2019 Sun Belt Football News and Notes:
Week 12 Release (PDF) | Standings | Composite Schedule | Stats | Championship Game | Media Guide
AROUND #SUNBELTFB
• Sun Belt Conference football has a Saturday slate filled with five Week 12 matchups set for live coverage on the ESPN family of networks.
• The Sun Belt boasts three bowl-eligible teams in Appalachian State (8-1, 5-1 Sun Belt), Louisiana (7-2, 4-1), Georgia State (6-3, 3-2) and with Arkansas State (5-4, 3-2) and Georgia Southern (5-4, 3-2) just one win away. The Mountaineers are bowl eligible for the fifth-straight season, while the Ragin' Cajuns are bowl eligible for the second-straight season and the Panthers are bowl eligible for the third time in five seasons.
• Appalachian State is in the midst of a historic season, becoming the first Sun Belt program to earn a College Football Playoff Top 25 in-season ranking at No. 25 in the Nov. 12 release. Ranked 24th in this week's Amway Coaches powered by USA Today Sports Top 25 Poll, Appalachian State earned the highest NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision rankings in the national polls in school and conference history – 20th in both the Associated Press and Amway Coaches polls on Oct. 27. Appalachian State was also ranked in the Oct. 13 (24th in the AP and Coaches) and Oct. 20 (21st in the AP and 22nd in the Coaches) polls. The Mountaineers have received votes in 15 straight weeks of the AP Top 25 dating back to last year.
• Appalachian State, as an FBS program, is the:
- First team to win a bowl game in each of its first two years of FBS bowl eligibility (2015-16)
- First team to win a bowl game in each of its first three years of FBS bowl eligibility (2015-17)
- First team to win a bowl game in each of its first four years of FBS bowl eligibility (2015-18)
- First team to host and win a Sun Belt Championship Game (2018)
- First Sun Belt team to be ranked in the Top 25 on multiple occasions (2018, 2019)
- First Sun Belt team to win as a Top 25 team (2019)
- First Sun Belt team to be ranked in the Top 25 in consecutive weeks (2019)
- First Sun Belt team to be ranked in the Top 20 in the AP Poll (2019)
- First Sun Belt team to start a season 7-0 (2019)
- First Sun Belt team to defeat two Autonomy Five conference teams in one season (2019)
- First Sun Belt team to receive a College Football Playoff in-season ranking (2019)
• Louisiana received one vote in this week's Amway Coaches Poll, its first Top 25 points this season. The Ragin' Cajuns are the conference's top team in the most recent ESPN Football Power Index at 39th and have the best national average in key core statistics among all Group of Five conference schools according to SportSource Analytics.
• The Sun Belt has recorded four wins against Autonomy Five conference opponents in the same season for the first time in conference history:
- Georgia State’s win at Tennessee on Aug. 31 was its first over a Southeastern Conference opponent and first against an Autonomy Five opponent in the program’s 10-year history.
- Coastal Carolina’s win at Kansas on Sept. 7 was its first over a Big 12 Conference opponent and first in eight tries against an Autonomy Five opponent in the program’s 17-year history.
- Appalachian State is the first team in conference history to achieve two wins against Autonomy Five conference schools in the same season – 34-31 at North Carolina on Sept. 21 and 20-15 at South Carolina on Nov. 9.
• Appalachian State's win at South Carolina marked the conference’s 12th win over an Autonomy Five opponent in the last 10 seasons (2011-19). Ten of the league’s 12 Autonomy Five wins during that span have been on the road. The Mountaineers are the first team since 1999 to win on the road against an Atlantic Coast Conference and Southeastern Conference team in the same season.
• The Sun Belt is building on its non-conference success from a year ago with 22 wins and the third-best winning percentage among the Group of Five conferences so far this season.
1. American - 33-13 (.717)
2. Mountain West - 29-18 (.617)
3. Sun Belt - 22-18 (.550)
4. Conference USA - 23 -31 (.426)
5. Mid-American - 18-30 (.375)
• So far this season, the Sun Belt has received numerous in-season honors, including:
- Coastal Carolina redshirt sophomore placekicker/punter Myles Prosser was named one of the final candidates for the 2019 Ray Guy Award. Arkansas State senior punter Cody Grace was named Ray Guy Award National Punter of the Week on Oct. 8 and a Ray’s 8 selection on Sept. 30 by the Augusta Sports Council and Ray Guy Award.
- Arkansas State sophomore placekicker Blake Grupe was named one of 20 semifinalists for the 2019 Lou Groza Award presented by the Orange Bowl.
- Two student-athletes received honorable mention recognition on the 2019 Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award National Player of the Week award – Arkansas State redshirt junior quarterback Logan Bonner (Week 4 on Sept. 24) and ULM senior quarterback Caleb Evans (Week 10 on Nov. 4 and Week 11 on Nov. 12).
- Eckrich National Team of the Week powered by Pro Football Focus – Appalachian State junior running back Darrynton Evans, Arkansas State senior cornerback Jeremy Smith and Louisiana redshirt junior linebacker Chauncey Manac (Week 2), Troy sophomore linebacker Carlton Martial (Week 3), Louisiana redshirt junior Trey Ragas (Week 5), ULM junior cornerback Corey Straughter (Week 7), South Alabama senior cornerback Travis Reed and Troy senior cornerback Will Sunderland (Week 8), Arkansas State sophomore cornerback Nathan Page (Week 9) and Louisiana redshirt senior offensive lineman Kevin Dotson (Week 11).
• The 2019 Sun Belt Football Championship Game pits the East and West Division champions with the best conference winning percentages on Saturday, Dec. 7. The second edition of the league’s football title game is slated for live coverage on ESPN or ESPN2 at 11 a.m. CT/Noon ET.
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Caleb Evans, ULM (Sr., QB, Mansfield, Texas)
ULM senior quarterback Caleb Evans accounted for a season-high 401 yards total offense and four touchdowns to lead the Warhawks to a victory over Georgia State. Evans recorded his sixth 200-yard passing game of the season and 22nd of his career, completing 24-of-32 throws for season bests of 291 yards and three touchdown passes.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Marcus Webb, Troy (Sr., DT, Decatur, Ala.)
Troy senior defensive tackle Marcus Webb turned in one of the most dominating defensive performances of the season in the win over Georgia Southern. Making his first start of the season, Webb recorded three sacks and a career-best seven tackles. His sack total was the fifth-most in the FBS this season and the third-most in a game in school history.
SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Hutch White, Texas State (Sr., WR/RS, Kerrville, Texas)
Texas State senior wide receiver/return specialist Hutch White tallied 234 all-purpose yards in the win over South Alabama. White's yards were the second-highest total in a Sun Belt game this season and marked the first time a Bobcat recorded 200 all-purpose yards in a game since 2015.
2019 Weekly Award Winners
Offensive Player
September 2: Dan Ellington, Georgia State
September 9: Darrynton Evans, Appalachian State
September 16: Kaleb Barker, Troy
September 23: Elijah Mitchell, Louisiana
September 30: Omar Bayless, Arkansas State
October 7: Dan Ellington, Georgia State
October 14: Zac Thomas, Appalachian State
October 21: Raymond Calais, Louisiana
October 28: Tra Barnett, Georgia State
November 4: Wesley Kennedy III, Georgia Southern
November 11: Caleb Evans, ULM
Defensive Player
September 2: Carlton Martial, Troy
September 9: Chandler Kryst, Coastal Carolina
September 16: Rashad Byrd, Georgia Southern
September 23: Demetrius Taylor, Appalachian State
September 30: Jacques Boudreaux, Louisiana
October 7: Raymond Johnson III, Georgia Southern
October 14: Akeem Davis-Gaither, Appalachian State
October 21: Trajan Stephens-McQueen, Georgia State
October 28: Nathan Page, Arkansas State
November 4: Darreon Jackson, Arkansas State
November 11: Marcus Webb, Troy
Special Teams Player
September 2: Massimo Biscardi, Coastal Carolina
September 9: Tyler Bass, Georgia Southern
September 16: Monquavion Brinson, Georgia Southern
September 23: Joshua Rowland, Texas State
September 30: Cody Grace, Arkansas State
October 7: Cody Grace, Arkansas State
October 14: Rhys Byrns, Louisiana
October 21: Tyler Sumpter, Troy
October 28: Wesley Kennedy III, Georgia Southern
November 4: Blake Grupe, Arkansas State
November 11: Hutch White, Texas State
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Saturday, November 16
*Coastal Carolina at Arkansas State (ESPN+), 2 p.m.
*ULM at Georgia Southern (ESPN+), 2 p.m.
*Troy at Texas State (ESPN3), 2 p.m.
*RV Louisiana at South Alabama (ESPN+), 4 p.m.
*No. 24 Appalachian State at Georgia State (ESPNU), 6:30 p.m.
*Sun Belt Conference contest
All Times Central and Subject to Change