2008 CUSA EAST PREVIEW
July 15th, 2008 by Daniel Freer
While the offenses may not be as productive as their CUSA West counterparts, the CUSA East programs will have their share of legitimate fantasy prospects in 2008. If UCF and East Carolina can find answers for their departed Fantasy All-American RBs, it could be another season of big-time CUSA RBs….and fortunately for Southern Miss…their big-time RB is back for another year.
East Carolina
HEAD COACH: Skip Holtz (Fourth Season at ECU, former HC at UConn, and OC at South Carolina)
OFFENSIVE COORDINATORS: Sam Shankweiler (O-Line coach at SC and UConn),Todd Fitch (former QB coach at Iowa State)
MEDIA LINKS:
ESPN.com
SI.com
CFB News
SCHOOL WEBSITES/NEWSPAPERS/BLOGS:
East Carolina University – Official Athletic Site
Greenville Reflector
ANALYSIS/KEY PLAYERS: The Pirates lose Mr Everything in RB Chris Johnson, and someone needs to replace his 3000 yards (rushing, receiving, kick returning) and his 24 TDs from 2007. The top candidates are RBs Dominique Lindsay (5 rushing TDs last year) and Jonathan Williams….and are fantasy prospects with most of the ECU O-Line returning. Look for QB Patrick Pinkney to beat out Rob Kass as starting QB, as Pinkney is the better running threat. The key WR will be Jamar Bryant, who had 704 yards and 6 TDs receiving, and a fantasy consideration. Dwayne Harris and Alabama transfer Reyn Willis should also see some passes. The schedule may not be kind to ECU, as non-conference games with Virginia Tech, West Virginia, and defensive-minded North Carolina State could slow the offense down.
MARSHALL THUNDERING HERD
HEAD COACH: Mark Snyder (Fourth Season, Marshall alum and former DC at Ohio State)
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR: John Shannon (First Season, former OC at Toledo)
MEDIA LINKS:
ESPN.com
SI.com
CFB News
SCHOOL WEBSITES/NEWSPAPERS/BLOGS:
Marshall Thundering Herd Official Site
Huntington Herald-Dispatch
Charleston Daily Mail
ANALYSIS/KEY PLAYERS: The best fantasy player for The Herd this season will be TE/H-Back Cody Slate, who had over 800 yards receiving and 5 TDs in 2007. Of course, losing QB Bernard Morris hurt, and the job should come down to reshirt-freshman Mark Cann and Georgia Tech transfer Jonathan Garner…look for QB production to drop a little. The WRs should get a boost with South Carolina transfer O.J. Murdock suiting up for the Thundering Herd. Another fantasy consideration is WR Darius Passmore, who had 5 TD catches and nearly 15 yards per catch in 2007. At RB, Darius Marshall and Chubb Small should get most of the carries, but neither is a real draft consideration. The Herd will try to upgrade the offense, but replacing Morris will be a tough task.
MEMPHIS TIGERS
HEAD COACH: Tommy West (Eighth Season, former head coach at Clemson)
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR: Clay Helton (Second Season as OC, previously WRs coach)
MEDIA LINKS:
ESPN.com
SI.com
CFB News
SCHOOL WEBSITES/NEWSPAPERS/BLOGS:
Memphis Tigers Official Web Site
Memphis Commercial-Appeal
ANALYSIS/KEY PLAYERS: Even though they lose QB Martin Hankins, the Memphis offense should continue to flourish with Washington State transfer Arkelon Hall taking over the job…and he should beat out returnees Will Hudgens and Matt Malouf. The Tigers WR corps is loaded, headlined by Carlos Singleton and Duke Calhoun. Singleton led the team with 11 TD receptions, and Calhoun led in receiving yards with 890, and both are worthy fantasy considerations. Also, Steven Black, Earnest Williams, and Maurice Jones add depth to the WRs, and should be noted around free-agent/supplemental time. RB T. J. Pitts is the leading returning rusher, and is also a consideration as he should get some passes out of the backfield.
SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI GOLDEN EAGLES
HEAD COACH: Larry Fedora (First Season, formerly OC at Oklahoma State and Florida)
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR: Darrell Wyatt (First Season, former assistant at Arizona)
MEDIA LINKS:
ESPN.com
SI.com
CFB News
SCHOOL WEBSITES/NEWSPAPERS/BLOGS:
Southern Miss Official Athletic Web Site
Hattiesburg American
Jackson Clarion-Ledger
ANALYSIS/KEY PLAYERS: USM brings in Larry Fedora as head coach, after unceremoniously removing themselves of long-time head coach Jeff Bower. With Fedora at the helm, expect the usual balance on offense from the Golden Eagles. The big fantasy prospect from USM will again be RB Damion Fletcher, who ran for nearly 1600 yards and 15 TDs last season…and has nearly 3000 yards rushing his first two seasons. Also, for TE must-play leagues, TE Shawn Nelson is a consistent producer who had 450 yards and 5 TD catches last season. At QB, the probable starter will be sophomore Martevious Young. At WR, Torris Magee led all USM receivers with 632 yards, and, highly-regarded freshman DeAndre Brown will get playing time. Best bet is to wait for free-agency/supplemental drafts on the USM WRs.
UAB BLAZERS
HEAD COACH: Neil Callaway (Second Season, former offensive coordinator at Georgia)
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR: Kim Helton (Second Season, former U.of Houston head coach)
MEDIA LINKS:
ESPN.com
SI.com
CFB News
SCHOOL WEBSITES/NEWSPAPERS/BLOGS:
UABsports.com
Birmingham News (AL.com)
ANALYSIS/KEY PLAYERS: A sleeper fantasy player could be QB Joseph Webb, who played WR last season until being moved to QB. Once he assumed the QB job, the Blazers offense improved, as Webb is a big and mobile QB. His top target will be WR Frantrell Forrest, who led the team with 563 yards and 5 TDs. Another WR, Rashaud Slaughter, should see more passes his way in 2008 as he played mostly RB last season. Alabama transfer Aaron Johns should be the top UAB running back, and a consideration later in your free-agency/supplemental drafts.
UCF KNIGHTS
HEAD COACH: George O’Leary (Fifth Season, former head coach at Georgia Tech)
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR: Tim Salem (Fifth Season, former OC at E. Michigan, Purdue)
MEDIA LINKS:
ESPN.com
SI.com
CFB News
SCHOOL WEBSITES/NEWSPAPERS/BLOGS:
UCFAthletics.com Official Site
UCFSports.com
Orlando Sentinel
ANALYSIS/KEY PLAYERS: No one program has bigger shoes to fill than UCF, with Fantasy College Blitz Fantasy Player of the Year, RB Kevin Smith, and his nation’s best 2567 rushing yards and 30 TDs leaving early for the NFL. Possible replacements will be true-freshman Latavius Murray, junior Phillip Smith, and redshirt-freshman Ronnie Weaver. Whoever starts, their production will be much less than Smith’s last season, as UCF must replace three starting O-Line players. With the UCF RBs, wait until free-agency/supplemental time. The new starting QB will be either Mike Greco or Joe Weatherford, although Greco did miss spring ball. UCFs strength this year could be at WR, with sophomores Kamar Aiken and A.J. Guyton, with also senior Rocky Ross in the mix. The Knights WRs are late-draft considerations. UCF will have one of the better non-BCS defenses this season, with nine starters returning, including the entire secondary, led by All-American candidate Punt Returner/CB Joe Burnett.
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