Preview 2019: Previewing and looking ahead to the Coastal Carolina season with what you need to know.
– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Schedule Analysis
– Coastal Carolina Previews 2018 | 2017
2018 Record: 5-7 overall, 2-7 in Sun Belt
Head Coach: Jamey Chadwell, 1st year
5. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE COASTAL CAROLINA OFFENSE
– New head coach Jamey Chadwell knows how to get a running game going. His Charleston Southern teams rolled and his attacks as the Coastal Carolina offensive coordinator worked. The Chanticleers averaged close to 200 yards per game on the ground, but injuries at quarterback and ineffectiveness hurt a passing attack that was efficient and careful, but not explosive enough.
– Step One is deciding on a quarterback. Kilton Anderson is gone, and Chance Thrasher has transferred. Fred Payton and Bryce Carpenter each got their feet wet, and both did just fine. They’re both accurate, and they can both run. Losing leading receiver Malcolm Williams hurts, but there’s a good young group of receivers returning led by senior Ky’Jon Tyler.
– There was a bit of a running back by committee thing happening, but CJ Marable finished up as the team-leader with 719 yards and six scores. He’s not alone, and the quarterbacks can move in a ground game that should once again be effective. The line has to be better in pass protection, but four starters return around C Trey Carter.
NEXT: What You Need To Know About the Defense, Top Players, Keys to the Season, What Will Happen
4. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE COASTAL CAROLINA DEFENSE
– The defense that struggled so much still needs work. It was among the Sun Belt’s worst overall, it couldn’t come up with takeaways, and it was a soft breeze against the run. A few nice veterans return, and the pass defense wasn’t all that awful, but the front seven has to be far tougher to keep teams from getting easy third-and-short opportunities.
– It stinks to lose top pass rusher Jeffrey Gunter to Syracuse, but Tarron Jackson is an all-star end to start with, and 300-pound former Clemson transfer Sterling Johnson is a veteran presence in the middle. They’ll do their part, but they need the supporting cast to help out. There isn’t a ton of size up front, but there are just enough options to play around with the lineup. The same goes with a linebacking corps that was really, really young and should be a bit better.
– The secondary isn’t exactly starting over, but … with S Jave Brown transferring, it’s starting over. Without much of a pass rush to help the cause, this group was still strong enough to allow just 206 yards per game and keep the big plays to a minimum. Jobs are still open, but junior Chandler Kryst and sophomore Derick Bush are promising options at the corners.
NEXT: Top Players, Keys To the Season, What Will Happen
3. TOP COASTAL CAROLINA PLAYERS
Best Coastal Carolina Offensive Player
C Trey Carter, Jr.
While he’s a bit short, at 6-1 and 305 pounds he gets great leverage and is a strong leader for a good-looking line. He’s an academic all-star as well as an All-Sun Belt performer on the field, with the versatility to work at either guard spot or stick at center.
2. RB CJ Marable, Soph.
3. PK Massimo Biscardi, Soph.
4. WR Ky’Jon Tyler, Sr.
5. QB Fred Payton, Soph.
Best Coastal Carolina Defensive Player
DE Tarron Jackson, Jr.
The 6-2, 265-pound pass rusher goes from being helped by Jeffrey Gunter being on the other side, to being the main man and focus for everyone’s blocking scheme. banged up early on in his career, he bounced back to put together a good sophomore campaign with 58 tackles with three sacks and 11 tackles for loss. If everything goes right, he doubles his sack total.
2. LB Silas Kelly, Jr.
3. LB Teddy Gallagher, Soph.
4. DT Sterling Johnson, Jr.
5. LB Michael Makins, Soph.
NEXT: Keys to the Season, Prediction & What Will Happen
2. KEYS TO THE SEASON
Biggest Key To The Coastal Carolina Offense
The pass protection is there. All things considered, the passing game wasn’t all that miserable with four players getting into the mix and with so much of an emphasis on the ground game. But the quarterbacks hardly got time to work behind a line that allowed 37 sacks and a whopping 81 tackles for loss. Even with the problems, the O still managed to keep the chains moving and control the clock, but plays behind the line didn’t help.
Biggest Key To The Coastal Carolina Defense
The defensive front has to be able to stop the run. The offense owned the time of possession even though opposing attacks were able to dominate on the ground. The Chanticleers allowed over 2,900 rushing yards, 32 touchdowns and 6.5 yards per carry, getting hit for 230 yards or more nine times.
Key Player To A Successful Season
QB Fred Payton, Soph.
Or fellow sophomore Bryce Carpenter. Kilton Anderson graduated, and Chance Thrasher graduated under less than happy circumstances. Payton hit 65% of his throws for 677 yards and six touchdowns and two picks, and Carpenter connected on 67% of his throw for 464 yards and five touchdowns with two interceptions. Both can play, and both can run, but it’ll come down to which one consistently moves the offense.
Key Game To The Coastal Carolina Season
Georgia State, Oct. 12
The Chanticleers squeaked by Georgia State37-34 on the road last season, and his time around a win is a must considering there’s a week off to prepare and the Sun Belt schedule is so tough to start. The Chanticleers kick off conference play at Appalachian State, and go to Georgia Southern and deal with Troy right after the dealing with the Panthers.
– Coastal Carolina Schedule Breakdown & Analysis
2018 Coastal Carolina Fun Stats
– Sacks: Opponents 37 for 223 yards – Coastal Carolina 19 for 147 yards
– 1st Quarter Scoring: Opponents 128 – Coastal Carolina 54
– Penalties: Opponents 88 for 822 yards – Coastal Carolina 52 for 493 yards
NEXT: What Will Happen
1. COASTAL CAROLINA WIN TOTAL PREDICTION: WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN
There are a whole lot of question marks and concerns for a team that came so, so close to getting to a bowl game.
The Chanticleers started out just fine with a 5-3 start, but collapsed over the final four games including an inexcusable clunker to South Alabama to close things out. This year’s team lost a slew of players to transfer in the coaching change to Jamey Chadwell, but there are some nice parts to build around.
The veteran offensive line will be good for the running game, and the quarterback situation should be a plus as the season goes on. But can the defense generate a pass rush or do more against the run?
The deep, experienced linebacking corps has to be a whole lot better, the entire starting secondary has to be replaced, and the line is going to be a massive concern until the depth chart if solidified after fall camp.
Set The Regular Season Win Total At … 5
There can’t be any whiffs at home against Norfolk State, Georgia State or Texas State, and then it’ll take some big road wins to get in range of bowl eligibility.
It’ll take an upset over a Louisiana at home or a ULM on the road to get to six or more wins, but if the defense can come together right away – and if there’s not a big hole to dig out of going into November – it’s possible.
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– Schedule Analysis
