Part I of the 2008 Conference USA Preview gave a sneak peak at who should end up on top (and bottom) of the league. Part II will take a look as the key games and impact newcomers that should help shape the season to the best yet.
Key Games
College football is fun to watch because unlike other sports, every single game is important. Just one loss can relegate a team to the depths of the insignificant. This year, the Conference USA schedule is full of important games that should held decided the conference and impact the national stage.
Central Florida travels to UTEP on Sept. 27th in the conference opener for both teams. The Knights should prevail, but El Paso is a tough place to play for anyone, especially early in the season. Watch for the upset.
East Carolina will host the Houston Cougars on Sept. 27th in an early must win game for both clubs. The winner of this game will have a leg up on the competition to be the lead ball club in each division. East Carolina has a great home-field advantage, and they’ll need it to take on the Air Coog attack led by superstar quarterback Case Keenum.
Southern Miss travels to Rice on Oct. 18th. Before you scoff, you should realize the Owls picked up a win at USM last season. Both clubs are looking for bowl berths this season. The winner of this game has the inside track, and the loser might just not have enough wins at the end of the season to matter.
Southern Methodists hosts Tulsa the weekend before, and this one should be a shoot-out. Pony QB Justin Willis should have just enough experience to have the Ponies rolling by then, and Tulsa should have its quarterback situation solved. This one might be settled by the first team that scores 100.
Impact Newcomers
Newcomers will be key to several C-USA teams hoping to rebound from key losses.
Juco star quarterback Arkelon Hall will need to step in right away if Memphis is to repeat a good showing this year. Hall is athletic and has a strong arm. He’s also a solid leader and could be the brightest star on the Tigers offense.
Speaking of impact quarterbacks, another juco star will hope to lead his team this fall. Jacob Bower has all the tools to run Tulsa’s prolific offense, but only time will tell if he has what it takes to make it at the next level.
Larry Fedora picked up the highest rated recruit to commit at a C-USA school this year when he signed wide receiver DeAndre Brown. Brown should provide the immediate wow-factor the Eagles need to go along with superstar runningback Damion Fletcher. Incoming QB Austin Davis may be in the mix behind center as well.
Tulane may employ the double-impact newcomer system in the backfield. Redshirt freshman Joe Kemp may see significant time behind center, and he could be handing it off to new runningback J.T. McDonald early and often.
The Houston Cougars will have to replace Anthony Alridge at running back, and redshirt freshman Justin Johnson and redshirt sophomore Andre Kohn would seem to fit the bill nicely. This dynamic duo should fit in nicely with returning power back Terrance Ganaway to give the Coogs a solid backfield rotation.
Finally, who’s going to carry the load for departed All-American Kevin Smith at UCF? Knight insiders predict junior Phillip Smith is capable, but also be on the watch for freshman back Brandon Davis. He’s a tough, powerful runner that could see a lot of carries in 2008. Latavius Murray should be in the mix as well.
Preseason All-Conference USA team
Offense
QB: Chase Clement, Rice
RB: Damion Fletcher, USM
RB: Tarrion Adams, Tulsa
OL: Patrick Brown, UCF
OL: Josh Evans, Marshall
OL: Robbie Felix, UTEP
OL:David Berken, Rice
OL: Sir Vincent Rogers, Houston
WR: Jarett Dillard, Rice
WR: Emmanuel Sanders, SMU
WR: Brennan Marion, Tulsa
TE:Brandon Hafner, Houston
Defense
DE: Phillip Hunt, Houston
DT: Clinton McDonald, Memphis
DT: El Ash, Houston
DE: Albert McClellan, Marshall
LB: Maurice Kitchens, Marshall
LB: Adam Vincent, UTEP
LB: Evan Lee, Tulane
LB:Gerald McRath, USM
CB:Bryan McCann, SMU
CB: Joe Burnett, UCF
S:Kenneth Fontenette, Houston
S: Will Dunbar, UAB
Special Teams
K:Swayze Waters, UAB
P:Thomas Morestead, SMU
KR: Darius Marshall, Marshall
PR: Dwayne Harris, ECU
Player of the Year: Chase Clement, Rice
Offensive Player of the Year: Chase Clement, Rice
Defensive Player of the Year: Phillip Hunt, Houston
Freshman/Newcomer of the Year: Arkelon Hall, Memphis
Coach of the Year: George O’Leary, UCF
Nick Johnson – Junior MLB at ECU will make the biggest splash in C-USA this year. He has played for 2 years as backup to Fred Wilson who has graduated. Now Coach Hudson is going to turn him loose. He goes the right way every time and makes things happen!
ECU is a solid program. I look forward to seeing what Nick can do this season as Wilson’s replacement!