Conference USA is home to 14 NCAA schools. The East division is home to Charlotte, FAU, FIU, Marshall, MTSU, Old Dominion, and WKU. The West division is home to UAB, LA Tech, North Texas, Rice, Southern Miss, UTEP, and UTSA. Here is the break downs of each team’s 2018 season along with their accomplishments, as well as what they can improve on to have a successful 2019 season.
C-USA East Division:
University of North Carolina-Charlotte: Charlotte finished the season with a 4-4 conference record, going 5-7 overall. Although Charlotte had one of the least productive offenses and one of least efficient defenses in the 2018 season, fans can expect improvements on offense and defense as Charlotte will be under a new coaching staff for the 2019 season. Charlotte hired Head Coach Will Healy to take over for the 49ers. Healy has a record of 13-21 as a head coach at Austin Peay (0-11, 8-4, 5-6). Charlotte will return their starting Quarterback from the 2018 season, Chris Reynolds. Reynolds completed 100 passes out of 154 pass attempts, throwing for 1173 yards, 6 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. The 49ers will also return 11 other offensive players that had at least one reception or rushing attempt last season. For the 49ers to have a successful offensive year, their new offensive coordinator will truly need to evaluate his offensive players including the offensive line, and determine which type of offense will score Charlotte points. Last season, Charlotte only averaged 21.7 points per game which put their total scoring offense at 114th in the nation! While UNCC’s offense needs to find a way to score, their defense needs to find a way to prevent opponents from scoring. The 49ers defense gave up an average of 26.6 points per game. Fortunately for Charlotte, not only will they have 2 new defensive coordinators, but also they will be returning 13 defensive players that had 10 or more total tackles in 2018. For the team to have a successful defensive season, the new defensive coordinators will need to find the defensive scheme that works best for the 49ers. The defense also needs to improve their passing defense, as that is the defense that they struggled with for the majority of the season.
Roster: https://charlotte49ers.com/roster.aspx?roster=276&path=football
Schedule: https://charlotte49ers.com/schedule.aspx?path=football
Florida Atlantic University: Florida Atlantic finished the season with a 3-5 conference record, going 5-7 overall. In the 2018 season, the Owls had one of the more productive offenses in the NCAA, averaging 31.1 points per game which puts their offense at 45th in the nation. FAU will return starting Quarterback, Chris Robison, for the 2019 season. Last season, Robison completed 192 passes out of 304 attempts. He passed for 2540 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions. The Owls will return 11 other offensive players that had at least one reception or rushing attempt in the previous season. For FAU to have a successful offensive season, Robison will need to get his pass under control. He Threw as many interceptions as he did touchdowns, therefore if he doesn’t have to rush his pass, he could have an even higher pass completion rate. For Robison to not have to rush his pass, the offensive line needs to strengthen their protection. Doing this could also help enforce a more dominate rushing game. FAU’s main issue was their defense. They gave up an average of 31.8 points per game. The Owls will return 14 defensive players with 10 or more tackles in the 2018 season. For FAU to have a successful defensive season, they will need to work on defending their passing defense, as they allowed over an average of 200 passing yards per game. As FAU will have a new defensive coordinator in the 2019 season, improvements/adjustments are very possible, and fans should look forward to what the defense will do under coach Glenn Spencer.
Roster: https://fausports.com/roster.aspx?roster=221&path=football
Schedule: https://fausports.com/schedule.aspx?path=football
Florida International University: Florida International capped off their season with a Bahamas Bowl victory over Toledo by a score of 35-32. FIU went 6-2 in conference, and 9-4 overall. In the 2018 season, the Golden Panthers had the 28th most efficient offenses in the NCAA, averaging 34.6 points per game. FIU will return starting Quarterback, James Morgan, for the 2019 season. In 2018, Morgan had a very successful season, completing 213 passes out of 326 pass attempts, throwing for 2727 yards, 26 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions. Morgan also scored 1 rushing touchdown in 2018. FIU will return 14 other offensive players with one or more reception or rushing attempt. For FIU to have a successful offensive season, they will need to get their turnovers under control. The offense will also need to find a way to convert on 3rd downs as their percentage is 46.8%. FIU’s defense gave up an average of 25.2 points per game, which puts their defense at 46th in the nation. FIU will return 15 players that had 10 or more tackles in the 2018 season. For FIU to have a successful defensive season, the main thing they will need to work on is their rushing defense, as that was their main struggle in 2018. If they can truly perfect this, then they should be okay.
Roster: https://fiusports.com/roster.aspx?roster=238&path=football
Schedule: https://fiusports.com/schedule.aspx?path=football
Marshall University: Marshall capped off their 2018 season with a Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl victory against South Florida by a score of 38-20. Last season, the Thundering Herd’s offense averaged only 28.2 points per game, putting their offense at 74th in the nation. For the 2019 season, Marshall will return starting Quarterback Isaiah Green. Last season, Green had 187 completions on 330 attempts. Green passed for 2459 yards, 15 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. Marshall will return 10 offensive players who had at least one reception or rushing attempt. For Marshall to have a successful offensive season, the offensive line needs to protect Green so that his passes are not rushed, and so he doesn’t throw 10 interceptions. Marshall also needs to work on their red zone offense as they often had to settle for field goals, or failed 4th down conversions. Despite having of the least efficient offenses in 2018, Marshall had one of the most effective defenses. Marshall’s defense only gave up an average of 21.8 points per game, which puts their defense at 27th in the nation. Marshall will return 11 defensive players who ad 10 or more total tackles in the 2018 season. For Marshall to have a successful defensive season, they need to focus on their passing defense as they gave up an average of 230 yards passing per game in 2018! If they can dominate their passing defense, Marshall could have a lights-out defensive year.
Roster: https://herdzone.com/roster.aspx?path=football
Schedule: https://herdzone.com/schedule.aspx?path=football
Middle Tennessee State University: Middle Tennessee ended their season with a loss in the New Orleans Bowl against Appalachian State by a score of 45-13. The Blue Raiders had a 7-1 conference record, going 8-6 overall. Last season, MTSU’s offense averaged 28 points per game, which put their offense at 77th in the nation. Because MTSU will not return their starting Quarterback from 2018, they will look for a starting Quarterback in Chase Cunningham, Asher O’Hara, or Ty Lee. The Blue Raiders will return 12 other offensive players with at least one reception or rushing attempt. For MTSU to have a successful offensive season, the Blue Raiders will need to improve their rushing offense as they only rushed for a little over 120 yards per game. They will also need to drastically improve their 3rd down offense as they only converted on 3rd down on 75 times on 200 attempts! Defensively, MTSU gave up an average of 26.1 points per game which puts their defense at 62nd in the nation. The Blue Raiders will return 15 defensive players that had 10 or more tackles in the 2018 season. For MTSU to have a successful defensive season, they will need to work on their rushing defense as that was the team’s greatest weakness in 2018.
Roster: https://goblueraiders.com/roster.aspx?roster=1301&path=
Schedule: https://goblueraiders.com/schedule.aspx?path=football
Old Dominion University: Old Dominion finished the 2018 season with a 2-6 conference record, going 4-8 overall. The Monarchs averaged 30.8 points per game, putting their offense at 49th in the nation. As the Monarchs lost their starting Quarterback, they will probably name Steven Williams to be their starter in 2019. Williams completed 41 passes on 81 pass attempts. He threw for 507 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. The Monarchs will return 11 other offensive players who had at least one rushing attempt or reception in the 2018 season. For Old Dominion to have a successful offensive season, the younger offensive players are going to need to step up and find ways to score, as their more experience teammates from 2018 are no longer on the team. Although the Monarch’s offense is not their biggest problem, they will need to find a way to score more (passing or rushing) while the defense works out their issues. ODU’s defense allowed an averaged of 35.9 points per game in the 2018 season, which put their defense at 111th in the nation. They gave up an averaged of 471.4 yards per game, which their record reflect that. The Monarchs will return 11 defensive players that had 10 or more tackles in the 2018 season, which shows that this ODU defensive unit will be coming into 2019 with a lot of experience. Another positive sign for the Monarchs is that they named a new defensive coordinator to the coaching staff, David Blackwell. For ODU to have a successful defensive season, they will need to definitely improve their passing defense as they allowed for opponents to pass for an average of over 250 yards per game! Hopefully David Blackwell will be able to figure out a defensive scheme for the Monarchs to stop their opponent more effectively, thus helping the team have a successful season all around.
Roster: http://www.odusports.com/SportSelect.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=31100&SPID=127313&SPSID=750428
Schedule: http://www.odusports.com/SportSelect.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=31100&SPID=127313&SPSID=750427
Western Kentucky University: Western Kentucky finished the 2018 season with a 2-6 conference record, going 3-9 overall. For the 2019 season, the Hilltoppers will be under a new coaching staff, lead by WKU’s new Head Coach Tyson Helton. In 2018, WKU had one of the least productive offenses in the nation, only averaging 21.1 points per game (118th in the nation). The Hilltoppers will look to start either Steven Duncan or Ty Storey for the 2018 season. WKU will return 12 other offensive players with one or more reception/rushing attempt from the previous season. For the Hilltoppers to have a successful offensive season, the new coaching staff’s offensive coordinators are going to have to do some evaluating on offense as they have a lot of work to do. They will need to especially work on their 3rd down offense because they only converted on 3rd down on 72 out of 185 attempts (38.9%). They also need to work on their red zone offense as they only scored a touchdown 25 out of 42 times that they were in the red zone. Although WKU’s majority problem was their offense, the defense still has work to do as well. WKU’s defense allowed an average of 27.8 points per game (76th in the nation). WKU will return 11 defenders will 10 or more tackles in the 2018 season. For WKU to have a successful 2019 season, they will need to improve their passing defense overall as they gave up an average of 250 passing yards per game in 2018. Their defense also gave away 22 free first downs to their opponents because of penalties. This is something that the new coaching staff will be able to help with.
Roster: https://wkusports.com/roster.aspx?roster=78
Schedule: https://wkusports.com/schedule.aspx?path=football
C-USA West Division:
University of Alabama at Birmingham: UAB capped off their season with a Boca Raton Bowl victory over Northern Illinois by a score of 37-13. The Blazers finished 2018 with a 7-1 conference record, and went 11-3 overall. The Blazers will start Quarterback Tyler Johnson III in the 2019 season. Last season, Johnson threw 80 completions on 140 attempts, throwing for 1323 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 9 interceptions. Johnson also had 4 rushing touchdowns on the year. UAB will return only 6 offensive players who had at least one reception or rushing attempt in 2018, which makes them one of the youngest offensive teams in the nation. For the Blazers to have a successful offensive season, obviously the younger players will have to step up and fill in where they are needed. These young players will need to make plays, and they will need to find a way to get the ball in the end-zone as winning games is now up to them. Defensively, the Blazers had one of the best years in the country! UAB’s defense gave up only an average of 17 points per game, which put their defense at 7th in the country. UAB will return only 8 defensive players with 10 or more tackles in the 2018 season. For UAB to have a successful defensive season, the more experienced defenders are going to need to step up and lead the younger players so that they can maintain their dominate defense. The Blazers should have no problem fixing this!
Roster: https://uabsports.com/roster.aspx?roster=2255
Schedule: https://uabsports.com/schedule.aspx?path=football
Louisiana Tech University: LA Tech capped off their 2018 season with a Hawaii Bowl victory over Hawaii by a score of 31-14. Despite having one of the worst offenses in the NCAA, the Bulldogs finished the season with a 5-3 conference record, going 8-5 overall. Louisiana Tech’s offense averaged 24.7 points per game (97th in the nation). LA Tech will return starting Quarterback J’Mar Smith. Smith threw 264 completions on 461 attempts. he threw for 3160 yards, 15 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. LA Tech will return 12 other offensive players who had at least one reception or rushing attempt in 2018. This is good news for Bulldog fans as this means they will have lots of offensive experience. However, for LA Tech to have a successful offensive season, they truly need to work on their red-zone offense as they only scored a touchdown 29 out of 48 times that they reached the red-zone. Defensively, the Bulldogs had one of the best seasons in the NCAA, only giving up an average of 23 points per game (39th in the nation). LA Tech will return 10 defenders who had 10 or more total tackles in the 2018 season. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, their Defensive Line will be a huge part of their team that they will have to replace most of. However, if the younger players can step up and be just as successful, LA Tech will be fine. For the Bulldogs to have a successful defensive season, they will need to keep their 3rd down defense as tight as they did in 2018 (only allowed 65 conversions on 184 attempts). If they can continue to get 3 and outs, they will put the ball back in the offenses’ hands to try to let them score. The only other thing that we would suggest is for the defense to work on their red-zone defense, as they allowed the other teams to score a touchdown 24 out of 34 times they reached they red-zone.
Roster: https://latechsports.com/roster.aspx?roster=147&path=football
Schedule: https://latechsports.com/schedule.aspx?path=football
University of North Texas: North Texas ended the season with a loss in the New Mexico Bowl to Utah State by a score of 52-13. The Mean Green went 5-3 in conference, and 9-4 overall. Looking at their bowl game score, you wouldn’t think that North Texas had one of the most productive offenses in 2018, but they did. North Texas averaged 34.6 points per game (28th in the nation). The Mean Green will return starting Quarterback Mason Fine for the 2019 season. Fine had a very productive year, completing 303 passes on 469 attempts. He threw for 3793 yards, 27 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions; he also had 2 rushing touchdowns on the year. For the Mean Green to have another successful offensive season, they will need to work on their 3rd down conversions, as that was the team’s biggest challenge in 2018 (66-177). Other than that, fans can prepare for another exciting offensive season. The part of the team that needs the most improvement is the defense, as they gave away an average of 24.2 points per game (43rd in the nation). For the Mean Green to have a successful defensive season, they will need to work on defending passing better, as they allowed an average of over 250 passing yards per game. North Texas’ defense also gave away 22 free first downs to opponents in the season because of penalties. If they can minimize this, the defense will shape up to have a good year.
Roster: https://meangreensports.com/roster.aspx?roster=148&path=football
Schedule: https://meangreensports.com/schedule.aspx?path=football
Rice University: Rice ended the 2018 with a 1-7 conference record, going 2-11 overall. As both their offense and defense almost finished last in both categories, it’s safe to say that there is a lot of things that the Owls will need to do to make improvements. Here are the main issues that need to be improved for the 2019 season to be more successful. Rice’s offense only averaged 18.9 points per game, which is 124th in the FBS. For Rice to have a successful offensive season, they will need to find a way to cut down their interceptions (16 in 2018). Another huge flaw in the Owls’ offense is their 3rd down conversion percentage, which is only 28.7%. They will need to find a way to be way more efficient on 3rd down if they ever want to make it to the red-zone, let alone the end-zone. Defensively, the Owls gave up an average of 36 points per game, which is 112th in the FBS. For the Owls to have a successful defensive year, they have to find a way to stop their opponent from reaching the red-zone, as their opponent puts points on the board 48 times out of 54 times that their opponent reached the end zone! Rice also needs to work on their defensive schems as they allowed 28 passing touchdowns, and 31 rushing touchdowns in the 2018 season.
Roster: https://riceowls.com/roster.aspx?roster=192&path=football
Schedule: https://riceowls.com/schedule.aspx?path=football
University of Southern Mississippi: Southern Miss finished the 2018 season with a conference record of 5-3, and went 6-5 overall. The Golden Eagles largest area that needs improvement is their offense who averaged only 26.2 points per game (90th in the FBS). For Southern Miss to have a successful offensive season, they will need to protect the ball more as they had 23 turnovers in the 2018 season. Offensively, they will also need to strengthen the Offensive Line, as their Quarterback was sacked 22 times for a loss of 130 yards in the 2018 season. Southern Miss gave away an average of only 19.8 points per game last season (19th in FBS). For the Golden Eagles to have another successful defensive season, they will need to continue to strengthen their Defensive Line, as they had a total of 33 sacks for 255 yards. Their biggest defensive weakness was passing, however they only have away a total of 13 passing touchdowns in 2018. If Southern Miss can figure out their offense, fans can expect to have a successful season, and possibly a bowl game.
Roster: https://southernmiss.com/roster.aspx?roster=185&path=football
Schedule: https://southernmiss.com/schedule.aspx?path=football
University of Texas at El Paso: UTEP finished the 2018 season with a 1-7 conference record, and went 1-11 overall. The Miners rankings of offense and defense will truly explain why their record was this way. UTEP’s offense only scored an average of 17.7 points per game, which put their offense at 127th in the FBS. For UTEP to have a successful offensive season, they will need to do a lot more protecting of the ball. In 2018, they had 19 interceptions, and 9 fumbles lost. The Miners also need to work on their red-zone offense as they only scored a touchdown 19 out of 32 times that they reached the red-zone. They also will need to strengthen their Offensive Line as they allowed 20 sacks for a loss of 125 yards. Defensively, UTEP gave away an average of 32.8 points per game, which was 99th in the FBS. For UTEP to have a successful defensive season, they will need to shut their opponent’s offense down, as they allowed their opponents to reach the red-zone 51 times in the 2018 season, and score touchdowns on 30 of those drives. They allowed 43 total touchdowns in the 2018 season (22 rushing, 21 passing). If the Miners want to win more games, both the offense and defense will need to change these things drastically.
Roster: https://utepminers.com/roster.aspx?path=football
Schedule: https://utepminers.com/schedule.aspx?path=football
University of Texas at San Antonio: UTSA finished the season with a 2-6 conference record, and went 3-9 overall. The Roadrunners averaged only 14.2 points per game in 2018 (129th in the FBS), and their record was very reflective of that. UTSA can have a successful offensive season if they can truly just find a way to score! They only scored 15 offensive touchdowns in the 2018 season. They also lost 18 scoring opportunities to 18 turnovers! If UTSA could fix these small offensive errors, they could truly be a much better team, but these small mistakes have been killing them. Defensively, the Roadrunners gave up an average of 31.2 points per game (87th in the FBS). For UTSA to have a successful defensive season, they have to lock down on their red-zone defense, as their opponent scored a touchdown 67% of the time that they reached the red-zone, and at least added to their points on the board 91% of the time that they reached the red-zone. They allowed a total of 47 touchdowns in the 2018 season, and they are going to have to allow a lot less if they ever want to see a winning record, and a bowl game soon!
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