Conference USA Football

[kyyote]

Has been raped repeatedly and puts itself back together, picks up the pieces of what is left and grabs some duct tape and bailing wire and marches on.  There is a distinct limp, this time.
I think back to when the mw split in the middle of the night.  Never forget.  Never forgive.  But reality is real.  The WAC patched itself up and we did along with it. Then we got invited into C-USA.  We had almost gotten to the big time.  Then they left us to create the AAC.  Once again, we gathered up the remnants and added some teams.  They were from a weaker conference, but we had to do it we said. Now, these teams lead the way.  This is the last games of the conference as it stands.  More are leaving and we are left to rebuild again.
So, these bowl games hold extra significance for C=USA teams.  Eight bowl games and the C-USA teams are averaging 6 point underdogs in the eight games.  All eight games are/were games in which the C-USA team is the underdog.
So, yesterday, in the first bowl game of the season Middle Tennessee was supposed to lose by 10 to 11 points.  Toledo was supposed to blow the Blue Raiders away.  They didn't and the bookies are eating crow eggs for breakfast today.  That is one of eight.  The conference has a chance to get revenge from some conferences that are part of my enemies list and a chance to make a statement. 
Of course, the one that matters the most is our game.  The Miners are big underdogs.  Just like Middle Tennessee was.  Of all of the bowl games, this is probably the biggest mismatch in the eyes of the odds-makers.  And they don't even know who's playing for Fresno State. 
Today is a big day for the Miners.  There is going to be more realignment and we have a chance to long jump today, and not just take a big step.  We have been in last place and about to fall out of the race for too many years. A loss would be a win. The team has done so much that wasn't expected that they have already won, just being there.  But a win would mean so much more than just another win.  It would equal about a 10x win for UTEP.  A win would be the equivalent of a rebirth.
So, I have a roaring fire in the fireplace, and the first game of the day is just about ready to start.  App State is a giant killer.  They only have to beat Western Kentucky though, today.  Just between you and me, Western Kentucky kind of thinks they are giant killers, too.  Western Kentucky wins this one for Bowling Green.  Bet the ranch. 
Enjoy the day.  Let the bookies pay, today!

[Chanson]

Nice little write up, KY. It would be something if this conference can pick up the pieces & grab this country's attention.
I'm not sure if any of you caught Kappy's show, but he had Senter on. I'm paraphrasing, but he said when we play MW teams, we need to beat the shit out of them. Yes, he said shit. Now, the coach in him came out a bit but you have got to love his aggressive attitude. The man doesn't curse much, which meant he was dead serious. He also talked about what KY said in always being the runt of the litter. He is tired of it & I bet he is up his coaches asses to demand excellence.
We have a football team that made it to a bowl. We have a volleyball team that is very good. We have a women's basketball club that has only lost 1 game (Kansas). We have a men's basketball team that now has 3 4☆ & 3 3☆ kids playing, with a 1st year coach that is more passionate about this club than I have ever seen.
If you have not warmed up to Senter by now, you have veered off the path. This school and program has proven to me that they are worth my attention.
Win, loss, or draw, this group is on an upward trend and deserve our respect.

GO Miners GO. Fight Miners Fight. Win Miners WIN!!

[Minermojo]

Western Kenturkey has a pretty good offense but gee willikers they can't tackle worth a plumb nickle. I just saw an App receiver running to the end zone and one wku defender giving him a back massage. They suck and if wku wants to get better they better get a defensive coach, a real one because the one they have hasn't taught them a dang thing.

I think this game will have a basketball score before it ends. Touchdowns galore from both sides.

But, cusa has to win those underdog matchups to be taken seriously. How ironic that wku fans were Ps'ed that they didn't go to the sbc but now they are playing a team from there.

[Austintacious]

WKU is wrapping this one up.  59-31 with 6 minutes to go.

59-38 with 30 seconds to go.

Final Score 59-38.  That's 2 for C-USA.  Will UTEP make it 3?

[Chanson]

Well...
I'm obviously not happy with rhe loss, but the issues we had all year were a reflection in this game. Hardison has a powerful arm, but his turnovers & poor decisions didn't help. Also, our defense couldn't stop Mimms from running up our ass.
All that being said, I'm not PO'd. It was expected. Luckily, we have momentum going into next year. If Dimel can't get us to a bowl next year, I think he should walk.

On to basketball. 🏀

[SisyphusMiner]

It was better than I thought it would be.  Haener >>> Hardison.  Play calling ranged from inspired to insipid to inane.

If we don't win 8 and a bowl then this is Dimel's ceiling.

[Austintacious]

UAB beat BYU 31-28.  That makes C-USA 3-1 in bowl games today. 

[kyyote]

We were one play from a win.

I am very happy that we showed the entire country that we damned sure belonged there.

[Minermojo]

That's what I was telling me wife. It seems that the competition in cusa is a lot tougher than in other conferences. Look at the Wku, the Middle and even our game it's seems that even though some schools had a better record we were able to dominate. I actually thought we dominated in the Fresno game unfortunately the QB we have isn't quite the caliber that this team needs to go further. If he continues like this next year for sure we need another QB.

With so many players from the P5 heading to other schools because the QBs in their schools already have a "franchise" QB maybe we can get their second stringers. It's obvious that even a second stringer from a P5 would be better than this kid who in my opinion is really a second stringer placed in a first string position. He could come in when our "new" QB is hurt or out for whatever reason. If it seems that I'm not in this kids camp, I'm not. We need a replacement. "Inconsisten Hardi" had four turnovers that cost us the game. I had counted three but I now remember they were four, and that ain't right.

[Austintacious]

Marshall lost to Louisiana.  C-USA is 3-2. 

[SisyphusMiner]

Thinking about this some more, no one doubts that Fresno was a legit team.  This is the first time in forever we played a legit team and were legitimately in the game.  Our loss to Texas Tech in 2014 is probably the last one.  Then our win against Houston in 2009 is the last W against a legit team.

So again, for me to be convinced that Dimel is taking us places, we need to do one or more of these:  Beat Boise NMSU and UNM (open 3-1), win 8 games, beat teams that end up with a winning record, win a bowl game.

If he doesn't achieve any of those with most of the players returning, then we need to decide whether not sucking is good enough for us or if we want to roll the dice that someone else can get us to the promised land.

[Austintacious]

Texas QB Casey Thompson has entered the Transfer portal

He played the 2nd half of the season with an injured thumb which affected his play.  It's an option to go after him. 

[kyyote]

MTSU was 6 and 6 and the 4th place team in the Eastern Division of C-USA.  Toledo was 7 and 5 and was the third-place team in the MAC West.  Toledo was a 10.5 point favorite.  MTSU won by 7.  Experts were off by 17.5 points.

UAB was 8 and 4 and the second-place team in C-USA West.  BYU was ranked the 13th best team in the country, had 10 wins and 2 losses.  BYU was a 6-point favorite by the experts.  The Blazers won by 3 making the experts off by 9 points.

Marshall was 7 and 5 and the second-place team in C-USA East.  Louisiana was 12-1 and the 1st place team in the Sun Belt West, ranked 23rd in the country.  Marshall was a 4-point underdog. Just between us, the fact that the 23rd ranked team was just a 4-point favorite says a whole lot.  But the experts were off 11 points as the Rajun Cajuns won by 15.

Western Kentucky was 8 and 5 and the first-place team in C-USA East.  App State was 10 and 3 and the first place team in the Sun Belt East division.  At closing, it was a pick em game.  Western Kentucky won by 21 points, which is how off the experts were.

UTEP was 7 and 5 and was the 4th-place team in the C-USA west division.  Fresno State was 9 and 3 and the second-place team in the MWC West division.  Fresno State was a 13-point favorite.  UTEP lost by 7 making the experts off by 6 points.

1-0 against the MAC even though it was a C-USA 4th-place against the MAC Third-place division team.

A C-USA second place in their division team beat the second best Independent and 13th best team in the country.

1-1 against the Sun Belt.  A C-USA second place in division team played the Sun Belt 1st place division team.  A 7 and 5 team played a 12 and 1 team that was ranked the 23rd best in the country and lost.  Also, two division first place teams played and the C-USA team won by 21 points.

So far, C-USA is damned sure holding its own!

Looking ahead.

On Monday, Old Dominion will be pitted against Tulsa.  Out of the AAC they are in a three-way tie for third place.  At the top is Cincy and second is Houston.  Those two are pretty good.  You may have heard about them, especially that Cincy team.  UCF, ECU, and Tulsa all have 5 and 3 records in conference, but overall UCF is 8-4, ECU is 7-5, and Tulsa is 6-6, with a 4-4 SMU having an overall record of 8 and 4.  It may be easier to tell you that ODU is a 9-point underdog at this time.  So, again the Conference USA team has been given a very tough task, according to the experts.

On Tuesday, the UTSA team, the flag bearer of the conference will be given the task of taking on 23rd-ranked San Diego State.  The Roadrunners dropped out of the top 25 after losing their only game of the season to North Texas a few weeks back.  At 12 and 1, I am not going to look for pity for the Roadrunners. But San Diego State is 11 and 2 and is ranked 24th in the country.  This is arguably, the best of the Mountain West Conference versus the best of Conference USA.  San Antonio is a 2-point favorite.  The game is being played in Frisco Texas and you can be guaranteed that it will be packed with insane UTSA fans.

Then, there comes the Mean Green of North Texas, the team that spoiled San Antonio's perfect season.  They were the third-place team in C-USA's West division with an overall 6-6 record.  So, they get Miami of Ohio who at 6-6 seem to be a very equally matched opponent.   Miami is a 3-point favorite, currently.  This game is being played in Frisco, also.  That is a quick trip from Denton.  Packed with green of the very meanest kind, this will be a factor, so keep it in mind.

[Minermojo]

...and I might add, a future cusa team with an identical record against its MAC foe (Liberty vs EMU) literally spanked them. I think cusa present and future is pretty good and does not get the respect it should.

[Minermojo]

Texas QB Casey Thompson has entered the Transfer portal

He played the 2nd half of the season with an injured thumb which affected his play.  It's an option to go after him.

I think that UTEP should send him flowers. Mr. Tango needs to see that he better make better decisions and not give the game (which I think should have been our win) away. He gave them four chances and deserves the game ball from them. I like that nickname, Mr. Tango, because he takes one step forward and two steps back.