College football 2021 season previews: Everything you need to know about all 130 FBS teams
https://www.espn.com/college-football/st...-fbs-teams
Conference USA West
Since UAB's return from a self-imposed death penalty, the Conference USA West title has run through Birmingham, Alabama, with Bill Clark's Blazers winning three titles in a row. Will anything change now that they return most of last year's contributors?
Like the Alamo or Pearl Brewery, hope might live in San Antonio. UTSA took a healthy step forward in Jeff Traylor's first season, and SP+ projections suggest UAB's Nov. 20 trip to the AlamoDome could determine the division champ.
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From associated link (from May 2021):
https://www.espn.com/college-football/in...on-preview
UAB Blazers
Bill Clark has coached five seasons at UAB. The Blazers have improved dramatically in three of them, qualified for bowls in four and won Conference USA in two. Goodness.
2021 Projections
Projected SP+ rank: 73rd
Projected record: 7-5 (6-2)
Likely wins (6): UTEP (93% SP+ win probability), vs. Jacksonville State (88%), Louisiana Tech (84%), Rice (74%), FAU (71%), at North Texas (66%)
Relative tossups (5): at Southern Miss (63%), at UTSA (52%), at Marshall (50%), at Tulane (38%), Liberty (35%)
Likely losses (1): at Georgia (6%)
UAB is the most proven entity in the C-USA this year, and the schedule features only one truly likely loss. It would be shocking if this wasn't another big season for the green and gold.
What we learned about UAB in 2020
The defense's ceiling is even higher than we thought. In three seasons, the Blazers improved from 105th to 45th to 28th to ninth in defensive SP+. They were sixth in yards per play allowed and first in success rate allowed, and they thrived in the red zone to boot.
They're now scheduled to bring back nine starters, 10 if you include corner Starling Thomas V, who missed 2020 with injury. Four returnees earned all-conference honors in 2020, led by linebacker/tackling machine Kristopher Moll. Hitting ninth again might be difficult, but there's no reason to think this won't again be the conference's single-best unit.
What we didn't learn about UAB in 2020
Whether the offense will ever totally come around. UAB's offense avoided three-and-outs and sacks and served its primary focus -- give the defense good field position -- pretty well, but the Blazers still ranked just 92nd in offensive SP+. It would have been at least a little better if quarterback Tyler Johnston III hadn't missed four games with injury, but Johnston now loses his best running back and his two best receivers. But all-conference tackle Sidney Wells does return.
In a year in which there's far less turnover than usual, this feels problematic, but the Blazers do still have some explosive pieces, like junior wideout Trea Shropshire and second-time freshman RB DeWayne McBride. If the O can even get to a top-75 level, that will make UAB a runaway conference favorite, but it hasn't ranked that high since 2010.
UAB's history
After a brief FCS startup, UAB joined FBS in 1996, but made just one bowl in its first 19 seasons.
Clark, Jacksonville State's former coach, came aboard in 2014, and the Blazers immediately jumped from 2-10 to 6-6.
Despite the improvement, the school announced it was ditching football at the end of 2014.
After massive outcry, UAB quickly announced its plans to bring football back. Clark (who somehow hadn't left) crafted a brand new roster, and the Blazers won eight games in their first year back, then won 11 games and their first conference title in 2018.
Now winners of two of three C-USA titles, the Blazers are scheduled to move into a new downtown home, Protective Stadium, this fall. To truly live, UAB Football first had to die.
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ESPN - College FB 2021 season previews
ESPN - College FB 2021 season previews 
