Sun Belt Football

Louisiana-Monroe quarterback Rhett Rodriguez is in intensive care with a lung injury, per Heather Dinich of ESPN.

The quarterback, who is the son of former West Virginia, Michigan and Arizona head coach Rich Rodriguez, suffered the injury during Saturday's 29-16 win over Troy.

His father thanked those who had offered their well wishes:

The elder Rodriguez is the associate head coach and offensive coordinator for Louisiana-Monroe this season.

Rhett started his collegiate career at Arizona and is a graduate transfer this year. He won the starting quarterback job and has led the Warhawks to a 2-1 record to start their season. Their only loss came to the SEC's Kentucky in the season opener.

He was 10-of-16 passing for 131 yards and one touchdown in Saturday's win.

Next up for Louisiana-Monroe is a game against No. 16 Coastal Carolina on Saturday.

Georgia State football head coach Shawn Elliott didn't hold back when speaking with reporters postgame following a heartbreaking 34-24 loss at Auburn on Saturday.

Specifically, Elliott implied that the SEC officiating crew favored Auburn when it upheld a catch that appeared to be incomplete en route to the Tigers' game-winning touchdown.

"They had a little bit of help on that review where the ball was incomplete," Elliott said, per ESPN's Alex Scarborough.

"It should have been put back on the 30-yard line. But you know when you play in the SEC you gotta take the hits. And they gave us a real gut punch on that call. So we appreciate that."

Auburn was losing 24-19 when it earned a 1st-and-10 from the Georgia State 30-yard line with 1:13 remaining. Tigers quarterback T.J. Finley then fired a pass to John Samuel Shenker for a first down at the Georgia State 11-yard line.

The play went to review, and it appeared that the ball deflected off the grass before Shenker controlled the pass. Patrick Greenfield of AL.com provided a replay of the controversial sequence.

The call on the field stood, however. Four plays later, Finley found Shedrick Jackson on a 4th-and-9 for the game-winning touchdown and 25-24 lead.

Auburn got the two-point conversion for the 27-24 edge, but Georgia State still had a shot with 45 seconds left. It wasn't meant to be, though, as Smoke Monday returned an interception for a touchdown and the eventual 34-24 win.

It was undoubtedly a gut-punch of a loss for Georgia State, but the Panthers still played an incredible game. Elliott was proud of his team's effort and specifically praised the defense.

"They controlled the line of scrimmage," Elliott said. "They controlled the passing attack. What a great defensive performance."

He added: "I hurt for them because they put so much energy and effort into it. It's a gut-wrenching thing."

The No. 23 Tigers improved to 3-1 with the win. Georgia State fell to 1-3.

Joe Bradshaw, a freshman wide receiver at Charleston Southern, died on Thursday at the age of 19. 

The school said in a statement that Bradshaw died off-campus and authorities are still in the process of gathering information.

Buccaneers head coach Autry Denson included a statement in the school's announcement:

"On behalf of the Charleston Southern Football ministry, we offer our condolences to the Bradshaw and Edwards' family regarding the untimely passing of an exceptional young man, Joe 'Jo Jo' Bradshaw. It is imperative that we not judge or allow circumstances to define who Joe was as a person. Not only would that in and of itself be a tragedy, but it also would not accurately portray who Joe really was. Jo Jo was a phenomenal young man, son, student, and teammate.  He was a computer engineering major. His position on the field was as a wide receiver, but that huge smile and big heart influenced every one of his teammates and coaches."

Denson noted that Bradshaw recently had wrist surgery, but "was spotted in the parking lot (on the same day as his procedure) attempting to attend a team meeting that he was excused from."

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of FCS programs delayed the start of the 2020 football season until the spring. The Buccaneers played their first game of the season on March 13, a 24-19 loss to Kennesaw State. 

Bradshaw, who was a walk-on receiver, didn't appear in that game. He did record 51 receptions during his senior year at Nease High School. 

Charleston Southern said it will hold a memorial service for Bradshaw at a later date to be determined. 

The one-sentence recap of Texas State's 2021 recruiting class is jarring. While some time remains in the cycle, the Sun Belt program has signed zero high school players.

Instead, the Bobcats have added 11 transfers.

Nine arrived from other FBS teams, one departed an FCS school and one is a junior college product. Technically, only the JUCO signee—defensive end DeOnte Washington—counts as a prospect. As a result, Jake Spavital's team has the 187th-ranked recruiting class in the nation, according to the 247Sports composite rankings.

That begs the obvious follow-up question: Why?

Although context is valuable, every raised eyebrow is reasonable. Adding zero freshmen to a program with a 15-57 record over the last six seasons may seem antithetical to a sound plan—even foolish.

But the logic is fascinating.

In 2020, Texas State's underclassmen-heavy roster included only 13 seniors. And because of the coronavirus pandemic, the NCAA didn't count the 2020 season as a year of eligibility. Although 12 players elected to transfer, everyone else could return in the same classification.

However, the much-needed rule to protect eligibility would actually be an obstacle for Texas State's long-term future.

After the 2021 season, the limit of 85 scholarships per team may be a hard restriction again. Adjustments are possible, yet uncertain. Had the Bobcats signed 20 high schoolers, they would have risked limiting their options in future years.

Not everyone on the roster has a scholarship, but Texas State could have had 65-75 designated for freshmen and sophomores next season. And without changes to how scholarships are counted post-pandemic, some players could've been invited to "explore other opportunities." While that isn't a new development in college football, it also isn't ideal.

So, the Bobcats turned to a plan B: focus on older talent.

Seven of the 11 additions are listed as "graduate" players, so they aren't long for San Marcos. In theory, that both protects future flexibility and bolsters the roster in 2021.

"You're not gonna get a developmental kid with the transfer portal; you're gonna get a guy that comes in and adds to the size and the depth and should be ready to play immediately," Spavital said in a video released by the school.

Most notably, the Bobcats added offensive lineman Liam Dobson—an FCS All-American at Maine—along with Cal receiver Jeremiah Hawkins and Utah State safety Troy Lefeged Jr. Among the additions, they should be key players for Texas State in 2021.

While waiting to see whether this pays off, it's reasonable to say the strategy is rational and worth a shot.

The pandemic led to many recruiting changes: no official visits, no on-campus contact during unofficial trips, no spring or winter evaluation periods or summer camps. Every program had to react and adjust, yet only Texas State took this route.

Given the uniqueness of an eligibility freeze, to suggest Spavital and Texas State can reshape the perceived value of the transfer portal is a stretch.

On a smaller scale, however, the Bobcats may become an example for Group of Five rosters that need a jolt. Developing an under-recruited prospect into a star is great, but pairing them with experienced transfers could provide a quicker path to competitiveness.

Sustaining success via the portal would be challenging. For a program that hasn't topped three wins in six seasons, though, a little bit of creativity might be the spark Texas State needs.

Sure, your glass might be half-empty on this effort. But even if it fails and Spavital is gone within a few years, at least he won't leave the Bobcats in a scholarship mess as well.

All recruiting information via 247Sports. Stats from NCAA.com, cfbstats.com or B/R research. Follow Bleacher Report CFB Writer David Kenyon on Twitter @Kenyon19_BR.

After leading Coastal Carolina to an undefeated regular season, head coach Jamey Chadwell has been named the Associated Press college football coach of the year for 2020. 

Per Ralph D. Russo of the Associated Press, Chadwell received 16 first-place votes and a total of 88 points to beat out Tom Allen from Indiana (14 first-place votes, 66 points), Luke Fickell from Cincinnati (five first-place votes, 44 points) and Nick Saban from Alabama (eight first-place votes, 42 points).

Chadwell is just the second head coach from a Group of Five school to win the AP coach of the year award since its inception in 1998. Scott Frost was the first to do it when he led Central Florida to a 13-0 record in 2017. 

The Chanticleers were one of the most pleasant surprises in college football this season. The program went a combined 13-23 in its first four FBS seasons and had never been ranked in the Associated Press Top 25. 

In 2020, Chadwell led Coastal Carolina to 11 straight wins in the regular season and a ninth-place ranking in the final Associated Press Top 25 poll. It also climbed all the way up to 12th in the final College Football Playoff rankings. 

ESPN's Bill Connelly projected Coastal Carolina to finish last in the Sun Belt's Eastern division with a 5-7 record in his preseason prediction column. 

"I knew we weren't as bad as people were going to pick us to be," Chadwell told Russo. "I thought we were going to be pretty good. I knew we were going to be better."

The Chanticleers' quest for a perfect season fell short when they were upset by Liberty 37-34 in overtime in the Cure Bowl on Dec. 26. Their 11 wins were the most in a single season for the program since going 12-2 in 2014. 

Chadwell finished his second season as Coastal Carolina's full-time head coach. He previously served as the interim coach in 2017 when Joe Moglia went on leave for medical reasons. The Tennessee native has gone 19-17 in three seasons with the Chanticleers.

The Georgia State Panthers have won the second bowl game in program history after their 39-21 victory over the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers in the 2020 LendingTree Bowl on Saturday. 

Since moving up to football's bowl subdivision prior to the 2013 season, the Panthers have made four bowl appearances. Their only previous victory was also against Western Kentucky in the 2017 Cure Bowl. 

Georgia State head coach Shawn Elliott has led the program to three winning seasons in the past four years.

Western Kentucky entered the bowl game riding a three-game winning streak after a 2-6 start. The Hilltoppers' 5-7 overall record marks their third losing season in the past four years.

The storyline coming into the matchup was if Western Kentucky would be able to keep up its recent offensive surge. The Hilltoppers only averaged 18.8 points per game for the season, but they scored 75 points combined in the last two games of the regular season. 

Georgia State's high-powered offense averaged 36.8 points per game during the regular season, but its defense gave up 32.9 points. 

The Panthers ultimately prevailed because their defense was able to force two first-half interceptions that led to 14 points for the offense. 

Notable Game Stats

• Cornelious Brown IV, QB (GA State):16-of-30, 232 yards, 3 TD, INT; 10 carries, 40 yards
• Destin Coates, RB (GA State): 23 carries, 117 yards, TD
• Cornelius McCoy, WR (GA State): 5 receptions, 88 yards, TD
• Tyrrell Pigrome, QB (Western Kentucky): 17-of-33, 180 yards, 2 INT
• Gaej Walker, RB (Western Kentucky): 8 carries, 31 yards, TD; 2 receptions, 30 yards
• Joshua Simon, TE (Western Kentucky): 4 receptions, 84 yards

Brown, Coates Lift Panthers to Victory

Freshman quarterback Cornelious Brown IV has had an up-and-down season with 14 touchdown passes and nine interceptions coming into Saturday. 

The LendingTree Bowl included some of the bad moments that Brown is capable of. He only completed 53.3 percent of his attempts, but his completions counted with three first-half touchdown passes. 

Brown had some help on his third touchdown pass when Cornelius McCoy laid out for an eight-yard catch with 2:07 remaining in the second quarter:

In addition to Brown's success through the air, Destin Coates ran through the heart of Western Kentucky's defense. 

After his team fell behind 7-0 in the first quarter, Coates got the Panthers on the board with an 11-yard touchdown. He had 40 of the team's 75 yards on the 11-play drive that took four minutes, seven seconds off the clock. 

The second quarter saw the floodgates open for Georgia State's offense. It went on a run of three consecutive touchdown drives of at least 11 plays and 77 yards. 

In between those scoring drives, the Panthers defense held Western Kentucky to a total of four yards on seven plays over three possessions. The game went from being tied to a 27-7 advantage for Georgia State at intermission. 

That turned out to be more than enough for the Panthers to get the victory. The defense allowed 21 points and 284 yards against Western Kentucky. 

Elliott has built Georgia State into a solid program in just his fourth year. He's still trying to find consistency on both sides of the ball to challenge teams like Appalachian State and Coastal Carolina in the Sun Belt Conference, but the Panthers are trending in the right direction after wrapping up another winning season. 

Pigrome's Mistakes Cost Hilltoppers

While no one would ever put Western Kentucky's offense among the nation's elite, the unit was great all season at protecting the football. 

Quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome entered the bowl game with zero interceptions on 264 attempts. Clemson's D.J. Uiagalelei was the only other FBS quarterback with at least 100 attempts and no interceptions. 

The first quarter was following Western Kentucky's formula for success. Both teams exchanged punts on the first two drives, followed by Devon Key picking off Brown in the end zone to give the Hilltoppers possession. 

Pigrome led the offense on a 14-play, 80-yard touchdown drive to take a 7-0 lead. 

That wound up being the high point of the game for the offense, as the wheels came off in the second quarter. 

Pigrome threw his first two interceptions of the season on back-to-back possessions. Georgia State turned both of those picks into touchdowns. 

Western Kentucky did come out of the intermission strong. Pigrome and running back Gaej Walker engineered a 64-yard scoring drive to help cut the Hilltoppers' deficit to 27-14. 

After the defense forced a punt, Travis Collier had the ball knocked out of his hands and Georgia State recovered. The Panthers settled for a field goal, but any semblance of momentum Western Kentucky built on that first drive evaporated. 

Its next three drives resulted in two turnover on downs and one punt. Georgia State opened up a 39-14 lead before Western Kentucky got back into the end zone with a C.J. Jones touchdown run in garbage time. 

Saturday was a familiar story for Western Kentucky, unfortunately. The offense has been so limited all year that it can't afford to make any miscues. 

Pigrome has been so good at avoiding big mistakes all season, but he was finally forced into making two against Georgia State. 

The result is indicative of the work that head coach Tyson Helton still has to do filling out this roster. This was only his second season with the Hilltoppers, and they have played in bowl games both years, so there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic.

For the second consecutive year, Louisiana-Lafayette has posted a season with double-digit victories, thanks to a 31-24 win over UTSA in the First Responder Bowl at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in University Park, Texas, on Saturday.

Louisiana-Lafayette held a 24-7 lead in the third quarter before UTSA scored 17 unanswered points and tied the game at 24. It was redshirt senior Trey Ragas who scored the go-ahead score for the Ragin' Cajuns, on a one-yard run to cap a 72-yard drive that ate up more than six minutes of the fourth quarter.

The team ended the season having suffered its only loss of the year to No. 12 Coastal Carolina, by just three points back on Oct. 14.

In their second bowl game in program history, the Roadrunners were led by quarterback Frank Harris, whose dual-sided efforts came too late to secure the victory.

UTSA entered Saturday without their head coach, Jeff Traylor, who tested positive for COVID-19.

Notable Performers

• Elijah Mitchell, RB, Louisiana-Lafayette: 127 rushing yards (19 carries), TD; 45 receiving yards (two receptions)
• Levi Lewis, QB, Louisiana-Lafayette: 146 passing yards (12-of-22), 2 TD; 25 rushing yards
• Frank Harris, QB, UTSA: 208 passing yards (13-of-21), 2 TD, INT; 91 rushing yards, TD
• Sincere McCormick, RB, UTSA: 122 rushing yards (23 attempts)

Passing Makes the Difference Between Run-Heavy Teams

Both teams have found success this season because of their advantage on the ground.

Both Louisiana-Lafayette and UTSA are focused on their run game, with UTSA averaging 214.7 rushing yards per game and Louisiana-Lafayette collecting 207.8 entering the First Responder Bowl. The Ragin' Cajuns carry a slight advantage in terms of how productive they've been with their carries, averaging 5.43 yards per attempt, compared to the Roadrunners' 5.23 yards on every carry.

The game was nearly knotted in the box score at the half—Louisiana-Lafayette had 142 rushing yards compared to UTSA's 123. So where did Louisiana-Lafayette find the advantage and the 17-7 halftime lead and, later, the victory?

It came down to passing. Both of Louisiana-Lafayette's touchdowns in the first half came from senior quarterback Levi Lewis, who has thrown a touchdown pass in 18 consecutive games.

When Harris elected to pass the ball in the second half after just eight attempts and 47 passing yards in the first half, he brought the Roadrunners within three points on two quick touchdown passes in the third, helping them score 17 unanswered points and eventually tie the game.

Having a backup plan for a run-heavy scheme was what allowed Louisiana-Lafayette to top UTSA, so it is promising that Lewis will be returning next year.

Though he is a redshirt junior, Harris hasn't had much experience on the field outside of this season. He sat out as a freshman in 2017 and missed the 2018 season with an injury. In 2019, he made four starts before he was sidelined again.

On Saturday, he too proved to be a viable passer, once he elected to throw the ball late.

With a full season under his belt, the squad will be able to build off his presence next year.

McCormick Is Sincere(ly) Good

Speaking of rushing, one of the most interesting players to watch in FBS over the next few seasons showed off his ability against Louisiana-Lafayette.

Sophomore running back Sincere McCormick ranked second in total rushing yards in FBS heading into Saturday with 1,345 yards and 11 touchdowns on 226 carries. In the second half of the season, he's only improved. Through the past five games, McCormick averaged 155.2 yards per game, and he entered Saturday off a record-setting performance.

In the Roadrunners' season-ending win over North Texas, McCormick logged a program-best 251 yards with two touchdowns.

On Saturday, he compiled 122 rushing yards, marking his seventh game this season with at least 100 rushing yards.

For an offense that relies so heavily on its players to move the ball on the ground, McCormick is a bright spot for the years to come.

What's Next?

Louisiana-Lafayette will open the 2021 season with a road trip to Texas on Sept. 4, while the Roadrunners will travel to face Illinois on the same day.

Coastal Carolina's incoming president may have made more than a few friends on campus with his recent comments, but the College Football Playoff committee might not be as inclined to applaud his efforts.

In an open letter to the committee, incoming president Dr. Michael T. Benson strongly criticized the panel's ranking of CCU's undefeated team, noting the No. 12 Chanticleers (11-0) suffered from "flawed logic."

"Coastal Carolina and the University of Cincinnati have every right to be absolutely flabbergasted by both the results of the rankings, but also the flawed logic the committee used to arrive at their conclusions," Benson wrote. "I believe Cincinnati earned a spot in the playoff. And I also believe the Chanticleers were not respected when it came to bowl selection."

No. 8 Cincinnati went 9-0 during the regular season but was placed behind two-loss Oklahoma and three-loss Florida in the final rankings as well.

Despite victories over No. 21 Louisiana-Lafayette and No. 13 BYU padding their resume, the Chanticleers won't be playing in a New Year's Six bowl—the Bearcats earned the final bid there. Instead, they're heading to the FBC Mortgage Cure Bowl where they'll face No. 23 Liberty on Saturday.

While it's the first-ever bowl game for a program established in 2003, and in only its fourth season as a FBS school, it's not exactly the matchup an undefeated team would expect.

Benson was quick to point out how that wouldn't be the case for a brand-name school while explaining the committee runs away from the type of Cinderella stories created during March Madness by stacking the deck for top teams.

While the incoming school president said the letter wasn't written out of bitterness or with vindictive intent, it's final, blistering line calls out the committee for valuing revenue above all else.

"The lack of fairness inherent in the current system—a system driven by money as its master—must be addressed," Benson said. "You know it as well as I do; it's not right nor is it American."

The Sun Belt championship game between Coastal Carolina and Louisiana has been canceled after Coastal Carolina had a positive test for COVID-19 within its program.

Per the press release, "Because of contact tracing, an entire position group would not be available to play due to possible exposure and therefore the game cannot be played." 

"We are very disappointed that the championship game cannot be played, but we are so proud of all of the players and staff members and their hard work during this truly challenging season," Sun Belt Commissioner Keith Gill said in a statement. "We will honor both teams as 2020 Sun Belt Conference Co-Champions."

The Sun Belt championship had been scheduled for Saturday. 

It's been a tough end to the season for Coastal Carolina, which also was ranked just 12th in the latest College Football Playoff poll despite being 11-0 on the season. It's unlikely a second win over No. 19 Louisiana (9-1) would have gotten them anywhere close to a top-four finish and the College Football Playoff. 

But it could have potentially catapulted them ahead of No. 9 Cincinnati (8-0), which hasn't played in two weeks. That's important—the top-ranked team from the American Athletic, Conference USA, MAC, Mountain West and Sun Belt conferences automatically qualifies for a berth in either the GoodYear Cotton Bowl, Fiesta Bowl or Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl if they don't get into the CFP. 

The Bearcats face Tulsa on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET in the American Athletic Conference Championship Game. The Chanticleers hopes of leapfrogging Cincinnati are now entirely reliant on a Tulsa win. Tulsa, ranked No. 23, is unlikely to jump over both Cincy and Coastal Carolina with a win.