver as well as the offensive line. The quarterback position is up for grabs but there is a lot of talent at that position on the roster, so the offense should be solid. Defensively last year's top four tacklers return and they should get defensive end Albert McClellan back as well. McClellan missed 2007 to injury but was the Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year in 2006. The success of Marshall's season should come down to their November 8th contest at East Carolina.

UCF
Projected Record (6-6, 4-4)- Much like Tulane in the Western Conference, UCF has a huge void to fill at running back after losing a 2000 yard rusher. Kevin Smith had an amazing season in 2007, carrying the ball 450 times for 2678 yards and 29 touchdowns. Junior Phillip Smith and heralded freshman Latavius Murray will try to replace Smith in the backfield but the Knights will also look to throw the ball more than last year. They return their top three receivers and have junior transfer Michael Greco at quarterback. Nine starters are back from one of the better defensive units in the conference last season, including their top seven tacklers. The Knights will play a challenging schedule which includes in conference road trips to UTEP, Tulsa, Marshall and Memphis. That tough road skein may force them to a disappointing season in Orlando, especially with so much inexperience on offense.

Memphis
Projected Record (6-6, 3-5)- Memphis won five of their last six regular season games to gain a New Orleans Bowl birth. The Tigers lost to Florida Atlantic in the Big Easy but considering the way their season started, just getting to a bowl was a very positive sign. Seven starters are back on offense and eight on defense but the Tigers will need some new faces at quarterback and running back to step up. Transfer Arkelon Hall and senior Will Hudgens should battle for time behind center while junior TJ Pitts should carry the load on the ground. On the other side of the ball, the Tigers should have one of the better defensive backfields in Conference USA with three seniors in the starting lineup. This season could be the exact opposite of last season. Memphis should get off to a fast start but will have a very tough stretch beginning on the road at UAB Thursday night, October 2nd.

Southern Mississippi
Projected Record (4-8, 3-5)- Southern Mississippi has been one of the stronger non-BCS programs in the nation over the last decade or so. They've had 14 straight winning seasons and have made six straight bowl games including a 31-21 loss to Cincinnati in the Papajohns.com Bowl last season. But head coach Jeff Bower became a victim of his own success and was let go following last season. Larry Fedora will enter his first season as a head coach in Division I football when the Golden Eagles play Louisiana-Lafayette at home on August 30th. Southern Mississippi lost a lot of talent on the field as well and have just 10 total returning starters from last year's 7-6 team. Running back Damion Fletcher is back and the 1st team C-USA selection will bolster a very inexperienced offensive unit. Middle linebacker Gerald McRath will head the defensive unit once more after being named C-USA Defensive Player of the Year last year, but its unlikely McRath will be able to duplicate his success with a very inexperienced defensive line in front of him. This should be a tough season for Southern Miss. There were simply too many changes over the off-season, both on the field and on the sidelines.

UAB
Projected Record (3-9, 2-6)- UAB won two games last year, head coach Neil Callaway's first in Birmingham. There are 16 returning starters back from that team, so they should show some improvement but the talent level at this program is still substantially lower than at other C-USA schools. Converted receiver Joseph Webb should start the season at quarterback after taking over at the postion during the 2007 campaign. Webb can do a bit of everything and is easily the Blazers top offensive player no matter what position he plays. Defensively, nine starters are back from last year's team, including five of their top six tacklers. While UAB could be a bit better this season, they are still at least a year away from competing with the better teams in this division.

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