CCU football flips Sun Belt coaches’ poll, is a co-favorite to win East Division
Football coaches in the Sun Belt Conference have seen the error of their ways.
After Coastal Carolina went undefeated in the conference last season despite being picked to finish last by the league’s coaches, the Chanticleers are the coaches’ co-favorite to win the East Division in 2021.
The Chants and Appalachian State each received 44 points in the preseason coaches’ poll released Tuesday.
Both teams are still behind Louisiana in the poll, however. They each received five points fewer than the West Division favorite.
Behind CCU and App. State in the poll in the East Division are Georgia State (24), Georgia Southern (20) and Troy (18). Coastal plays App. State at Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone, N.C., on Wednesday, Oct. 20 in what might be the Chants’ most important game of the season.
Both CCU and Louisiana were ranked in the top 15 of the final AP Top 25 poll last season and won’t play this season unless they meet in the conference championship game. They were scheduled to play in the title game last season but it was canceled due to coronavirus cases within the CCU program.
CCU went 11-1 last season and Louisiana 10-1 with its only loss to CCU on a field goal in the final seconds.
The Sun Belt’s coaches had reason to vote the Chants so low in the poll last season based on the team’s track record to that point. The Chants finished 2-6 in the Sun Belt and finished with an overall losing record in each of its first three seasons in the league entering last season.
The Chants garnered a number of preseason honors Tuesday, with 11 players named to Preseason All-Sun Belt teams.
CCU redshirt sophomore quarterback Grayson McCall was dubbed the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year after being named the 2020 Player of the Year in the conference, while Troy junior linebacker Carlton Martial was named the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year. Both McCall and Martial are returning All-Sun Belt First Team honorees.
Teammates joining McCall on the all-conference first team were senior tight end Isaiah Likely, senior wide receiver Jaivon Heiligh, redshirt senior bandit end Jeffrey Gunter, super senior defensive tackle C.J. Brewer, super senior linebacker Silas Kelly, and senior cornerback D’Jordan Strong.
Named to the second team were super senior offensive lineman Trey Carter, sophomore offensive lineman Willie Lampkin, super senior linebacker Teddy Gallagher, and senior placekicker Massimo Biscardi.
2021 Sun Belt Coaches Poll
East Division
T1. Coastal Carolina (6) – 44
T1. App State (4) – 44
3. Georgia State – 24
4. Georgia Southern – 20
5. Troy – 18
West Division
1. Louisiana (9) – 49
2. Arkansas State (1) – 38
3. South Alabama – 27
4. Texas State – 25
5. ULM – 11
Preseason All-Sun Belt Teams
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year
Grayson McCall, Coastal Carolina (RS So., QB – Indian Trail, N.C.)
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year
Carlton Martial, Troy (Jr., LB – Mobile, Ala.)
First Team Offense
QB – Grayson McCall, Coastal Carolina (RS So. – Indian Trail, N.C.)
RB – Camerun Peoples, Appalachian State (Jr. – Lineville, Ala.)
RB – Destin Coates, Georgia State (Sr. – Tallahassee, Fla.)
OL – Baer Hunter, Appalachian State (Super Sr. – Clemmons, N.C.)
OL – Shamarious Gilmore, Georgia State (RS Sr. – Riverdale, Ga.)
OL – Cooper Hodges, Appalachian State (Jr. – Glen St. Mary, Fla.)
OL – Austin Stidham, Troy (Jr. – Russellville, Ala.)
OL – O’Cyrus Torrence, Louisiana (So. – Greensburg, La.)
TE – Isaiah Likely, Coastal Carolina (Sr. – Cambridge, Mass.)
WR – Jalen Tolbert, South Alabama (Jr. – Mobile, Ala.)
WR – Jaivon Heiligh, Coastal Carolina (Sr. – Venice, Fla.)
WR – Sam Pinckney, Georgia State (RS Jr. – Greenwood, S.C.)
First Team Defense
DL – Jeffery Gunter, Coastal Carolina (RS Sr. – Durham, N.C.)
DL – C.J. Brewer, Coastal Carolina (Super Sr. – Bowdon, Ga.)
DL – Demetrius Taylor, Appalachian State (Super Sr. – Miami, Fla.)
DL – Will Choloh, Troy (Jr. – Lawrenceville, Ga.)
LB – Carlton Martial, Troy (Jr. – Mobile, Ala.)
LB – D’Marco Jackson, Appalachian State (Sr. – Spartanburg, S.C.)
LB – Silas Kelly, Coastal Carolina (Super Sr. – Mount Airy, Md.)
DB – Derrick Canteen, Georgia Southern (RS So. – Evans, Ga.)
DB – Shaun Jolly, Appalachian State (Sr. – Stone Mountain, Ga.)
DB – D’Jordan Strong, Coastal Carolina (Sr. – Batesville, Miss.)
DB – Bralen Trahan, Louisiana (RS Jr. – Lafayette, La.)
First Team Special Teams
K – Noel Ruiz, Georgia State (Sr. – Wilson, N.C.)
P – Rhys Byrns, Louisiana (Jr. – Melbourne, Australia)
RS – Chris Smith, Louisiana (RS So. – Louisville, Miss.)
Second Team Offense
QB – Levi Lewis, Louisiana (Sr. – Baton Rouge, La.)RB – JD King, Georgia Southern (Fifth-Year Sr. – Fitzgerald, Ga.)
RB – Daetrich Harrington, Appalachian State (Sr. – Douglasville, Ga.)
OL – Trey Carter, Coastal Carolina (Super Sr. – Monroeville, Ala.)
OL – Max Mitchell, Louisiana (Jr. – Monroe, La.)
OL – Dylan Bradshaw, Troy (Sr. – Enterprise, Ala.)
OL – Willie Lampkin, Coastal Carolina (So. – Lakeland, Fla.)
OL – Aaron Dowdell, Georgia Southern (Sixth-Year Sr. – Fairburn, Ga.)
TE – Roger Carter, Georgia State (Sr. – Columbia, S.C.)
WR – Thomas Hennigan, Appalachian State (Super Sr. – Greensboro, N.C.)
WR – Marcell Barbee, Texas State (Jr. – Pueblo, Colo.)
WR – Cornelius McCoy, Georgia State (Sr. – Deerfield Beach, Fla.)
Second Team Defense
DL – Zi’Yon Hill, Louisiana (RS Jr. – New Iberia, La.)
DL – Hardrick Willis, Georgia State (RS Sr. – Jonesboro, Ga.)
DL – Dontae Wilson, Georgia State (Sr. – Jefferson, Ga.)
DL – Nico Ezidore, Texas State (Jr. – Garland, Texas)
LB – Lorenzo McCaskill, Louisiana (RS Jr. – Detroit, Mich.)
LB – Teddy Gallagher, Coastal Carolina (Super Sr. – Los Angeles, Calif.)
LB – Brendan Harrington, Appalachian State (Jr. - Pittsboro, N.C.)
DB – Antavious Lane, Georgia State (RS So. – West Palm Beach, Fla.)
DB – Quavian White, Georgia State (Sr. – Greer, S.C.)
DB – Keith Gallmon, South Alabama (Jr. – Mobile, Ala.)
DB – Eric Garror, Louisiana (Jr. – Mobile, Ala.)
Second Team Special Teams
K – Massimo Biscardi, Coastal Carolina (Sr. – Downingtown, Pa.)
P – Anthony Beck II, Georgia Southern (RS Jr. – Guyton, Ga.)
RS – Khaleb Hood, Georgia Southern (Jr. – McDonough, Ga.)
This story was originally published July 20, 2021 at 1:37 PM.
