The week nine action in Conference USA features a Saturday schedule with playing for more than 13 hours with games beginning at 11 am CT and going past Midnight CT. Included are three league matchups during the day and two non-conference games at night.
Saturday’s action begins just up the road from Miami when UTSA (4-3, 2-1) visits Florida Atlantic (1-1, 1-1 in C-USA) at high Noon ET in Boca Raton (Stadium). Led by a great performance (165 yards, 3 TDs) by Sincere McCormick, the nation’s leading rusher, the Roadrunners are coming off a dramatic come-from-behind win over Louisiana Tech. The Owls have been strong on defense in their first two C-USA games, allowing 18.5 points per game (second-best in the league).
Rice (0-1, 0-1 in C-USA) will take to the road for the first time when it hits Hattiesburg to square off against Southern Miss (1-4, 1-1 in C-USA) on Saturday afternoon (2 pm CT on ESPN3). In their opener last Saturday, graduate transfer QB Mike Collins became the first Owl to throw four TD passes in a game since 2016. Tate Whatley made his first start at QB for the Golden Eagles last week and ran for four TDs, while throwing for another.
UAB (4-2, 2-0 in C-USA) will carry a five-game regular season conference winning streak into Ruston to battle West Division rival Louisiana Tech (3-3, 2-2 in C-USA) Saturday (2:30 pm CT on Stadium). Among teams that have played more than one game, the Blazers trail only West Virginia nationally in pass defense, allowing 153.8 yards per game through the air. Bulldogs graduate transfer QB Luke Anthony leads C-USA and is tied for ninth in the FBS with 12 passing touchdowns.
Charlotte (2-2, 1-1 in C-USA) returns to the road for the fourth time in five games, traveling up the road to Duke (1-5, 1-5 in ACC) in the first meeting between the intrastate schools (7 pm ET on ACC RSN). The 49ers average 402.5 yards per game of total offense, while the Blue Devils are allowing 400 yards through their first six games.
WKU (2-4, 1-2 in C-USA) will become the third C-USA school to play at No. 11 BYU (5-0) this month when the Hilltoppers play some late night football (8:15 pm MT on ESPN). WKU’s pass defense ranks second in C-USA, allowing 181.0 yards per game, but will be tested by BYU QB Zach Wilson (323.2 yards per game and 16 touchdowns with just one interception).
WEEK NINE C-USA FOOTBALL PREVIEW
UTSA (4-3, 2-1 in C-USA) at FLORIDA ATLANTIC (1-1, 1-1 in C-USA)
Saturday, October 31
12 p.m. ET
Boca Raton, Florida (FAU Stadium)
Television: Stadium
Announcers: Chris Vosters (PxP), Max Starks (AN)
All-Time Series: Florida Atlantic leads 2-0
Last Meeting: Florida Atlantic 40, at UTSA 26 (Nov. 23, 2019)
FAST FACTS
**Harrison Bryant caught 10 passes for 182 yards, and Florida Atlantic posted the 100th win in program history by defeating UTSA at the Alamodome last season, 40-26. Zakhari Franklin caught seven passes for 98 yards and a touchdown for the Roadrunners.
**UTSA is no stranger to close contests in 2020, as all seven this season have been one-score ballgames in the fourth quarter. The Roadrunners own victories by three (in double-overtime), two and one points, along with seven and eight point losses.
**UTSA sophomore RB Sincere McCormick was named C-USA Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season following last week’s Louisiana Tech game. McCormick registered his second straight and fourth 100-yard rushing game of the season to help lead UTSA to a 27-26 come-from-behind win over the Bulldogs. The sophomore gashed the Bulldogs for 165 yards and three touchdowns — all in the second half — on a school-record 37 carries to help the Roadrunners rally from a pair of 13-point deficits after halftime and snap a six-game losing streak to LA Tech. McCormick had 2- and 6-yard TD runs that each cut the LA Tech lead to six points and he then ripped off a 45-yard scoring dash with 6:16 left to play that helped give UTSA the lead for good. He continues to lead the FBS in rushing yards with 867 and he paces the league in rushing yards per game with 123.9.
**Sophomore WR Tykee Ogle-Kellogg caught a career-high tying four passes for a career-best 96 yards against LA Tech. Included was a key 54-yard reception in the fourth quarter that set up a 6-yard TD run by Sincere McCormick to pull UTSA to within 26-20.
**Senior S Antonio Parks posted six tackles and had a hand in a pair of second-half turnovers in UTSA’s comeback win over Louisiana Tech and was named C-USA co-Defensive Player of the Week. He forced a fumble late in the third quarter that was recovered near midfield by Christian Clayton and he helped ice the victory with an interception with under a minute left to play. Parks and the Roadrunners held the LA Tech offense to 247 yards, including only 35 after halftime. The two takeaways that Parks was a part of give UTSA 13 on the season, which leads C-USA and ranks third nationally.
**UTSA has seen 16 players make their first career start through the first seven games this season. That total leads Conference USA and is tied for the seventh-most first-time starters in the FBS.
**Florida Atlantic junior LB Chase Lasater is second in Conference USA in tackles per game at 12.0. He had 13 stops last week at Marshall to give him 24 in the first two games.
**Redshirt senior DB Jordan Heim’s early second quarter interception at Marshall extended Florida Atlantic’s streak of consecutive games forcing at least one turnover to 14. The Owls have forced a total of 34 total turnovers in that period, while committing just eight turnovers (+26).
**Evan Anderson, a true freshman on the defensive line earned a starting spot in game one vs. Charlotte. With the nod he became the first true FAU freshman to start at that position since Trevon Coley did so in 2012. Coley is currently with the Arizona Cardinals and is in his fifth NFL season.
**Owls freshman WR LaJohntay Wester did a little bit of everything last Saturday at Marshall. He went over 100 all-purpose yards, in nearly all facets of the game: six yards rushing, 12 receiving, 53 on two kickoff returns (long of 37), and 34 on four punt returns (long of 18).
**Junior RB Malcom Davidson ran for a team-high 62 yards on just eight carries at Marshall. He also scored the Owls only touchdown on an 11-yard rush.
RICE (0-1, 0-1 in C-USA) at SOUTHERN MISS (1-4, 1-1 in C-USA)
Saturday, October 31
2 p.m. CT
Hattiesburg, Mississippi (M.M. Roberts Stadium)
Television: ESPN3
Announcers: Jason Baker (PxP), Dustin Almond (AN)
All-Time Series: Southern Miss leads 6-4
Last Meeting: Southern Miss 20, at Rice 6 (Oct. 26, 2019)
FAST FACTS
**In last year’s meeting, Southern Miss’ defense limited Rice to just 139 yards total offense, including a net 8 yards rushing, as the Golden Eagles posted a 20-6 at Rice Stadium. Junior RB Kevin Perkins ran 13 times for 86 yards and his first two career touchdowns.
**Mike Collins, a graduate transfer from TCU, made his first start as an Owl in last week’s season opener vs. Southern Miss. After starting the game 2-10, Collins finished the game 18-of-35 for 242 yards. He became the first Rice quarterback to throw four touchdown passes in a game since Tyler Stehling threw five vs. Prairie View in 2016.
**Senior WR Austin Trammell did not record a catch until his first TD of the night midway late in the third quarter, but finished with three catches for 76 yards. His two TD catches raised his career total to nine. Trammell’s first TD catch allowed him to extend his streak of games with a reception to 28. He also returned 1 kickoff for 33 yards to move past Shane Turner into seventh on the Owls career list with 1,047 yards.
**Redshirt senior TE Jordan Myers caught a career-high six passes for 65 yards against Southern Miss.
**Rice senior LB Blaze Alldredge, a preseason All-Conference USA selection, made his 2020 debut by recording 13 tackles. It was his sixth career double-digit tackle game. Alldredge also posted his 26th career sack.
**Owls sophomore LB Kirk Lockhart recorded a career-high 12 tackles. Not only was it is his first career double-digit tackle game, but the 12 stops matched his entire 2019 freshman year total.
**Southern Miss assistant head coach Tim Billings has been named interim coach for the Golden Eagles. Billings has been a member of the Southern Miss staff since the 2016 campaign. The 41-year coaching veteran, who has worked previously as an assistant coach at Missouri, Oklahoma, Marshall, Wake Forest and Memphis, also served as head coach at Southeast Missouri State from 2000-05. Billings takes over from the previous interim coach, Scotty Walden, who was named head coach at Austin Peay on Oct. 27.
**Southern Miss redshirt freshman QB Tate Whatley rushed for four touchdowns and passed for another, picking up 52 yards on the ground and 188 in the air, in Saturday’s loss at undefeated Liberty. Whatley was the first Golden Eagle to rush for four touchdowns since Jalen Richard did it against Old Dominion on Nov. 21, 2015. Whatley made his first career start in place of regular starter Jack Abraham.
**At Liberty last Saturday, Southern Miss junior WR Jason Brownlee registered his third-straight 100-yard game with 114 receiving yards on five catches and a touchdown, including an acrobatic catch on the sideline for 29 yards in the first quarter. Brownlee has scored in four consecutive games and the Golden Eagles have had a 100-yard receiver in all five games this season.
**Southern Miss has forced at least one turnover in each game and have generated eight total on the season. The Golden Eagles are currently a +3 in turnover margin, a dramatic improvement from last season when they forced 15 turnovers, but committed 26 (-11).
**Redshirt sophomore LB Hayes Maples has a team-high 45 tackles on the season, including 4.0 tackles for loss. Last week at Liberty he had his first career sack and first career fumble recovery.
UAB (4-2, 2-0 in C-USA) at LOUISIANA TECH (3-3, 2-2 in C-USA)
Saturday, October 31
2:30 p.m. CT
Ruston, Louisiana (Joe Aillet Stadium)
Television: Stadium
Announcers: Chris Hassel (PxP), A.J. Hawk (AN)
All-Time Series: Louisiana Tech leads 5-3
Last Meeting: at UAB 20, Louisiana Tech 14 (Nov. 23, 2019)
FAST FACTS
**At Legion Field last season, UAB’s defense limited Louisiana Tech to 270 total yards and had nine pass breakups, including one on 4th-and-3 from their own 23 courtesy of a pass breakup from A.J. Brooks with 1:43 remaining to seal the 20-14 victory.
**UAB’s defense has yet to allow a 200 yard passer and ranks third nationally in pass defense (153.8/game). The Blazers are yet to allow a team to throw for more than 200 yards in any game this season and have also held their past three opponents to under 300 total yards of offense.
**Blazers senior RB Spencer Brown had 28 carries for 128 yards and two touchdowns against Louisiana-Lafayette. In the process, Brown became the school record holder in total touchdowns with 40. He also notched his 17th career 100-yard rushing game and fourth this season. Brown increased his school-record career total to 3,722 rushing yards, second among all active rushers in the FBS (behind Clemson’s Travis Etienne), and he is now No. 11 in C-USA history. Brown is also UAB’s career leader in rushing touchdowns with 39. He is having the best season of his career and enters the game at Louisiana Tech ranked fifth nationally in total rushing yards (600) and fourth in rushing touchdowns (8).
**In just 24 career games, redshirt senior WR Austin Watkins, Jr. has compiled 1,547 yards and has a catch in all 24 games. The 1,547 yards rank eighth on UAB’s all-time list. This season he has 28 receptions for 373 yards and three touchdowns.
**UAB has made 26 trips to the red zone this season and has converted that into points 25 times. Of the 25 scores from within the red zone, 20 have been touchdowns (10 throwing, 10 rushing). UAB ranks 5th nationally in red zone offense (.996).
**Louisiana Tech senior LB Trey Baldwin was named co-Defensive Player of the week on Monday. He led the Bulldogs with a career-high 18 tackles, including 14 solo tackles, in a 27-26 loss at UTSA. His 18 tackles tied for the seventh most in a single game nationally this season, while his 14 solo tackles rank second in the nation. Baldwin was the first Bulldog to record 18 tackles in a single game since Jay Dudley had 18 against Fresno State on Nov. 6, 2010. Against the Roadrunners, Baldwin recorded 2.0 tackles for loss, including his first career sack, his second career interception which he returned for 10 yards and one pass breakup. Baldwin now ranks 12th in the nation in tackles per game at 11.4 and 24th in solo tackles per game at 6.8.
**Freshman LB Tyler Grubbs leads the FBS in total tackles with 63 this season. He led LA Tech in tackles in back-to-back games to open the 2020 season, totaling 28 stops through the first two contests. Grubbs currently averages 10.5 tackles per game, has 6.0 tackles for loss and a forced fumble.
**Sophomore WR Wayne Toussant leads C-USA and ranks second nationally with a combined 414 yards in kick returns. As a receiver he has eight catches for 130 yards and two touchdowns.
**Freshman K Jacob Barnes remained perfect on the season, making all four field goals and his two extra-point attempts last week at UTSA. He is now 7-of-7 on field goals and 22-of-22 on extra-points. Barnes became the eighth Bulldog in program history to make at least four field goals in a single game, booting all four in the first half.
**Louisiana Tech leads C-USA and ranks 12th in the nation in fourth down conversions at 90.0 percent (9-of-10).
**The Bulldogs have scored on 90.9 percent of its red zone attempts (25-of-26) this season to rank third in C-USA and 28th among all FBS teams.
CHARLOTTE (2-2, 2-1 in C-USA) at DUKE (1-5, 1-5 in ACC)
Saturday, October 31
7 p.m. ET
Durham, North Carolina (Wallace Wade Stadium)
Television: ACC RSN
Announcers: Tom Werme (PxP), James Bates (AN), Kelly Crull (SL)
All-Time Series: First Meeting
FAST FACTS
**Charlotte will meet an in-state ACC rival for the first time. The 49ers were scheduled to play at North Carolina on Sept. 19, but the game was canceled due to COVID-19-related issues.
**Charlotte has scored five or more touchdowns in each of its last two games (both C-USA wins) and in those games the 49ers have scored 28 and 24 second-half points, respectively.
**Redshirt junior WR Victor Tucker led the 49ers receiving efforts in the 38-28 win at UTEP last week with his 10th career receiving TD and a team-best 86 yards on six catches. Tucker had three catches of 15 or more yards, including back-to-back grabs of 25 and 22 as Charlotte tied the score at 14 just before the half. That 22-yard TD catch was the 10th of his career, tying him for third all-time on the 49ers list.
**Redshirt RB Aaron McAllister is averaging 8.0 yards per carry, gaining 239 yards on 30 carries. He has a team-best five touchdowns (three rushing and two receiving) after running for two touchdowns for the third time in his career last week against UTEP.
**Senior S Ben DeLuca, the 49ers second all-time leading tackler, had a game-high nine tackles and a forced fumble in last week’s win over UTEP. DeLuca became the second player in 49ers history to reach 300 career tackles and is just six tackles shy of matching the 49ers all-time record of 306, held by LB Jeff Gemmell. In addition, DeLuca forced a fumble at the UTEP 37-yard line that led to the 49ers go-ahead touchdown late in the third quarter. It was DeLuca’s all-time school-record ninth career forced fumble.
**Junior LB Tyler Murray continues to have a big impact in his first season as a 49er. He is second on the team averaging 8.5 tackles per game and last week he intercepted his second pass of the season, returning it 47 yards to set up a Charlotte touchdown two plays later.
**Duke had its bye week last weekend. In the NC State game the week before, senior TE Noah Gray set the all-time program record for career catches by a tight end with 100. He has at least one catch in 22 consecutive games and two more in 18 straight.
WKU (2-4, 1-2 in C-USA) at (11) BYU (6-0)
Saturday, October 31
8:15 p.m. MT
Provo, Utah (Lavell Edwards Stadium)
Television: ESPN
Announcers: Beth Mowins (PxP), Kirk Morrison (AN), Stormy Buonantony (SL)
All-Time Series: First Meeting
FAST FACTS
**WKU is coming off a 13-10 win over Chattanooga last Saturday, as the Hilltoppers’ won a game while scoring 13 or fewer points for the first time since a 10-9 victory vs. FIU on Nov. 6, 2011.
**WKU’s defense allowed only 225 yards of total offense, their lowest total of the season. Since allowing 487 yards in each of the first two games at Louisville and vs. Liberty, the Hilltoppers are allowing an average of only 311.5 yards per game over the past four, which would rank No. 20 in the FBS for the entire season.
**The Hilltoppers allowed only one pass play of 20-plus yards vs. Chattanooga – a 25-yard completion in the fourth quarter. After not allowing any such receptions at UAB the previous week, WKU has allowed only one “chunk” pass play over the past two games. In those two contests, the opponents are 24-of-52 on pass attempts for 231 yards, with one touchdown and one interception.
**Senior RB Gaej Walker and redshirt junior RB Jakairi Moses combined for 22 carries for 127 yards (5.8 yards per carry) vs. Chattanooga. Walker’s 17 carries and 88 yards were both season-highs for the Hilltoppers, and his 38-yard rush in the first quarter was the team’s longest so far this season. Moses had five carries for 39 yards and his 23-yard rush in the third quarter was the longest of his career.
**Senior S Devon Key recorded 10 tackles in the UTC game, for his third double-digit tackle game this season and the 10th in his career. With 46 total stops this season, he is tied for team lead and tied for ninth in Conference USA. Key currently places fourth among all active FBS players with 304 career tackles.
**No. 11 BYU will be playing a C-USA opponent for the third time this month after defeating Louisiana Tech and UTSA in back-to-back weeks. The Cougars are 6-0, having outscored its opponents by an average of 45.0-14.0 (a scoring margin of 31.0 points per game).
**Zach Wilson paces a potent BYU offense that is averaging 547.3 yards of total offense and 45.0 points per contest, as the junior quarterback has completed 126 of 161 passes (78.3%) for 1,928 yards and 16 touchdowns with just one interception.
https://conferenceusa.com/news/2020/10/27/football-week-nine-preview.aspx
