This is the 3rd of my CFB previews for the year. One more thing. I really did try and not write as much (really I did), but it just didn't turn out that way. Sorry for all the reading. LOL. Nothing out of the ordinary this year. All my own writing, but obviously i did have to do allot of reading (which I have been doing a ton) and the...
Info Gathered For My Previews Have Been Taken From Phil Steels's CFB Preview, Athlon Sports and The Sporting News. Trends are From Marc Lawrence's Playbook.
American Athletic Conference Preview Can Be Found Here
ACC Conference Preview Can Be Found Here
Independents (Alphabetical)
The Army Black Knights have gone just 7-28 the last 3 years, since going 7-6 in 2010, that included a Bowl win over SMU. New HC Jeff Monken steps in with the task of turning around the fortunes of this club, but even with 16 starters back it will not be easy in his first year. The Black Knights scored 24.4 ppg last year, but should be able to put more points on the board this year with 9 starters back, including all 3 QB’s that took snaps last year. AJ Schurr looks to have the job, after playing 6 games last year and having a solid spring. He may be the better passer of the three, to go along with being a very mobile QB as well. The running game welcomes back both Terry Baggett and Larry Dixon, who combined for 1818 yards and 12 TDs last year and you can bet that Monken will get at least the same kind of production from these two, especially behind a solid OL that returns 3 starters and has some decent depth. The WR corps is seldom used, but Xavier Moss is back after catching 35 balls for 463 yards and 1 TD last year. The defense has allowed 31.8+ ppg the last 2 years, but with 32 lettermen and 7 starters back on this side of the ball, they should be a much improved group. That is very unusual for a service academy to have that many letterman back on one side of the ball, but Ellerson played many underclassmen last year and that will help them this year. The DL is the strength of this defense, with all 3 starters back and all 3 being seniors, while the LB and secondary will be much improved this year. Jeff Monken had solid success at Georgia Southern and will be expected to do the same here. He does have coaching experience at a service academy, having been an assistant at Navy, so he should do fine here. He was not happy with the team’s toughness in the spring, but I feel that will be worked out in fall camp. The Knights rank as the 10 th most experienced team in the nation by Phil Steele, with 12 senior starters overall and 13 more in the 2-deep. The Offense is improved and will sport the 9th best set of running backs in the nation, while the defense will improve as well with 32 lettermen returning on that side of the ball. The schedule has a few soft spots on it, but not enough to garner bowl eligibility. They will be improved though. KEY TREND: 1-9 ATS the last 9 meetings at Wake Forest.
The BYU Cougars went 8-5 last year, which now marks 8 winning season in a row under the guidance of Bonco Mendehall. This year the Cougars are looking for bigger things, with 14 starters back, a better than average recruiting class and a schedule that rates as 97th toughest in the nation. Taysom Hill is back at QB for an offense that averaged 30.2 ppg last year. Hill is a dual threat QB that threw for 2938 yards and 19 TDs, while also running for 1344 yards and 10 TDs. He is still just a junior and should have another solid year. Taysom led the Cougars in rushing last year, but Jamaal Williams was a close 2nd, putting up 1233 yards and 7 TDs. The Cougars also have back 4 other backs that ran for at least 200 yards last year, making this a solid group of RBs. The WR corps loses its top 2 from last year, Ross Apo (204 yards, 3 TDs LY) and Mitch Mathews (17.3 yards per catch LY) both return and will be joined by Nick Hurtz, who was a highly touted Juco player and Devon Blackmon, who transferred from Oregon and was a #7 WR coming out of HS. The OL is very strong with all 5 starters back and good depth. It is rated 15th best in the nation. The Defense for the Cougars had issues last year, especially vs the run, but this year should be much better with a DL that is improved over last year. The LB corps looks very solid as well, with Bronson Kaufusi and Alani Fiu both back, after combining for 12 TFL, 16 PBUs and 3 INTs last year. The Secondary is the strength of this unit, with all 4 starters being seniors and three of them being returning starters. The Cougars look ready for other big season this year. Their offense is stacked with playmakers and an OL that will not be pushed around this year. Taysom Hill just need to work on his accuracy some, after connecting on just 53.9% of his passes last year. The defense allowed just 22.1 ppg last year, but still they weren’t happy with the rush defense and that looks to be fixed with a much tougher DL and a LB corps that has been improved as well. The secondary looks outstanding this year. Any early road date with Texas will be tough, along with later road dates vs UCF and Boise State, but the rest of their schedule is very soft and they avoid Notre Dame this year. I expect the Cougars to finish with DD wins this year. KEY TREND: 11-2 ATS in their last 13 games vs Mountain West Conference Foes.
The Navy Midshippmen had a very nice 9-4 season a year ago, that ended with a 24-6 win over MTSU in the Armed Forces Bowl. Now with 51 lettermen back, including 15 starters they will look for another big year, especially since they are taking on the 108th ranked schedule in the nation. Keenan Reynolds is back to lead the Naval attack, after leading the team in rushing with 1346 yards and 31 TDs last year, plus he also threw for 1057 yards and another 7 TDs. For the most part he was their offense last year. Overall 84% of the rushing yards from last year are back and this ground game will operate behind an experienced OL, with all 5 starters returning. This again will be a powerful ground attack. The Passing game isn’t used all that offense, but the top WR does return from last year, in DeBrandon Sanders, who averaged 17.2 ypc on 13 catches last year. The defense allowed 24.4 ppg last year, but they will be improved this year, with 24 lettermen and 7 starters back. The DL has 2 starters back, but still Paul Quessenberry and Barnard Sarra combined for just 49 tackles on the year. The LB corps is led by Jordan Drake, who had 43 tackles and 3 sacks last year. Overall this group is the strength of this defense, with 3 senior starters in the lineup. Kwazel Bertrand and Brendon combined for 6 INT’s last year and anchor a solid secondary that has 3 starters back. The Middies have taken 9 of the last 11 Commander-in-Chief trophies, plus they have gone to 10 bowl games in their last 11 years and have beaten Army 12 years in a row now. Last year was just the 5th time in Navy history that they won 9 games, beat Army and won a bowl game all in the same season. This year’s team will be improved on both sides of the ball, as the offense comes in with a dynamic running attack that is led by Keenan Reynolds, who set the NCAA QB TD rushing record last year with 31. The defense has experience and depth this year and should improve over last year’s group that allowed 24.4 ppg. The Middies take on Ohio State and Notre Dame in neutral site games and have a road game vs Air Force, but the rest of the schedule is very soft and they should at least duplicate last year’s win total of 9 games. KEY TREND: 0-14 ATS at home off a SU win as a dog.
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have gone 37-15 in Brian Kelly’s first 4 years here and did make it to the National Title game in 2012, but Irish fans are hungry for more, especially since their team hasn’t won a National Title since 1988. The Irish lost some key pieces from last year’s 9 -4 squad, but this still is a very talented team that could put up double digits in wins this year. The Irish have really been an average offense since Brian Kelly has taken over, but this year it may be a bit different. Everett Golson is back at the QB slot after missing last year due to academic reasons. Golson led the Irish to the National Title games in 2012, so it is no wonder that Irish fans are happy he is back, especially since he looked even better than he was in 2012, in the spring. The WR corps loses TJ Jones, but 2nd leading receiver DaVaris Daniels is back, after grabbing 49 balls for 745 yards and 7 TDs last year. He will be joined by Chris Brown and a few highly touted receivers as well. The running game has a nice stable of backs that will be led by cam Mcdaniel, who ran for 705 yards and 3 TDs last year. McDaniel will be joined by Tarean Folston, who had 470 yards and 3 TDs last year and rFr Greg Bryan, who was the #6 back when he came out of HS in 2013. The OL is very solid and deep and is rated 16th best in the nation. Defense is when the Irish have to do some work this year as they have just 5 starters back on this side of the ball. The good news is that 25 defensive lettermen do return and they have a nice crop of freshmen coming in. The secondary is the strength of this team and is rated 13th best in the nation, with 3 starters back, led by KaVarae Russell, who had 8 PBUs and 1 INT last year. The Front 7 has been gutted, with just 2 starters back, but the talent that is waiting to take over all is very solid. The LB corps is rated 18th in the nation and the DL is rated 42nd by Phil Steele. New DC Brian Vangorder, look to use more of a pressure defense in order to create more turnovers and that should work with all the athletic defenders that the Irish have. Notre Dame is rated 120th in the nation as far as experience goes, but still they have a ton of young talent that is ready to take this team to another level. Problem is I don’t see it this year. Notre Dame will have a more explosive offense than last year, especially will Golson back, while the defense should also improve as well, especially in the 2nd half of the year when they all gel together. The schedule is rated the toughest in the nation, but still they don’t play a true road game until October 18 vs Florida State and they get Michigan, Stanford, North Carolina, northwestern and Louisville at home. Road games vs Arizona State and USC down the stretch will be tough. I still feel they are built for a title run next year, but don’t be surprised if they find a way to sneak into the playoffs this year, especially if that defense steps up. I’ll call for a 9-3 season though and a nice bowl bid, even vs this tough schedule. KEY TREND: 1-10-2 as home faves with revenge if off a DD SU win.