Last weekend was pretty light when it came to action in and around the Sun Belt with two games having to be cancelled due to Hurricane Irma threatening the state of Florida. That being said, there was still a lot to talk about after week two.
Off Last Week:
Georgia State and Coastal Carolina wound up with an early open date last weekend. The Panthers will head up to Happy Valley to take on Penn State and the Chanticleers will head over to Birmingham to take on UAB.
Arkansas State Red Wolves:
The Red Wolves were pumped up headed into the week as they were set to host the Miami Hurricanes. However, Hurricane Irma forced the matchup to be cancelled a few days before.
Arkansas State will open their home slate this Saturday when they take on Arkansas Pine Bluff with kockoff set for 6 pm.
UL Monroe Warhawks:
The Warhawks were in the same boat as Arkansas State after having their matchup against Florida State cancelled. The Warhawks will host Southern Miss this weekend with kickoff set for 6 pm.
South Alabama Jaguars:
South Alabama’s non-conference slate has given them no favors with Ole Miss and Oklahoma State the first two weeks of the season. The Jaguars were dominated by the Cowboys, losing 44-7. The lone score came late in the fourth quarter from a 17-yard pass from Dallas Davis to Mseiah Francis.
South Alabama will stay in the friendly confines of Ladd-Peebles Stadium look for their first win against in-state opponent Alabama A&M.
Texas State Bobcats:
After getting the 2017 season off to a good start, the Bobcats had a reality check when they were held to just three points against the Colorado Buffaloes 37-3. The bright spot for the Bobcats was punter Marcus Ripley who averaged 45.9 yards on nine punts and earned Sun Belt Conference Special Teams Player of the Week.
Texas State will head back to San Marcos for their first conference matchup against Appalachian State.
Appalachian State Mountaineers:
Speaking of Appalachian State, the Mountaineers had a solid bounce back game against Savannah State by the score of 54-7. Senior Taylor Lamb went 12-of-15 for 327 yards and five touchdowns.
Georgia Southern Eagles:
The trajectory of the Georgia Southern Eagles under Tyson Summers has been a steep decline. Saturday’s 22-12 loss to New Hampshire was another sign of that. Shai Werts went 11-of-22 for only 93 yards and was sacked five times on the evening.
Troy Trojans:
The Trojans performed pretty well last Saturday against Alabama State with Brandon Silvers going 32-of-40 for 345 yards including a 53-yarder to Tevaris McCormick.
The Trojans will open up their conference slate this Saturday when they head to New Mexico State with kickoff set for 7 pm.
Idaho Vandals:
Idaho had a hard time stopping UNLV, especially in the second half with the Rebels putting up 34 points in that time frame.
Idaho will look to bounce back this Saturday when they travel to Western Michigan with kickoff set for 6 pm.
New Mexico State Aggies:
New Mexico State had a pretty good week with a nailbiter against in-state rival New Mexico. Despite 24 unanswered points from the Lobos in the fourth quarter, the Aggies held on to win 30-28.
Tyler Rogers and Ron Laforce were named offensive and defensive player of the week respectively by the Sun Belt. The Aggies will open up their conference slate against the Troy Trojans at 7 pm.
-Clint Domingue