A breakdown of Conference USA in '16
Newcomers to watch
Dalton Santos, LB, Louisiana Tech: The redshirt senior was well on his way to becoming a mainstay with the Texas Longhorns three years ago. Injuries contributed to a decline in playing time. He will try to go out on a high note with the Bulldogs.
Marquez McNair, WR, UTSA: Originally committed to Southern Miss, the nephew of the late Steve McNair gives the Roadrunners a dynamic playmaker at the receiver position — something that team has desperately needed for a few years.
Nick Dawson-Brents, DL, WKU: The former Louisville Cardinal never lived up to the hype that surrounded him coming out of high school. Maybe a change of scenery will help.
Toughest schedule
Louisiana Tech: Not only do the Bulldogs play seven road games this season, Skip Holtz’s bunch must travel to Arkansas, Texas Tech, Middle Tennessee and Southern Miss. Oh, joy!
Easiest schedule
UTEP: The Miners might just have the most favorable road through 2016 of any team in the nation. The combined 2015 winning percentage of UTEP’s opponents this season ranks last out of 128 Division I programs.
Team on the rise
Rice: The Owls’ rough go in 2015 was an aberration. David Bailiff’s squad lost just six starters on offense and defense.
Team under construction
Western Kentucky: The Hilltoppers won’t be a bad team this season, but there’s very little room to go any direction but down after a 12-2 C-USA championship season.
Top conference games to watch
Western Kentucky at Louisiana Tech, Oct. 6: A cross-divisional Thursday night matchup between two of the top teams in the league.
Louisiana Tech at Southern Miss, Nov. 25: It came down to the final Saturday of the regular season in 2015 to determine the West Division title. This Friday night contest at M.M. Roberts Stadium could, once again, have major implications.
Western Kentucky at Marshall, Nov. 26: A late-season matchup between two teams expected to contend for the East Division crown.
Projected player of the year
Nick Mullens, QB, Southern Miss: The reigning C-USA Offensive Player of the Year, the senior Golden Eagle quarterback has the most potential to take the MVP this time around.
Better keep an eye on
Brent Stockstill, QB, Middle Tennessee: Just a sophomore, the Blue Raiders’ coach’s son was a revelation and an All-Conference USA honorable mention selection.
Richie James, WR, Middle Tennessee: Part of the Blue Raiders’ dynamic tandem, along with Stockstill, James had more than 100 catches and eight touchdowns as a freshman in 2015.
Ito Smith, RB, Southern Miss: The junior all-purpose back put up more than 1,600 yards of total offense last season. Now that he’s the main attraction in the backfield, he could rival Mullens for the top superlative.
Predicted order of finish
(as selected by the C-USA media)
East
Middle Tennessee
Western Kentucky
Marshall
FAU
FIU
Old Dominion
Charlotte
West
Southern Miss
Louisiana Tech
Rice
UTEP
UTSA
North Texas
Coach with the toughest job
Brad Lambert, Charlotte: Relatively speaking, Lambert probably has the least to look forward to in 2016. The 49ers aren’t a bad team necessarily. But they’ll likely be the worst team in Conference USA.
Biggest shoes to fill
Brandon Doughty, QB, WKU: Hands down. Doughty was an outstanding player for the Hilltoppers for the last two seasons. It’ll be extremely difficult for anyone to come close to his production.