The 2020 Sun Belt Preview with the top players, biggest games, most important transfers, and thoughts on each team.
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5. Sun Belt 2020 Preview
Thanks, Georgia Southern.
Appalachian State took down North Carolina and South Carolina, and it rolled through almost everyone else on the way to a huge season. It likely would’ve been the Group of Five representative in the New Year’s Six bowl game – which turned out to be the Cotton against Penn State – had it not dropped a Halloween night game to Georgia Southern.
But even coming that close was a big thing for a conference that’s been able to hold its own from time to time when the spotlight is on.
ASU won its big battles with the Power Five, Georgia State shocked Tennessee, Coastal Carolina beat Kansas, Georgia Southern pushed Minnesota to the brink, Louisiana gave Mississippi State a hard time and whacked MAC champ Miami University in the Mobile Alabama Bowl, ULM had Florida State in a 45-44 loss, and South Alabama at least provided a bit of a push against Nebraska.
The league can play.
Appalachian State is so much better than everyone else, but the year will be about the rest of the East trying to take down the champ.
The Mountaineers will get everyone’s best shot, with Troy looking strangers, Georgia State still good, Coastal Carolina more than just competitive, and Georgia Southern still Georgia Southern.
Louisiana and Arkansas State are far-and-away the stars of the West, and they both get App State. Texas State and ULM should have fun offenses, and South Alabama has been building for the last few years under Steve Campbell.
CFN Sun Belt Preview
Teams: Surprise, Disappointments | Top Games
Players To Watch | One Thought On Each Team
– CFN Preview 2020: All 130 Team Previews
NEXT: Sun Belt Teams That Will Surprise, Disappoint
4. Sun Belt Surprise, Disappointment
Sun Belt Team That Will Surprise
Troy Trojans
You are what your record is, but the Trojans were stronger than they might have appeared in the 5-7 first season under Chip Lindsay. The offense was good, and tight losses to Southern Miss, Arkansas State and Coastal Carolina all turned out to be a killer to a possible winning record.
This year’s version is loaded with all-star receiver talent, the running game is great, and now the defense has to do its part. As long as the secondary is a bit better, this should be a bounce-back year for the program.
2020 Sun Belt Previews
East Appalachian State | Coastal Carolina
Georgia Southern | Georgia State | Troy
West Arkansas State | Louisiana
South Alabama | Texas State | ULM
CFN Preview 2020: All 130 Team Previews
Sun Belt Team That Will Disappoint
ULM Warhawks
The Warhawks have flirted with being better than decent over each of the last two seasons, but the defense let them down time and again. That’s about to happen again, and the offense likely won’t have the same pop of last season.
There’s talent in the receiving corps, and there’s promise in the offensive backfield, but the line is going to take way too much reworking in a stronger year for the conference.
NEXT: Sun Belt Game of the Year, Hot Seat Coaches
3. Sun Belt Games, Hot Seat Coaches
Sun Belt Game Of The Year
Appalachian State at Georgia SOuthern, Oct. 14
Georgia Southern has been Appalachian State’s kryptonite. It’s not just the option offense that screwed up the Mountaineers over the last two years; the defense showed up big, too.
The Eagles haven’t been able to parlay those big wins into Sun Belt East titles with ASU winning the last two conference championships, but this year the game is in Statesboro coming off an open date. The Mountaineers will be coming off a date with Louisiana.
5 Other Interesting Sun Belt Games
This is all very, very fluid, but at the moment if the Sun Belt slate stays relatively close to the original version …
1. Louisiana at Appalachian State, Oct. 7
2. Arkansas State at Louisiana, Nov. 5
3. Arkansas State at Appalachian State, Oct. 24
4. Georgia Southern at Louisiana, Sept. 26
5. Troy at Appalachian State, Nov. 28
– 2020 CFN Sun Belt 5-Year Program Rankings
5 Sun Belt Coaches On The Hot Seat
It’s not necessarily about who’s about to get fired – especially this year.
Think of it this way. Who has the most pressure to win, either because of expectations, or to possibly move on to something bigger, or for some, to keep the gig?
1. Steve Campbell, South Alabama
2. Shawn Clark, Appalachian State
3. Matt Viator, ULM
4. Chip Lindsey, Troy
5. Jake Spavital, Texas State
NEXT: Sun Belt Key Players To Know
2. Sun Belt Key Players To Know
5 Sun Belt Transfers Who Will Matter
Five players who deserve to be known and loved on a national level, but should rise up and be among the season’s best players.
1. OT Zach Robertson, Louisiana from Arizona State
2. S Chris Moore, Georgia State from Virginia
3. WR Javan Hawes, Arkansas State from Cincinnati
4. LB Christian Bell, South Alabama from Wisconsin
5. CB Ephraim Kitchen, Georgia Southern from Louisiana Tech
5 Big-Time Sun Belt Players Who Deserve A Bigger Spotlight
Five players who deserve to be known and loved on a national level, but should rise up and be among the season’s best players.
1. RB CJ Marable, Sr.
Coastal Carolina
2. QB Zac Thomas, Sr.
Appalachian State
3. WR Kaylon Geiger, Sr.
Troy
4. QB Levi Lewis, Sr.
Louisiana
5. QB Layne Hatcher, Soph. Arkansas State
5 Best Pro Prospects From The Sun Belt
1. CB Shaun Jolly, Jr. Appalachian State
2. DE Tarron Jackson, Sr. Coastal Carolina
3. LB Carlton Martial, Jr.
Troy
4. RB Elijah Mitchell, Sr.
Louisiana
5. LB Trajan Stephens-McQueen, Sr. Georgia State
– 2020 CFN Preseason All-Sun Belt Team
5 Biggest Sun Belt Shoes To Fill
1. QB Colby Suits for Caleb Evans, ULM
2. WR Bubba Ogbebor for Omar Bayless, Arkansas State
3. QB Parker McNeil for Kaleb Barker, Troy
4. DE Noel Iwuchukwu for William Bradley-King, Arkansas State
5. LB Markeveon Coleman for Bryan London, Texas State
NEXT: One Honest Thought On Each Sun Belt Team
1. One Honest Thought On Each Sun Belt Team
Click on each team for the preview, 5 things to know
Sun Belt East
Appalachian State – Okay, Shawn Clark, keep it all going. There’s absolutely no excuse to not win a third straight Sun Belt title with this loaded team returning. The experience and talent are there to hang with just about anyone – it’s a shame ASU doesn’t get to play Wisconsin.
Coastal Carolina – The Chanticleers have a few stars to work around, but the depth isn’t quite there. RB CJ Marable and DE Tarron Jackson are special, but the defensive back seven is going be a constant issue.
Georgia Southern – The running game will once again take center stage, but the linebacking corps is the hidden gem – it might be the best in the Sun Belt. The pieces are there on both sides to win the Sun Belt.
Georgia State – There isn’t a glaring weak spot on the Panthers, but there’s certainly nothing special about this year’s group that should freak out the rest of the East. That passing game might be more interesting with a strong group of tight ends.
Troy – The 5-7 first season under head coach Chip Lindsay was a one-off. The Trojans are in a tough division with no sure-thing wins, but the passing game is going to be fantastic as long as a decent quarterback can step up and get the amazing receiving corps the ball.
Sun Belt West
Arkansas State – The offense might lose key parts to the receiving corps, but the offense will still be devastating thanks to the fantastic backfield. The defensive front has the potential to rise up and be strong, but all that matters is getting it done against the Ragin’ Cajuns.
Louisiana – Enjoy head coach Billy Napier now, because he’s destined for a good Power Five gig very, very soon. The defense will be just good enough to hold serve for the unstoppable attack.
South Alabama – The parts aren’t there to make a huge push in the Sun Belt race, but for this year, just SCORE. Please. The inconsistent Jaguars struggled to get to 20 points way too often.
Texas State – The Bobcats might not be all that great, but they’re certainly going to be interesting. The offensive style will eventually work, and the points will come in bunches – at least that’s the hope.
ULM -The lines, the lines, the lines. Losing star QB Caleb Evans hurts, but the skill parts are okay and there’s some promise in the defensive backfield. The lines on both sides are way too questionable.
