Louisiana and Marshall secure berths for the Sun Belt Football Championship game, Coastal Carolina secures bowl eligibility in Week 14

NEW ORLEANS – Louisiana and Marshall secured berths in the 2024 Hercules Tires Sun Belt Football Championship with wins in Week 14. The Ragin’ Cajuns are making their fifth appearance in a championship game, while the Thundering Herd are qualifying for a championship game for the first time.

The host of the championship game will be determined based on a composite average of select computer rankings that include all games on the final weekend of the conference regular season. The host side will be announced on Sunday, December 1st, when these rankings are available. The championship game will be played on Saturday, December 7 at 7:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. CT and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN for the seventh consecutive year.

Louisiana won the Sun Belt West Division with a 7-1 record in conference play. Marshall won the Sun Belt East Division with an identical conference record of 7-1. Coastal Carolina also secured bowl eligibility for the fifth straight season with a win in the regular season finale.

After a 2023 campaign in which the Sun Belt led the nation with 12 bowl season participants, eight Sun Belt teams are bowl eligible in 2024 – Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, James Madison, Louisiana, Marshall, South Alabama and Texas State – most represented among the non-autonomy conferences.

A 60-yard pick-six from redshirt senior linebacker Mannie Nunnery midway through the fourth quarter was the difference in Texas State’s 45-38 win over South Alabama – the first road win for both teams in the straight series. The defensive touchdown gave the Bobcats a sole two-possession lead in the back-and-forth contest and helped Texas State to back-to-back season wins for the first time since 2008 and 2009.

Redshirt senior quarterback Jordan McCloud completed 21 of 28 passes for 248 yards and a touchdown to leading receiver senior wideout Joey Hobert (7 catches, 80 yards). McCloud also rushed for 27 yards and a score and set a new Texas State single-season program record with 36 touchdowns responsible. Junior running back Ismail Mahdi (20 carries, 147 yards, 1 touchdown) and redshirt junior running back Lincoln Pare (26 carries, 96 yards, 1 touchdown) each carried the ball 20 or more times on a day the Bobcats rushed 282 yards towards them. Senior defensive tackle Tavian Coleman led the Bobcats’ defense with four tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble.

South Alabama freshman Fluff Bothwell ran for 81 yards and two touchdowns on just six touches, and senior wide receiver Jamaal Pritchett caught 10 passes for 85 yards and a touchdown, his best ninth of the season. Defensively, redshirt senior defensive back Jaden Voisin was the leading redshirt sophomore linebacker with 14 tackles, one tackle for loss and one interception, while Blayne Myrick added 10 tackles and a 33-yard pick-six in the loss .

Louisiana edged rival ULM 37-23 to secure its fourth 10-win season in the last six seasons and its conference-best fifth place in the Hercules Tires Sun Belt Football Championship Game in the last seven years as Sun Belt West Division champions.

Redshirt-sophomore running backs Zylan Perry (19 carries, career-high 150 yards, 2 touchdowns) and redshirt-freshman Bill Davis (17 carries, 78 yards, 1 touchdown) combined for 228 rushing yards and three touchdowns to lead the offense of the Ragin’ Cajuns. Redshirt-senior quarterback Chandler Fields threw for 188 yards and the other two Louisiana touchdowns, as well as a Louisiana defender – this time redshirt freshman Kody Jackson – managed two interceptions for the second straight year. Defensively, senior linebacker KC Ossai also contributed with a team-high 13 tackles and the game-winning interception, as did redshirt junior defensive lineman Jordan Lawson with a team-high seven tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and a team-high 1.5 sacks.

A 172-yard rushing day for freshman running back Ahmad Hardy, including a touchdown, highlighted ULM’s accomplishments in the loss. It was Hardy’s eighth 100-yard rushing performance this season. His 1,351 rushing yards are good for the third-most in a single season in ULM program history, while his 13 touchdowns are tied for the second-most for a Warhawk in a single season.

Coastal Carolina secured bowl eligibility for the fifth straight season with a 48-27 victory over Georgia State after senior defensive back Tobias Fletcher and junior defensive back Matthew McDoom scored several on a six-takeaway day for the Chanticleers Interceptions had shown.

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Ethan Vasko completed 13 of 17 passes for 200 yards and three scores, including two for leading receiver Senika McKie (5 catches, 81 yards, 2 touchdowns). Vasko also rushed for 68 yards and a touchdown, alongside a 124-yard, one-score outing from redshirt sophomore running back Christian Washington. Fletcher scored on a 39-yard pick-six and racked up 77 interception return yards on his two picks.

Junior wide receiver Ted Hurst racked up 131 yards on eight receptions for Georgia State in the loss. Redshirt junior running back Freddie Brock carried the ball 14 times for 71 yards and two scores.

With a 52-20 win over Southern Miss, Troy closed out the 2024 season by winning three of its final four games. Trojans junior running back Damien Taylor rushed for a career-high 169 yards and three touchdowns on 23 carries, reached the 1,000-yard plateau in the fourth quarter and finished the season with 1,010 rushing yards.

Taylor joined junior wide receiver Devonte Ross, who reached 1,000 receiving yards on the first drive of the second half and finished the season with 1,043 receiving yards. Taylor and Ross are the first Trojan duo since Shawn Southward (1,012 rushing) and Chip Reeves (1,050 receiving) in 2012 to surpass 1,000 yards rushing and receiving in the same season. Junior quarterback Matthew Caldwell threw for 187 yards and a score and added 30 yards and a touchdown on the ground game. Led by senior linebacker Brendan Jackson – with 10 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and one sack – and junior Bandit Phillip Lee – with seven tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and two sacks – Troy’s defense held Southern Miss to just one 31 rushing yards.

Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Larry Simmons – with four catches for 90 yards and a touchdown – and junior Ti Mims – with five catches for 77 yards and a score – highlighted Southern Miss’ performance.

In his first collegiate start, freshman quarterback Quinn Henicle threw for four touchdowns and helped Old Dominion to a 40-32 victory over Arkansas State. Henicle threw for 143 yards and two touchdowns – both to leading receiver Redshirt senior tight end Pat Conroy (4 catches, 90 yards, 2 touchdowns). Henicle also had 206 rushing yards and two scores on 19 attempts, including a game-winning 92-yard touchdown run on the Monarchs’ first play from scrimmage.

In addition to Henicle, senior running back Aaron Young recorded his fourth consecutive 100-yard game with 119 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries. The Monarchs’ 406 rushing yards as a team was a single-game program record. Old Dominion’s defense recorded six sacks – the fourth-most in a game in program history – with redshirt junior defensive lineman Kris Trinidad leading the unit with two tackles for loss and two sacks.

Redshirt junior wide receiver Corey Rucker became Arkansas State’s all-time leading receiver with a performance of eight catches, 115 yards and a touchdown. Sophomore quarterback Jaylen Raynor completed 22 of 36 passes for 261 yards and scored three scores in the loss.

Fifth-year running back Jalen White finished his 2024 regular season with three touchdown performances, helping Georgia Southern to a 29-20 victory over rival App State in the regular season finale. White rushed for 125 yards on 18 carries, including the game-winning 35-yard score with 1:05 to play.

Redshirt sophomore quarterback JC French completed 16 of 19 passes for 166 yards and a score while connecting with redshirt sophomore wide receiver Josh Dallas (4 catches, 53 yards, 1 touchdown) and added 51 yards with his legs . Redshirt senior linebacker Marques Watson-Trent paced the Eagle defense with 13 tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss, while fellow redshirt senior defensive linebacker Jacob Ferguson added six tackles, one tackle for loss and an interception .

Junior wideout Makai Jackson caught eight passes for 157 yards and a touchdown, and senior running back Ahmani Marshall carried the ball 24 times for 127 yards and a score for App State in the loss.

Marshall overcame a 17-0 halftime deficit to defeat James Madison 35-33 in double overtime to earn its first berth in the Hercules Tires Sun Belt Football Championship Game as Sun Belt East Division champions.

The Thundering Herd scored 17 points in the third quarter, scoring a touchdown on consecutive plays from scrimmage with a 16-yard touchdown reception by redshirt sophomore tight end Toby Payne and a 28-yard pick-six by the Redshirt junior defenseman Jadarius Green-McKnight to even out the competition. After trading touchdowns on extended drives in the fourth quarter, Marshall failed to convert a potential game-winning field goal as time expired, leading to overtime.

The Thundering Herd and Dukes traded field goals in the first overtime, but James Madison prevailed in the second overtime with a nine-yard touchdown connection from redshirt sophomore quarterback Alonza Barnett III to redshirt sophomore running back Wayne Knight . Marshall’s defense stopped James Madison’s two-point attempt and gave the offense a chance to win the game on their ensuing possession.

Two consecutive reversals – the first was a touchdown run by redshirt-sophomore wideout Tychaun Chapman on a flip by senior running back Ethan Payne and the second was a two-point pass by redshirt-junior quarterback Braylon Braxton on redshirt-junior- Wideout receiver Chuck Montgomery on a Payne’s second flip after a direct snap secured the victory for the Thundering Herd.

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SUN BELT FOOTBALL – WEEK 14 RESULTS

Texas State defeated. South Alabama, 45-38
Louisiana defeated. ULM, 37-23
Coastal Carolina defeated. Georgia State, 48-27
Troy defeated. Southern Miss, 52-20
Old Dominion def. Arkansas State, 40-32
Georgia Southern defeated. App status, 29-20
Marshall defeated. James Madison, 35-33 in 2OT