Conference USA Roundtable Discussion: Part Three
College football is approaching fast and is almost upon us. Rivals’ Conference USA publishers sat down this month for a roundtable discussion on several topics of note ahead of the 2021 football season.
For this roundtable, we will chop it up into different parts.
Yesterday we looked at the best and most important players around the conference.
Today we take a look at the first and second year coaches in C-USA.
Which first-year head coach will have the most success?
“Charles Huff steps into his first head-coaching job with high expectations, which can be dangerous. The Thundering Herd were picked to win the East Division in the preseason. Getting Grant Wells back to playing confident football will be big for Marshall to meet those preseason expectations. Huff comes from a background at Alabama that should allow him to have some success right away and have the Thundering Herd in a bowl game.”-Ben Carlisle, BleedTechBlue.com
“Charles Huff. Doc Holliday was a controversial figure at Marshall but there is no arguing that Holliday left the program in good shape for former Alabama Associate Head Coach Charles Huff. Huff is young (he's only 38) and has never been a head coach at any level, but Marshall is loaded with talent and is the pre-season favorite to win the east. Most first-year coaches don't walk into situations like that.”-Chris McLaughlin, HerdNation.com
“I think that Huff at Marshall will have more success in year one. Again, I expect Marshall to have an extremely successful season. I have Southern Miss fourth in their division behind UTSA (3rd), Louisiana Tech (2nd), and UAB (1st). I do think that long term Will Hall, USM’s new coach, will have success. I think that he will be able to recruit well and cherry pick recruits in the state of Mississippi.”-Matt Dossett, GoMiddle.com
“That is a tough one. I will say Will Hall. At Marshall they are expecting the Herd to win the East. At USM Coach Hall and the team will be under less stress and this season's outcome will show that.”-Heath Hinton, BigGoldNation.com
“I think Charles Huff and Marshall is the easy pick here. The Thundering Herd is full of talent right now. If he pushes the right buttons the Herd will be contenders in Conference USA for years to come.”-Javi Cardenas, BirdsUp.com
“I think Charles Huff at Marshall will have a very successful first season. He inherited a team that was nationally ranked throughout the 2020 season and a roster that includes quarterback Grant Wells. If Huff's coaching style fits well with the Herd and all works out, then the new head coach could be holding up a C-USA championship trophy at the end of the year.”-Tyler Mansfield, InsideHilltopperSports.com
Which second-year head coach will show the most improvement?
“I’m going to go with Ricky Rahne at ODU. FAU and UTSA had solid seasons in 2020, while ODU didn’t play a snap. Rahne has had a year to build the program up from where it was in 2019, and I think the Monarchs win 3-4 games in 2021.”-Ben Carlisle, BleedTechBlue.com
“I'll go with Willie Taggart. I loved the Taggart hire for FAU when he came aboard last year and I still think big things are in store for the Owls program sooner rather than later. FAU was hit hard by the injury bug in 2020 and could never really get things going offensively. If FAU can get their QB situation figured out they could be the team to beat in 2021.”-Chris McLaughlin, HerdNation.com
“I think that this one is a tossup between FAU (Willie Taggart) and UTSA (Jeff Traylor). I think that UTSA will finish third in their division, while FAU, will finish second. I do like what UTSA has to offer with stud tailback Sincere McCormick. I think that Florida Atlantic will have a successful season. It will be interesting see how the QB situation unfolds in fall camp heading into the season. There is going to be a quarterback battle between Michael Johnson Jr., Nick Tronti, and N’Kosi Perry.”-Matt Dossett, GoMiddle.com
“Jeff Traylor has done a fantastic job at UTSA. Do not be surprised if they make a run in the CUSA West.”-Heath Hinton, BigGoldNation.com
“Both Taggart (FAU) and Traylor (UTSA) are poised for big years. I think UTSA is on the cusp of contention in the conference, so if we are talking year-to-year improvement I would have to give it to Traylor and UTSA.”-Javi Cardenas, BirdsUp.com
“Willie Taggart has years of coaching experience under his belt and has been successful at numerous schools. He took over a FAU program that Lane Kiffin rose to prominence and was expected to keep the momentum going in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic forced the Owls to have numerous cancellations and kept them from ever getting into a consistent rhythm. I think Willie and FAU will have a solid season in 2021.”-Tyler Mansfield, InsideHilltopperSports.com