2013 Sun Belt Conference football season

The 2013 Sun Belt Conference football season was the 13th college football season for the Sun Belt Conference. During the 2013 season, Sun Belt football consisted of eight members: Arkansas State, Georgia State, Louisiana–Lafayette, Louisiana–Monroe, South Alabama, Texas State, Troy, and Western Kentucky.

2013 Sun Belt Conference football season
League	NCAA Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision)
Sport	football
Duration	August 31, 2013–January 5, 2014
Number of teams	8
TV partner(s)	ESPN, CSS/CST
2014 NFL Draft
Top draft pick	DT Ryan Carrethers, Arkansas State
Picked by	San Diego Chargers, 165th overall
Regular season
Season champions	Louisiana-Lafayette & Arkansas State
Runners-up	WKU, Troy, Louisiana-Monroe, South Alabama
Season MVP	Antonio Andrews
Top scorer	Antonio Andrews (96 points)

2013 Sun Belt Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Arkansas State $		5	–	2					8	–	5
Western Kentucky		4	–	3					8	–	4
South Alabama		4	–	3					6	–	6
Troy		4	–	3					6	–	6
Louisiana–Monroe		4	–	3					6	–	6
Texas State		2	–	5					6	–	6
Louisiana–Lafayette *		0	–	2					1	–	4
Georgia State **		0	–	7					0	–	12
$ – Conference champion * – Louisiana–Lafayette vacated eight wins due to NCAA violations ** – Georgia State ineligible for postseason play due to FCS-to-FBS transition rules

The departure of Florida Atlantic and Florida International left the league at 8 teams for the first time since 2008, although the league would be back up to 11 teams by the next season.

This was the first season for two teams in Sun Belt football; and the final season of Sun Belt play for a third. Georgia State was one of the six charter members of the Sun Belt Conference in 1976, but left the league in 1981, 20 years before the conference began sponsoring football in 2001 and nearly 30 years before the school started its football program in 2010. The Panthers returned to the Sun Belt in 2013 during a major wave of realignment that dramatically affected the conference. Also joining the Sun Belt in 2013 was Texas State, which left the WAC after only one season in that league. WKU was in its last season of Sun Belt play, as it joined Conference USA in 2014.

Due to NCAA transitional rules, Georgia State, coming from the FCS Colonial Athletic Association, was not eligible for a conference championship or postseason play. South Alabama and Texas State, which both began transitions from FCS in 2011, were now eligible for postseason play and a conference championship.

Preseason

Award watch lists

The following Sun Belt players were named to preseason award watch lists:

Walter Camp Award:[1] Antonio Andrews – WKU Kolton Browning – Louisiana-Monroe

Doak Walker Award:[2] Antonio Andrews – WKU David Oku – Arkansas State

Davey O'Brien Award:[3] Kolton Browning – Louisiana-Monroe Terrance Broadway – Louisiana–Lafayette

Outland Trophy:[4] Ryan Carrethers – Arkansas State

Bronko Nagurski Trophy:[5] Andrew Jackson – Western Kentucky

Lou Groza Award:[6] Brian Davis – Arkansas State Will Scott – Troy

Rimington Trophy:[7] Andre Huval – Louisiana-Lafayette Bryce Giddens – Arkansas State Sean Conway – WKU

Bednarik Award:[8] Ryan Carrethers – Arkansas State Andrew Jackson – WKU

Paul Hornung Award:[9] Antonio Andrews – WKU

Sun Belt Media Day

• Sun Belt Conference Media Days was held on July 15, 2013 in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.
• Pre-Season Offensive Player of the Year - Kolton Browning (QB, Louisiana-Monroe)
• Pre-Season Defensive Player of the Year - Andrew Jackson (LB, WKU)

Coaches Poll

1. Louisiana-Lafayette - 57 (4)
2. Louisiana-Monroe - 57 (2)
3. Arkansas State - 45 (2)
4. WKU - 44
5. Troy - 35
6. Texas State - 23
7. South Alabama - 19
8. Georgia State -8

Louisiana-Lafayette & ULM tied for conference pre-season champions. Louisiana-Lafayette is listed as #1 because of 1st place votes.

Preseason All–Conference Team

Offense QB Kolton Browning (Louisiana-Monroe) RB David Oku (Arkansas State) RB Antonio Andrews (WKU) WR J. D. McKissic (Arkansas State) WR Je’Ron Hamm (Louisiana-Monroe) WR Eric Thomas (Troy) TE Wes Saxton (South Alabama) OL Bryce Giddens (Arkansas State) OL Andre Huval (Louisiana-Lafayette) OL Josh Allen (Louisiana-Monroe) OL Terrence Jones (Troy) OL Sean Conway (WKU)

Defense DL Ryan Carrethers (Arkansas State) DL Christian Ringo (Louisiana-Lafayette) DL Kentarius Caldwell (Louisiana-Monroe) DL Alex Page (South Alabama) LB Qushaun Lee (Arkansas State) LB Justin Anderson (Louisiana-Lafayette) LB Andrew Jackson (WKU) DB Sterling Young (Arkansas State) DB Isaiah Newsome (Louisiana-Monroe) DB Tyrell Pearson (South Alabama) DB Jonathan Dowling (WKU)

Specialists K Brian Davis (Arkansas State) P Will Scott (Troy) RS Antonio Andrews (WKU)

Coaches

NOTE: Stats shown are before the beginning of the season

Team	Head coach	Years at school	Overall record	Record at school	Sun Belt record
Arkansas State	Bryan Harsin	1	0–0	0–0	0–0
Georgia State	Trent Miles	1	20–36	0–0	0–0
Louisiana–Lafayette	Mark Hudspeth	3	84–29	18-8	12-4
Louisiana–Monroe	Todd Berry	4	46–79	17-20	13-11
South Alabama	Joey Jones	4	28–21	25–14	1-7
Troy	Larry Blakeney	24	168-99-1	168-99-1	45-22
Texas State	Dennis Franchione	5	197-115-2	23-23	0-0
WKU	Bobby Petrino	1	75-26	0-0	0-0

Sun Belt vs. BCS AQ Conference matchups

Date	Visitor	Home	Conference	Score	Notes
August 31	Louisiana-Monroe	#16 Oklahoma	Big 12	L 0-34
August 31	Louisiana-Lafayette	Arkansas	SEC	L 14-34
August 31	Kentucky	Western Kentucky	SEC	W 35-26	Game played at LP Field in Nashville
September 7	Arkansas State	Auburn	SEC	L 9-38
September 7	Louisiana-Lafayette	Kansas State	Big 12	L 27-48
September 7	Western Kentucky	Tennessee	SEC	L 20-52
September 14	Georgia State	West Virginia	Big 12	L 7-41
September 14	Louisiana-Monroe	Wake Forest	ACC	W 21-19
September 21	Arkansas State	Memphis	American	L 7-31
September 21	Louisiana-Monroe	#20 Baylor	Big 12	L 7-70
September 21	Texas State	#25 Texas Tech	Big 12	L 7-33
September 21	Troy	Mississippi State	SEC	L 7-62
September 28	Arkansas State	Missouri	SEC	L 19-41
September 28	South Alabama	Tennessee	SEC	L 24-31
September 28	Troy	Duke	ACC	L 31-38
October 1	Georgia State	Alabama	SEC	L 3-45
November 6	Troy	Ole Miss	SEC	L 21-51

Regular season

Index to colors and formatting
Sun Belt member won
Sun Belt member lost
Sun Belt teams in bold

All dates, times, and TV are tentative and subject to change.

All Sun Belt teams are located in the Central Time Zone except for Georgia State, which is in the Eastern Time Zone. Start times for non-conference games are local for the Sun Belt team; for conference games, starting times are local for the home team.

Rankings reflect that of the USA Today Coaches poll for that week until week eight when the BCS poll will be used.

Week 1

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 29	6:30 p.m.	Southern Utah	South Alabama	Ladd–Peebles Stadium • Mobile, AL	ESPN3	L 21–22	15,240
August 30	6:00 p.m.	Samford	Georgia State	Georgia Dome • Atlanta, GA	ESPN3	L 21–31	17,606
August 31	3:00 p.m.	Louisiana-Lafayette	Arkansas	Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium • Fayetteville, AR	FSN	L 14–34	69,801
August 31	6:00 p.m.	Texas State	Southern Miss	M.M. Roberts Stadium • Hattiesburg, MS		W 22–15	25,729
August 31	6:00 p.m.	UAB	Troy	Veterans Memorial Stadium • Troy, AL	ESPN3	W 34–31 (OT)	21,398
August 31	6:00 p.m.	Louisiana-Monroe	#16 Oklahoma	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	FSN PPV	L 0–34	84,991
August 31	6:00 p.m.	Kentucky	Western Kentucky	LP Field • Nashville, TN	ESPNews	W 35–26	46,723
August 31	6:00 p.m.	Arkansas-Pine Bluff	Arkansas State	Liberty Bank Stadium • Jonesboro, AR	ESPN3	W 62–11	30,451

Players of the Week^[10]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Corey Robinson	Troy	David Mayo	Texas State	Will Scott	Troy

Week 2

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 7	11:21 a.m.	Western Kentucky	Tennessee	Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, TN	SEC Network	L 20-52	86,783
September 7	1:00 p.m.	Chattanooga	Georgia State	Georgia Dome • Atlanta, GA	ESPN3	L 14-42	14,952
September 7	2:30 p.m.	South Alabama	Tulane	Mercedes-Benz Superdome • New Orleans, LA	CST	W 41-39	19,414
September 7	5:30 p.m.	Louisiana-Lafayette	Kansas State	Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium • Manhattan, KS	FS1	L 27-48	53,073
September 7	6:00 p.m.	Prairie View A&M	Texas State	Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, TX	ESPN3	W 28-3	20,136
September 7	6:00 p.m.	Grambling State	Louisiana-Monroe	Malone Stadium • Monroe, LA	ESPN3	W 48-14	23,600
September 7	6:00 p.m.	Savannah State	Troy	Veterans Memorial Stadium • Troy, AL	ESPN3	W 66-3	20,021
September 7	6:30 p.m.	Arkansas State	Auburn	Jordan–Hare Stadium • Auburn, AL	FSN	L 9-38	83,246

Players of the Week^[11]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Ross Metheny	South Alabama	Jadarius Garner	Troy	Darryl Surgent	Louisiana-Lafayette

Week 3

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 12	6:30 p.m.	Troy	Arkansas State	Liberty Bank Stadium • Jonesboro, AR	ESPNU	ASU 41-34	26,012
September 14	11:00 a.m.	Georgia State	West Virginia	Mountaineer Field • Morgantown, WV	Mountaineers Network	L 7-41	57,440
September 14	11:30 p.m.	Louisiana-Monroe	Wake Forest	BB&T Field • Winston-Salem, NC	ACC Network/ESPN3	W 21-19	26,505
September 14	6:00 p.m.	Nicholls State	Louisiana-Lafayette	Cajun Field • Lafayette, LA	ESPN3	W 70-7	28,871
September 14	6:30 p.m.	Western Kentucky	South Alabama	Ladd–Peebles Stadium • Mobile, AL	ESPN3	USA 31-24	17,721

• Open this week: Texas State

Players of the Week^[12]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Kolton Browning	Louisiana-Monroe	Tyrell Pearson	South Alabama	Aleem Sunanon	South Alabama

Week 4

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 21	1:00 p.m.	Jacksonville State	Georgia State	Georgia Dome • Atlanta, GA	ESPN3	L 26-32	15,425
September 21	3:00 p.m.	Louisiana-Monroe	#20 Baylor	Floyd Casey Stadium • Waco, TX	FS1	L 7-70	42,976
September 21	3:30 p.m.	Arkansas State	Memphis	Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium • Memphis, TN	ESPN3	L 7-31	36,279
September 21	5:00 p.m.	Louisiana-Lafayette	Akron	InfoCision Stadium-Summa Field • Akron, OH	ESPN3	W 35-30	18,809
September 21	6:00 p.m.	Texas State	#25 Texas Tech	Jones AT&T Stadium • Lubbock, TX	FSN	L 7-33	60,997
September 21	6:00 p.m.	Morgan State	Western Kentucky	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium • Bowling Green, KY	ESPN3	W 58-17	20,973
September 21	6:30 p.m.	Troy	Mississippi State	Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, MS	FSN/ESPN3	L 7-62	55,096

• Open this week: South Alabama

Players of the Week^[13]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Terrance Broadway	Louisiana-Lafayette	Xavius Boyd	Western Kentucky	Jonathan Dowling	Western Kentucky

Week 5

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 28	11:21 a.m.	South Alabama	Tennessee	Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, TN	SEC Network	L 24-31	87,266
September 28	1:00 p.m.	Navy	Western Kentucky	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium • Bowling Green, KY	ESPNews	W 19-7	19,813
September 28	2:00 p.m.	Troy	Duke	Wallace Wade Stadium • Durham, NC	ESPN3	L 31-38	30,126
September 28	6:00 p.m.	Tulane	Louisiana-Monroe	Malone Stadium • Monroe, LA	ESPN3	L 14-31	20,476
September 28	6:00 p.m.	Wyoming	Texas State	Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, TX	Longhorn Network	W 42-21	22,150
September 28	6:30 p.m.	Arkansas State	Missouri	Faurot Field • Columbia, MO	CSS/ESPN3	L 19-41	62,468

• Open this week: Georgia State, Louisiana-Lafayette

Players of the Week^[14]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Antonio Andrews	Western Kentucky	Xavius Boyd (2)	Western Kentucky	Zach Robinson	Texas State

Week 6

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
October 3	6:30 p.m.	Western Kentucky	Louisiana-Monroe	Malone Stadium • Monroe, LA	ESPNU	WKU 31-10	16,317
October 5	12:00 p.m.	South Alabama	Troy	Veterans Memorial Stadium • Troy, AL	Sun Belt Network	Troy 34-33	23,024
October 5	12:21 p.m.	Georgia State	Alabama	Bryant–Denny Stadium • Tuscaloosa, AL	SEC TV	L 3-45	101,254
October 5	6:00 p.m.	Texas State	Louisiana-Lafayette	Cajun Field • Lafayette, LA	Cox4/ESPN3	ULL 48-24	23,108

• Open this week: Arkansas State

Players of the Week^[15]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Eric Thomas	Troy	Xavius Boyd (3)	Western Kentucky	Brandon Smith	Texas State

Week 7

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
October 12	2:30 p.m.	Troy	Georgia State	Georgia Dome • Atlanta, GA	Sun Belt Network	Troy 35-28	17,732
October 12	6:00 p.m.	Louisiana-Monroe	Texas State	Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, TX	LHN	ULM 21-14	15,210
October 12	6:00 p.m.	Idaho	Arkansas State	Liberty Bank Stadium • Jonesboro, AR	ESPN3	W 48-24	26,781

• Open this week: South Alabama, Louisiana-Lafayette, Western Kentucky

Players of the Week^[16]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Adam Kennedy	Arkansas State	Isaiah Newsome	Louisiana-Monroe	J.D. McKissic	Arkansas State

Week 8

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
October 15	7:00 p.m.	Louisiana-Lafayette	Western Kentucky	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium • Bowling Green, KY	ESPN2	ULL 37-20	16,359
October 19	6:00 p.m.	Georgia State	Texas State	Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, TX	Sun Belt Network	TXST 24-17	15,684
October 19	6:00 p.m.	Kent State	South Alabama	Ladd–Peebles Stadium • Mobile, AL	ESPN3	W 38-21	14,351

• Open this week: Arkansas State, Troy, Louisiana-Monroe

Players of the Week^[17]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Robert Lowe	Texas State	Justin Anderson	Louisiana-Lafayette	Will Johnson	Texas State

Week 9

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
October 22	7:00 p.m.	Louisiana-Lafayette	Arkansas State	Liberty Bank Stadium • Jonesboro, AR	ESPN2	ULL 23-7	24,578
October 26	3:00 p.m.	Troy	Western Kentucky	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium • Bowling Green, KY	ESPN3	Troy 32-26	20,110
October 26	6:00 p.m.	South Alabama	Texas State	Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, TX	ESPN3	TXST 33-31	18,140
October 26	6:00 p.m.	Georgia State	Louisiana-Monroe	Malone Stadium • Monroe, LA	ESPN3	ULM 38-10	11,357

Players of the Week^[18]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Kolton Browning (2)	Louisiana-Monroe	Ryan Carrethers	Arkansas State	Jason Dann	Texas State

Week 10

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
October 31	6:30 p.m.	Louisiana-Monroe	Troy	Veterans Memorial Stadium • Troy, AL	ESPNU	ULM 49-37	17,013
November 2	12:00 p.m.	Western Kentucky	Georgia State	Georgia Dome • Atlanta, GA	Sun Belt Network	WKU 44-28	15,212
November 2	4:00 p.m.	New Mexico State	Louisiana-Lafayette	Cajun Field • Lafayette, LA	Cox4/ESPN3	W 49-35	30,028
November 2	4:00 p.m.	Texas State	Idaho	Kibbie Dome • Moscow, ID	KNVA	W 37-21	15,088
November 2	6:30 p.m.	Arkansas State	South Alabama	Ladd–Peebles Stadium • Mobile, AL	ESPN3	ASU 17-16	18,228

Players of the Week^[19]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Alonzo Harris	Louisiana-Lafayette	Sterling Young	Arkansas State	Justin Manton	Louisiana-Monroe

Week 11

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
November 7	6:30 p.m.	Troy	Louisiana-Lafayette	Cajun Field • Lafayette, LA	ESPNU	ULL 41-36	22,562
November 9	11:00 a.m.	Western Kentucky	Army	Michie Stadium • West Point, NY	CBSSN	W 21-17	36,276
November 9	6:00 p.m.	Arkansas State	Louisiana-Monroe	Malone Stadium • Monroe, LA	ESPN3	ASU 42-14	13,427

• Open this week: Georgia State, South Alabama, Texas State

Players of the Week^[20]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Adam Kennedy (2)	Arkansas State	Tyler Roberts	Troy	Darryl Surgent	Louisiana-Lafayette (2)

Week 12

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
November 16	11:00 a.m.	Troy	Ole Miss	Vaught–Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, MS	ESPNU	L 51-21	52,931
November 16	2:00 p.m.	Louisiana-Lafayette	Georgia State	Georgia Dome • Atlanta, GA	ESPN3	ULL 35-21	14,415
November 16	2:30 p.m.	South Alabama	Navy	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD	CBSSN	L 42-14	33,086
November 16	6:30 p.m.	Texas State	Arkansas State	Liberty Bank Stadium • Jonesboro, AR	Sun Belt Network	ASU 38-21	23,143

• Open this week: Louisiana-Monroe, Western Kentucky

Players of the Week^[21]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Elijah McGuire	Louisiana-Lafayette	Trae Johnson	Louisiana-Lafayette	Brian Davis	Arkansas State

Week 13

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
November 23	6:00 p.m.	Western Kentucky	Texas State	Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, TX	LHN	WKU 38-7	17,051
November 23	6:00 p.m.	Louisiana-Monroe	South Alabama	Ladd–Peebles Stadium • Mobile, AL	Sun Belt Network	USA 36-14	13,891
November 23	2:00 p.m.	Georgia State	Arkansas State	Liberty Bank Stadium • Jonesboro, AR	ESPN3	ASU 35-33	18,512

• Open this week : Troy, Louisiana-Lafayette

Players of the Week^[22]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Antonio Andrews (2)	Western Kentucky	Cam Thomas	Western Kentucky	Brock Barnhill	Arkansas State

Week 14

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
November 29	1:00 p.m.	Texas State	Troy	Veterans Memorial Stadium • Troy, AL	ESPN3	Troy 28-42	13,073
November 30	1:00 p.m.	South Alabama	Georgia State	Georgia Dome • Atlanta, GA	ESPN3	USA 38-17	13,697
November 30	3:00 p.m.	Arkansas State	Western Kentucky	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium • Bowling Green, KY	ESPN3	WKU 31-34	14,417
November 30	6:00 p.m.	Louisiana-Monroe	Louisiana-Lafayette	Cajun Field • Lafayette, LA	Sun Belt Network/ESPN3	ULM 31-28	25,309

Players of the Week^[23]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team

Week 15

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
December 7	7:00 p.m.	Louisiana-Lafayette	South Alabama	Ladd–Peebles Stadium • Mobile, AL	Cox4/ESPN3	USA, 30-8	16,124

Players of the Week^[23]

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team

Bowl games

In 2013, the SBC placed 2 teams in bowl games, while 5 other teams were bowl-eligible but not selected for bowl games. The conference went 2-0 with Arkansas State and Louisiana-Lafayette both winning.

NOTE: All times are local

Bowl	Date	Time	SBC team (Record)	Opponent (Record)	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
2013 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl	December 21	8:00 p.m.	Louisiana–Lafayette (8-3)	Tulane (7-5)	Mercedes-Benz Superdome • New Orleans, LA	ESPN	ULL 24-21	54,728
2014 GoDaddy Bowl	January 5	8:00 p.m.	Arkansas State (7-5)	Ball State (10-2)	Ladd–Peebles Stadium • Mobile, AL	ESPN	ASU 23-20	36,119

Players of the Year

Main article: Sun Belt Conference football individual awards

2013 Sun Belt Player of the Year awards^[24]

Award	Player	School
Player of the Year	Antonio Andrews	Western Kentucky
Offensive Player of the Year	Antonio Andrews	Western Kentucky
Defensive Player of the Year	Xavius Boyd	Western Kentucky
Freshman of the Year	Elijah McGuire	Louisiana-Lafayette
Coach of the Year	Joey Jones	South Alabama

All-Sun Belt/American Team

Coaches All-Conference Selections^[24]

Position Player Class Team First Team Offense QB Corey Robinson SR Troy RB Alonzo Harris JR Louisiana-Lafayette RB Elijah McGuire FR Louisiana-Lafayette RB Antonio Andrews SR Western Kentucky WR J. D. McKissic SO Arkansas State WR Albert Wilson SR Georgia State WR Eric Thomas SR Troy TE Wes Saxton JR South Alabama OL Andre Huval SR Louisiana-Lafayette OL Josh Allen SR Louisiana-Monroe OL Chris May SO South Alabama OL Terrence Jones JR Troy OL Luis Polanco SR Western Kentucky First Team Defense DL Ryan Carrethers SR Arkansas State DL Romelle Jones SR South Alabama DL Alex Page SR South Alabama DL Bar’ee Boyd SR Western Kentucky LB Qushaun Lee JR Arkansas State LB Justin Alexander SR Louisiana-Lafayette LB Xavius Boyd SR Western Kentucky DB Isaiah Newsome SR Louisiana-Monroe DB Camren Hudson SR Troy DB Jonathan Dowling JR Western Kentucky DB Cam Thomas JR Western Kentucky First Team Special Teams PK Brian Davis SR Arkansas State P Justin Manton JR Louisiana-Monroe RS Darryl Surgent SR Louisiana-Lafayette AP J. D. McKissic SO Arkansas State

Position Player Class Team Second Team Offense QB Ross Metheny SR South Alabama RB Michael Gordon SO Arkansas State RB Robert Lowe SO Texas State WR Jamal Robinson JR Louisiana-Lafayette WR Rashon Ceaser SO Louisiana-Monroe WR Shavarez Smith JR South Alabama TE Darion Griswold SO Arkansas State OL Bryce Giddens SO Arkansas State OL Steven Haunga SR Arkansas State OL Daniel Quave JR Louisiana-Lafayette OL Ucambre Williams SR South Alabama OL Evan McKissack SR Troy Second Team Defense DL Justin Hamilton JR Louisiana-Lafayette DL Gerrand Johnson SO Louisiana-Monroe DL Antonio Gillespie SR Troy DL Tyler Roberts SO Troy LB Cameron Blakes SR Louisiana-Monroe LB Enrique Williams SR South Alabama LB Andrew Jackson SR Western Kentucky DB Rocky Hayes SO Arkansas State DB Sterling Young JR Arkansas State DB Trevence Patt JR Louisiana-Lafayette DB Justin Iwuji SR Texas State Second Team Special Teams PK Will Scott SR Troy P Will Scott SR Troy RS J. D. McKissic SO Arkansas State AP Albert Wilson SR Georgia State

Honorable Mention: Arkansas State: Adam Kennedy, Chris Stone; Georgia State: Ulrick John, Joseph Peterson; Louisiana-Lafayette: Jacob Maxwell, Dominique Tovell; Louisiana-Monroe: Kolton Browning, Centarius Donald; South Alabama Jay Jones, Aleem Sunanon; Texas State: David Mayo, Mike Orakpo; Troy: Jordan Chunn, Bryan Holmes; Western Kentucky: Willie McNeal, Forrest Lamp.

All-Americans

Western Kentucky's Antonio Andrews was named 1st team All-American by SI for All-Purpose team.

Home attendance

Team	Stadium (Capacity)	Game 1	Game 2	Game 3	Game 4	Game 5	Game 6	Game 7	Total	Average	% of Capacity
Arkansas State	Liberty Bank Stadium (30,406)	30,351	26,012	26,781	24,578	23,143	18,512		149,377	24,896	81.9%
Georgia State	Georgia Dome (28,155)	17,606	14,952	15,425	17,732	15,212	14,415	13,697	109,039	15,577	55.3%
Louisiana–Lafayette	Cajun Field (31,000)	28,871	23,108	30,028	22,562	25,309			129,878	25,976	83.8%
Louisiana–Monroe	Malone Stadium (30,427)	23,600	20,476	16,317	11,357	13,427			85,177	17,035	56.0%
South Alabama	Ladd–Peebles Stadium (33,471)	15,204	17,721	14,351	18,228	13,891			79,395	15,879	47.4%
Texas State	Bobcat Stadium (30,000)	20,136	22,150	15,210	15,684	18,140	17,051		108,371	18,062	60.2%
Troy	Veterans Memorial Stadium (30,000)	21,398	20,021	23,024	17,013	13,073			94,529	18,906	63.0%
Western Kentucky	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium (22,113)	46,723†	20,973	19,813	16,359	20,110	14,417		91,672	18,334	82.9%

†Western Kentucky played first game at LP Field in Nashville, Tennessee vs. Kentucky (Counted as home game). Total attendance, average attendance and percent of capacity figure calculated based only on games in L.T. Smith Stadium