ESPN College Football

Here are your non-AQ players of the week, as selected by each conference. The independent players are selected by a national media panel.

C-USA

Offense: Dominique Davis, QB, East Carolina. Davis set an NCAA single-game record with 26 straight completions to open the game in a 38-34 win at Navy. He finished the game 40-of-45 for 372 yards with two touchdowns. His completion percentage of 88.9 was a school record.

Defense: Marques Wheaton, DB, Southern Miss. Wheaton recorded five tackles (four solos), a pass breakup and two fourth-quarter interceptions in Southern Miss’ 27-3 win over SMU. He returned one of his interceptions 41 yards for a score.

Special teams: Ty Long, K, UAB. Long, a true freshman, made the game-winning 40-yarder with 21 seconds remaining in a 26-24 win over UCF.

Independent

Offense: Riley Nelson, QB, BYU. Nelson led six touchdown drives in seven series before leaving the game early in the third quarter in a 56-3 win over Idaho State. Nelson completed 11 of 17 passes for 215 yards and three touchdowns, and added 62 yards and a touchdown on seven carries.

Co-defense: Geoffrey Bacon, LB, Army. Kyle Van Noy, LB, BYU. Bacon returned his first career interception 70 yards for a touchdown in a 44-21 loss at Vanderbilt. Making his first career start, Bacon added a pass break-up, and he matched his season tally with a career-high 13 tackles, including a half tackle for loss. Van Noy had two sacks, three quarterback hurries and a blocked punt.

Special teams: George Atkinson III, KR, Notre Dame. Atkinson had a 96-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in a 31-17 loss to USC. He tallied 178 yards on five kickoff returns.

MAC

East Division

Offense: Chazz Anderson, QB, Buffalo. Accounted for 460 yards of total offense and four touchdowns in a 31-30 loss to Northern Illinois. Anderson completed a school record 35 passes on 53 attempts for 406 yards and three touchdowns, including one with just 14 seconds left in regulation that pulled Buffalo to within one before a missed extra point made the difference.

Defense: Chris Jones, DT, Bowling Green. Jones had six tackles, three sacks and one quarterback hurry in a 13-10 win over Temple.

Special teams: Matt Weller, K, Ohio. Went 3-for-3 on his field goal attempts, connecting from 24, 27 and 23 yards in a 37-20 win at Akron.

West Division

Offense: Javonti Greene, RB, Eastern Michigan. Greene caught a 50-yard pass from Alex Gillett in the first quarter and scored on a 50-yard run midway through the fourth quarter for the two Eastern Michigan touchdowns in a 14-10 victory over Western Michigan.

Defense: Desmond Marrow, DB, Toledo. Marrow led Toledo with six tackles and tied his career high with two interceptions in a 49-28 win over Miami.

Special Teams:Jamill Smith, KR, Ball State. Returned the opening kickoff for a career-high 48 yards in the Cardinals' 17-point second half comeback victory, a 31-27 win over Central Michigan. Smith led all returners for both teams with four kickoff returns for a total of 135 yards.

Mountain West

Offense: Kellen Moore, QB, Boise State. Moore completed 23-of-29 passes for 281 yards in a 37-26 win over Air Force. Moore tied former Texas quarterback Colt McCoy for the most career wins (45) in NCAA history.

Defense:Byron Hout, LB, Boise State. Hout had a career-high 18 tackles against Air Force, including eight unassisted stops and a half tackle for loss.

Special teams:Antonio Graves, WR, TCU. Graves scored his first collegiate touchdown when he recovered a blocked punt in the end zone in a 69-0 win over New Mexico. He also forced a fumble on a kickoff return.

Sun Belt

Offense:Bobby Rainey, RB, Western Kentucky. Rainey rushed for 206 yards and a career-high three touchdowns as the Hilltoppers won their first home game since 2008 with a 42-23 victory over Louisiana-Lafayette.

Defense:Eric Russell, DB, Middle Tennessee. Russell had six tackles, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and an interception in a win over FAU.

Special Teams:Luther Ambrose, KR, ULM. Ambrose became ULM's all-time leader in kickoff return yards and he did it in style, returning the opening kickoff 100 yards at North Texas. He finished with 148 yards on three returns.

WAC

Offense: Mike Ball, RB, Nevada. Ball rushed for a career-high 198 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries and added two catches for 18 yards and another score in a 45-38 win over Fresno State.

Defense: Adrien Cole, LB, Louisiana Tech. Cole had 14 tackles (9 solo), including two for a loss, and broke up a pass in a 24-17 win at Utah State.

Special teams: Ryan Allen, P, Louisiana Tech. Allen averaged 52.2 yards on eight punts in the win at Utah State. Seven of them were downed inside the 20-yard line.

Here are the non-AQ players of the week, as selected by each conference. The independents are selected by a national panel of writers.

C-USA
Offense: Case Keenum, QB, Houston. Threw for 310 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Cougars to a 38-34 win over UCLA in his first game since tearing his ACL last year.

Defense: Cordarro Law, DL, Southern Miss. Had eight tackles (two solos) and added two sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss in Southern Miss’ win over Louisiana Tech.

Special Teams: Robert Kelley, PR, Tulane. Set a school-record for kickoff return yards in his first game for the school, with 213 yards on seven returns.

Independent
Offense: Kriss Proctor, QB, Navy. Ran for 176 yards and three touchdowns, including a 75-yard scoring sprint on the third play from scrimmage, in a win over Delaware.

Offense: Michael Floyd, WR, Notre Dame. Recorded a career-high 12 catches for 154 yards and two touchdowns in a loss to USF. Floyd set the school record for career receptions and now has 183.

Defense: Kyle Van Noy, LB, BYU. With his team trailing 13-6, Van Noy caused a fumble that he also recovered, taking it 3 yards into the end zone for the decisive score in a 14-13 win over Ole Miss.

Special teams: Jon Teague, K, Navy. Set a career and Navy record with a 54-yard field goal. Teague added a 36-yard field goal and was 4-of-5 on extra points.

MAC
East Division

Offense: Bernard Pierce, RB, Temple. Had 20 carries for 147 yards and tied a career-high with three touchdowns in a win over Villanova. Pierce became the third player in Temple history to record 10 games of 100 yards rushing.

Defense: Chris Jones, DT, Bowling Green. Had tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks, a forced fumble and safety in a win over Idaho.

Special Teams: Travis Carrie, PR, Ohio. Had a 65-yard punt return for a touchdown in a 44-24 win at New Mexico State.

West Division

Offense: Chandler Harnish, QB, Northern Illinois. Threw a career-high five touchdowns and ran for 80 yards and a score in a 49-26 victory over Army on Saturday.

Defense: Nathan Ollie, DT, Ball State. Had four tackles, including two sacks, in a 27-20 win over Indiana.

Special Teams: Ryan Casano, PK, Toledo. Made all three field goals and seven extra points for 16 points in a 58-22 win over New Hampshire.

Mountain West
Offense: Kellen Moore, QB, Boise State. Completed 28-of-34 passes for 261 yards and three touchdowns to lead No. 5 Boise State to a 35-21 win over No. 19 Georgia.

Defense: Nordly Capi, DE, Colorado State. Set a new NCAA single-game record with four forced fumbles in a 14-10 victory at New Mexico. His fourth forced fumble of the contest helped the Rams preserve their first conference victory. He added seven tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks .

Special teams: Greg McCoy, KR, TCU. Set a new TCU single-game record with 229 kick return yards a 50-48 loss at Baylor. His total ranks fourth in Mountain West history.

Sun Belt
Offense: T.Y. Hilton, WR, FIU. Had 283 all-purpose yards, 12 shy of his own school record, in a win over North Texas. The 283 yards were the most by any player in the country in Week 1.

Defense: Eric Russell, DB, Middle Tennessee. Led the team with 13 tackles, including 11 solo, and got his first career sack in a loss at Purdue. He also had an interception and was the main kick and punt returner for the team.

Special Teams: Hendrix Brakefield, P, Western Kentucky. Averaged 44.6 yards per kick on eight punts in a loss to Kentucky. Of his eight punts, three went for over 50 yards -- including a 58 yarder. He also had two punts downed inside the 10.

WAC
Offense: Bryant Moniz, QB, Hawaii. Moniz completed 20-of-33 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown while adding a career-high 121 rushing yards on 14 carries with three more scores in a win over Colorado.

Defense: Paipai Falemalu, DL, Hawaii. Had six tackles (five solo), including three for a loss, in a win over Colorado.

Special teams: Taveon Rogers, KR, New Mexico State. Returned four kickoffs for 177 yards -- including a 97-yard touchdown -- in a loss to Ohio. Rogers had a total of 259 all-purpose yards.

The good: No.5 Boise State thoroughly and convincingly beat Georgia 35-21, picking up a critical first win over the SEC. But the Broncos were not the only to win a non-AQ vs. AQ game. Houston beat UCLA 38-34; BYU beat Ole Miss 14-13; Hawaii beat Colorado 34-17 and Ball State beat Indiana 27-20. The MAC now has eight wins over the Big Ten in the last three years. The Cardinals have also beaten Indiana twice since 2008, a huge first win for new coach Pete Lembo.

Speaking of firsts ... New Temple coach Steve Addazio picked up his first win, 42-7 over Villanova. Bernard Pierce ran for 147 yards and three touchdowns in the victory. New Northern Illinois coach Dave Doeren also picked up his first win when the Huskies beat Army 49-26.

The great escape: UTEP barely escaped Stony Brook, 31-24 in overtime. The Miners trailed 24-10 in the third quarter but Nick Lamaison keyed the comeback -- throwing three late touchdown passes, including the winner in overtime. Lamaison ended with 365 yards in his first career start. ... Wyoming also needed a last-second touchdown to escape Weber State. Brett Smith threw a touchdown pass to Robert Herron with 22 seconds left to give the Cowboys a 35-32 win. Weber State led for most of the fourth quarter before seeing its upset bid slip away.

The heartbreak: Utah State and Middle Tennessee felt all sorts of heartbreak after their down-to-the-wire games came up just short for them on Saturday. The Aggies had the defending national champions down for nearly the entire game. But Auburn scored twice in the final 2:07, thanks in part to an onside kick the Tigers easily recovered. Utah State lost 42-38, but if anything came out of the loss -- the nation got its first glimpse of poised true freshman Chuckie Keeton, who impressed everyone with his play in the game. You can beat Auburn won't soon forget him. Meanwhile, Middle Tennessee had its game-tying 47-yard field goal attempt against Purdue blocked and lost 27-24. The Blue Raiders led 24-17 with 9:26 left in the game, but could not hold on long enough to win. Purdue scored 17 points and gained 192 yards in the fourth quarter. "It kicks you in the gut right now, you're sick to your stomach that you lost the game," Middle Tennessee coach Rick Stockstill said. ... New Mexico hung with Colorado State for the entire game but lost 14-10 because a familiar foe came back. Turnovers. The Lobos had three of them. Last season, New Mexico finished the season with a minus-12 turnover margin. ... Western Kentucky gave it a valiant effort against Kentucky, putting a scare into the Wildcats before losing 14-3. The Hilltoppers had more first downs and more total yardage, but also committed more penalties and turnovers in the loss. ... TCU also saw its win over Baylor evaporate when Aaron Jones kicked a 37-yard field goal with 1:04 left for a 50-48 win. Casey Pachall threw an interception to end the game. Much already has been made of the uncharacteristic defense TCU played. But contrast the end of this game with the Rose Bowl. TCU got a huge defensive play to help win the game when Tank Carder batted down the 2-point conversion attempt late in the game. But the Horned Frogs could not make one stop on Baylor's game-winning drive.

The young guns: In the week leading up to the opener against Southern Miss, Louisiana Tech coach Sonny Dykes was asked who reminded him of his 17-year-old starting quarterback, Nick Isham. “Greg Brady,” Dykes said. Isham, a true freshman born in 1993, asked the Bulldogs sports information director, “Who’s Greg Brady?” Isham might be young, but he gained his first game experience against Southern Miss, going 20-of-36 for 176 yards in a narrow 19-17 loss. Keeton, Brett Smith of Wyoming and Rakeem Cato of Marshall were the two other non-AQ true freshmen to make starts and both looked poised behind center despite their teams' losses. Keeton went 21-of-30 for 213 yards, while Cato was 15-of-21 for 115 yards in a rain-shorted day against West Virginia. Smith went 27-of-41 for 294 yards and three touchdowns, but the first pass of his career was intercepted.

Helmet stickers

Boise State defense. The Broncos absolutely dominated up front in a win against Georgia. The defensive line had six sacks and constantly harassed Aaron Murray. The Bulldogs had just 13 first downs and were never much of a threat.

Chandler Harnish, Northern Illinois. The Huskies quarterback threw a career-high five touchdown passes and ran for another in a 49-27 win over Army.

T.Y. Hilton, FIU. Hilton opened a win over North Texas with a 62-yard kickoff return that he almost broke for a touchdown. On the next drive, he scored on a 60-yard reception on the first play. He had 180 all-purpose yards in the first quarter and finished the game with 283 all-purpose yards, 12 shy of his own school record.

Case Keenum, Houston. In his return from an ACL injury, Keenum looked like he was back to his old self, throwing for 310 yards and two touchdown passes in a win over UCLA. He went past the 300-yard mark for the 26th time in 38 career starts.

Bryant Moniz, Hawaii. Moniz threw for 5,000 yards last season but he helped the Warriors beat Colorado with his legs. Moniz ran for 121 yards and three touchdowns -- the most rushing yards by a Hawaii quarterback since Glenn Freitas had 122 yards and four touchdowns against UTEP in 1995.

Kriss Proctor, Navy. Much was made over what Proctor would face this season -- taking over for Ricky Dobbs at quarterback. But he did more than fine against Delaware, running for 176 yards and three touchdowns in a 40-17 win. He also threw his first career touchdown pass.

The NCAA announced the top APR performers in each sport on Tuesday, with 14 FBS schools getting Public Recognition Awards for scoring in the top 10 percent of all 120 FBS programs.

Six of the 14 are from non-AQ schools: Boise State, Middle Tennessee, Northern Illinois, Rice, Air Force and Navy. Clemson, Duke, Northwestern, Rutgers, Stanford, Ohio State, Miami and Vanderbilt are the others receiving recognition. The academic progress rates track classroom achievement for student-athletes. The multiyear rates are based on scores from the 2006-07, 2007-08, 2008-09 and 2009-10 academic years.

Middle Tennessee has made a particularly impressive jump. In 2003, the school had the worst APR among all FBS schools and second-worst APR among Division I football programs. But the school has revamped its academic services and has been a true success story. This article is old, but does a great job of laying out the changes the school made after its embarrassing performance.

The NCAA will release the full APR scores for all teams, including penalties for low performers, on May 24.

Hope you enjoyed the non-AQ spring wrap today. Join me for a live chat to discuss at 2 p.m. ET. Now on to some links.

Former East Carolina quarterback David Garrard keeps giving back.

Middle Tennessee used the spring to fill its holes.

The uDrove Humanitarian Bowl will be played Dec. 17.

BYU looks unusually deep at defensive back.

Coach Mike Price is happy with UTEP's progress this spring.

Atamu (Adam) Ah Ching, a linebacker prospect out of South Carolina, has BYU atop his recruiting list.

BYU's postseason picture is palatable, not perfect.

Hope everyone had a great weekend. Back to your afternoon links.

The WAC board of directors will meet June 14 to discuss expansion candidates.

Fresno State president John Welty plans on discussing the BCS with Mountain West presidents in June. Specifically, how to increase access.

Has Boise State lost its clean-cut image?

Year 2 is much different for cover boy Jake Heaps.

The human performance lab at Air Force has helped the football team.

Former Middle Tennessee cornerback Rod Issac is working out in Miami while he waits for the NFL lockout to end.

Tickets to the Northern Illinois-Wisconsin game at Soldier Field on Sept. 17 go on sale to the general public today.

Here is a final tally of where non-AQ players landed in the NFL draft. Thirty-nine players from non-AQ FBS teams were drafted. TCU had the most players taken with five. Here are the other schools with multiple players selected:

Boise State: 3

Hawaii: 3

Idaho: 3

Nevada: 3

Fresno State: 2

San Diego State: 2

Temple: 2

UCF: 2

Note: Fresno State receiver Jamel Hamler and Southern Miss receiver DeAndre Brown did not get drafted after opting to leave school early.

Mr. Irrelevant went to Rice defensive end Cheta Ozougwu.

First round

No. 30, Temple DE Muhammad Wilkerson, New York Jets

ESPN.com says: Wilkerson is an unusual 3-4 DE because he is more than just a run stopper with his 9.5 sacks a year ago. He should start immediately in this front seven and fill a huge gap at DE, where they have struggled recently.

Second round
No. 35 TCU quarterback Andy Dalton, Cincinnati Bengals
ESPN.com says: Dalton is a guy the Bengals can build around, and he will fit in very well in Jay Gruden's West Coast offense.

No. 36 Nevada quarterback Colin Kaepernick, Nevada Wolf Pack
ESPN.com says: Kaepernick has a great upside, although like Alex Smith, he has to make a huge transition from an unorthodox college offense to a pro-style offense. The 49ers will run a West Coast style, but the huge question is do they talk Alex Smith into coming back to develop Kaepernick or cut ties and throw the rookie into the fire?

No. 44 Boise State receiver Titus Young, Detroit Lions
ESPN.com says: Young looks like the perfect guy to line up in the slot in the Lions' three-wide package, and his quickness and yards after the catch could give them added versatility.

No. 54 Temple safety Jaiquawn Jarrett, Philadelphia Eagles
ESPN.com says: Jarrett is not necessarily a game-changer but could be a solid SS, good in run support and decent in zone coverages.

Third round
No. 66 Nevada linebacker Dontay Moch, Cincinnati Bengals
ESPN.com says: Moch likely will line up at the SLB, and although the Bengals like their outside guys, he adds depth and versatility,

No. 69 FAU tight end Rob Housler, Arizona Cardinals
ESPN.com says: Housler will bring them an H-back type pass-catcher who should really upgrade them on third down and in the red zone.

No. 78 Boise State receiver Austin Pettis, St. Louis Rams
ESPN.com says: Pettis will give them a tall presence in the red zone and on third down and he can be the go-to guy in key situations.

No. 82 San Diego State receiver Vincent Brown, San Diego Chargers
ESPN.com says: While Brown might not be elite, Philip Rivers will like him because he'll run good routes and be a nice target. But he's not explosive.

No. 83 Troy receiver Jerrel Jernigan, New York Giants
ESPN.com says: Jernigan is not necessarily a big-play guy but he can work out of the slot, create yards after the catch and give them some return ability.

No. 85 UCF offensive lineman Jah Reid, Baltimore Ravens
ESPN.com says: With this pick, look for the Ravens to try to develop him as their RT and leave Oher on the left side.

No. 90 Utah State cornerback Curtis Marsh, Philadelphia Eagles
ESPN.com says: The No. 1 need for this team was CB and Marsh is a perfect fit in the style of defense they play.

No. 96 Hawaii running back Alex Green, Green Bay Packers
ESPN.com says: This is a great offense without a consistent run game and Green is a versatile back who can catch well and be another target for Aaron Rodgers.

Fourth round
No. 112 Hawaii receiver Greg Salas, St. Louis Rams
ESPN.com says: Much like their third-round pick Austin Pettis, Salas is a good route runner and he really works well in the middle of the field.

No. 121 Wyoming safety Chris Prosinski, Jacksonville Jaguars
ESPN.com says: The Jags could use two new guys and more depth and Prosinski is a step in the right direction.

No. 131 New Mexico State cornerback Davon House, Green Bay Packers
ESPN.com says: Although not a major need, House fits nicely into the Packers' defensive scheme as a press corner who will play a lot of man coverages.

Fifth round
No. 132 Hawaii receiver Kealoha Pilares, Carolina Panthers
No. 138 TCU offensive lineman Marcus Cannon, New England Patriots
No. 143 Buffalo cornerback Josh Thomas, Dallas Cowboys
No. 144 Idaho safety Shiloh Keo, Houston Texans
No. 147 Middle Tennessee cornerback Rod Issac, Jacksonville Jaguars
No. 153 TCU receiver Jeremy Kerley, New York Jets
No. 159 Marshall tight end Lee Smith, New England Patriots
No. 160 Idaho quarterback Nate Enderle, Chicago Bears
No. 162 Fresno State linebacker Chris Carter, Pittsburgh Steelers

Sixth round
No. 174 Tulsa fullback Charles Clay, Miami Dolphins
No. 176 East Carolina receiver Dwayne Harris, Dallas Cowboys
No. 178 SMU receiver Aldrick Robinson, Washington Redskins
No. 190 TCU safety Colin Jones, San Francisco 49ers

Seventh round
No. 204 Nevada tight end Virgil Green, Denver Broncos
No. 210 Fresno State offensive lineman Andrew Jackson, Atlanta Falcons
No. 211 UCF defensive end Bruce Miller, San Francisco 49ers
No. 213 Boise State cornerback Brandyn Thompson, Washington Redskins
No. 214 Arkansas State offensive lineman Derek Newton, Houston Texans
No. 219 TCU defensive back Malcolm Williams, New England Patriots
No. 222 FIU cornerback Anthony Gaitor, Tampa Bay Bucs
No. 238 Idaho tight end Daniel Hardy, Tampa Bay Bucs
No. 249 San Diego State receiver DeMarco Sampson, Arizona Cardinals
No. 254 Rice defensive end Cheta Ozougwu, Houston Texans

There are many pieces of the latest report on the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl that are both disturbing and eye-opening, especially for those who are frustrated that there is no playoff.

What is most interesting to me is this: Among those listed as attending a junket called the "Fiesta Frolic" in 2008 are several athletic directors at non-AQ schools, who also happen to serve on the NCAA panel determining the fate of the bowl game. Tom Bowen at San Jose State, Dave Heeke at Central Michigan, Paul Krebs at New Mexico and Chris Massaro at Middle Tennessee were all at the event, which included hotel expenses, two rounds of golf, spa certificates and more. An internal report by the bowl also quoted one bowl official as describing the Fiesta Frolic as a "boondoggle," and the name was changed to the "Valley of the Sun Experience & Fiesta Bowl Seminars."

Besides the obvious conflict of interest, what does it say about what non-AQ schools really want if some athletic directors are being wined and dined by one of the biggest BCS bowls? This obviously is not a blanket statement about every single school that is a member of a non-automatic qualifying conference, but it is evidence nonetheless to support what we have constantly been told: that the majority of schools enjoy the status quo.

Coaches prefer the bowl system, and so do administrators and university presidents. It's the biggest reason why there is no playoff. None of these athletic directors did anything wrong, but it sure looks bad that they accepted these gifts, especially when there are so many questions about whether the bowl system is fair and equitable.

It is true the non-AQs have benefited more from the BCS than under the old bowl system and have more access to those bowl games. So the BCS does work in that regard. It does not work when you consider the financial disparity. Utah's attorney general believes as much, since he plans to file suit against the BCS for being an unfair monopoly. But as has seemingly been the case, only those outside the college football establishment are outraged with the current system.

Big time focus on the Super Bowl today, and a hearty congrats to the Packers. One bit of trivia -- James Starks became the first former Buffalo player to win a Super Bowl in 42 years. The last to do it -- Gerry Philbin with the Jets in Super Bowl III.

Now on to some links:

Casey Pachall is the heir apparent to Andy Dalton.

Yes that is legendary BYU football coach LaVell Edwards singing, "You've been Jimmered."

UCF coach George O'Leary talks about his recruiting class after snagging DaMarcus Smith from Louisville.

Former Utah State player Jarrett Bush made the most of his Super Bowl opportunity.

Ten things we learned about Middle Tennessee's recruiting class.

Recruits are left out of options when coaches leave after signing day.

We close out our look at returning starters from the non-AQ conferences with the Sun Belt. FIU emerged as the dark horse this past season to win a share of the league championship and its first bowl berth. Will another school emerge the way FIU did or will the Panthers and the Troy Trojans be the favorites again?

You can check out the returning starters for the Mountain West, WAC, Conference USA and MAC. Now on to the Sun Belt:

ULM: 20 (10 offense, eight defense, two special teams)

Key returnees: QB Kolton Browning, WR Luther Ambrose, DL Ken Dorsey

Key losses: RB Frank Goodin, S Alex Ibe.

FIU: 17 (seven offense, seven defense, two special teams)

Key returnees: QB Wes Carroll, AP T.Y. Hilton, RB Darriet Perry, DB Jonathan Cyprien

Key losses: CB Anthony Gaitor, DL Jarvis Wilson, OL Brad Serini

Western Kentucky: 17 (seven offense, eight defense, two special teams)

Key returnees: QB Kawaun Jakes, RB Bobby Rainey, DL Quanterus Smith

Key losses: LB Thomas Majors, OL Mychal Patterson, DB Orlando Misaalefua

Arkansas State: 15 (six offense, seven defense, two special teams)

Key returnees: QB Ryan Aplin, LB Demario Davis, DL Dorvus Woods

Key losses: OL Derek Newton, DL Bryan Hall, DB M.D. Jennings

North Texas: 14 (six offense, six defense, two special teams)

Key returnees: RB Lance Dunbar, K Zach Olen, RS Brelan Chancellor

Key losses: LB Craig Robertson, OL Estaban Santiago

Troy: 14 (four offense, eight defense, two special teams)

Key returnees: QB Corey Robinson, DL Jonathan Massaquoi, OL James Brown

Key losses: RS Jerrel Jernigan, OL Tyler Clark, DL Mario Addison

FAU: 13 (seven offense, five defense, one special teams)

Key returnees: DB Marcus Bartles, RB Alfred Morris, DB Marcus Bartels

Key losses: QB Jeff Van Camp, WR Lester Jean, LB Michael Lockley

Middle Tennessee: 12 (seven offense, three defense, two special teams)

Key returnees: LB Darin Davis, WR Malcolm Beyah, K Alan Gendreau

Key losses: QB Dwight Dasher, DE Jamari Lattimore, RB Phillip Tanner, DB Rod Issac

Louisiana: 11 (five offense, five defense, one special teams)

Key returnees: TE Ladarius Green, RB Aaron Spikes, LB Devon Lewis-Buchanan

Key losses: OL Ian Burks, CB Orkeys Auriene, DB Maurice Rolle

Independents

Navy: 12 (seven offense, five defense, zero special teams)

Key returnees: FB Alexander Teich, DE Jabaree Tuani, SB Gee Gee Greene

Key losses: QB Ricky Dobbs, CB Kevin Edwards, ROV Wyatt Middleton

Army: 11 (six offense, four defense, one special teams)

Key returnees: QB Trent Steelman, FB Jared Hassin, ROV Steve Erzinger

Key losses: DE Josh McNary, DT Mike Gann, LB Stephen Anderson

MIDDLE TENNESSEE BLUE RAIDERS

The class

Recruits: 22

Top prospects: The Blue Raiders picked up two dual-threat quarterbacks in Shaun White and Timmy Byerly -- who has drawn comparisons to Tim Tebow. They also were able to sign cornerback Marcques Dixon, who was a Middle Tennessee commit in 2010 before signing with Tennessee. He never enrolled in school there and is eligible to play for the Blue Raiders this fall.

Needs met: Middle Tennessee definitely needed to load up on quarterback and the defensive line, and seemed to have met those needs -- even though they weren’t able to get a beefy tackle to help immediately. Part of that was because of the last-minute switch of defensive tackle Joe Townsend, who ended up signing with Vanderbilt.

Analysis: This is a solid class of players that should help Middle Tennessee in the long run. The Blue Raiders also have two other transfers from Division I schools -- cornerback Jajuan Harley comes in from Florida State but must sit out the 2011 season because of NCAA transfer rules. Running back Drayton Allen-Calhoun from LSU could be eligible in 2011 because he has applied for a hardship waiver for family reasons.

Sign your name across my national letter of intent. Shout out in the mailbag Tuesday for anyone who knows the correct lyric.

Now on to some links!

Norm Chow addressed the media for the first time as Utah offensive coordinator.

University of Florida president Bernard Machen calls oversigning "morally reprehensible."

Former San Diego State teammates have reached a settlement over an attack in 2008.

Recruit Anthony Knight switched his commitment from NC State to Nevada because of the Pistol.

Houston recruit C.J. McElroy wants to play football and baseball for the Cougars.

The Tulsa World reviews the Golden Hurricane recruiting classes from 2006 to the present.

Middle Tennessee has gotten two quarterback commitments, including one from the Georgia state player of the year.

Hawaii picked up two commitments from defensive players, while Air Force has also gotten big-time quarterback commitments as well.

Who is footing the bill for UNLV's new football stadium?

Steve Addazio sees the possibilities for Temple.

Earlier today I did a post with the top non-AQ offensive players, according to the final NCAA stats. Now let us take a look at the top NCAA defensive players from the non-AQs.

We start with tackles. Seven of the top 10 leaders in tackles per game came from non-AQ teams:

No. 3 Jamon Hughes, Memphis, 12.25

No. 4 Mario Harvey, Marshall, 11.92

No. 5 Archie Donald, Toledo, 11.23

No. 6 Dwayne Woods Jr., Bowling Green, 11.17

t. No. 7 Bobby Wagner, Utah State, 11.08

t. No. 7 Craig Robertson, North Texas, 11.08

No. 10 Dan Molls, Toledo, 11

Only three of these players return for next season -- Woods, Wagner and Molls. Donald and Molls formed one of the best linebacker duos in the nation if you want to look at their numbers alone. Donald finished with 146 total tackles, while Molls had 143. The only other school with two tacklers in the top 30 was Akron with Brian Wagner (130) and Mike Thomas (113).

Next up: sacks. Five of the top 10 in the NCAA stats are from non-AQ schools.

No. 4 Jonathan Massaquoi, Troy, 13.5 (1.04 pg)

No. 5 Vinny Curry, Marshall, 12 (1.0 pg)

No. 7 Jamari Lattimore, Middle Tennessee, 11.5 (0.88 per game)

No. 8 Mario Addison, Troy, 10.5 (0.88 per game)

No. 9 Chris Carter, Fresno State, 11 (0.88 per game)

Just missing the list is Kent State true freshman Roosevelt Nix, who will most definitely be a player to watch for 2011. Nix had 10 sacks and 20 tackles for loss in his debut season, en route to winning MAC defensive player of the year honors. Troy will lose one member of its sack duo -- Addison just finished his senior season. So did Lattimore and Carter. Massaquoi is an early candidate for Sun Belt defensive player of the year. The honors went to Lattimore this past season.

Finally, we take a look at interceptions. Many non-AQ players made the list here if you want to count total interceptions:

No. 3 Mana Silva, Hawaii, 8 (0.57 pg)

t. No. 5 Dexter McCoil, Tulsa, 6 (0.5 pg)

t. No. 5 Sean Baker, Ball State

t. No. 5 Domonic Cook, Buffalo

t. No. 10 Marco Nelson, Tulsa (.046 pg)

t. No. 13 Evan Harris, Miami (Ohio), (0.43 pg)

t. No. 13 Dayonne Nunley, Miami (0.43 pg)

Everybody on the list but Silva had six interceptions this past season. Impressive to see duos from Tulsa and Miami on the list. Each of those players returns for 2011. There were only three seniors on this list -- Baker, Cook and Silva.

Let the buildup to the Senior Bowl begin! Now on to some links:

Tulsa's new coaching staff has plenty of seasoning.

Marshall has gotten a verbal commitment from a former West Virginia commit.

Is a less ambitious schedule what Houston needs?

Bail for the man accused of shooting three Southern Miss football players has been reduced to $1.5 million.

Middle Tennessee coach Rick Stockstill has promoted Willie Simmons to offensive coordinator and Steve Ellis to defensive coordinator.

Blinn College linebacker Princeton Jackson chooses UNLV.

A new on-campus stadium is helping FAU in recruiting.

UAB has added five players to its commitment list.

What did we miss this weekend? Let's check some links:

Former Tulsa and Louisville coach Steve Kragthorpe will interview for the offensive coordinator job at LSU.

TCU co-offensive coordinator Justin Fuente has also been mentioned as a possibility, but he said he has not spoken with LSU.

More than 6,000 fans paid tribute to the TCU football team.

UCF hopes to reel in another strong recruiting class.

Nevada defensive coordinator Andy Buh sits down for an interview with the Reno Gazette-Journal and talks about the biggest key in turning the defense around.

Southern Miss defensive coordinator Todd Bradford stepped down to take the linebackers coach job at Maryland.

Air Force is having trouble filling its 2011 football schedule.

Bill Blankenship's hire is crucial to Tulsa's future.

Middle Tennessee coach Rick Stockstill says he won't call the offensive plays.

We should stop and listen to student-athletes.