James Madison a favorite to win Sun Belt as chaos reigns in the conference
Defending champion Marshall lost coach Charles Huff and a significant portion of the roster to conference foe Southern Miss. The West Division has its own intrigue with Louisiana-Lafayette and Texas State splitting opinion on which will be on top this season.
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Toronto Star
a day ago
- Toronto Star
James Madison a favorite to win Sun Belt as chaos reigns in the conference
The Sun Belt has created a bit of a reputation for chaos. The days of single-team dominance have been replaced by fast risers, rapid turnover, unpredictable outcomes and fierce competition. Defending champion Marshall lost coach Charles Huff and a significant portion of the roster to conference foe Southern Miss. The West Division has its own intrigue with Louisiana-Lafayette and Texas State splitting opinion on which will be on top this season.
Winnipeg Free Press
a day ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
James Madison a favorite to win Sun Belt as chaos reigns in the conference
The Sun Belt has created a bit of a reputation for chaos. The days of single-team dominance have been replaced by fast risers, rapid turnover, unpredictable outcomes and fierce competition. Defending champion Marshall lost coach Charles Huff and a significant portion of the roster to conference foe Southern Miss. The West Division has its own intrigue with Louisiana-Lafayette and Texas State splitting opinion on which will be on top this season. JMU was the clear favorite in the Sun Belt preseason coaches poll, earning a league-high 11 first-place votes. James Madison the consensus favorite James Madison is in its fourth year in the conference and the Football Bowl Subdivision and has 28 wins to show for it, a steady performance that followed a run near the top of the FCS. The Dukes finished 9-4 overall and third in the East Division with a 4-4 conference record in coach Bob Chesney's first year at the helm. Quarterback Alonza Barnett III completed 60% of his passes for 2,598 yards, 26 touchdowns and four interceptions while rushing for 442 yards and seven TDs. A leg injury cut Barnett's season short, sidelining the sophomore from the Boca Raton Bowl. The Dukes brought in other options at signal-caller, including Matt Sluka, who played for Chesney at Holy Cross and left UNLV over a contract dispute. Georgia Southern was picked to finish second in the East. None of the Sun Belt Conference teams made the AP Top 25 preseason poll, but JMU (9) and Louisiana-Lafayette (1) got votes — and both are the coaches' picks to reach the title game. Are the Golden Eagles the new Thundering Herd? Under Huff, Marshall went 10-3 last season, including 7-1 in play, and beat the Ragin' Cajuns 31-3 in the league title game. Huff left for Southern Miss soon after and the Herd had to pull out of the Independence Bowl because more than 30 players jumped into the transfer portal, pushing the team below the necessary roster minimum. Several of those players followed Huff, including quarterback Braylon Braxton, the preseason Sun Belt offensive player of the year. Braxton completed 124 of 206 passes for 1,624 yards, 19 touchdowns and two interceptions while tacking on 610 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns in 2024 – all career highs. Redshirt sophomore return specialist Ian Foster and redshirt senior defensive back Josh Moten also followed Huff and were 2025 preseason all-Sun Belt selections. In the West Division Louisiana-Lafayette and Texas State each got six votes from league coaches to win the division. The Ragin' Cajuns followed their loss to Marshall in the Sun Belt title game with a 34-3 loss to TCU in the New Mexico Bowl, but it was still the best season offensively since the departure of coach Billy Napier. Significant turnover looms over its offense, losing quarterbacks Ben Wooldridge and Chandler Fields. Texas State's offense faces similar changes, bringing in a new quarterback and offensive coordinator Landon Keopple. Of the five quarterbacks on the roster, redshirt freshman Brad Jackson is the sole returner. The Bobcats acquired several transfer quarterbacks from strong programs: Keldric Luster from SMU, Holden Geriner from Auburn and Nate Yarnell from Pitt. The Bobcats also welcomed freshman Gavin Parkhurst. Key transfers Braxton, Moten and Foster weren't the only notable transfers who could have an immediate impact: — Kenard Snyder, Edge, Texas State — Kaleno Levine, CB, Troy — Zach Palmer-Smith, RB, ULM — Walker Howard, QB, Louisiana-Lafayette — Xavier Holmes, DL, James Madison — Luke Murphy, LB, Coastal Carolina Key matchups Georgia Southern at James Madison (Sept. 27), Louisiana-Lafayette at James Madison (Oct. 11), Georgia Southern at Arkansas State (Oct. 25), James Madison at Texas State (Oct. 28), Georgia Southern at Appalachian State (Nov. 6), Texas State vs. Louisiana (Nov. 8), Troy at Old Dominion (Nov. 13) __ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: and
Vancouver Sun
a day ago
- Vancouver Sun
B.C. Lions look to continue growth against Caleb Evans and the Montreal Alouettes
Halfway through the CFL season, quarterback Nathan Rourke believes his B.C. Lions still have obstacles to overcome — namely, their own mistakes. The Lions (4-5) are coming off an overtime win against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats last week, but have seen some close games fall the other way this year thanks to one or two errant plays. During the victory in Hamilton, B.C. took eight penalties for a total of 65 yards, and had a giveaway, a fumble and an interception. 'I really feel like for this team, throughout the entire year, the only people really who can get in our way are us, right?' Rourke said. 'We've certainly had our fair share of penalties and dumb mistakes and bad decisions. And it seems, at the end of the day, that's what's stopping us more than the other team. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. 'So obviously, they're gonna make some plays and stuff like that, but I think we've done a good job managing that. We've just got to make sure that we clean up that stuff, and I think it'll be OK.' All season long, the Lions have been growing, said first-year head coach Buck Pierce. Now the team needs to learn from those lessons, he said. 'That's really what I hope that we've taken from it, is, 'Hey, the past is the past. This is where we are. Understand where we are, understand what it takes for us to get better,'' he said. 'I think I've seen some growth, and I've seen some guys, some light bulbs start to come on a bit, which is good. But we need to just continue to lift the group up, and everybody else gets to that level.' B.C.'s next chance to showcase its growth and climb the West Division standings comes Saturday when the Lions host the Montreal Alouettes (5-4). The Als dropped a 23-22 decision to the Edmonton Elks last week and are looking to snap a two-game skid. They're also looking for their first win against the Lions since Sept. 9, 2022. Montreal will turn to third-string quarterback Caleb Evans this week with both No. 1 Davis Alexander and backup McLeod Bethel-Thompson relegated to the six-game injured list. Saturday will mark Evans' first start since July 25 of last year when he helped the Als to a 20-16 win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders . The 27-year-old American is 6-10 in his first 16 CFL starts, but hasn't ever started against B.C. Alouettes head coach Jason Maas isn't concerned about swapping out another QB. 'We've won games with backups here, with guys that are second- and third-string quarterbacks here over the last three years,' he said. 'We did it already this year, we've done it with a backup quarterback, as people will say. … So you ask me where my belief comes from, it's been shown. We've won games, and that's all I need to see.' Facing a quarterback who hasn't played much brings some unique challenges for a defensive unit. 'We can't do as much tape on him, but we have enough to know what he's about,' Lions defensive back Christophe Beaulieu said of Evans. 'He likes travelling, so we'll take care of that, and we're ready to go. We're ready to go. Whatever he throws at us, we'll be ready.' Montreal and B.C. have already met once this season with the Lions taking a 21-20 victory back on June 5, thanks to a walk-off field goal from Sean Whyte. The visitors felt like they 'got away with one' in that game, Rourke said. 'It was good to be able to execute down the stretch when we needed to and put together a drive. It was good to see,' the QB said. 'But ultimately, I know for me, I've got to play better. And this is a great opportunity to do so at home, where we haven't been our best either. So hopefully we can put it all together this weekend.' Saturday, B.C. Place NO RUSH: The Alouettes have been superb at limiting opponents' run games this season. Last week, the team held Edmonton running back Justin Rankin to zero yards on six attempts. Montreal is allowing a league low 4.4 yards per attempt on the ground in 2025. HISTORY BOOKS: Montreal has traditionally struggled against B.C., particularly on the road. The Lions hold a 50-36-1 edge in all-time meetings between the two teams, and are 32-9-1 at home against the Als. HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE? : The Lions have lost three straight games at B.C. Place and are at risk of matching their longest home losing skid since 2021 when the team dropped four in a row.
