Throughout the summer months, Vegas Experts handicapper
Matt Fargo will be previewing all
120 College Football teams in preparation for kickoff on Thursday, August 28th. Be sure to
check back periodically for previews of more teams, right here at Vegas Experts!
#101: Northern Illinois Preview
A lot of things went wrong in DeKalb last season and Northern Illinois suffered its worst season in
quite some time. Win totals have not improved over the last five years and last season’s two victories
were the lowest since 1998. Out went Joe Novak to retirement and in comes Jerry Kill who turned around
the Southern Illinois program and was named the FCS Coach of the Year last season. He is not coming ...
#102: Toledo Preview
It has been a rough couple years to be a Toledo fan, student or alum. After averaging over nine wins
per year from 2000-2005, the Rockets have put up just five wins in each of the last two seasons. While
the program certainly is not falling into the abyss of the MAC, it is time to turn things around before
really bad things do happen. Head coach Tom Amstutz is entering his eighth season as the sideline ...
#103: Rice Preview
It is safe to say that Todd Graham knew what he was doing. After coming to Rice in 2006, he led the
Owls to a 7-5 record and its first bowl game since 1961. They lost big to Troy but it was no doubt a
step in the right direction. He bolted for Tulsa after just one season and Rice went down again,
ending last season with a 3-9 record under first-year head coach David Bailiff. It looks as though ...
#104: San Diego State Preview
Head coach Chuck Long is in his third season as the San Diego St. sideline general and this is the year
progress needs to be made. The Aztecs improved their win total by one game last season over 2006 but
seven wins in two seasons is nothing to brag about. This is the year it needs to happen and unfortunately,
there is not much to work with. The offense carried the load last year but it was not ...
#105: Colorado State Preview
Picking a team from the Mountain West Conference for a ranking this low might not seem right but it is
justified. Colorado St. has fallen mightily and there is no hope in sight this season. After 10
straight seasons with at least seven victories, the wheels fell off in 2004 as the Rams recorded just
four victories and they have not had a winning season since. Sonny Lubick is out and Steve Fairchild ...
#106: Arkansas State Preview
Consistency can be good and bad. Since head coach Steve Roberts took over the Arkansas St. program in
2002, there has been only one season that it has secured fewer than five victories. While that consistency
is good, it has not been able to get high enough over the hill to contend in the Sun Belt Conference so it can
be considered bad as well. It doesn’t look as though this is the year for that ...
#107: Tulane Preview
Tulane has not had a winning season since 2002 and it doesn’t look like that string will be broken this
season. A lot of starters are back on a fairly decent team from last season but there is more to it
than that. Running back Matt Forte was not just the best offensive player last season but he was the
offense. Losing a player of his caliber is impossible to replace so not only do the Green Wave have other ...
#108: Ohio Preview
After going to a bowl game for the first time in 34 years two seasons ago, it was supposed to be
rebuilding time in Athens last season. The Bobcats had just 10 returning starters but they exceeded
all expectations by posting a bowl-eligible 6-6 record. The record might have been 8-4 as losses
against Wyoming and Toledo could have been wins if not for late breakdowns. It is unlikely a recurrence of ...
#109: Louisiana-Monroe Preview
It was a mildly successful season in 2007 and the Warhawks hope to build on that heading into this
season. They finished the year by winning five of their final six games including an improbable
victory at Alabama. Also in the mix was a triple overtime win at Florida Atlantic, the Owls lone
conference loss of the season. All of this means a chance at a conference title in 2008 but it is not going ...
#110: Middle Tennessee State Preview
This low ranking may be a surprise to some considering that the Blue Raiders are coming off a SBC
Championship in 2006 and early contention last season. However, it is rebuilding time in Murfreesboro.
Middle Tennessee fell apart last season mostly due to getting killed by injuries and this season, it
will be more of the same as lack of depth will be the issue. This is the youngest team in ...
#111: Akron Preview
It was only three short years ago that Akron won the MAC Championship for the first time in school
history and made a trip to the Motor City Bowl. The Zips would have hoped that momentum moved forward
but instead, they took a step back. They had five win two seasons ago and four last year and that was
more than it should have won. Akron was outgained more than any other team in the ...
#112: UAB Preview
Conference-USA is an up and coming conference but it is no BCS league and finishing near the bottom
means being one of the worst teams in the nation. That is where UAB fell last season and it does not
look much better in 2008. The win total has dropped in each of the last three seasons and the only
reason it won’t drop again is because the Blazers had just two wins last season and there are at ...
#113: North Texas Preview
It seems such a long time ago that North Texas dominated the Sun Belt. It dominated so much in fact
that it won 26 straight conference games and the conferences first four championships. In reality,
that was only four years ago and since then, the Mean Green have been anything but mean. They have
gone 7-28 overall including 5-16 in the SBC over the last three seasons and they are at least ...
#114: Louisiana-Lafayette Preview
Since Rickey Bustle took over as head coach in 2002, it was five straight seasons of at least equaling
its win total from the previous season but La-Lafayette went the other way last season, producing only
three wins. While that may seem like a program on the decline, it could have just been an aberration.
Injuries played a role in the descent as well as the Cajuns being the 7th youngest team in the ...
#115: Eastern Michigan Preview
This is a crucial year in Ypsilanti. It will be the fifth season under head coach Jeff Genyk and this
is usually the time when we find out whether the program has improved or whether it is time to move on
again. After a 1-11 campaign in 2006, the Eagles picked up three more victories last season although
one of those came against 1-AA Howard. The numbers weren’t horrid but they were not good ...
#116: Army Preview
Army finished with three wins for a second straight season but things are not necessarily better or
even equal for that matter. Two of those wins came in overtime and one of those was against FCS Rhode
Island. The third victory was against lowly Temple. With only eight starters returning across the
entire team, it is a huge question if this team actually improves under second year coach Stan ...
#117: Utah State Preview
If there was anything good that came away from last season for Utah St., it was that it doubled its
win total from the previous season. The problem is that it had only one victory in 2006. Aggies head
coach Brent Guy, who enters his fourth season, has a 6-29 record in his tenure and he is clearly on
the hot seat. Utah St. has a very experienced team coming back so things need to turn the corner ...
#118: Idaho Preview
Even though the Vandals won just one game last season, which came against 1-AA Cal Poly, there is hope
on the horizon. Topping the list is the fact there is no new head coach as Robb Akey is back for a
second season after Nick Holt and Dennis Erickson both departed after one season the previous two
years. Looking at the returning personnel, Idaho is getting 19 starters back including the entire ...
#119: Florida International Preview
While arch-rival Florida Atlantic is not only making strides in the Sun Belt Conference but also
across the state and the country, Florida International seems to be stuck in neutral. If not for the
transitional Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, the Golden Panthers would be put in the bottom spot. They
finished 1-11 last season and things do not look a lot better for the 2008 campaign. The program ...
#120: Western Kentucky Preview
Western Kentucky is in its first season as a Division I-A team with the majority of games against
like competition. The Hilltoppers will compete in the Sun Belt Conference but not until next season
when it becomes an official member. They went 7-5 last season but half of their games came against
1-AA teams and they went 1-5 in the other half. Western Kentucky will face 10 teams from 1-A this season...
Throughout the summer months, Vegas Experts handicapper
