(01-25-2013 08:24 AM)DaSaintFan Wrote:  

(01-24-2013 11:03 PM)laxtonto Wrote:  La Tech is losing the most SR's in the nation (32) including their QB, top 2 WR, 4 OL,,4 of their 5 in their secondary and a starting LB both their K and P and has to hire a new staff.. It might be worthwhile to temper their expectations.

I knew they were losing a few players, didn't realize it was that many...

Might have to lower my expectations for these guys (especially losing almost your entire secondary, especially in a high-offense C-USA)

Did you see our secondary last year? Losing it is a good thing.

Not going to rate them, but I'll say Middle Tennessee will do the best. With 16 returning starters they contend for the East title.

1. Middle Tenn - 16 returning starters from an 8-4 team
2. North Texas - new QB, excellent OL, improvement at every position
3. Louisiana Tech - rebuilding year with new coach
4. Florida Atlantic - Pellini at least has the ship turned in the right direction
5. UTSA - still hasn't played a full FBS schedule; they'll be good later
6. FIU - it should take Turner a year or two to get back on course

MTSU and LT will benefit the most from the move. LT will struggle this year but MTSU should be in contention for the East. I live in the Nashville area and I'm excited to see Southern Miss vs MTSU locally unless we move to the Little East of course.

(01-25-2013 11:58 AM)GrayEagle Wrote:  1. Middle Tenn - 16 returning starters from an 8-4 team
2. North Texas - new QB, excellent OL, improvement at every position
3. Louisiana Tech - rebuilding year with new coach
4. Florida Atlantic - Pellini at least has the ship turned in the right direction
5. UTSA - still hasn't played a full FBS schedule; they'll be good later
6. FIU - it should take Turner a year or two to get back on course

I'd have to agree with this one. FIU still has some talent, but the late start in recrutiing and implementing the new staff will be hard to overcome.

Pelini is putting together probably the best recruiting class that FAU has ever had. Glaring question is QB.

(01-25-2013 08:19 AM)shiftyeagle Wrote:  Looks like La Tech could be the best new addition in football and basketball. FIU in baseball.

FIU in basketball?......ummmmm. what?

(01-25-2013 10:46 AM)T_Won1 Wrote:  Tech is rebuilding. There is talent to replace the lost players, but they just haven't played much.

DL and corners will be the strength on defense, so I think we will be OK on defense.

Offense is a huge question mark. Teams usually struggle with new QBs. Running game should be the strength.

Special teams took a huge hit. We don't currently have a kicker or punter on the roster.

I look for Tech to be more "old school" next year.... good rushing offense, good rushing defense.

That being said:

1. La Tech
2. MTSU
3. UTSA
4. North Texas
5. FIU
6. FAU

Not to nitpick, but I am just as worried about your running game as the passing game. Losing 4 of the 5 starters on the OL can absolutely kill a running game. LT is going to be really hard pressed the first month or so of the season until the guys start to gel.

It is pretty amazing how many Sr's you guys lost. Are you guys getting in any grad student transfers?

Looking at the schedules, here's my early prediction:

1. Middle Tenn (9-3): Will beat one of ECU/Marshall at home, but not both. Has potential to win rest of CUSA games. Credible chance to challenge for East champ.

2. LaTech (8-4): Schedule is tailor-made for a rebuilding year, but both Tulsa and Rice will beat you at home. Chance to win rest of CUSA games.

3. UTSA (5-7): 3 OOC conference losses likely, plus losses to LaTech, Marshall and Tulsa.

4. North Texas (4-8): Tough home schedule and will lose to both LT and USM on the road.

5. FAU (3-9): Very tough division in the east for you, plus 3 OOC losses

6. FIU (2-10): New coach will take a year to get you going. Plus very tough Division schedule for you with ECU, MU, MTSU. Not sure you will win any OOC...maybe Bethune, but don't under-estimate them!

(01-25-2013 02:42 PM)laxtonto Wrote:  

(01-25-2013 10:46 AM)T_Won1 Wrote:  Tech is rebuilding. There is talent to replace the lost players, but they just haven't played much.

DL and corners will be the strength on defense, so I think we will be OK on defense.

Offense is a huge question mark. Teams usually struggle with new QBs. Running game should be the strength.

Special teams took a huge hit. We don't currently have a kicker or punter on the roster.

I look for Tech to be more "old school" next year.... good rushing offense, good rushing defense.

That being said:

1. La Tech
2. MTSU
3. UTSA
4. North Texas
5. FIU
6. FAU

Not to nitpick, but I am just as worried about your running game as the passing game. Losing 4 of the 5 starters on the OL can absolutely kill a running game. LT is going to be really hard pressed the first month or so of the season until the guys start to gel.

It is pretty amazing how many Sr's you guys lost. Are you guys getting in any grad student transfers?

In a spread offense, it will all start with the passing game. Can we beat teams deep? Will we have a playmaker at WR who forces respect at the perimeter? If so, the running game will be fine becasue our backs are tremendous. If not, we will see 8 men in the box and man coverage on the WR. Still a lot of question marks. I can't wait to see the Spring game.

FAU definitely needs to adjust their OOC schedule. No reason to have 2 or 3 beatdown games. Only hurts our chances at a bowl game.

(01-25-2013 03:30 PM)Ragu Wrote:  FAU definitely needs to adjust their OOC schedule. No reason to have 2 or 3 beatdown games. Only hurts our chances at a bowl game.

There is if you have a $65 million mortgage on a new stadium you have to pay and you can't use student fees to pay it (plus $700k to $1 million more for conference transfer costs). FAU will be playing 'body-bags' to start the season for the next couple of decades.

FAU = poultry dinner for AQ conferences.

Enjoy.

Im ok with 2 body bags, but I would want a "winnable" FBS team and a FCS to offset it. Going 2-2 OOC for most years and pulling in 2 Million + would be fine with me. If thats the price to pay for having our stadium so be it.

At least the press who attend our games don't have to bring thier own tarps, umbrellas and risk electric shock from the Press Box like those who go to FIU games do.

And sadly, Im not really kidding about that. There are numerous media outlets who have visited FIU's press box and it IS outdoors with a cover over it. I REALLY hope that gets fixed soon.

(01-24-2013 10:39 PM)ICB Wrote:  (1) MTSU
(2) La Tech
(3) FAU
(4) UNT
(5) UTSA
(6) FIU

FIU will finish closer to the top. Wait until you see their team-- huge and fast. I don't know what happened to them last year, but they definitely under-achieved.

There's no telling what kind of SoFlo talent they had redshirting.

I predict FIU to go bowling.

Dumbarse move to fire Cristobal, however.

To me, FIU is the sleeper of the new teams. They may surprise folks.

La Tech is losing so many seniors. I think there is a chance that UTSA beats them in the Dome in 2013 (if we are healthy for that game).

(01-25-2013 06:15 PM)TruBlu Wrote:  To me, FIU is the sleeper of the new teams. They may surprise folks.

Yep. I think FIU out-talented us by a mile last year, but we still won the game.

(01-25-2013 06:24 PM)KAjunRaider Wrote:  

(01-25-2013 06:15 PM)TruBlu Wrote:  To me, FIU is the sleeper of the new teams. They may surprise folks.

Yep. I think FIU out-talented us by a mile last year, but we still won the game.

...and that was the case, in my humble opinion, in several of the games we lost. Also, that is a top reason why Cristobal is not coaching at FIU anymore. Great recruiter, great person, great motivator though.

(01-25-2013 03:39 PM)FIUFan Wrote:  

(01-25-2013 03:30 PM)Ragu Wrote:  FAU definitely needs to adjust their OOC schedule. No reason to have 2 or 3 beatdown games. Only hurts our chances at a bowl game.

There is if you have a $65 million mortgage on a new stadium you have to pay and you can't use student fees to pay it (plus $700k to $1 million more for conference transfer costs). FAU will be playing 'body-bags' to start the season for the next couple of decades.

FAU = poultry dinner for AQ conferences.

Enjoy.

This is the team Howard Schnellenberger said was too good for CUSA?!? I am shocked- shocked! - that one of Howard's outlandish predictions would turn out to be false.

(01-25-2013 06:24 PM)KAjunRaider Wrote:  

(01-25-2013 06:15 PM)TruBlu Wrote:  To me, FIU is the sleeper of the new teams. They may surprise folks.

Yep. I think FIU out-talented us by a mile last year, but we still won the game.

Agree. With all due respect to our FAU friends, FIU's talent level is off the charts. Their secondary was big and fast. Tons of athletes on that squad all over the field.

This Newbie School Will Do Fine If We Merely Revisit & Duplicate Much Of Our Past:

Even as a 1-AA football program, North Texas all but won almost half a Southwest Conference schedule in 1988 as the link below indicates. 1988 was one weird football season for the Mean Green as the entire schedule results in the below link will show. And yes, (We Are) Marshall beat us 7 to 0 in the first round 1-AA play-game that season, too.

http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/coa...&year=1988
______________________________

Speaking of 1988, I'm sorry & please forgive, but I have to play the UT-Austin TV announcers classic "Uh oh" just one more time concerning a Longhorn TD that their broadcast team knew was one bad homer call at DKR Memorial. (North Texas plays UT again in a 2014 or 2015 matchup--if we had another 5K-10K seats at Apogee I really think the Longhorns (who have always been most accomodating in scheduling UNT in past decades) would actually come to Apogee Stadium on our campus to tee it up, but, oh well.....here's that homer call on YouTube below next line.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPcZN6adx7U

Then our getting back to last decade when we did go to 5 NO's Bowl games (winning one against Cincinnati) while getting schooled by USM and 3 others in that series.

So, yes, UNT has actually been there--done that with some semblance of college football success at a higher level and I won't even go into the Hayden Fry Era when I was a student--post Indian wars, of course; but our officials know that the stakes are much higher in CUSA and we want to do our part in this consortium of schools which now has almost 5 million more TV's in its footprint than the old CUSA, but we want to do our part at at Top 25 level just like USM and La Tech have done the last 2 years.

GMG!

Go CUSA!