Week three
How to watch
Depth chart
Moon stat
Picks
Podcast
All times CT
Thursday
Louisiana vs Ohio
TV: ESPN
Time: 7:00
Spread: UL -20
Location: Lafayette, LA
The Cajuns survived Nicholls on Saturday and head into week three with more questions than answers. Louisiana gave up two fourth quarter touchdowns against the in-state FCS foe and did not score an offensive touchdown in the second half.
Offensive lineman Carlos Rubio is back from injury and will make his first start of the year at left tackle, giving UL a complete from five for the first time this season. Ohio is coming off a loss to FCS Duquesne.
Depth chart:
Saturday
No. 16 Coastal Carolina at Buffalo
TV: ESPN2
Time: 11:00
Spread: CCU -14
Location: Buffalo, NY
The Chanticleers roll on after dismantling Kansas at home in front of a record crowd last week. Coastal Carolina heads to New York as one of only two Sun Belt teams left with a clean record.
Kansas was essentially Buffalo West after the Bulls head coach and several key players made the move to Jayhawk country over the offseason. The Chants get an opportunity to clean up the scraps left on the northern border.
Depth chart:
Appalachian State vs Elon
TV: ESPN+
Time: 2:30
Spread: N/A
Location: Boone, NC
The Mountaineers very nearly took down another ACC team last week when it held a lead over ranked Miami in the fourth quarter. A safety and failed two-point conversation attempt doomed App State in hard rock.
The Mountaineers have an opportunity to regroup against an old conference opponent this week before playing against Marshall, perhaps a soon-to-be conference opponent.
Depth chart:
Georgia Southern at Arkansas
TV: SECN
Time: 3:00
Spread: GS +23.5
Location: Fayetteville, AR
Georgia Southern got routed in Boca Raton and now have to stare down its SEC opponent in an Arkansas team riding high after a Texas win. The triple option has seen better days and the secondary has been shredded in each of the Eagles’ first two games.
Justin Tomlin is set to make his first start of the year at quarterback for the Eagles. Tomlin completed 11 of 25 passes last season for 161 yards and three picks while adding 197 rushing yards.
Some brutal injury news: starting corner Derrick Canteen and ILB Marques Watson-Trent are out for the season with injuries. Canteen was our preseason No. 2 CB.
Depth chart:
Arkansas State at Washington
TV: PAC12 TV
Time: 3:15
Spread: Ark St +16
Location: Seattle, WA
The perpetual two quarterback system heads to the northwest to face a massively underperforming Washington team. The Huskies opened the season ranked and have since been routed by Michigan and held to one score in a loss to FCS Montana.
Arkansas State has the Sun Belt’s leader in touchdown passes in Layne Hatcher (5) and the Sun Belt’s second place quarterback in James Blackman (4). Neither have thrown an interception.
Depth chart:
Georgia State vs Charlotte
TV: ESPN+
Time: 6:00
Spread: GSU -4
Location: Atlanta, GA
Vegas must really like Georgia State. There’s trouble in the water after the Panthers’ second blowout loss in as many games to open the season. It doesn’t get any easier after this game with contests against Auburn and App State on the horizon. If GSU doesn’t find a win here, it’s staring down a stunning 0-5 start.
Not counting ULM, who has only played one game, GSU is last in the league in total offense by a wide margin and is averaging a paltry 3.6 yards per play.
Depth chart:
Troy at Southern Miss
TV: ESPN+
Time: 6:00
Spread: Troy -10
Location: Hattiesburg, MS
The Trojans are coming off a battle with Malik Willis and Liberty but still head into Mississippi with a healthy roster. Troy must find a way to get the offense rolling again and a matchup against the rebuilding Golden Eagles.
Troy finds itself as the top defense in the conference through two weeks (264 ypg) while Will Choloh leads all conference mates in TFL with five.
Depth chart:
Texas State vs Incarnate Word
TV: ESPN3
Time: 6:00
Spread: N/A
Location: San Marcos, TX
Texas State pulled off a non-conference win against FBS opponent for the first time since 2018 with a win at FIU. Both games needed overtime to finish. A win here would give the Bobcats a winning record three games into the season for the first time since 2013.
Very big news here: corner Jarron Morris is out for the season after having surgery this week. Morris was our top corner in the preseason mag.
Our top two CBs (Morris and Canteen) are out for the remainder of 2021.
Depth chart N/A
ULM vs Jackson State
TV: ESPN3
Time: 7:00
Spread: N/A
Location: Monroe, LA
Why there isn’t spread for this game, I don’t know. With Deion Sanders and Jackson State playing top 25 FCS ball, this game is a legitimate toss-up.
Below I have a real life ULM depth chart with actual players. It’s the first I’ve been able to post since the season began. Of note, Ja’Cquez Williams is listed as a backup to Traveion Webster at LB. This is noteworthy because Williams comes in as a former All-ACC player.
Depth chart:
South Alabama vs Alcorn State
TV: ESPN3
Time: 7:00
Spread: N/A
Location: Mobile, AL
The Mobile Wommacks survived an ugly game against a bad Bowling Green squad and get a chance to redeem themselves with a game against a SWAC foe. The Jaguars are off to the hottest start (2-0) in their FBS history.
South Alabama is right behind Troy in total defense and leads in the Sun Belt in yards per play allowed with 4.6.
Depth chart:
Moon stat
Troy vs Southern Miss in 2016 was played under a full moon.
Troy vs Southern Miss in 2019 was played under a full moon.
Troy vs Southern Miss in 2021 will miss the full moon by just two days.
Picks
Against the spread
PODCAST
Listen to this week’s podcast on Spotify.
We go over everything that happened last week, talk about what we hope to see this week and cover a lot of ground with our usual commentary.
Also, check out this podcast episode from a friend of ours that focuses on Sun Belt realignment possibilities:
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