Sun Belt Power Rankings: Week 11

They say that what happens in November is what everyone will remember you by and this past weekend gave us plenty of moments. ULM picked up the biggest win of the Matt Viator era and Shawn Elliott’s Georgia State club continues to collect road victories.

Once again, there were still plenty of shakeups to be made and here’s how the Sun Belt stands going into the second weekend in November.

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1.) Arkansas State Red Wolves (5-2, Idle)

Last Week: 1

The Red Wolves spent the week at home as they look to close the season strong by going undefeated in Sun Belt play for the second time under Blake Anderson. This week the Red Wolves will be a double-digit favorite on the road as they take on a reeling South Alabama squad. S&P+ currently ranks this squad 23rd in the FBS as its been an outstanding fall in Jonesboro.

2.) Troy Trojans (7-2, beat Idaho 24-21)

Last Week: 2

Troy looked sluggish for most of Thursday night but they handled their business in the end. The Trojans held off a pesky Idaho squad as Jordan Chunn made his return to the lineup. The senior put up 113 yards on 18 carries and has been the best back in the Sun Belt all season long. Neal Brown is now 21-13 since taking over this program and the next task will be to bring home a conference title.

3.) New Mexico State Aggies (4-5, won at Texas State 45-35)

Last Week: 4

After the tough loss to Arkansas State, the Aggies hit the road for a must win game in San Marcos. Doug Martin’s squad needed a victory to keep their bowl hopes alive and they pulled it off. In the shootout, quarterback Tyler Rogers played his best game in weeks as he threw for 474 yards and three touchdowns. The defense gave up 563 yards but got just enough stops to get it done. Win in Lafayette this weekend and the Aggies should finish the season at 7-5.

4.) Georgia State Panthers (5-3, won at Georgia Southern 21-7)

Last Week: 5

The Panthers picked up their fourth road win of the season as they now lead the series 3-1 over Georgia Southern. The Panthers would need a touchdown with 2:31 left to fend off a scrappy Georgia Southern squad. Conner Manning threw for over 300 yards and Penny Hart had eight receptions for 191 yards while the defense produced a touchdown on a scoop-and-score. The Panthers head on the road again this week for another winnable game against Texas State.

5.) Appalachian State Mountaineers (5-4, lost at ULM 52-45)

Last Week: 3

The fall continues for the Mountaineers as they were upset by the Warhawks in Monroe. The defense gave up 52 points while quarterback Taylor Lamb threw for 339 yards and four touchdowns in a losing effort. App State is just not playing good football right now and they need to get things corrected quickly. With a road trip to Georgia State looming, the Mountaineers need to get their issues fixed quickly.

6.) ULM Warhawks (4-5, beat Appalachian State 52-45)

Last Week: 9

After losing three in a row in conference play, the Warhawks got a huge win at home as they knocked off App State. Caleb Evans continues to be spectacular at quarterback as he threw for 356 yards, ran 47 yards, and was responsible for five touchdowns. The Warhawks will be underdogs in their final three games but there is no question this program is on the right track.

7.) UL-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns (4-5, won at South Alabama 19-14)

Last Week: 7

The Cajuns rolled with freshman Levi Lewis at quarterback and picked up a much needed road victory. Lewis led the team in rushing as the Cajuns collected 264 rushing yards against a good South Alabama defense. The UL-Lafayette defense put together another good performance and this team will be fighting for bowl eligibility in the final weeks of the season.

8.) Idaho Vandals (3-6, lost at Troy 24-21)

Last Week: 8

The Vandals put up a valiant effort against Troy on Thursday night as they stayed within striking distance for the entire sixty minutes. Matt Linehan threw for 282 yards and two touchdowns as Idaho consistently moved the ball against a very good Troy defense. The defense forced two turnovers, but on the last drive Linehan suffered a wrist injury to his throwing arm. The Vandals are off this week, but it is unknown whether Linehan will be able to play next week when Idaho hosts Coastal Carolina.

9.) South Alabama Jaguars (3-6 lost to UL-Lafayette 19-14)

Last Week: 6

The Jags now have three losses in Sun Belt play and each has come by one possession. Once again, South Alabama was upset at home as the Cajuns came in and pulled off a shocker. With Dallas Davis struggling, another change was made at quarterback as Cole Garvin stepped in and played very well. However, the ground game never really got going and that limited the offense. With Arkansas State coming to town this weekend, a chance for another monster upset will be there.

10.) Texas State Bobcats (2-7, lost to New Mexico State 45-35)

Last Week: 10

The Bobcats played, perhaps, their best offensive game of the Everett Withers era as Damian Williams threw for 321 yards as Texas State collected 563 total yards. However, the game quickly became a shootout and the Bobcats did not have the ammo to keep up with New Mexico State. Texas State will be underdogs in each remaining game and it’s looking like another 2-10 season in San Marcos.

11.) Coastal Carolina Chanticleers (1-8, lost at Arkansas 39-38)

Last Week: 11

The Chants have been bad on the road all season, but they’ve given plenty of teams scares on the road. This was the fifth game of the season that Coastal lost by one possession and four of these have occurred on the road. The defense again couldn’t get a meaningful stop but the offense bounced back after a pitiful performance against Texas State. The final record will be bad, but there are some positives for the program to pull from this season.

12.) Georgia Southern Eagles (0-8, lost to Georgia State 21-17)

Last Week: 12

The year from hell continues for this program as they lost a heartbreaker to Georgia State on Saturday. As the weeks go by, a winless season is becoming a very real possibility and the next era of Georgia Southern football cannot come soon enough. Now the Eagles will travel to Boone this Thursday to take on App State squad that should be pretty ticked off after consecutive losses. Good luck.