Around the Dog Park: Please help save UTEP athletics

General G5

• After missing the FCS playoffs and firing famed Head Coach Bob Stitt, Montana is considering bringing back former Head Coach Bobby Hauck. Here’s a sobering look back at the legal troubles the Grizzlies faced under Hauck’s direction.
• Mississippi State head coach hot board!
• Florida State preemptive head coach hot board!
• Here’s an updated argument for and against expanding the college football playoffs based off the 2017 season.

American

• Yep, UCF still leads our American power rankings.
• Sure Chad Morris isn’t going to be any Power Five program’s first pick as their next head coach but there’s still a good chance he ends up elsewhere next year. Here are a few places to keep an eye on.
• There’s a lot to unpack from Scott Frost’s latest press conference at UCF. Sure sounds like a guy with a foot halfway out the door.

C-USA

• Why not look at Mark Helfrich for the Rice job?
• The Virginian-Pilot takes a look at what went wrong for Old Dominion this year. Spoiler alert: it’s a lot.
• Expect FAU to utilize tight end D’Anfernee McGriff in this week’s conference championship game.
• This timeline of UTEP’s failures in athletics in 2017 is shocking and disturbing. Their new athletic director has his hands full to say the least.
• Here’s a ranking of bowl projection landing spots for UNT.

Sun Belt

• Joey Jones and his team will seek to send their seniors out on top while NMSU fights to break their bowl vacancy streak.
• Injuries are racking up for ULM as they prepare to travel to Florida State in a hurricane make-up game.
• New Mexico State continues to wrack up weekly awards this season as Cedric Wilcots II wins Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week.
• Our weekly three things we learned from the Sun Belt column focuses on a defacto Sun Belt championship match up.