Climbing The Ladder : Coach Rousseau's Career (NCAAF 14)

[el_rousso]

Dynasty Origins and Background :
I've been running dynasties on NCAA '14 for a little while now, starting at various schools and jobs, but I wanted to make it more interesting and more immersing for me. At the same time, I was reading some of the dynasty reports on here that made me want to try my hand at the same thing.

This dynasty report will be based on an ongoing dynasty I have running right now, which I am now in my fourth year. I have decided against starting over, simply because I like the progress I have made right now, the house rules I have been using, and the games I have had, so I will simply recap the first three seasons in the starting posts, and pick it up from there.

Coach Guillaume Rousseau^[1]
Overall record : 6-6
Bowl Record : 0-0
Longest Win Streak : 2 games
Record vs Top 25 : 0-1
Record vs Rivals : 1-0
Average Recruiting Class Rank^[2] : 85
Top 25 Recruiting Class : 0
Coach of the Year Awards : 0
Heisman Winners : 0
Other Awards Winners : 1
All-American Players : 2

^[1] : Does not include stats as Coordinator
^[2] : Does not include years when changing schools

Award winners :
- Bednarik : MLB Andrew Curtis (SR), FAU, 2016
- Best LB : MLB Andrew Curtis (SR), FAU, 2016

All-Americans :
- DT Lance Burlingame (SR), FAU, 2016
- MLB Andrew Curtis (SR), FAU, 2016

SEASON RECAPS

2013 Season
Simulated, I created my coach at the end of the season. I took over the OC job at the University of Colorado (1*), and awaited the offers during the Coaching Carousel.

National Champions : Virginia Tech (14-0)
Heisman Winner : Johnny Manziel, QB, Texas A&M, Sophomore (RS)

2014 Season
Season Record : Kentucky OC, 8-4 (6-3 SEC), #20
Outback Bowl vs Michigan Wolverines : W 41-27
National Champions : Oregon Ducks (14-0)
Heisman Winner : Johnny Manziel, QB, Texas A&M, Junior (RS)

2015 Season
Season Record : Kentucky OC, 8-4 (5-4 SEC)
Gator Bowl vs Northwestern Wildcats : L 27-28
National Champions : Michigan State (13-1)
Heisman Winner : Johnny Manziel, QB, Texas A&M, Senior (RS)

2016 Season
Season Record : Florida Atlantic HC, 6-6 (5-4 Conference USA)
Bowl eligible (received no invitation)
National Champions : South Carolina (13-1)
Heisman Winner : Tommy Armstrong, QB, Nebraska, Senior (RS)

2017 Season
Season Record : Florida Atlantic HC, 0-0
---
National Champions : ---
Heisman Winner : ---

[el_rousso]

Rules and Introduction

House Rules :

General Rules
- Heisman difficulty, coaching only (I'm not playing any snaps)
- 11-minute quarters, slow game speed
- Slowest coach progression

Recruiting Rules
- No recruiting as long as I'm a coordinator (can set strategies) on level 3 or less, I can recruit once I get to level 4, but only players on my side of the ball (offense/defense), starting with the following season
- No scouting players until AFTER they've committed to the team (CPU can and will still scout, however)
- No Kitchen Sink upgrade
- Only replace the number of seniors leaving, with roster minimum size being 60 (to account for juniors leaving early)
- Can't have more prospects on the recruiting board than seniors leaving (can't be enforced as long as I'm a coordinator, because of my House Rules, I have to let the CPU manage the board until I become HC)
- (Season 2017 update) The only players I can talk into staying are players I have recruited and redshirted their FR year, I can't persuade any other player to stay (declaring JRs, transfer requests, etc)
- Can only recruit same *level as school is
- Can recruit 1* higher if prospect has my school in his top 10
- No restriction on level if prospect has my school in his top 5
- Regional recruiting :

- 1* = Home and pipeline states only

- 2* = Home and pipeline states + 65mi (135mi if coastal) states from campus

- 3* = Home and pipeline states + 135mi (270mi if coastal) states from campus

- 4* = Home and pipeline states + 265mi (530mi if coastal) states from campus

- 5* = Home and pipeline states + 450mi (900mi if coastal) states from campus

- 6* = Home and pipeline states + 675mi (1350mi if coastal) states from campus

- States from campus = States that have a border within the mileage

- EXCEPTION #1 TO ABOVE : Can recruit any prospect not in regional criteria who has my school in their top 3

- EXCEPTION #2 TO ABOVE : Service academies (Army, Navy, Air Force), Notre Dame and BYU can recruit nationally regardless of school prestige

- (Season 2017 update) Service academies have to recruit according to military restrictions for height and weight (I have made a chart for that, I'll whip it out if I get a HC job at a service academy down the line), a "cut weight" of about 10lbs (exceptions : 30lbs for TEs, 50lbs for O- and D- linemen) is allowed

Contract and Coaching Rules
- I have to stay at coordinator level until I have 6 skill points, unless the current school's HC gets fired and I have an offer to replace him, then I'll consider that as an interim job
- I have to complete a minimum of 50% of the contract length (rounded up) at any school I sign with, unless they fire me, or I get a HC offer when I'm currently a OC/DC (subject to the 6 skill point rule above)
- Contract extensions add to the length of the original contract's used years, so if I sign for 4 years, and they offer me another 4-year extension after the first year, total contract length becomes 5 years, meaning I have to complete at least 3 years before I switch jobs
- I can stay as long as I want a any school, subject to the 50% length rule above
- I have to play the HC playbook when I'm a coordinator, and either use the OC/DC playbook or mine when I get a HC job
- I can perform substitutions or alter depth chart on my side of the ball only (OC/DC) when I'm a coordinator

(Season 2016 update) I also have some thoughts on future conference realignment, but I won't do anything until later on in the Dynasty, since the last actual changes will be done around 2016-2017 (UAB reinstating football, that I will be treating as Independent for the 2015 and 2016 seasons, and UMass departing the MAC to "likely" go Independent in 2016), but here are the general guidelines I will base myself on :

Conference Invitations Guidelines
- Sun Belt / C-USA / MAC : no restrictions on which team can get an invitation
- MWC / American : To be invited, a team must combine the following in their last few seasons :

- School prestige equal or higher than the conference average

- 2 or more straight conference titles

- 1 or more 9-win season

- .667 winning% over the last 3 seasons (cumulative)

- ACC / B1G / Big XII / Pac-12 / SEC : To be invited, a team must combine the following in their last few seasons :

- School prestige equal or higher than the conference average

- 4+ straight years ranked in final Top 25 (two of those years must be Top 15)

- 3+ straight 10-win seasons

- 3+ BCS bowl games OR 2 or more National Championships in the last 6 seasons

- 1+ undefeated season(s) (bowl game not included)

- A team outside the Power 5 with 3 National Championships in the last 7 seasons can get an invite, regardless of the other criteria, and the invite will come from the nearest suitable conference
- Prior to first season in new conference, the realigned team(s) will have to play Independent for one season, depending on Independent season record, invite can be cancelled
- If an invite is cancelled, the invited team(s) must remain Independent before switching to another conference, and above criteria can then apply to choose the new conference
- Once a realignment occur, other conferences can issue invitations, with reduced or no requirements, so they can still run an adequate number of teams (probation period would be waived in that case)
- A conference can issue invitations at its discretion, mainly to get to play a championship game or to be able to maintain it, but most of the time, the conferences will stick to the above criteria
- An Independent team, since they don't play in a conference, can't win a conference championship, so invitations will be sent mainly on the basis of school prestige, with W-L record a part of the criteria
- (Season 2017 update) Some conferences may have additional criteria, like B1G wanting its teams to be members of the Association of American Universities (Nebraska is not a member, but was at the time of its approval in 2010), so these criteria will be translated in the game by use of the schools' ratings
- (Season 2017 update) Updated prestige criteria for conference invitations.

Related to Conference realignment, if a team I'm managing can get an invite and I accept it, I can adjust my Independent schedule and make it so I play future conference opponents, which would, I believe, be a little more realistic. Of course, since teams can refuse an invite, I will be using a randomization formula to determine whether the invite is accepted or not, I reckon that strength of both conferences, geographical and other factors would come into play, but more on all that later in the Dynasty.

Dynasty Start

I simulated the entire 2013 season (NC : Virginia Tech (14-0), Heisman : Johnny Manziel of Texas A&M) before creating myself as an OC with the 1* Colorado Buffaloes (4-8) just before the end of season coaching carousel.

I got a couple HC job offers that I couldn't accept (see house rules), and some coordinator job offers from school I didn't want to go to, either because I played the same conference in a previous dynasty, or just lack of interest. Then came the 2* Kentucky Wildcats who wanted a new Offensive Coordinator, and I was thrilled at the opportunity, so I signed on.

[el_rousso]

University of Kentucky – 2014 (Year 1 at UK) – 2* School prestige

2013 record : 3-9 (1-8 SEC)

Week 1 : BYE
Week 2 : vs Ohio - W 28-24
Week 3 : RIVALRY GAME at #8 Louisville - L 35-45
Week 4 : vs #6 LSU - W 31-28
Week 5 : at #20 Florida - W 30-10
Week 6 : at #6 South Carolina - L 30-48
Week 7 : at #20 Alabama - L 31-58
Week 8 : BYE
Week 9 : RIVALRY GAME at #23 Mississippi State - W 27-24
Week 10 : at Missouri - L 60-65
Week 11 : HOMECOMING GAME vs Vanderbilt - W 41-13
Week 12 : vs Navy - W 27-17
Week 13 : vs Georgia - W 52-42 ^[1]
Week 14 : RIVALRY GAME vs #18 Tennessee - W 43-31
Week 15 : SEC CHAMPIONSHIP WEEK
*Ranks are at the time of the game

^[1] : The game would not load, so I had to simulate the result.

A pretty tough schedule, considering SEC opposition, we held our own most of the time, had one or two going well our way and one or two where we didn't show up, all in all, a pretty nice result. We were invited to the Outback Bowl to play against a tough 7-5 Michigan Wolverines team.

Outback Bowl : at Michigan - W 41-27

Things again went our way in the bowl game, we managed to keep the opposition in check while scoring on most of our possessions. A great finish for the Wildcats as we nicely turned around our season from last year's record, and end the year ranked #18.

BCS Bowls :
- Rose Bowl : #3 Ohio State 28-3 #6 Georgia Tech
- Fiesta Bowl : #12 Northwestern 45-21 #15 Utah State
- Sugar Bowl : #4 Texas 24-28 #5 South Carolina
- Orange Bowl : #7 Oklahoma 55-32 #10 Notre Dame
- National Championship : #2 Virginia Tech 31-34 #1 Oregon

The #1 Oregon Ducks won the National Championship and capped a perfect 14-0 season by edging the #2 Virginia Tech Hokies 34-31, who were in their second consecutive National Championship game. Johnny Manziel won the Heisman again, his third in a row. I was offered a 3-year extension to my contract at the end of the season, (I was level 4 OC), and I have accepted the new terms of the contract.

Rearrangements were made for the 2015 season, with Navy officially joining the American Conference for football after playing as an Independent since 1879, and UAB moving to Independent (to account for them discontinuing their football program until 2017). This made the American go to 12 teams, with Cincinnati, UConn, ECU, Temple, UCF and USF in the East Division, and Houston, Memphis, Navy, SMU, Tulane and Tulsa in the West Division.

University of Kentucky – 2015 (Year 2 at UK) – 3* School prestige

Week 1 : vs UL Lafayette – W 41-38
Week 2 : at Auburn – W 59-38
Week 3 : BYE
Week 4 : vs #24 LSU – W 44-3
Week 5 : vs #23 Florida – L 41-44 OT
Week 6 : vs #7 South Carolina – W 32-31
Week 7 : HOMECOMING GAME vs UAB – W 55-24
Week 8 : BYE
Week 9 : RIVALRY GAME vs Mississippi State – W 34-31
Week 10 : vs Missouri – L 21-28
Week 11 : RIVALRY GAME vs Louisville – W 41-30
Week 12 : at Vanderbilt – W 48-21
Week 13 : at #13 Georgia – L 28-42 ^[2]
Week 14 : RIVALRY GAME at Tennessee – L 27-59
Week 15 : SEC CHAMPIONSHIP WEEK
*Ranks are at the time of the game

^[2] : Again, the game would not load, so I had to simulate the result. I believe something must be wrong with Georgia somewhere in my file.

Basically the same schedule as the previous year, but maybe a tad less strong, since I've swapped Ohio, Alabama and Navy for UAB, Auburn and ULL. Nevertheless, I had more trouble with the conference games than last year (went 5-4 in conference, compared to 6-3 in 2014), but won all of my non-conference games. We finished the year with the same record as last season, and were again invited to a Bowl game, this time the Gator Bowl, against the #25 Northwestern Wildcats, in what could be called the "Wildcat Bowl".

Gator Bowl : vs #25 Northwestern - L 27-28

The Wildcat Bowl was a tight game, and would be decided by a single point at the end, unfortunately not in our favour. This loss would make our final record 8-5 (5-4 SEC), out of the Top 25 this time.

BCS Bowls :
- Rose Bowl : #19 USC 14-45 #3 Texas A&M
- Fiesta Bowl : #10 Notre Dame 7-24 #5 Georgia Tech
- Sugar Bowl : #17 West Virginia 21-30 #6 Georgia
- Orange Bowl : #11 Oregon 42-19 #9 Boston College
- National Championship : #2 Ohio State 35-38 #1 Michigan State

In a rematch of their season matchup, the #1 Michigan State Spartans beat the #2 Ohio State Buckeyes 38-35 and celebrated their first National Championship title since 1966. Johnny Manziel won yet another Heisman trophy, and became the only player in NCAA history to win the award in each of his eligible seasons, a record that likely won't ever get matched.

Kentucky has offered me another contract extension, this time for 4 years. Since I could then accept Head Coaching jobs from any school (I was level 6 OC at the time), I took my chances in the Coaching Carousel. First offer I had was Nebraska's, who were in need of a new OC since their previous one left for a HC job. I naturally refused, as I was looking for both a HC job, and a lower grade school, so I could try and work my way up. The next offer was the one I would accept : Head Coach at Florida Atlantic University, of the Conference-USA. they offered me a 5-year contract, with an objective of 6 wins per season. They recorded winning seasons for the previous 3 years (8-5, 7-6 and 7-6), but they are in a tough market for recruiting, as they share a state with powerhouses Florida, Florida State and Miami, just to name those.

[el_rousso]

As the new Head coach at FAU, I had more responsibilities, but also a lot more liberty to run things my way. First order of business though, was finishing up the previous season's recruiting and roster moves. We had one player transferring out because of limited playing time, 9 graduating seniors (with none going to the NFL Draft), and two transfers in, a LE and an OLB, who I'll have to deal with in 2017. Recruiting was pretty average, with only two unsigned targets, which we finally got on board at FAU, including a 5* prospect C. Our 2016 recruiting class ranked 95th overall, so there is a lot of work to do to turn this program around. We had 4 players switching positions that offseason, mainly depth guys or new recruits.

UMass is the only change happening in the conferences outlook, as they'll be playing as Independent for the next few seasons while they look for a suitable conference to play in.

Florida Atlantic University – 2016 (Year 1 at FAU) – 1* School prestige

2015 record : 7-6 (6-3 C-USA)

Week 1 : vs Ball State – W 41-21
Week 2 : BYE
Week 3 : at #6 Miami – L 31-45
Week 4 : at Kansas State – L 17-65
Week 5 : BYE
Week 6 : at Southern Miss – W 27-26
Week 7 : HOMECOMING GAME vs Louisiana Tech – W 42-32
Week 8 : vs North Texas – L 21-35
Week 9 : vs Old Dominion – W 45-14
Week 10 : at UTSA – W 52-23
Week 11 : at Western Kentucky – L 42-45
Week 12 : at Marshall – L 45-52
Week 13 : at Mid Tenn State – L 35-44
Week 14 : RIVALRY GAME vs FIU – W 52-27
Week 15 : BYE
*Ranks at the time of playing

Not a SEC schedule as I had played the previous two years, but definitely not one to take lightly, as I was now coaching a much worse school than Kentucky. We started out well, with a solid opening win, but tough opposition in the weeks after that really got us back down to earth. Conference schedule had some ups and downs, including a three-game losing streak that saw us go from potential conference contender to mid-table finisher, but an honest season nonetheless. We finished the 2016 season 6-6 (5-4 C-USA), bowl-eligible, but we weren't invited to a bowl game.

Conference Champions :
- ACC : Clemson Tigers
- American : UCF Knights
- Big Ten : Nebraska Cornhuskers
- Big XII : Oklahoma Sooners
- Conference-USA : Rice Owls
- MAC : Kent State Golden Flashes
- Mountain West : San Diego State Aztecs
- Pac-12 : UCLA Bruins
- SEC : South Carolina Gamecocks
- Sun Belt : UL Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns

BCS Bowls :
- Rose Bowl : #5 UCLA 28-40 #3 Nebraska
- Fiesta Bowl : #9 Oregon 45-30 #8 Virginia Tech
- Sugar Bowl : #6 Ole Miss 45-48 #4 Notre Dame
- Orange Bowl : #18 Clemson 31-17 #10 Ohio State
- National Championship : #2 South Carolina 47-42 #1 Oklahoma

#2 South Carolina ended #1 Oklahoma's hopes at a perfect season by winning 47-42 in the National Championship game. That year's Heisman winner was QB Tommy Armstrong of Nebraska, beating runner-up Trevor Knight of Oklahoma (it was his second straight time as runner-up). FAU's Andrew Curtis won both the Bednarik and Best LB awards, and he and DT Lance Burlingame were both selected to the First Team All-American.

FAU didn't offer me any contract extension, likely because I was already signed on for 5 years and our results weren't really outstanding according to the previous seasons. I had a look at the Coaching Carousel, without accepting any offers, just to see if I would be keeping my entire coaching staff with me for 2017, which I did.

(Now we are at present, don't hesitate to post your comments anytime ! )

[el_rousso]

To : Coach Guillaume Rousseau
From : Athletics Director
Re : 2016-2017 Off-Season Report

Please see enclosed information about roster moves, recruiting and training results for this offseason. The report will be divided in the following points of interest :

1. Players Transferring
2. Players Leaving
3. Recruiting Update
4. Position Changes
5. Training Report
6. Cut Players

Players Transferring

We have four (4) transfer requests this year, three (3) out and one (1) in. The following players have requested a transfer from our University :

- C Trent Blake (to Arizona, lack of playing time)
- WR Joe Anthony (to Middle Tennessee State, lack of playing time)
- WR Eric Hines (to Southern Mississippi, lack of playing time)

The following player has sent us a request to come study at our University :

- HB Terence Hodges

Players Leaving

Apart from our three (3) players transferring out, we have twelve (12) seniors graduating this year. No juniors declared for the NFL Draft, and no players were drafted by NFL teams from our squad.

Recruiting Update

We have two (2) prospects who are still in their decision process this offseason :

- WR Jimmy Hampton (Georgia)
- G Todd Hollis (Florida)

We are slightly in the lead on each one, according to our reports. Please bring urgent attention to that matter.

Position Changes

We have made the following changes to your squad, as per your suggestions :

- HB Antoine Wright will play as WR for the 2017 season
- WR Erik Thomas will play as HB for the 2017 season
- WR Donta Warren will play as HB for the 2017 season
- LG David Pennington will play as RT for the 2017 season
- RE Joey Merriman will play as DT for the 2017 season
- MLB Calvin Payne will play as RE for the 2017 season
- FS Matt Simmons will play as SS for the 2017 season

Additionally, recruit OLB Mark Humphrey will play the 2017 season on the right side of defense.

Training Report

Training was good this year, with nine (9) players adding at least 6 points from last season's grade. HB Jay Warren and C Andrew Roth both added 7 points to their last season's rating, now rated at 98ovr and 85ovr respectively. They are our most improved players for this season. Warren is our top-rated offensive player, and ROLB Robert Relf is now our best defensive player, with the graduation of last year's All-American DT Lance Burlingame.

Cut Players

To conform to the maximum roster size allowed by NCAA regulations, we had to cut three (3) players from our roster, according to your suggestions :

- WR Michael Osborn
- T Josh Spicer
- SS Pete Gardner

We wish the team a good season 2017, and would like to remind you of your contract objective, which is to win at leat 6 games this season.

Sincerely,

Patrick Chun
Director of Athletics, FAU

---

First of all, I am frustrated to see that C Trent Blake is transferring out. He was heavily recruited for our 2016 class as a potential starter (80ovr), but was redshirted at the start of the 2016 season because he was not going to start (our starter last season was better and a senior), so we tried to keep his eligibility for another year. As a RS freshman, he would've been either backup to C Andrew Roth this year, or a starter at another OL position (likely RG or RT), so it is a shame to lose him. The other two transfers out (Anthony and Hines) were depth WRs that were good to have, but not irreplaceable. Transfer HB Terence Hodges is a good player to have, because with two graduating HB at the end of 2017, we won't have to look too much at prospects to replace our losses.

I am proud to announce that with the budget we were granted this year for recruiting, we have locked our two remaining targets (WR Jimmy Hampton and G Todd Hollis), so they will be coming to FAU for 2017. A quick glance at our roster has Hampton as our #7 WR in the depth chart, and Hollis will likely be our #2 LG.

We have finalized our schedule for this year, with our non-conference opponents having confirmed our requests to play them, so here is our 2017 schedule :

Florida Atlantic University – 2017 (Year 2 at FAU) – 1* School prestige

2016 record : 6-6 (5-4 C-USA)

Week 1 : vs Bethune-Cookman (FCS Southeast)
Week 2 : vs Wisconsin
Week 3 : BYE
Week 4 : at Buffalo
Week 5 : BYE
Week 6 : vs Navy
Week 7 : vs Louisiana Tech
Week 8 : at Western Kentucky
Week 9 : at Mid Tenn State
Week 10 : vs UTSA
Week 11 : vs Southern Miss
Week 12 : vs Marshall
Week 13 : at UAB
Week 14 : RIVALRY GAME at FIU
Week 15 : Conference Championship Week

We will not play a preseason ranked opponent (though it may change as the season unfolds), as we had previous agreements with some schools to play them in 2017, and these agreements have been fulfilled. Our seasonal game against Bethune-Cookman is in effect until 2018 (included).

With UAB's return to the C-USA this year, our conference schedule has been changed from 9 to 8 conference games, but we are confident we can do well in the standings this year. We lost many starters from last year, but the guys stepping in have experienced the game enough to know what is in store for them this coming season.

[el_rousso]

Florida Atlantic Owls 2017 Roster

 # Name                Class  Hgt Wgt Pos OV Hometown
__________________________________________________________________
 2 Mike Hall           RS SO  6-2 228  QB 77 Port St.Lucie, FL
 3 Kyle Pitts          RS SO  6-2 224  QB 77 Tallahassee, FL
 5 Jeremy Carter          SR  6-2 197   K 80 Stuart, FL
10 Zach Wright            FR  6-2 209  QB 68 Hallandale, FL
11 Greg Hankerson      RS SR  6-0 180  QB 91 Lake Worth, FL
17 Tremayne Young         SO 5-10 207   P 68 Gladeview, FL
18 Kalib Woods         RS SR  6-3 188  WR 89 Coconut Creek, FL
20 William Harris         SR  6-0 161  DB 75 Punta Gorda, FL
21 Glen Jones             JR  6-0 195  DB 60 Tamarac, FL
22 Matt Simmons        RS FR  6-0 177  DB 58 Lake Magdalene, FL
23 Rob Wilkinson          SR  6-0 228  RB 79 Melbourne, FL
24 Terence Hodges      RS FR  6-1 206  RB 67 Booneville, MS - Transfer
25 Willie Marshall     RS JR  6-2 192  RB 68 Jacksonville, FL
26 Chad Davis             FR  6-4 185  DB 56 Oak Hill PLace, LA
31 Brent Fields           JR 5-11 235  RB 71 Cutler Ridge, FL
32 Jay Warren          RS SR  6-0 205  RB 98 Oak Ridge, FL
33 Anthony Downs       RS FR  6-2 197  DB 70 Ormond Bech, FL
34 Kevin Fox              FR  6-0 187  DB 61 Longwood, FL
35 Stephen Myrick         FR  6-1 182  DB 66 Mountain Brook, AL
37 Antoine Wright      RS FR  6-0 208  WR 67 Kendall, FL
39 Josh O'Neill           SR  6-2 251  RB 75 Delray Beach, FL
40 Robert Relf         RS SR  6-3 239  LB 93 Flagstaff, AZ
42 Clint Harvey        RS JR  6-4 192  DB 72 Sarasota, FL
43 Brandon Pugh           FR  6-1 190  DB 56 Palm Harbor, FL
44 Bo Coleman             JR  6-0 191  DB 83 Belle Glade, FL
46 Jordan Thomas          SR 5-10 169  DB 82 Fort Meade, FL
47 Kenneth Singleton   RS JR  6-0 183  DB 74 Ormond Beach, FL
48 Courtney Givens     RS JR 5-11 176  DB 77 Cutler, FL
50 Reggie Arrington       JR  6-3 230  LB 70 Bartow, FL
51 Dustin Hunter          FR  6-3 233  LB 61 Sylacauga, AL
52 Derek Shelton          FR 5-11 234  LB 64 Fort Walton Beach, FL
53 Calvin Payne        RS JR  6-4 224  DL 65 Pine Hills, FL
54 Dominique Robertson    SR  6-2 216  LB 84 Myrtle Grove, FL
55 Lance McGraw           FR  6-0 244  LB 67 Lauderdale Lakes, FL
56 Alex Armstrong      RS SO 5-11 212  LB 70 Sebring, FL
57 Terry Arnold           SO  6-3 239  LB 65 Red Bank, SC
58 Cedric Haynes       RS FR  6-2 250  LB 72 Ozark, AL
59 Corey Buchanan      RS SO 5-11 229  LB 72 Delray Beach, FL
60 Joey Merriman       RS FR  6-4 255  DT 73 Margate, FL
61 Derek Bennett          SR  6-5 277  OL 73 Leisure City, FL
62 Austin Bland        RS SR  6-3 282  OL 95 Haines City, FL
65 Lee Sanders            FR  6-5 287  OL 59 Pembroke Pines, FL
68 Todd Hollis            FR  6-3 296  OL 66 Key Largo, FL
69 David Pennington       SR  6-5 312  OL 67 Melbourne, FL
70 Josh Hemphill       RS FR  6-6 282  OL 71 Hallandale, FL
72 Andrew Roth         RS JR  6-4 323  OL 85 Oakland Park, FL
73 Brian Gardner          SR  6-4 309  OL 82 Carol City, FL
74 Aaron Evans         RS SR  6-4 274  OL 86 Clearwater, FL
75 James Scott         RS JR  6-4 304  OL 73 North Miami Beach, FL
76 Cody Lee               FR  6-4 284  OL 65 Winter Park, FL
78 William Williams       FR  6-4 292  OL 63 Conyers, GA
80 Donta Warren        RS FR  6-4 222  RB 71 Winter Garden, FL
81 Ryan Yates          RS JR  6-1 209  WR 79 Port Orange, FL
82 Paul Rutledge       RS SO  6-7 260  TE 65 Key Largo, FL
83 Brian Pratt            JR  6-1 257  TE 69 Wellington, FL
84 A.J. Ruffin            SR  6-2 199  WR 77 Wellington, FL
85 Willie Wheeler         JR  6-1 266  TE 75 Jasper, AL
86 Erik Thomas         RS SO  6-5 232  RB 76 Longwood, FL
87 Shaq Vereen         RS SR 5-10 188  WR 93 West Augusta, GA
88 Corey Bush          RS FR  6-3 199  WR 67 Candler-McAfee, GA
89 Jimmy Hampton          FR  6-3 190  WR 67 Vinings, GA
90 Mark Humphrey          FR  6-4 231  LB 73 Tarpon Springs, FL
91 Andy Stover            SR  6-2 244  DL 77 Miami Lakes, FL
92 Ryan Bowers            JR  6-4 270  DT 74 Bradenton, FL
93 Sean Armstrong      RS SO  6-5 259  DL 70 Lauderdale Lakes, FL
94 Jimmy Mitchell      RS FR  6-5 245  DL 67 Frostproof, FL
95 Scott Herring          JR  6-3 283  DT 79 Plant City, FL
97 Jarvis Lowe            JR  6-5 283  DL 78 DeLand, FL
98 Corey Holt          RS JR  6-1 303  DT 79 Fultondale, AL
99 Shawn Jenkins       RS SO  6-4 263  DL 79 Temple Terrace, FL

RED denotes a player who has been redshirted for this season

[el_rousso]

BIG XII looking to expand; Reports indicate BYU would likely join conference


^{Big XII commissioner Bob Bowlsby (Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press)}

The big talk this offseason is the Big XII rumored expansion to twelve teams by the start of the 2018 season. Many sources report that the lack of a conference championship game would be the main reason, and the negative result of the NCAA's vote on the Big XII's proposition (i.e. to stage a conference championship with less than 12 teams) seems to have incited Big XII commissioner Bob Bowlsby to start expansion plans.

His targets ? Talks are of BYU, who would likely be all right to drop its Independent status in favor of a place in the Power 5, Cincinnati, viewed as a possible partner to West Virginia as the easternmost schools in the conference, or Houston, which is already in Texas and would share a natural rivalry with the other state schools such as Baylor, Texas and TCU. "Of course these schools are among the choices we have if we decide to expand," Bowlsby told us, "but there are also other options that we have, which I will not disclose as of yet."

These "other options" that Bowlsby has, might include either (or both) UCF and USF, which would give the conference a foothold in Florida, or trying to sway nearby Group of Five leaders, like Boise State or UL Lafayette, into a more proeminent conference, but these are not as likely as the primary targets stated earlier. We know that talks were in place with the two Florida schools from the American, but these don't seem to be at the same stage as talks with BYU or Cincinnati, which both look to be the next to receive an invitation from the Big XII.

The Texas-based conference has had its share of moves since 2011, losing 4 schools (Colorado to the Pac-12 and Nebraska to the Big Ten in 2011, and then Missouri and Texas A&M to the SEC in 2012) and adding TCU and West Virginia in 2012, and now is considered the lowest of the Power 5 conferences, something commissioner Bowlsby is seemingly out to change in the coming seasons. "We want to take back our rightful place in the conference look, and if 12 teams is the way to do it, then we'll do it."

[el_rousso]

48 - 17

Bethune-Cookman no match for Owls, FAU wins opener 48-17

BOCA RATON -- The Wildcats had some sparks early in the game, but the Owls ended their hope rather convincingly yesterday evening, scoring 48 points to crush their opponents for their opening game at FAU Stadium. Seniors QB Greg Hankerson and HB Jay Warren tore up the ground game, amassing 259 of the 281 rushing yards the Owls put up during the game, along with 4 TDs among the two. Hankerson would add another TD through the air as well, connecting with senior WR Kalib Woods on a 75-yard scamper just before halftime.

The game started pretty slowly, with the only score of the first quarter being a 32-yard field goal by senior Owls K Jeremy Carter, but FAU scored three more times in the second quarter, with Warren scoring the first of his three rushing TDs and Carter ending the half with his second FG of the game. After another Warren TD to open the second half, Hankerson found a breach in the opposing defense and ran 69 yards for the TD about a minute before the end of the third quarter.

Another TD by Warren (his third of the game), coming after a Wildcats' turnover, pretty much sealed the deal for the Owls, who started giving second-stringers some game time. A late TD pass from sophomore QB Mike Hall to junior WR Ryan Yates ended the score, and finally allowed Bethune-Cookman to leave the stadium after a nightmarish game.

On the defensive side of things, senior DE Andy Stover came up big during the game, recording a school-record-tying 3 sacks, and junior CB Bo Coleman intercepted his first pass of the season early in the third quarter, which would give way to Jay Warren's second TD rush. Bad news for the Owls though, as star senior LB Robert Relf had to leave early in the second quarter, after suffering a broken collarbone. Owls' medical staff have indicated Relf will likely be out for at least 8 weeks, which is a tough hit on the roster for FAU.

The Owls will play again at home next week, as they host the Wisconsin Badgers (1-0) at FAU Stadium next Saturday. Wisconsin is coming off a 35-27 win against BYU, and it will be the first time these two teams face each other.

Bethune-Cookman Wildcats at Florida Atlantic Owls
Aug 26, 2017	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Bethune-Cookman Wildcats (0-0)	0	10	0	7	17
Florida Atlantic Owls (0-0)	3	17	14	14	48

Team Stats Comparison
	COOK	FAU
Total Offense	292	594
Rushing Yards	78	281
Passing Yards	214	313
First Downs	14	22
Punt Return Yards	5	34
Kick Return Yards	214	67
Total Yards	511	695
Turnovers	1	1
3rd Down Converstion	3/14	9/14
4th Down Conversion	1/1	0/0
2-Point Conversion	0/0	0/0
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	1/1	4/2
Penalties	5-31	5-25
Posession Time	11:57	32:03

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		COOK	FAU
	(FAU) J.Carter, 32-yard FG	0	3
	(COOK) K #30, 27-yard FG	3	3
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		COOK	FAU
	(FAU) J.Warren, 2-yard TD run (J.Carter XP)	3	10
	(COOK) HB #34, 3-yard TD run (K #30 XP)	10	10
	(FAU) K.Woods, 75 TD pass from G.Hankerson (J.Carter XP)	10	17
	(FAU) J.Carter, 26-yard FG	10	20
THIRD QUARTER SCORING		COOK	FAU
	(FAU) J.Warren, 4-yard TD run (J.Carter XP)	10	27
	(FAU) G.Hankerson, 69-yard TD run (J.Carter XP)	10	34
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		COOK	FAU
	(FAU) J.Warren, 1-yard TD run (J.Carter XP)	10	41
	(COOK) WR #10, 31-yard TD pass from QB #13 (K #30 XP)	17	41
	(FAU) R.Yates, 2-yard pass from M.Hill (J.Carter XP)	17	48

Bethune-Cookman Wildcats

Florida Atlantic Owls PASSING C/A YDS TD INT G.Hankerson 18/25 257 1 1 M.Hill 4/5 56 1 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD J.Warren 24 137 5.7 3 G.Hankerson 11 122 11 1 R.Wilkinson 5 19 3.8 0 M.Hall 3 3 1 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD K.Woods 4 116 29.0 1 R.Yates 6 65 10.8 1 A****ffin 3 64 21.3 0 C.Bush 3 37 12.3 0 W.Wheeler 3 18 6.0 0 J.O'Neill 1 11 11.0 0 S.Vereen 1 6 6.0 0 B.Pratt 1 -4 -4.0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK J.Scott 1 0 B.Gardner 1 0 J.Warren 0 1 D.Pennington 0 1 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD J.Thomas 7 0 0 0 M.Humphrey 6 0 0 0 A.Stover 6 3 0 0 A.Downs 5 0 0 0 B.Coleman 4 0 1 0 C.Hayes 4 0 0 0 S.Jenkins 3 0 0 0 S.Herring 3 0 0 0 C.Davis 3 0 0 0 C.Holt 2 1 0 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG J.Carter 2/2 6/6 12 33 PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 T.Young 2 69 34.5 0 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD K.Woods 2 49 24.5 0 S.Vereen 1 18 18.0 0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD K.Woods 4 29 7.2 0 S.Vereen 1 5 5.0 0