Troy Preview
By Bruce Marshall
The Gold Sheet
They don't pussyfoot around on the gridiron at that school off George Wallace Drive in a remote corner of southeast Alabama. Indeed, Troy football has evolved into something of a "Beast of the Belt" after winning its first outright Sun Belt conference crown last fall and advancing to the school's third bowl game in five seasons. Although the subsequent 30-27 overtime loss vs. Southern Miss in the New Orleans Bowl was a bit of a bummer, other developments during the 2008 campaign were noteworthy. A near-miss at defending national champ LSU and a competitive effort at Ohio State reinforced the emerging reality that the Sun Belt (at least at the top of the league) might indeed be closing the gap between itself and the major conferences. And whereas several different Belt entries have emerged in recent seasons as contenders for league honors, none of them has demonstrated the year-to-year consistency of HC Larry Blakeney's Trojans, who have posted an impressive (and Belt-best) eight wins each of the past three campaigns.
Among Blakeney's best productions in a distinguished career at Troy that includes 143 wins in 18 seasons, not to mention many accolades at the old I-AA level before making a successful transition to the Belt and the subsequently-labeled FBS, was last season's squad that many believed could have been a bit vulnerable after the departure of o.c. Tony Franklin (now, by the way, at Sun Belt rival Middle Tennessee) and QB Omar Haugabook, who posted big numbers in his two years as a starter. But the offense hardly skipped a beat under new o.c. Neal Brown, the youngest coordinator (28) in the FBS and a Franklin/Hal Mumme disciple who was further versed in the nuances in the spread during his days on Delaware's staff earlier in the decade, not to mention a stint as Troy's WR coach under Franklin in 2006-07.
After tallying a hefty 35 ppg with Franklin and Haugabook in the fold in '07, the reloaded "O" still managed to produce 30 ppg in '08. All the more impressive was the fact that when starting QB Jamie Hampton went down with a knee injury in early October, Richmond transfer Levi Brown trotted in from the bullpen a la Mariano Rivera and proceeded to post better numbers than Hampton, eventually passing for 2030 yards with 15 TDs and only 3 picks. With both signal-callers returning this fall, any hint of QB controversy was quashed in spring when it was announced that Hampton, a junior, would redshirt in '09 and retain two years of eligibility. The Trojans' QB job thus belongs to Levi Brown as fall approaches.
Although eight starters, led by QB Brown, are back, o.c. Neal Brown has a couple of concerns on the OL that need to be addressed, specifically, replacing graduated all-Sun Belt Ts Chris Jamison and Dion Small from what was the Belt's best forward wall in '08. Further complicating matters were a rash of injuries during spring that delayed the transition to the new OL bookends until fall. But assuming that situation sorts itself out, the Troy spread appears in pretty good shape, especially with L. Brown's main complementary weapons, WR Jerrel Jernigan (77 catches LY) and RB DeJuan Harris (1077 YR in '08), still on hand. The receiving corps will also be augmented by the presence of touted RS frosh Josh Jarboe, an Oklahoma transfer who left the Sooners in controversy following a concealed weapon charge dating to his sr. year of HS in Georgia but who has been on his best behavior since. Meanwhile, juco WR Jay Bruce wowed observers in spring and adds even more depth to the Belt's best receiving corps.
But plenty of Sun Belt entries have put points on the board this decade. Few of them, however, have demonstrated the defensive nous of the Trojans, whose NFL alumni include high-profile DE DeMarcus Ware & DB Leodis McKelvin. Another disruptive Blakeney defense will likely be on display his fall after recording a whopping 42 sacks (3rd in nation) in '08. Returning playmakers in the front seven include sr. DE Brandon Lang, who could be the school's next high draft pick, plus the rugged LB tandem of srs. Boris Lee & Bear Woods. Belt sources also report there is no shortage of capable replacements in the graduation-depleted 2ndary.
Summary...As has been the case in most recent campaigns, Troy looms as the Belt's team to beat, perhaps prohibitively so if the offense improves as o.c. Neal Brown expects. We'd also expect the Trojans to empty their chambers in this season's shots at the big boys (Florida and Arkansas). Also please note the excellent pointspread value Troy has offered lately (20-8 vs. number since late '06, including 7-2 its last nine as an underdog).