Conference USA

College Football: 2008 Conference USA Preview

Raphielle Johnson — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 09:27:50 -0700

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Since joining Conference USA before the 2005 season, the Golden Hurricane of Tulsa have played in two of three conference title games. They’ve split those two meetings with UCF (winning in 2005, losing last season), and the year in which they didn’t play in the title game they finished one game out of first place. But even with the loss of exceptional quarterback Paul Smith, Todd Graham’s squad looks poised to win their second C-USA crown. Whoever gets the starting nod at quarterback out of three capable candidates (David Johnson, Clark Harrell and Jacob Bower) will have a full stable of athletes to get the ball to.

Running backs Tarrion Adams and Jamad Williams are back, along with three wide receivers that finished 2007 with at least 1,000 receiving yards. The issue that could sprout up in their quest for the Conference USA could be the lack of starting experience in the front seven, with just one returning starter (DE Moton Hopkins and LB George Clinkscale) on each of those levels. However, a number of returnees saw action on the line last season, so the linebackers will be the area that needs the most attention heading into the season. And overall improvement is needed from a unit that ranked 108^th in total defense last season.

As for who can challenge Tulsa in the West, it would be unfair to start with anyone other than Houston, even with the departure of head coach Art Briles, who took the Baylor job. Taking over is Kevin Sumlin, who previously held offensive coordinator positions at both Texas A&M and Oklahoma. Conference USA Freshman of the Year Case Keenum is back for his sophomore campaign, and you’d have to expect him to improve upon his numbers from last season. Eight starters are back on defense, including all four members of the secondary, which will also be making the switch to a 4-3 scheme from the previously used 3-4.

UTEP has been the pick of many to finish third in the West, with Trevor Vittahoe back in the saddle at quarterback. The Miners will be counting heavily on a group of sophomore wide receivers, and the defense returns seven starters. But they also have to visit both Tulsa and Houston, along with a season-ending trip to ECU. SMU may be the most intriguing story in the league, thanks to the arrival of June Jones from Hawaii.

In his first season at UH, all Coach Jones did was take a winless team and win nine games. It may take some time to get the ball rolling in Dallas, but don’t be surprised if the Mustangs pull an upset in conference play. Tulane is looking to replace RB Matt Forte in year two under Bob Toledo but does return eighteen starters. And despite having one of the nation’s best wide receivers in Jarrett Dillard, Rice could once again struggle thanks to a defense that ranked 118^th nationally last season.

The East looks to be more wide-open at the top, with four teams having a chance at winning the division. East Carolina returns seventeen starters, and quarterbacks Rob Kass and Patrick Pinkney will share the job once again. And the Pirates also have the league’s toughest non-conference slate with Virginia Tech (in Charlotte) and West Virginia as home games with road games against NC State and Virginia. Don’t be surprised if ECU splits these four games.

After the controversial decision to get rid of long-time head coach Jeff Bower, who had put together fourteen straight winning seasons, Southern Miss looks to add some spice to its offense with the hiring of offensive guru Larry Fedora. Damion Fletcher is back to run the football, but they lack experience at quarterback and have to replace all four starters on the defensive line. Defending champion Central Florida should also be in the running, but they’ve got to fill in the gaping hole left by the departure of RB Kevin Smith. But with nine returning starters back on defense, whoever replaces Smith and departed QB Kyle Israel should have a little time to get their bearings.

Memphis may be the darkhorse in the East, with head coach Tommy West welcoming back a capable corps of wide receivers, but the quarterback job is wide open. Nine starters also return on defense, led by linebacker Jake Kasser and free safety Brandon Patterson. But the unit needs to be better than their 100^th ranking in total defense if they want to contend for the East Division title.

UAB and Marshall look to be doomed to the bottom of the division once again. However, while Neil Calloway is in his second season at UAB and should have some time to build his program, Mark Snyder needs to end the Thundering Herd’s three-year losing record streak. Failure to do so could mean bad things for his job security, but the program does welcome new coordinators in Rick Minter (defense) and John Shannon (offense). Now here are some league honors heading into 2008.

Players of the Year: WR Jarrett Dillard (Rice) and LB Gerald McRath (Southern Miss)

Coach of the Year: Todd Graham (Tulsa)

Newcomers of the Year: WR DeAndre Brown (Southern Miss) and DB Rock Dennis (SMU)

Three Best Non-Conference Games

1. Virginia Tech vs. East Carolina (in Charlotte, August 30^th): The Pirates put up a good fight in their emotional 2007 opener, and could pull the upset this season.

2. Boise State @ Southern Miss (October 11^th): A mid-season clash between two of the better non-BCS programs in the last decade.

3. West Virginia @ East Carolina (September 6^th): How ECU got a Top 10 program to visit Greenville is beyond me, but the Mountaineers could regret making this concession by game’s end.

Conference Games of the Year

East Division: East Carolina @ Southern Miss (November 15^th): Not positive as to how the East race will play out, but I’m pretty sure that this game will go a long way in deciding who wins the division.

West Division: Tulsa @ Houston (November 15^th): Tulsa won last year’s meeting 56-7, something that should be on the minds of the Houston players in the days leading up to the rematch.

How they’ll finish

East: 1. East Carolina West: 1. Tulsa

2. Memphis 2. Houston

3. Southern Miss 3. UTEP

4. Central Florida 4. SMU

5. UAB 5. Tulane

6. Marshall 6. Rice

Poll: What Will be the Best High-Major Conference in 2009?

Shawn Siegel — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 09:00:04 -0700

Rise & Fall: High-Major Conference Review

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 09:01:06 -0700

In recent weeks, the Rise & Fall series has chronicled the progress (or regress) of college basketball's major conference teams. But if I equated each team to a civilization, I was mistaken. It is really the NCAA conference that equates to a burgeoning civilization or nation, each with its sometimes stable and sometimes rotating member states. Like civilizations, the prestige and power of conferences wax and wane..

Today, I'll continue with the status of the high-major conferences before moving up to the big boys. (Check out the Rise & Fall: Data article to see how the league groupings were made).

HIGH-MAJORS

ATLANTIC 10 - RISING (VERY SLOWLY)

The A10 is coming off its best season since the mid-90's, finishing 7th in the RPI, and it was arguably better than the Big Ten (the A10's non-conference RPI and median member ranking trumped the Big Ten.) This was a major turnaround considering 05-06-07 were actually subpar for A10 standards. While a decline is almost certain this time around (the top teams all lose major contributors), a more usual RPI of 9-10 seems about right.

CONFERENCE USA - RISING (SLOWLY)

Judging the CUSA is a bit more challenging than the other leagues. After all, its completely changed since 2005 when Louisville, Cincy, Charlotte, etc, left. Plus, even moreso than Gonzaga in the WCC, no team dominates a league like Memphis does. Since the realignment, the CUSA's RPI has gone up each year from 13th to 11th to 10th. This is mainly due to the strengthening of the conference's mid-level teams like UCF, USM, and Tulsa. Memphis will fall back from last year, but the 2nd tier should once again remain solid.. and bottom of the barrel Rice (3-27) has to improve.. right?

MVC - STATUS QUO

Despite reverting back to a one-bid league last year, the numbers weren't bad at all in the MVC. In fact, the leagues's non-conference RPI of 6th was better than the Big Ten & A10, and was just as good as '06 when Bradley & SIU made tournament noise. So why the sudden lack of respect? I guess there wasn't that one big BCS win to garner some positive PR like in season's past (and the struggles of flagship SIU didn't help either). Regardless, the MVC should be right there (I'm guessing next to the MWC) fighting for the title of best non-BCS league in 2009.

MWC - STATUS QUO

Going by avg. yearly RPI (8.2), this has been the strongest non-BCS league since its inception in 2000. The only thing troubling is how the league's non-conference SOS seems to get worse each year. Thus while it seemed like last year was a banner year with three potential NCAA Tourney teams (BYU & UNLV making it, UNM on the fringe), the big win totals were mostly rung up against bad teams. Due to the decline of Utah (and the departure of Rick Majerus), the league isn't as strong as it was in 02-03-04 but the rejuvenation of UNLV under Lon Kruger has helped the MWC remain strong.

WAC - DECLINING

Last year was as bad as it gets in the WAC.. or as as bad as it gets for any league that considers itself a high or mid-major. With an RPI of 20, and a non-conference RPI of 22, the league trailed such powerhouses as the Southland, Summit, and Patriot League. Not only did the top teams struggle, but the bottom teams were some of the worst in the country. Louisiana Tech, Idaho, even Hawaii at times were absolutely brutal. The positive thing to note is that it can only get better in 2009. Nevada should improve, as will New Mexico State, both of which should fight for an NCAA Tournament bid. The bad news is that the bottom of the league should struggle once again, and even if the RPI improves to 14th or 15th, it would still be considered a down year for this once proud league.

- Note that league power isn't quite as fluid as team power, so seemingly small baby steps end up counting more..

- Up Next: Mid-Majors

BCS

ACC

Big 12

Big East

Big Ten

Pac-10

SEC

High-Major

Atlantic 10

Conference USA

MVC

MWC

WAC

Mid-Major

Big West

Colonial

Horizon

MAC

MAAC

Southern

Sun Belt

WCC

Daily Dribble: 2009 NCAA Tournament Projection

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 10:25:35 -0700

We're only one day beyond the 2008 National Championship Game.. but its never too early to start thinking about next year's Tournament. Here's an early projection of the 2009 NCAA Tournament field:

Multi-Bid Leagues (46)
Big East (9) - UCONN - (Georgetown, Louisville, Marquette, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Villanova, West Virginia)
ACC (6) - Duke - (Clemson, Miami, UNC, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest)
Pac-10 (5) - UCLA - (Arizona, Arizona State, Stanford, USC)
Big 12 (5) - Kansas - (Baylor, Oklahoma, Texas, Texas A&M)
SEC (5) - Florida (Kentucky, Mississippi, Mississippi State, Tennessee)
Big Ten (4) - Purdue - (Michigan State, Ohio State, Wisconsin)
Mountain West (2) - BYU - (UNLV)
A-10 (2) - Xavier - (Dayton)
Missouri Valley (2) - Creighton - (Drake)
Conference USA (2) - Memphis - (UAB)
WCC (2) - Gonzaga - (Saint Mary's)
WAC (2) - Nevada - (New Mexico State)

One-Bid Leagues (19)
America East - Vermont
Atlantic Sun - Belmont
Big Sky - Portland State
Big South - Winthrop
Big West - Pacific
CAA - VCU
Horizon - Wright State
Ivy - Cornell
MAAC - Siena
MAC - Kent State
MEAC - Morgan State
Northeast - Robert Morris
Ohio Valley - Murray State
Patriot - American
Southern - Davidson
Southland - Stephen F Austin
SWAC - Alabama State
Summit - IUPUI
Sun Belt - MTSU

Next In Line: Washington State, Washington, San Diego State, San Diego

Note: I'll be doing an updated projection later on in the summer once decisions about the NBA Draft are made. Let me know in the comments section if you agree or disagree with the selections.

Also: Check out last year's projection which had some good, bad, and ugly picks.

Welser Wonders: A Weekly College Hoops Column

Joel Welser — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 17:05:04 -0800

The Holidays are over and that means it is time to concentrate on basketball. I have recovered from watching 32 crappy bowl games and hope to soon recover from my wii tennis elbow to bring you a glimpse into what Welser Wonders…

…what happened to the expected improvement from Conference USA? We all knew Memphis would be good, but we also expected some improvement from the rest of the conference. UAB and Houston were supposed to be looking at an NCAA bid and teams like Tulsa and UCF could have worked their way into consideration. Heading into the week, C-USA has the 11th ranked conference RPI. That’s not very good if they want a second team to make the dance.

Outside of Memphis, the conference went 86-61 in out of conference play and generally that was not against a very tough schedule. UAB, barely cracking the top 100, has the second best RPI in the conference. Yet, unless they beat Memphis a couple times, they are not going to be able to get the quality win they need to reach the NCAA Tournament. Their best win is against Cincinnati and the rest of the conference is way too mediocre to help boost their RPI or get them a quality win. So we may have an NCAA Tournament champion coming out of a one-bid league. Even when UNLV won it all out of the Big West in 1990, New Mexico State and UC Santa Barbara received at-large bids.

…who is going to watch the new post season tournament? Well, I will. But I even have my tivo set for the St. Francis (PA) and Mount St. Mary’s game, so what won’t I watch. The College Basketball Invitational, brought to you by the folks from the Gazelle Group who put together such in-season tournaments as the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic and the CBE Classic among others, pairs 16 teams who failed to make the NCAA Tournament, and most likely failed to make the NIT as well, to give us the 98th best team in the nation. The opening round games are on March 18th and 19th, which is precisely when we should all be watching game tape and filling in our brackets for the real tournament.

Coming off the bowl season, the CBI simply adds more pointless post season play to the college landscape. Extra days of practice are good for building for the future and all, but this is supposed to be basketball. We aren’t supposed to do meaningless postseason games like football. Possibly the most bizarre thing of it all, and something that is definitely not associated with college sports, is the setup of the final. The final two teams will play a best of three series. The only thing worse than watching Michigan play Oregon State in March is watching Michigan play Oregon State twice or, God forbid, three times.

I won’t complain about some of the seeding for a mock bracket, but the 2007 bracket released by the CBI contains teams who barely broke the .500 mark like Iowa, Connecticut, Oklahoma and LSU. I just don’t see who is going to care about this tournament. I don’t think Sooner fans are going to be excited not to make the NIT. Even Akron, who totally deserved a home game in this mock bracket by the way, should feel snubbed by the NIT. This is a team that a few days before their first CBI game would have had NCAA hopes…and a couple days later had hopes to make the NIT. Their consolation prize for missing out on the consolation prize is the CBI? If anybody misses out on the NIT, maybe it is just best to say our goodbyes and wait until next year to see them again.

…what is in the water in Newark, Delaware? The Blue Hens have fought their way to a 5-0 conference start with wins over top Colonial Athletic Association teams George Mason, Drexel and Old Dominion. The non-conference record is bad and losses to Central Connecticut State and Iona will not impress anybody, but Delaware has stepped it up for conference play. The CAA is looking like a one-bid league this year, so it will all come down to the conference tournament and the Blue Hens have the early leg up for the top seed.

Wednesday’s game at 4-1 VCU may tilt the conference in favor of the Rams, but Delaware has already proven that they will be a player in the CAA this year.

…why nobody has noticed that Presbyterian has gone undefeated on the season at home against Division I opponents? Among trips to Columbus, Lincoln, Clemson, Raleigh and Athens, the Blue Hose managed to get two home-and-home series against DI teams. Who cares if the team is 0-20 on the road right now? For the folks in Clinton, South Carolina, their beloved team is undefeated in the Templeton Center. PC claimed their first D-I victory over Radford 66-64 in early December on a late Al’Lonzo Coleman layup. Over a month later the team returned home and dismantled Army 52-35 in front of a sell-out crowd. That’s 2,500 people in the Templeton Center, one-fourth of the town’s population. The DI competition heading to Clinton has dried up until next season and the Blue Hose have already ended their home season against DI opposition undefeated. At the end of the year Presbyterian will join the likes of Memphis and North Carolina on the list of teams that have not lost a home game all year long against a DI team. The team has three more home games against lesser level competition left this season.

The Blue Hose have been getting a lot of attention as a new provisional DI Independent and future member of the Big South mostly because they are the Blue Hose. So what is a blue hose? At one point the team was known as the Blue Stockings and instead of going with the more traditional ‘Sox,’ Presbyterian went with the hose instead. Not as cool as it could be, but if you have a bunch of blue hoses in your shed, write Presbyterian on the side and sell them as thunder sticks.

…when the undefeated teams will lose? We are down to three undefeated teams with North Carolina, Kansas and Memphis all sporting a goose egg in the loss column. The Tar Heels toughest game may be next Wednesday at Miami until the season finale at Duke. With the level of competition in the ACC, UNC will slip on the road at some point against Georgia Tech, Florida State, Virginia, NC State or Boston College. Kansas does not have an easy path to perfection either. Saturday they head to Missouri. If the Jayhawks get by the Tigers, the next big step (and possibly the biggest of the year) is February 11th in Austin.

We know C-USA is pretty bad and that leaves Memphis with the best shot at remaining undefeated. Besides some so-so conference match-ups, Memphis hosts Gonzaga and Tennessee and that will provide the real test. However, both games are at home and Gonzaga is not that great and Tennessee has not looked as sharp as expected despite the 14-1 record. It is so tough to go undefeated during the regular season, even if you are in C-USA, but Memphis probably has the best shot at pulling it off that we have seen in quite some time.

CUSA Player of the Week: Brockieth Pane

Press Release — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 01:48:20 -0800

University of Houston freshman guard Brockeith Pane has been named the Conference USA Player of the Week after he averaged 23.0 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 steals in two games last week.

A native of Dallas, Texas, Pane began the week with 20 points, seven rebounds and two assists to lead Houston to a 73-66 victory over inner-city rival Texas Southern. Then he scored a career-best 26 points, grabbed six rebounds and collected two steals to lead the Cougars to a 95-53 victory over Grambling State.

Pane made 9-of-17 field goal attempts and all five free throws against Grambling State. Throughout the week, he shot 51.6 percent (16-31) percent from the field, 62.5 percent (5-8) from the three-point line and 75.0 percent (9-12) from the free throw line.

He ranks sixth in C-USA for scoring (17.8 ppg) and steals (1.83 spg), and second in three-point field goal percentage (.588). Pane becomes the first Houston freshman to win Player of the Week honors and eighth in the history of the league.

Daily Dribble: Top 10 Players in the CUSA

Shawn Siegel — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 07:51:21 -0800

Continuing with the best players in the high-major conferences, I move on to the CUSA. There was a danger of this becoming simply a copy of Memphis' roster, but there are underrated players scattered across the league. Conference USA 1. Chris Douglas-Roberts, G, Memphis 2. Derrick Rose, G, Memphis 3. Rob McKiver, G, Houston 4. Jeremy Wise, G, Southern Miss 5. Robert Vaden, F, UAB 6. Joey Dorsey, F, Memphis 7. Stefon Jackson, F, UTEP 8. Robert Dozier, F, Memphis 9. Paul Delaney, G, UAB 10. David Gomez, F, Tulane Next In Line Antonio Anderson, G, Memphis Dion Dowell, G/F, Houston Rod Earls, G, Tulsa Markel Humphrey, G, Marshall Willie Kemp, G, Memphis Lanny Smith, G, Houston Check back over the weekend for the Top 10 players in the MVC.

Daily Poll: Who Will Win Conference USA?

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 17:56:20 -0700

Conference USA Preview

CHN — Mon, 30 Oct 2006 20:49:11 -0800

Conference Previews | Top 144 | 06-07 Preview Home

Conference USA Preview

Conference Rank: 12th

Conference Page

All-Conference

Player of the Year - Morris Almond, Rice, G

Chris Douglas-Roberts, Memphis, G

Oliver Lafayette, Houston, G

Josh Peppers, UCF, F

Joey Dorsey, Memphis, F/C

2nd Team

Lorenzo Williams, Rice, G

Lanny Smith, Houston, G

David Gomez, Tulane, F

Devon Pearson, SMU, F

Jeremy Mayfield, UAB, F

Nat'l	Team (Click for Preview)	Conf	Tourney
21	Memphis	1	NCAA
49	Houston	2	NIT
72	Rice	3	NIT
83	UAB	4	NIT
151	Tulsa	5
175	UTEP	6
184	UCF	7
193	Tulane	8
230	Southern Miss	9
251	SMU	10
292	Marshall	11
309	East Carolina	12

CUSA Preview Articles:

CUSA Preseason Coaches Poll & All-Conference

Preseason Polls:

Best Mid-Major Team?

Who Will Be the Best Mid-Major Team?

Shawn Siegel — Wed, 25 Oct 2006 14:35:43 -0700