co-authored by Jamie Williams & Kent Schmidt For the first time in the short history of the Sun Belt Conference, a West Division team won the crown with Louisiana picking up the crown a season ago. But much has changed since the Ragin’ Cajans defeated Appalachian State in the SBC title game a year ago. […]
Below are the Final 2021 Top 25 FBS Group of Five (G5) rankings based on the Sagarin rankings after all postseason games have been completed in Division I play. These rankings include all FBS Bowl games and the College Football Playoff. Cincinnati stays at the top spot despite losing to Alabama in the College Football […]
The first weekend is in the books for the Group of Five teams. Eight bowls were played Dec. 17th and 18th–all involving at least one G5 team in those games. The big story of the weekend was Western Kentucky’s QB Bailey Zappe breaking former LSU QB Joe Burrow’s record with 61st TD pass of season in WKU’s 59-38 win over Appalachian State in the Boca Raton Bowl. Zappe also broke the pass yardage record with over 5,800 yards passing.
A 2021 season like no other has taken place where finally a Group of Five team will undoubtedly be playing in the College Football Playoff. Cincinnati won the American Athletic Conference title over Houston to finish (thanks to Alabama also winning the SEC over Georgia) as the only undefeated team in all of FBS. The […]
APPALACHIAN STATE AT LOUISIANAWHEN: SATURDAY, DECEMBER 4, 3:30 PM ESTWHERE: CAJUN FIELD, LAFAYETTE, LA.TV/STREAMING: ESPN / WATCHESPN The two teams that the Sun Belt Conference has ever seen in its history of the game will meet again this year for the third time. Appalachian State will travel to Louisiana after these two schools met the first two times the […]
The Ragin’ Cajuns are not new to facing a a Big 12 school to start their season.
What a first week of bowl action of the first ten bowl games of the season! Two games really caught my attention in UCF playing BYU and Coastal Carolina playing Liberty this week before the games started. BYU throttled UCF 49-23 in what looks to be QB Zach Wilson’s final collegiate game in the Boca […]
Louisiana at Coastal CarolinaWhen: Saturday, December 19th, 3:30 PM ESTWhere: Brooks Stadium, Conway, S.C.TV/Streaming: ESPN / WatchESPN Undefeated Coastal Carolina hosts one-loss Louisiana in possibly the most anticipated Sun Belt football game in the history of the league. This is the first trip to the SBC title game for the Chanticleers and the third straight for […]
Louisiana at Appalachian StateWhen: Friday, Dec. 4th, 8:30 PM ESTWhere: Kidd Brewer Stadium, Boone, N.C.TV/Streaming: ESPN/WatchESPN (subscription req’d) This was the game that before the season started was what I had predicted to be again for the Sun Belt Conference championship for the third straight season. The original Sun Belt Conference title game was slated for Dec. 4th […]
Louisiana at UABWhen: Friday, Oct. 23rd 8:00 PM EDTWhere: Legion Field, Birmingham, Ala.TV/Streaming: CBS Sports Network/Watch CBS Sports Network This late non-conference game pits to preseason favorites in their respective conferences and both come into this game with one loss. And is a fitting game to be set in historic Legion Field in Birmingham (the last season […]
Coastal Carolina at LouisianaWhen: Wednesday, Oct. 14th, 7:30 PM EDTWhere: Cajun Stadium, Lafayette, La.TV/Streaming: ESPN/WatchESPN (subscription req’d) Two 3-0 undefeated Sun Belt squads meet in this Wednesday night affair. One of those teams was expected to be atop of their division but the other is surprisingly there. This game finally found a landing spot after initially being moved […]
This week we got the news of the two previously called-off conferences of the Mountain West and Mid-American Conferences making a return to play this fall. The Mountain West will follow what last week the Big 10 completed with a return to play on Oct. 24th and each school is intended to play eight games […]
While there was a number of great match-ups in all of college football this weekend, the biggest news of the week was the return to play of the Power Five’s Big 10 Conference. The news of the Big 10 returning has the two Group of Five leagues that canceled five weeks ago contemplating on their […]
Five players including Jonathan Adams, Jr. from Arkansas State, Sincere McCormick from UTSA, Grayson McCall from Coastal Carolina, Cameron Sample form Tulane, and Chris Smith from Louisiana have been selected as the College Sports Journal All-Stars for the week ending Sept. 14th, 2020 from the NCAA Division I FBS Group of Five schools. This week’s […]
The Sun Belt is the Fun Belt definitely after Week 2!! And the Sun Belt Conference seems to own the Power Five Big 12 Conference this year. Three Sun Belt teams went on the road to Big 12 squads this past Saturday and all three will be coming home with victories. Louisiana, Arkansas State, and […]
The Sun Belt has often been considered the lowest ranked conference in all of FBS but with the play of App State and Louisiana, as well as the rest of the conference, this can not be said any longer. Right now, the Sun Belt looks to be better overall than C-USA and the MAC.
Louisiana vs. Miami (OH) (Lending Tree Bowl) When: Monday, January 6th 7:30 PM EST Where: Ladd-Peebles Stadium, Mobile, Ala. TV/Streaming: ESPN, WatchESPN (subscription req’d) Lending Tree Bowl History (Last Seven) The bowl has been titled several different things since it began following the 1999 season. The game was known as the Mobile Alabama Bowl for its first […]
All that ends well. Memphis was the top ranked College Football Playoff Top 25 Group of Five going into the championship weekend with Boise State, Cincinnati, and Appalachian State as the other three teams in the rankings. Memphis played Cincinnati in the the American Association title game at home and held on to win the […]
Louisiana at Appalachian State When: Saturday, December 7, 12:00 PM EST Where:Kidd Brewer Stadium, Boone, N.C. TV/Streaming: ESPN / WatchESPN Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns (9-2, 7-1 SBC) Sun Belt West Division Champions Location: Lafayette, La. Enrollment: 19,188 Head Coach: Billy Napier, 2nd Season (Career Record: 17-9) Season Recap:With its 31-30 win over ULM, Louisiana clinched its first 10-win season in […]
With the Major League Baseball playoff series in full swing and the National Basketball Association still in its preseason, ESPN will now start beginning the odd day games of the week. Luckily this week, however, there is a very good Group of Five contest that will allow the nation’s college football fans to witness as […]
