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College Football Group of 5 Conferences preview 2017

By Nicholas Ian Allen

SYRACUSE, NY - SEPTEMBER 17: Quinton Flowers (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)
SYRACUSE, NY - SEPTEMBER 17: Quinton Flowers (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images) /
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A playoff spot may be out of reach, but with a New Year’s Six Bowl berth on the line, we offer the 2017 Group of 5 Conferences college football preview.

It’s time to face facts: Boise State is no longer the crown jewel of college football’s Group of 5 conferences. The Broncos earned the very first New Year’s Six bowl bid from the College Football Playoff committee, ending the 2014 season as the highest ranked team, and picked up a big 38-30 win over No. 12 Arizona in the Fiesta Bowl, but Boise hasn’t won its conference since. Instead, San Diego State is the two-time defending Mountain West champion.

Of course, the Aztecs have also been less than dominant, and missed out on an NY6 bid both years as well, leaving the door open for Houston in 2015 and Western Michigan last season. The Cougars capitalized with a 38-24 win over No. 9 Florida State in the Peach Bowl, and Western Michigan played No. 8 Wisconsin close before falling 24-16 in the Cotton Bowl last season.

All four programs should be considered candidates to make it back to the national stage in 2017, but none of the four are our pick to do it. In fact, none of the four are predicted to win their respective conference in our 2017 Group of 5 Conferences College Football Preview.

So, who is? South Florida finished 11-2 last season, and when head coach Willie Taggart left for Oregon he left a perfect situation for Charlie Strong to step into. As the No. 21 ranked team in the Coaches Poll – the only G5 program listed, the Bulls have the inside track to the NY6.

Of course, USF won’t have an easy road. In addition to a difficult American Athletic Conference schedule that includes a Thursday night showdown with defending East Division champion Temple visits from West Division contenders Houston and Tulsa, the Bulls could face the Cougars, Memphis or Navy in the AAC Championship Game.

But more than that, another team could beat the Bulls to the punch. Appalachian State head coach Scott Satterfield has a favorable conference schedule, a marquee matchup with Georgia, and a talented roster at his disposal, and Troy played national champion Clemson incredibly close last season. One of those two could give the Sun Belt Conference its first big-time bowl game appearance. Plus, the MAC has a prime candidate in Toledo, and Western Kentucky has won 23 games and two Conference USA titles in two seasons.

Simply put, there is no shortage of options of quality New Year’s Six bowl game candidates among G5 college football programs. And with that in mind, we preview each of the Group of 5 conferences.

G5 Offensive Player of the Year

QB Quinton Flowers, USF

There are a ton of great players throughout the Group of 5 conferences. Quarterback is particularly strong with Middle Tennessee’s Brent Stockstill, Logan Whiteside at Toledo and Mike White all coming back after ranking in the top 10 nationally in passing yards per game last season. Whiteside led the nation with 45 touchdown passes last season, and White ranked No. 8 with 38.

Also, G5 signal callers include Riley Ferguson at Memphis, Brett Rypien at Boise State, BYU’s Tanner Mangum, Brandon Silvers at Troy, newcomer Kyle Allen at Houston, Appalachian State’s Taylor Lamb and Wyoming’s Josh Allen, who is receiving first round buzz for the 2018 NFL Draft.

Several running backs are also capable of putting up huge numbers in 2017, including D’Angelo Brewer at Tulsa, Rashaad Penny at San Diego State, Southern Miss’ Ito Smith and Jalin Moore at Appalachian State.

In other words, it’s difficult to pick out just one player as G5 Offensive Player of the Year. Nevertheless, given his success last season and the potential to lead his team to new heights this season, our pick is South Florida quarterback Quinton Flowers.

A dual threat playmaker, Flowers completed 62.5 percent of his passes for 2,812 yards and 24 touchdowns with just seven interceptions in 331 attempts (2.11 percent INT rate) as a junior last season. He was even more effective as a runner, and led the Bulls with 1,530 rushing yards and 18 TDs on the ground, putting him in a tie for second place in the American in both categories. Flowers averaged an explosive 7.7 yards per carry.

The 6-foot, 215-pound Flowers isn’t extremely high on NFL Draft boards, but he’s dangerous with the football in his hands, and with 16 starters back from an 11-2 squad last season, Flowers is capable of putting up huge numbers and leading USF to the Cotton Bowl as the prize for the top ranked G5 team.

  • AAC Offensive Player of the Year: QB Quinton Flowers, USF
  • C-USA Offensive Player of the Year: QB Brent Stockstill, Middle Tennessee
  • G5 FBS Independents Offensive Player of the Year: QB Tanner Mangum, BYU
  • MAC Offensive Player of the Year: QB Logan Whiteside, Toledo
  • Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year: RB Rashaad Penny, San Diego State
  • Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Year: RB Jalin Moore, Appalachian State