[Sly Fox]

Here is Matt's take on the Big South. I abbreviated the rundowns of each team other than the Flames:

Big South - Trying to shed the underdog role
By Matt Dougherty, I-AA Football Editor

Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - During his speech at the conference media day in July, Coastal Carolina head coach David Bennett expressed his belief that the Big South still has an "us against the world" mentality.

There’s reason for Bennett to take that stance, and there’s reason why the Big South is still considered an underdog against the I-AA elite. The conference has not produced a playoff team, and finished just 7-17 in games against scholarship-level I-AA opponents last year.

But, for a league going into its fifth season, the Big South is making encouraging progress. Coastal Carolina knocked off the nation’s No. 1 ranked team and just missed out on a playoff berth last season, while Charleston Southern posted a banner season and became the third team to earn a part of the league title. The most important news came off the field, with Presbyterian College moving up from Division II and set to play a league schedule in 2008.

Big South commissioner Kyle Kallander has directed the league throughout its football tenure, and sees early progress with a bright future.

"I’m excited about the conference, everything is happening for the first time here," Kallander said. "We’ve come light years in five years. We have gone from just starting out with three or four Independent schools that wanted a championship and league and All-America teams to play for to where we can become nationally competitive, and it’s gratifying to see the focus change on that level."

Kallander has been impressed with the commitment from the schools, with building programs at Coastal Carolina and Charleston Southern, an established squad at Gardner-Webb and new coaches with good credentials at VMI and Liberty. Television coverage has also picked up as the league has grown. But expansion is the key, and the conference made a major move with the addition of Presbyterian and will continue to look into growing more in the future.

"Bringing on Presbyterian is huge to get us in position to earn an automatic bid," Kallander said. "I’m confident we’ll be able to earn that bid when we meet the qualifications."

Kallander believes the playoff field should expand to 24 teams, but the league will have to earn one of the coveted eight at-large bids for the near future. Coastal Carolina definitely has the schedule and returning team to make it happen this year, which would be another positive step for a league that is still trying to earn a little respect.

Below is a team-by-team breakdown of the 2006 Big South Conference race, with teams ranked according to The Sports Network’s predicted order of finish. Last season’s record is in parentheses.

Sports Network Predicted Order of Finish 1. Coastal Carolina; 2. Gardner-Webb; 3. Charleston Southern; 4. Liberty; 5. VMI.

Offensive Player of the Year: Collin Drafts, Charleston Southern; Defensive Player of the Year: Jamar Leath, Coastal Carolina.


1. COASTAL CAROLINA CHANTICLEERS (9-2, 3-1 Big South Conference)

COACH (RECORD): David Bennett (25-8 in three seasons at Coastal Carolina, 88-25 in 10 seasons overall)

STARTERS RETURNING: 16 (7 offense/9 defense)



2. GARDNER-WEBB BULLDOGS (5-6, 2-2 Big South)

COACH (RECORD): Steve Patton (61-36 in nine seasons at Gardner-Webb)

STARTERS RETURNING: 16 (9 offense/7 defense)



3. CHARLESTON SOUTHERN BUCCANEERS (7-4, 3-1 Big South)

COACH (RECORD: Jay Mills (13-20 in three seasons at Charleston Southern, 16-41 in six seasons overall)

STARTERS RETURNING: 15 (7 offense/8 defense)



4. LIBERTY FLAMES (1-10, 0-4 Big South)

COACH (RECORD): Danny Rocco (First Season)

STARTERS RETURNING: 15 (8 offense/7 defense)

MAJOR DEPARTURES: WR Lauren Williams (327 yards), OL Markus Ferguson, S C.J. Moore (81 TT, 6 PBU), CB Shane Lancaster (73 TT), LB Kenneth Kemp (54 TT), CB Jared Brodgen (31 TT), P Noah Crouch (39.6 avg)

OFFENSIVE STAR: RB Rashad Jennings (Transfer/Pittsburgh)

DEFENSIVE STAR: LB Manny Rojas (102 TT, 12 TFL)

OTHER KEY PIECES: QB Brock Smith (814 yards, 5 TD), QB/RB Zach Terrell (668 rush yards), WR Brandon Turner (594 yards, 2 TD), WR Wynton Jackson (511 yards, 3 TD), TE Chris Luck (239 receiving yards), C Mike Godsil, OG Britt Stone, OT Jarrett Winfrey, DE Jason Horn (61 TT, 13 TFL), DE Steve Ackley (41 TT, 8.5 TFL), LB Brandon Duke (62 TT), LB Stevie Ray Lloyd (Transfer/Virginia Tech), LB Nick Hursky (58 TT), CB Patrick Calvary (45 TT, 10 PBU), S Ryan Gresier

SCHEDULE: Rocco can use early games against St. Paul’s, Glenville State and Savannah State to get his career off to a nice start. Non-conference matchups against Towson, William & Mary, Western Carolina and Wake Forest don’t look quite as inviting. The Flames host Gardner-Webb and Charleston Southern in Big South action, with a trip Coastal Carolina and the season finale at VMI.

PROGNOSIS: Rocco is excited about the prospects of the Flames program, which has an administration that wants to succeed and the resources to become a much better team. But it probably isn’t going to turn around in one season with a team that did not beat a Division I opponent and lost its final 10 games a year ago. They will have a few capable playmakers on offense. Smith and Terrell provide different styles at quarterback, and Jennings showed what he is capable of by rushing for more than 400 yards in his freshman season at Pittsburgh. With a good group of starters back at wide receiver and on the line, an offense without a senior starter should improve after scoring just 13 ppg last year. The defense also struggled a year ago, but it should also post a better effort. Horn and Ackley can make things happen at defensive end, and Rojas leads a very solid group of linebackers. The secondary is a bit green, however. The Flames are building for the future, and can make progress this year with only a handful of seniors on the roster. It will probably take another year or two until they can contend for the league title, but the Flames should pick up a few victories in the conference and maybe even challenge for an upset in one of the non-conference games.

5. VMI KEYDETS (3-8, 2-2 Big South)

COACH (RECORD): Jim Reid (First Season at VMI, 84-82-3 in 15 seasons overall)

STARTERS RETURNING: 9 (5 offense/4 defense)

http://www.sportsnetwork.com/default.as ... 036996.htm

[PAmedic]

keep underestimating us, thats fine

[ATrain]

Well its obvious why no one but us are saying we'll contend...its in the explanation he gave. But predictions mean nothing, everything is proved on Saturday night on the field.

[bigsmooth]

i love being under the radar!!!

[BJWilliams]

Well its obvious why no one but us are saying we'll contend...its in the explanation he gave. But predictions mean nothing, everything is proved on Saturday night on the field.

Or Thursday night as it were...