Rotoworld:
Conference USA East Preview
excerpt (what they say about MT's prospects):
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders
2018 record: 8-6 (7-1 in conference)
Best NFL Draft prospect: LB Khalil Brooks.
Brooks is a self-described grinder and film buff -- at his size, he had better be -- who has been a TFL machine at MTSU, putting up 30.5 for loss over the last two seasons. Despite this production, he is going to face serious size questions during the evaluating season, weighing in at 205 pounds. There is only so much weight that he can realistically handle to gain
The case for:
In order to believe in the Blue Raiders this season you have to trust the roster depth they’ve built up over the past few seasons as well as the coaching staff. As of writing this we don’t know who the starting quarterback will be after coach’s son and four-year starter Brent Stockstill graduated last fall. Luckily there are multiple players with potential waiting in the helm. Asher O’Hara was Stockstill’s backup last season and returns with a minor edge towards winning the starting job. Beyond O’Hara they have three other unproven – but viable – options that will be competing for the starting spot. While Stockstill was good, the offense only ranked 103rd in S&P+ so there’s a good chance they will be able to at least match that.
If they can survive a brutal first half of the season they have a good chance at going on a run at the end. They play four straight teams to close the season who are ranked outside the top-100 in projected S&P+. Even with the change at quarterback the Blue Raiders still have a shot to be competitive within Conference USA,
The case against:
When a team loses a multi-year starter at quarterback and none of his backups have legitimate starting experience it’s generally a spot to proceed with caution heading into the following year. Stockstill’s backup -- and front-runner for the starting job, -- O’Hara only played one game last season and flopped in a major way with a 45-percent completion rate. The yet-to-be-named starter will also likely be protected by a bottom-25 offensive line. They lost three offensive linemen including one who was named first-team all-conference. Despite having a first-team all-conference player, they only ranked 103rd in sack rate and 106th in “stuff rate” last season. The offensive line has the potential to be among the country’s worst if they don’t find competent replacements.
The depth at wide receiver is another big concern as the next four wideouts behind WR Ty Lee are all gone. They have a few players who are expected to capably fill the outside receiver roles but are pure projection at this point. The secondary figures to take a substantial step back after ranking 38th in S&P+ last season and losing their top three cornerbacks. They signed multiple three-star cornerbacks in an attempt to fill the void, but if those players don’t develop as quickly as needed it could be tough to contain opposing passing offenses.
The Blue Raiders first half of the season is unreasonably hard. They have to play both Michigan and Iowa on the road as well as home games against Duke, and Marshall. They’ll be double-digit underdogs against the former and at least touchdown underdogs against the latter. Beyond a game they should win against FBS Tennessee State, they also have back-to-back road games against FAU and North Texas. There’s a legitimate chance they start the season 1-6 and spiral out of control from there despite their strength of schedule easing up.
Win total over/under: 5.5
Prediction: UNDER
Conference USA East Preview
excerpt (what they say about MT's prospects):
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders
2018 record: 8-6 (7-1 in conference)
Best NFL Draft prospect: LB Khalil Brooks.
Brooks is a self-described grinder and film buff -- at his size, he had better be -- who has been a TFL machine at MTSU, putting up 30.5 for loss over the last two seasons. Despite this production, he is going to face serious size questions during the evaluating season, weighing in at 205 pounds. There is only so much weight that he can realistically handle to gain
The case for:
In order to believe in the Blue Raiders this season you have to trust the roster depth they’ve built up over the past few seasons as well as the coaching staff. As of writing this we don’t know who the starting quarterback will be after coach’s son and four-year starter Brent Stockstill graduated last fall. Luckily there are multiple players with potential waiting in the helm. Asher O’Hara was Stockstill’s backup last season and returns with a minor edge towards winning the starting job. Beyond O’Hara they have three other unproven – but viable – options that will be competing for the starting spot. While Stockstill was good, the offense only ranked 103rd in S&P+ so there’s a good chance they will be able to at least match that.
If they can survive a brutal first half of the season they have a good chance at going on a run at the end. They play four straight teams to close the season who are ranked outside the top-100 in projected S&P+. Even with the change at quarterback the Blue Raiders still have a shot to be competitive within Conference USA,
The case against:
When a team loses a multi-year starter at quarterback and none of his backups have legitimate starting experience it’s generally a spot to proceed with caution heading into the following year. Stockstill’s backup -- and front-runner for the starting job, -- O’Hara only played one game last season and flopped in a major way with a 45-percent completion rate. The yet-to-be-named starter will also likely be protected by a bottom-25 offensive line. They lost three offensive linemen including one who was named first-team all-conference. Despite having a first-team all-conference player, they only ranked 103rd in sack rate and 106th in “stuff rate” last season. The offensive line has the potential to be among the country’s worst if they don’t find competent replacements.
The depth at wide receiver is another big concern as the next four wideouts behind WR Ty Lee are all gone. They have a few players who are expected to capably fill the outside receiver roles but are pure projection at this point. The secondary figures to take a substantial step back after ranking 38th in S&P+ last season and losing their top three cornerbacks. They signed multiple three-star cornerbacks in an attempt to fill the void, but if those players don’t develop as quickly as needed it could be tough to contain opposing passing offenses.
The Blue Raiders first half of the season is unreasonably hard. They have to play both Michigan and Iowa on the road as well as home games against Duke, and Marshall. They’ll be double-digit underdogs against the former and at least touchdown underdogs against the latter. Beyond a game they should win against FBS Tennessee State, they also have back-to-back road games against FAU and North Texas. There’s a legitimate chance they start the season 1-6 and spiral out of control from there despite their strength of schedule easing up.
Win total over/under: 5.5
Prediction: UNDER
