2021 Sun Belt Conference football season explained

2021 Sun Belt Conference football season
Color:	0A2240
Color Text:	ffffff
League:	NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision
Sport:	Football
Pixels:	200px
Duration:	September 2, 2021 – December 25, 2021
No Of Teams:	10
Draft:	2022 NFL Draft
Draft Link:	2022 NFL Draft
Top Pick:	WR Jalen Tolbert, South Alabama
Picked By:	Dallas Cowboys, 88th overall
Season:	Regular season
Conf1:	East
Conf1 Champ:	Appalachian State
Conf2:	West
Conf2 Champ:	Louisiana
Finals:	SBC Championship Game
Finals Link:	2021 Sun Belt Conference Football Championship Game
Finals Champ:	Louisiana
Finals Runner-Up:	Appalachian State
Finals Mvp:	QB Levi Lewis, Louisiana
Prevseason Link:	2020 Sun Belt Conference football season
Prevseason Year:	2020
Nextseason Link:	2022 Sun Belt Conference football season
Nextseason Year:	2022

The 2021 Sun Belt Conference football season was the 21st season of college football play for the Sun Belt Conference. The season began September 2, 2021 and concluded with its championship game on December 4, 2021. It was part of the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Sun Belt Conference consists of 10 football members split into two divisions. The conference released its schedule on March 1, 2021.^[1]

Previous season

See main article: article and 2020 Sun Belt Conference football season.

The 2020 season saw Coastal Carolina win the East Division, while Louisiana won the West Division. The Conference Championship game was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the two teams were declared co-champions.^[2] Coastal Carolina advanced to the Cure Bowl, where they lost in overtime to Liberty.^[3] Louisiana advanced to the First Responder Bowl, where they defeated UTSA.^[4]

Appalachian State,^[5] Georgia Southern,^[6] and Georgia State^[7] also advanced to bowl games, with all winning their respective matches.

Preseason

Preseason Media Poll

The Preseason Media Poll was released on July 20. Coastal Carolina and Appalachian State tied as the favorites for the East Division, while Louisiana was favored to win the West Division.^[8]

East
T1	Coastal Carolina	44 (6)
T1	Appalachian State	44 (4)
3	Georgia State	24
4	Georgia Southern	20
5	Troy	18

West
1	Louisiana	49 (9)
2	Arkansas State	38 (1)
3	South Alabama	27
4	Texas State	25
5	Louisiana–Monroe	11

Preseason awards

The following list contains players and coaches included on preseason watch lists for national awards.

Award	Head coach/Player	School	Position	Link
Lott Trophy	Silas Kelly	style=	Coastal Carolina	LB	^[9]
Dodd Trophy	Jamey Chadwell	style=	Coastal Carolina	Head Coach	^[10]
Maxwell Award	Camerun Peoples	style=	Appalachian State	RB	^[11]
	Layne Hatcher	style=	Arkansas State	QB
	Grayson McCall	style=	Coastal Carolina	QB
	Levi Lewis	style=	Louisiana	QB
	Jalen Tolbert	style=	South Alabama	WR
Bednarik Award	Demetrius Taylor	style=	Appalachian State	DE	^[12]
	Shaun Jolly	style=	Appalachian State	CB
	Jeffrey Gunter	style=	Coastal Carolina	DE
	Derrick Canteen	style=	Georgia Southern	CB
	Bralen Trahan	style=	Louisiana	S
	Carlton Martial	style=	Troy	LB
Davey O'Brien Award	Levi Lewis	style=	Louisiana	QB	^[13]
	Grayson McCall	style=	Coastal Carolina	QB
Doak Walker Award	JD King	style=	Georgia Southern	RB	^[14]
	Marcel Murray	style=	Arkansas State	RB
	Camerun Peoples	style=	Appalachian State	RB
Fred Biletnikoff Award	Jaivon Heiligh	style=	Coastal Carolina	WR	^[15]
	Isaiah Likely	style=	Coastal Carolina	TE
	Sam Pinckney	style=	Georgia State	WR
	Jalen Tolbert	style=	South Alabama	WR
John Mackey Award	Isaiah Likely	style=	Coastal Carolina	TE	^[16]
	Roger Carter	style=	Georgia State	TE
	Henry Pearson	style=	Appalachian State	TE
	Johnny Lumpkin	style=	Louisiana	TE
Rimington Trophy	Baer Hunter	style=	Appalachian State	C	^[17]
	Shane Vallot	style=	Louisiana	C
	Dylan Bradshaw	style=	Troy	C
Butkus Award	Carlton Martial	style=	Troy	LB	^[18]
Outland Trophy	C. J. Brewer	style=	Coastal Carolina	DT	^[19]
	Trey Carter	style=	Coastal Carolina	G
	Will Choloh	style=	Troy	DT
	Shamarious Gilmore	style=	Georgia State	G
	Baer Hunter	style=	Appalachian State	C
	O'Cyrus Torrence	style=	Louisiana	G
Bronko Nagurski Trophy	C. J. Brewer	style=	Coastal Carolina	DT	^[20]
	Will Choloh	style=	Troy	DT
	Carlton Martial	style=	Troy	LB
	Demetrius Taylor	style=	Appalachian State	DE
	Bralen Trahan	style=	Louisiana	S
Lou Groza Award	Massimo Biscardi	style=	Coastal Carolina	K	^[21]
Paul Hornung Award	Khaleb Hood	style=	Georgia Southern	WR	^[22]
	Chris Smith	style=	Louisiana	RB
	Caleb Spurlin	style=	Appalachian State	DL
Wuerffel Trophy	Thomas Hennigan	style=	Appalachian State	WR	^[23]
	Andre Harris Jr.	style=	Arkansas State	OL
	Kennedy Roberts	style=	Coastal Carolina	DL
	Levi Lewis	style=	Louisiana	QB
	Keith Gallmon	style=	South Alabama	DB
	Tyler Vitt	style=	Texas State	QB
	Luke Whittemore	style=	Troy	WR
Walter Camp Award	Grayson McCall	style=	Coastal Carolina	QB	^[24]
	Demetrius Taylor	style=	Appalachian State	DE
Manning Award	Cornelious Brown	style=	Georgia State	QB	^[25]
	Layne Hatcher	style=	Arkansas State	QB
	Levi Lewis	style=	Louisiana	QB
	Grayson McCall	style=	Coastal Carolina	QB
Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award	Ken Marks	style=	Louisiana	OL	^[26]
Ray Guy Award	Anthony Beck II	style=	Georgia Southern	P	^[27]
	Charles Ouverson	style=	Coastal Carolina	P
	Jack Brooks	style=	South Alabama	P
	Rhys Byrns	style=	Louisiana	P
	Ryan Hanson	style=	Arkansas State	P
	Xavier Subotsch	style=	Appalachian State	P
	Jake Bentley	style=	South Alabama	QB	^[28]
	Chase Brice	style=	Appalachian State	QB
	Levi Lewis	style=	Louisiana	QB
	Grayson McCall	style=	Coastal Carolina	QB

Preseason All-Conference teams

• Offensive Player of the Year: Grayson McCall (Redshirt Sophomore, Coastal Carolina quarterback)
• Defensive Player of the Year: Carlton Martial (Junior, Troy linebacker)

Position	Player	Team
First Team Offense
QB	Grayson McCall	Coastal Carolina
RB	Camerun Peoples	Appalachian State
RB	Destin Coates	Georgia State
OL	Baer Hunter	Appalachian State
OL	Shamarious Gilmore	Georgia State
OL	Cooper Hodges	Appalachian State
OL	Austin Stidham	Troy
OL	O'Cyrus Torrence	Louisiana
TE	Isaiah Likely	Coastal Carolina
WR	Jalen Tolbert	South Alabama
WR	Jaivon Heiligh	Coastal Carolina
WR	Sam Pinckney	Georgia State
First Team Defense
DL	Jeffrey Gunter	Coastal Carolina
DL	C. J. Brewer	Coastal Carolina
DL	Demetrius Taylor	Appalachian State
DL	Will Choloh	Troy
LB	Carlton Martial	Troy
LB	D'Marco Jackson	Appalachian State
LB	Silas Kelly	Coastal Carolina
DB	Derrick Canteen	Georgia Southern
DB	Shaun Jolly	Appalachian State
DB	D'Jordan Strong	Coastal Carolina
DB	Bralen Trahan	Louisiana
First Team Special Teams
K	Noel Ruiz	Georgia State
P	Rhys Byrns	Louisiana
RS	Chris Smith	Louisiana

Position	Player	Team
Second Team Offense
QB	Levi Lewis	Louisiana
RB	JD King	Georgia Southern
RB	Daetrich Harrington	Appalachian State
OL	Trey Carter	Coastal Carolina
OL	Max Mitchell	Louisiana
OL	Dylan Bradshaw	Troy
OL	Willie Lampkin	Coastal Carolina
OL	Aaron Dowdell	Georgia Southern
TE	Roger Carter	Georgia State
WR	Thomas Hennigan	Appalachian State
WR	Marcell Barbee	Texas State
WR	Cornelius McCoy	Georgia State
Second Team Defense
DL	Zi'Yon Hill	Louisiana
DL	Hardrick Willis	Georgia State
DL	Dontae Wilson	Georgia State
DL	Nico Ezidore	Texas State
LB	Lorenzo McCaskill	Louisiana
LB	Teddy Gallagher	Coastal Carolina
LB	Brendan Harrington	Appalachian State
DB	Antavious Lane	Georgia State
DB	Quavian White	Georgia State
DB	Keith Gallmon	South Alabama
DB	Eric Garror	Louisiana
Second Team Special Teams
K	Massimo Biscardi	Coastal Carolina
P	Anthony Beck II	Georgia Southern
RS	Khaleb Hood	Georgia Southern

Head coaches

Prior to the season, Arkansas State, Louisiana–Monroe, and South Alabama saw coaching changes. At Arkansas State, Butch Jones was named head coach after previous head coach Blake Anderson left the team to take the head coach position with Utah State of the Mountain West Conference.^[29] At Louisiana–Monroe, Terry Bowden took over as head coach after Matt Viator was fired by the school.^[30] At South Alabama, Kane Wommack took over as head coach after previous head coach Steve Campbell was fired by the school.^[31]

Team	Head coach	Previous Job	Years at school	Overall record	Sun Belt record	Sun Belt titles
style=	Appalachian State	Shawn Clark	Appalachian State (Off. Line Coach)	2			0
style=	Arkansas State	Butch Jones	Alabama (assistant coach)	1			0
style=	Coastal Carolina	Jamey Chadwell	Coastal Carolina (Off. Coordinator)	4			1
style=	Georgia Southern	Chad Lunsford	Georgia Southern (assistant coach)	5			0
style=	Georgia State	Shawn Elliott	South Carolina (Off. Line Coach)	5			0
style=	Louisiana	Billy Napier	Arizona State (Off. Coordinator)	4			1
style=	Louisiana–Monroe	Terry Bowden	Clemson (Grad. Assistant)	1			0
style=	South Alabama	Kane Wommack	Indiana (Def. Coordinator)	1			0
style=	Texas State	Jake Spavital	West Virginia (Off. Coordinator)	3			0
style=	Troy	Chip Lindsey	Auburn (Off. Coordinator)	3			0

Mid-Season changes

• On September 26, Georgia Southern announced that they had fired Chad Lunsford. Georgia Southern named cornerbacks coach Kevin Whitley as the interim head coach.^[32] Former USC head coach Clay Helton was later announced as the permanent replacement for Lunsford beginning in 2022.
• On November 21, Troy announced that they had fired Chip Lindsey. Troy named defensive coordinator Brandon Hall as the interim head coach.^[33] On December 3, the school announced Kentucky defensive coordinator Jon Sumrall as the new permanent head coach.^[34]

Post-season changes

• On November 28, Billy Napier announced that he would become the new head coach at Florida in the Southeastern Conference starting in 2022. On December 5, Louisiana promoted assistant head coach Michael Desormeaux to head coach, beginning with the school's season-ending bowl game.

Rankings

See main article: 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings.

	Pre	Wk 1	Wk 2	Wk 3	Wk 4	Wk 5	Wk 6	Wk 7	Wk 8	Wk 9	Wk 10	Wk 11	Wk 12	Wk 13	Wk 14	Final
Appalachian State	AP		RV				RV	RV		RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV
	C	RV	RV			RV	RV	RV		RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV
	CFP	Not released
Arkansas State	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Coastal Carolina	AP	22	17	16	17	16	15	15	14	24	21	22	RV				RV
	C	24	19	18	17	16т	15	15	16	24	21	21	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV
	CFP	Not released
Georgia Southern	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Georgia State	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Louisiana	AP	23	RV						RV	RV	24	24	22	23	20	16	16
	C	23	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	25	21	23	21	17	18
	CFP	Not released													24	23
Louisiana–Monroe	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
South Alabama	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Texas State	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Troy	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released

Legend

		Improvement in ranking
		Drop in ranking
		Not ranked previous week
		No change in ranking from previous week
RV		Received votes but were not ranked in Top 25 of poll
т		Tied with team above or below also with this symbol

Schedule

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

All times Central time.

Championship Game

Week Fifteen (Sun Belt Championship Game)

See also: 2021 Sun Belt Conference Football Championship Game.

Postseason

Bowl Games

See also: 2021–22 NCAA football bowl games.

Legend
	Sun Belt win
	Sun Belt loss

Bowl game	Date	Site	Television	Time (CST)	Sun Belt team	Opponent	Score	Attendance
Cure Bowl	December 17	Exploria Stadium • Orlando, FL	ESPN2	5:00 p.m.	Coastal Carolina	Northern Illinois	W 47–41	9,784
Boca Raton Bowl	December 18	FAU Stadium • Boca Raton, FL	ESPN	10:00 a.m.	Appalachian State	Western Kentucky	L 38–59	15,429
New Orleans Bowl	December 18	Caesars Superdome • New Orleans, LA	ESPN	8:15 p.m.	Louisiana	Marshall	W 36–21	21,642
Camellia Bowl	December 25	Cramton Bowl • Montgomery, AL	ESPN	1:30 p.m.	Georgia State	Ball State	W 51–20	N/A

Sun Belt records vs other conferences

2021–2022 records against non-conference foes:

Power 5 Conferences	Record
ACC	0–2
Big Ten	0–0
Big 12	1–2
Pac-12	0–1
BYU/Notre Dame	0–1
SEC	0–6
Power 5 Total	1–12
Group of 5 Conferences	Record
American	1–2
C–USA	5–1
Independents (Excluding BYU and Notre Dame)	3–2
MAC	3–1
Mountain West	0–0
Group of 5 Total	12–6
FCS Opponents	Record
Football Championship Subdivision	8–1
Total Non-Conference Record	21–19

Sun Belt vs Power 5 matchups

This is a list of games the Sun Belt has scheduled versus power conference teams (ACC, Big 10, Big 12, Pac-12, BYU, Notre Dame and SEC). All rankings are from the current AP Poll at the time of the game.

Date	Conference	Visitor	Home	Site	Score
September 4	SEC	Louisiana–Monroe	Kentucky	Kroger Field • Lexington, KY	L 10–45
September 4	Big 12	No. 23 Louisiana	No. 21 Texas	Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium • Austin, TX	L 18–38
September 4	Big 12	Baylor	Texas State	Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, TX	L 20–29
September 10	Big 12	Kansas	No. 17 Coastal Carolina	Brooks Stadium • Conway, SC	W 49–22
September 11	ACC	Appalachian State	No. 22 Miami (FL)	Hard Rock Stadium • Miami Gardens, FL	L 23–25
September 11	ACC	Georgia State	No. 24 North Carolina	Kenan Memorial Stadium • Chapel Hill, NC	L 17–59
September 18	SEC	Georgia Southern	No. 20 Arkansas	Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium • Fayetteville, AR	L 10–45
September 18	Pac-12	Arkansas State	Washington	Husky Stadium • Seattle, WA	L 3–52
September 25	SEC	Georgia State	No. 23 Auburn	Jordan–Hare Stadium • Auburn, AL	L 24–34
October 2	SEC	Troy	South Carolina	Williams–Brice Stadium • Columbia, SC	L 14–23
November 20	SEC	Louisiana-Monroe	LSU	Tiger Stadium • Baton Rouge, LA	L 14–27
November 20	SEC	South Alabama	Tennessee	Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, TN	L 14–60
November 20	Independent	No. 14 BYU	Georgia Southern	Allen E. Paulson Stadium • Statesboro, GA	L 17–34

Sun Belt vs Group of Five matchups

The following games include Sun Belt teams competing against teams from the American, C-USA, MAC, or Mountain West.

Date	Conference	Visitor	Home	Site	Score
September 2	American	East Carolina	Appalachian State	Bank of America Stadium • Charlotte, NC	W 33–19
September 4	C-USA	Southern Miss	South Alabama	Hancock Whitney Stadium • Mobile, AL	W 31–7
September 11	C-USA	Georgia Southern	Florida Atlantic	FAU Stadium • Boca Raton, FL	L 6–38
September 11	MAC	South Alabama	Bowling Green	Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH	W 22–19
September 11	C-USA	Texas State	FIU	Riccardo Silva Stadium • Miami, FL	W 23–17 ^OT
September 11	American	Memphis	Arkansas State	Centennial Bank Stadium • Jonesboro, AR	L 50–55
September 16	MAC	Ohio	Louisiana	Cajun Field • Lafayette, LA	W 49–14
September 18	MAC	No. 16 Coastal Carolina	Buffalo	UB Stadium • Buffalo, NY	W 28–25
September 18	C-USA	Charlotte	Georgia State	Center Parc Stadium • Atlanta, GA	W 20–9
September 18	C-USA	Troy	Southern Miss	M. M. Roberts Stadium • Hattiesburg, MS	W 21–9
September 23	C-USA	Marshall	Appalachian State	Kidd Brewer Stadium • Boone, NC	W 31–30
September 25	American	Arkansas State	Tulsa	H. A. Chapman Stadium • Tulsa, OK	L 34–41
September 25	MAC	Texas State	Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium • Ypsilanti, MI	L 21–59

Sun Belt vs FBS independents matchups

The following games include Sun Belt teams competing against FBS Independents, which includes Army, Liberty, New Mexico State, UConn, or UMass.

Date	Conference	Visitor	Home	Site	Score
September 4	Independent	Army	Georgia State	Center Parc Stadium • Atlanta, GA	L 10–43
September 11	Independent	Liberty	Troy	Veterans Memorial Stadium • Troy, AL	L 13–21
September 25	Independent	UMass	No. 17 Coastal Carolina	Brooks Stadium • Conway, SC	W 53–3
October 16	Independent	Liberty	Louisiana–Monroe	Malone Stadium • Monroe, LA	W 31-28
November 20	Independent	No. 22 Louisiana	Liberty	Williams Stadium • Lynchburg, VA	W 42–14

Sun Belt vs FCS matchups

Date	Visitor	Home	Site	Score
September 2	The Citadel	No. 22 Coastal Carolina	Brooks Stadium • Conway, SC	W 52–14
September 4	Gardner–Webb	Georgia Southern	Allen E. Paulson Stadium • Statesboro, GA	W 30–25
September 4	Central Arkansas	Arkansas State	Centennial Bank Stadium • Jonesboro, AR	W 40–21
September 4	Southern	Troy	Veterans Memorial Stadium • Troy, AL	W 55–3
September 11	Nicholls	Louisiana	Cajun Field • Lafayette, LA	W 27–24
September 18	Elon	Appalachian State	Kidd Brewer Stadium • Boone, NC	W 44–10
September 18	Incarnate Word	Texas State	Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, TX	L 34–42
September 18	Jackson State	Louisiana–Monroe	Malone Stadium • Monroe, LA	W 12–7
September 18	Alcorn State	South Alabama	Hancock Whitney Stadium • Mobile, AL	W 28–21

Awards and honors

Player of the week honors

Week		Offensive				Defensive				Special Teams
		Player	Team	Position		Player	Team	Position		Player	Team	Position
Week 1 (September 6)^[35]		Corey Rucker	Arkansas State	WR		Zion Williams	Troy	CB		Britton Williams	Georgia Southern	K
Week 2 (September 13)^[36]		Reese White	Coastal Carolina	RB		Josaiah Stewart	Coastal Carolina	DL		Diego Guajardo	South Alabama	K
Week 3 (September 20)^[37]		Montrell Johnson	Louisiana	RB		Javon Solomon	Troy	DL		Calum Sutherland	Louisiana–Monroe	K
Week 4 (September 27)^[38]		Nate Noel	Appalachian State	RB		Ja'Cquez Williams	Louisiana–Monroe	LB		Alan Lamar	Arkansas State	RS
Week 5 (October 4)^[39]		Logan Wright	Georgia Southern	RB		D'Marco Jackson	Appalachian State	LB		Chris Smith	Louisiana	RS
Week 6 (October 11)^[40]		Isaiah Likely	Coastal Carolina	TE		Sione Tupou	Texas State	LB		Brooks Buce	Troy	K
Week 7 (October 18)^[41]		Jake Bentley	South Alabama	QB		Carlton Martial	Troy	LB		Calum Sutherland (2)	Louisiana–Monroe	K
Week 8 (October 25)^[42]		Chandler Rogers	Louisiana–Monroe	QB		Demetrius Taylor	Appalachian State	DL		Chandler Staton	Appalachian State	K
Week 9 (November 1)^[43]		Grayson McCall	Coastal Carolina	QB		Trey Cobb	Appalachian State	LB		Alan Lamar (2)	Arkansas State	RS
Week 10 (November 8)^[44]		Tyler Vitt	Texas State	QB		Steven Jones Jr.	Appalachian State	DB		Alex Spillum	Coastal Carolina	S
Week 11 (November 15)^[45]		Darren Grainger	Georgia State	QB		Eldrick Robinson II	Georgia Southern	LB		Blake Grupe	Arkansas State	K
Week 12 (November 22)^[46]		Grayson McCall (2)	Coastal Carolina	QB		Chauncey Manac	Louisiana	LB		Dalen Cambre	Louisiana	WR
Week 13 (November 29)^[47]		Shermari Jones	Coastal Carolina	RB		Silas Kelly	Coastal Carolina	LB		Jalen Virgil	Appalachian State	RS

Sun Belt Individual Awards

The following individuals received postseason honors as voted by the Sun Belt Conference football coaches at the end of the season.^[48]

Award	Player	School
Player of the Year	Grayson McCall	Coastal Carolina
Offensive Player of the Year	Jalen Tolbert	South Alabama
Defensive Player of the Year	D'Marco Jackson	Appalachian State
Freshman Player of the Year	Montrell Johnson Jr.	Louisiana
Newcomer of the Year	Chase Brice	Appalachian State
Coach of the Year	Billy Napier	Louisiana

All-Conference Teams

The following players were selected as part of the Sun Belt's All-Conference Teams.

Position	Player	Team
First Team Offense
WR	Corey Sutton	style=	Appalachian State
WR	Jaivon Heiligh	style=	Coastal Carolina
WR	Jalen Tolbert	style=	South Alabama
OL	Max Mitchell	style=	Louisiana
OL	Cooper Hodges	style=	Appalachian State
OL	Shamarious Gilmore	style=	Georgia State
OL	O'Cyrus Torrence	style=	Louisiana
OL	Baer Hunter	style=	Appalachian State
TE	Isaiah Likely	style=	Coastal Carolina
QB	Grayson McCall	style=	Coastal Carolina
RB	Nate Noel	style=	Appalachian State
RB	Shermari Jones	style=	Coastal Carolina
First Team Defense
DL	Josaiah Stewart	style=	Coastal Carolina
DL	Demetrius Taylor	style=	Appalachian State
DL	Javon Solomon	style=	Troy
DL	C. J. Brewer	style=	Coastal Carolina
LB	D'Marco Jackson	style=	Appalachian State
LB	Carlton Martial	style=	Troy
LB	Silas Kelly	style=	Coastal Carolina
DB	Steven Jones Jr.	style=	Appalachian State
DB	Darrell Luter Jr.	style=	South Alabama
DB	Shaun Jolly	style=	Appalachian State
DB	Antavious Lane	style=	State
DB	D'Jordan Strong	style=	Coastal Carolina
First Team Specialists
K	Chandler Staton	style=	Appalachian State
P	Rhys Byrns	style=	Louisiana
AP	Chris Smith	style=	Louisiana
KRS	Alan Lamar	style=	Arkansas State

Position	Player	Team
Second Team Offense
WR	Malik Williams	style=	Appalachian State
WR	Thomas Hennigan	style=	Appalachian State
WR	Corey Rucker	style=	Arkansas State
OL	Malik Sumter	style=	Georgia State
OL	Shane Vallot	style=	Louisiana
OL	Dylan Bradshaw	style=	Troy
OL	Willie Lampkin	style=	Coastal Carolina
OL	Austin Stidham	style=	Troy
TE	Roger Carter	style=	Georgia State
QB	Levi Lewis	style=	Louisiana
RB	Montrell Johnson Jr.	style=	Louisiana
RB	Camerun Peoples	style=	Appalachian State
Second Team Defense
DL	Jeffrey Gunter	style=	Coastal Carolina
DL	Kivon Bennett	style=	Arkansas State
DL	Zi'Yon Hill	style=	Louisiana
DL	CJ Wright	style=	Georgia Southern
DL	Will Choloh	style=	Troy
LB	Chauncey Manac	style=	Louisiana
LB	Trey Cobb	style=	Appalachian State
LB	Lorenzo McCaskill	style=	Louisiana
DB	Keith Gallmon Jr.	style=	South Alabama
DB	Percy Butler	style=	Louisiana
DB	Kaiden Smith	style=	Appalachian State
DB	Eric Garror	style=	Louisiana
Second Team Specialists
K	Blake Grupe	style=	Arkansas State
P	Anthony Beck II	style=	Georgia Southern
AP	Alan Lamar	style=	Arkansas State
KRS	Jalen Virgil	style=	Appalachian State

Position	Player	Team
Third Team Offense
WR	Tez Johnson	style=	Troy
WR	TeVailance Hunt	style=	Arkansas State
WR	Boogie Knight	style=	Louisiana–Monroe
OL	Anderson Hardy	style=	Appalachian State
OL	Trey Carter	style=	Coastal Carolina
OL	Dalton Cooper	style=	Texas State
OL	Pat Bartlett	style=	Georgia State
OL	Khalil Crowder	style=	Georgia Southern
TE	Lincoln Sefcik	style=	South Alabama
QB	Chase Brice	style=	Appalachian State
RB	Chris Smith	style=	Louisiana
RB	Tucker Gregg	style=	Georgia State
Third Team Defense
DL	Tayland Humphrey	style=	Louisiana
DL	Richard Jibunor	style=	Troy
DL	Dontae Wilson	style=	Georgia State
DL	Andre Jones Jr.	style=	Louisiana
LB	Nick Hampton	style=	Appalachian State
LB	Eldrick Robinson II	style=	Georgia Southern
LB	Blake Carroll	style=	Georgia State
DB	Quavian White	style=	Georgia State
DB	Anthony Wilson	style=	Georgia Southern
DB	Alex Spillum	style=	Coastal Carolina
DB	Mekhi Garner	style=	Louisiana
DB	TJ Harris	style=	Troy
Third Team Specialists
K	Calum Sutherland	style=	Louisiana–Monroe
P	Ryan Hanson	style=	Arkansas State
AP	Caleb Spurlin	style=	Appalachian State
KRS	Jaivon Heiligh	style=	Coastal Carolina

All-Americans

The 2021 College Football All-America Teams are composed of the following College Football All-American first teams chosen by the following selector organizations: Associated Press (AP), Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), Walter Camp Foundation (WCFF), The Sporting News (TSN), Sports Illustrated (SI), USA Today (USAT) ESPN, CBS Sports (CBS), FOX Sports (FOX) College Football News (CFN), Bleacher Report (BR), Scout.com, Phil Steele (PS), SB Nation (SB), Athlon Sports, Pro Football Focus (PFF) and Yahoo! Sports (Yahoo!).

Currently, the NCAA compiles consensus all-America teams in the sports of Division I-FBS football and Division I men's basketball using a point system computed from All-America teams named by coaches associations or media sources. The system consists of three points for a first-team honor, two points for second-team honor, and one point for third-team honor. Honorable mention and fourth team or lower recognitions are not accorded any points. Football consensus teams are compiled by position and the player accumulating the most points at each position is named first team consensus all-American. Currently, the NCAA recognizes All-Americans selected by the AP, AFCA, FWAA, TSN, and the WCFF to determine Consensus and Unanimous All-Americans. Any player named to the First Team by all five of the NCAA-recognized selectors is deemed a Unanimous All-American.

Position	Player	School	Selector	Unanimous	Consensus
First Team All-Americans
DB	Steven Jones Jr.	style=	Appalachian State	FWAA

Position	Player	School	Selector	Unanimous	Consensus
Second Team All-Americans
OL	Max Mitchell	style=	Louisiana	CBS, TSN, USAT, WCFF
TE	Isaiah Likely	style=	Coastal Carolina	FWAA, WCFF
DB	Steven Jones Jr.	style=	Appalachian State	WCFF

Position	Player	School	Selector	Unanimous	Consensus
Third Team All-Americans
OL	Max Mitchell	style=	Louisiana	AP

NFL Draft

The following list includes all Sun Belt players who were drafted in the 2022 NFL draft.

Player	Position	School	Draft Round	Round Pick	Overall Pick	Team
Jalen Tolbert	WR	South Alabama	3	24	88	Dallas Cowboys
Max Mitchell	OT	Louisiana	4	6	111	New York Jets
Percy Butler	SS	Louisiana	4	8	113	Washington Commanders
Isaiah Likely	TE	Coastal Carolina	4	34	139	Baltimore Ravens
D'Marco Jackson	LB	Appalachian State	5	18	161	New Orleans Saints
Jeffrey Gunter	DE	Coastal Carolina	7	31	252	Cincinnati Bengals

Notes and References

1. Web site: Sun Belt Conference Unveils 2021 Football Schedule. March 1, 2021. May 8, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
2. Web site: Sun Belt Conference Championship Football Game Canceled. December 17, 2020. May 8, 2021. sunbeltsport.org. Sun Belt Conference..
3. https://www.si.com/college/2020/12/27/liberty-beats-coastal-carolina-cure-bowl-overtime "Liberty Takes Down Coastal Carolina in Wild Cure Bowl Win"
4. https://www.theadvertiser.com/story/sports/college/ul/2020/12/26/first-responder-bowl-louisiana-vs-utsa-football-observations-score/3987979001/ "Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns win another nail-biter, beating UTSA 31-24 at First Responder Bowl"
5. https://www.si.com/college/2020/12/22/app-state-beats-north-texas-recap-camerun-peoples "Camerun Peoples Sets Bowl Rushing Mark, App State Tops North Texas in Myrtle Beach Bowl"
6. https://www.thenewsstar.com/story/sports/college/louisiana-tech/2020/12/23/louisiana-tech-vs-georgia-southern-new-orleans-bowl-score-skip-holtz-la-tech-bulldogs/3978564001/ "Georgia Southern 38, Louisiana Tech 3: Bulldogs' win streak ends at New Orleans Bowl"
7. https://www.ajc.com/sports/state-sports/quad-brown-leads-georgia-state-to-lendingtree-bowl-win/SJTUFEKX25EW3JJZH3RAEXV4KQ/ "Quad Brown leads Georgia State to LendingTree Bowl win"
8. Web site: Sun Belt Announces Football Preseason Awards & Poll. July 20, 2021. July 23, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
9. Web site: Lott IMPACT Trophy announces 2021 watch list. June 15, 2021. August 23, 2021.
10. Web site: 2021 Dodd Trophy Preseason Watch List Announced . July 13, 2021. July 13, 2021.
11. Web site: 2021 Maxwell Award Watch List – Maxwell Football Club. 19 July 2021.
12. Web site: 2021 Bednarik Award Watch List – Maxwell Football Club. 19 July 2021.
13. Web site: Davey O’Brien Award Announces 30-Player Preseason Watch List. July 20, 2021. July 20, 2021.
14. Web site: 2021 Doak Walker Award Candidates. July 21, 2021. www.smu.eduaccess-date=July 21, 2021.
15. Web site: 2021 Biletnikoff Award Preseason Watch List Released. July 22, 2021. July 22, 2021.
16. Web site: 2021 John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List Released. July 23, 2021. July 23, 2021.
17. Web site: Rimington Trophy Press Release. July 23, 2021. July 23, 2021.
18. Web site: 2020 Butkus Award Preseason Watch List Released. July 26, 2021. July 26, 2021. August 20, 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20100820080704/http://www.thebutkusaward.com/watchlist/view.aspx?t=c. dead.
19. Web site: 2021 Outland Trophy Award Watchlist Unveiled. July 27, 2021. July 27, 2021.
20. Web site: 2021 Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watchlist Unveiled. July 27, 2021. July 27, 2021.
21. Web site: Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Announces 2021 Preseason Watch List. July 28, 2021. July 28, 2021.
22. Web site: 57 PLAYERS NAMED TO 2021 PAUL HORNUNG AWARD WATCH LIST. July 29, 2021. July 29, 2021. July 29, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210729150819/https://www.louisvillesports.org/ph-article/57-players-named-to-2021-paul-hornung-award-watch-list/. dead.
23. Web site: Wuerffel Trophy Unveils 2021 Watch List. July 29, 2021. July 29, 2021.
24. Web site: Walter Camp Foundation Announces 2021 Player of the Year Preseason Watch List. July 30, 2021. July 30, 2021.
25. Web site: Allstate Sugar Bowl announces Manning Award Watch List. August 5, 2021. August 5, 2021.
26. Web site: Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award announces 2021 Preseason Watch List . August 5, 2021. August 5, 2021.
27. Web site: Ray Guy Award announces 2021 Preseason Watch List . August 13, 2021. August 13, 2021.
28. Web site: The 2021 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Announces 2021 Preseason Watch List. August 19, 2021. August 19, 2021.
29. Web site: Butch Jones credits Alabama experience for helping him land Arkansas State head-coaching job. December 12, 2020. May 8, 2021. Chris. Low. ESPN.com. ESPN.
30. Web site: Terry Bowden named Louisiana-Monroe football coach. Adam. Rittenberg. Mark. Schlabach. December 23, 2020. May 8, 2021. ESPN.com. ESPN.
31. Web site: South Alabama football coach Kane Wommack completes on-field staff. Creg. Stephenson. January 7, 2021. May 8, 2021. al.com. Advance Local Media, LLC..
32. Web site: 26 September 2021. Georgia Southern Makes a Leadership Change Within the Football Program. live. Georgia Southern Eagles. en-US. https://web.archive.org/web/20210926222611/https://gseagles.com/news/2021/9/26/georgia-southern-makes-a-leadership-change-within-the-football-program.aspx . 2021-09-26 .
33. News: Thamel . Pete . Pete Thamel . November 21, 2021 . Sources: Troy expected to fire coach Chip Lindsey . en-US . . November 21, 2021.
34. Web site: Troy hires Jon Sumrall as head football coach. December 3, 2021. December 4, 2021. Creg. Stephenson. al.com. Advance Local Media LLC..
35. Web site: Arkansas State's Rucker, Troy's Williams & Georgia Southern's Williams Earn Sun Belt Weekly Honors. September 6, 2021. September 6, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
36. Web site: Coastal Carolina's White & Stewart & South Alabama's Guajardo Claim Sun Belt Weekly Awards. September 13, 2021. September 13, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
37. Web site: Louisiana's Johnson, Troy's Solomon & ULM's Sutherland Earn Sun Belt Weekly Nods. September 20, 2021. September 20, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
38. Web site: App State's Noel, ULM's Williams & Arkansas State's Lamar Claim Sun Belt Weekly Honors. September 27, 2021. September 27, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
39. Web site: Georgia Southern's Wright, App State's Jackson & Louisiana's Smith Capture Sun Belt Weekly Awards. October 4, 2021. October 4, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
40. Web site: Coastal Carolina's Likely, Texas State's Tupou & Troy's Buce Earn Sun Belt Weekly Accolades. October 11, 2021. October 11, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
41. Web site: South Alabama's Bentley, Troy's Martial & ULM's Sutherland Reap Sun Belt Weekly Honors. October 18, 2021. October 18, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
42. Web site: ULM's Rogers, App State's Taylor & Staton Capture Sun Belt Weekly Accolades. October 25, 2021. October 27, 2021. sunbeltsports.com. Sun Belt Conference.
43. Web site: Coastal Carolina's McCall, App State's Cobb & Arkansas State's Lamar Earn Sun Belt Weekly Nods. November 1, 2021. November 1, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
44. Web site: Texas State's Vitt, App State's Jones & Coastal Carolina's Spillum Claim Sun Belt Weekly Awards. November 8, 2021. November 8, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
45. Web site: Georgia State's Grainger, Georgia Southern's Robinson II & Arkansas State's Grupe Earn Sun Belt Weekly Accolades. November 15, 2021. November 15, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
46. Web site: Coastal Carolina's McCall & Louisiana's Manac & Cambre Claim Sun Belt Weekly Honors. November 22, 2021. November 22, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
47. Web site: Coastal Carolina's Jones & Kelly & App State's Virgil Earn Sun Belt Weekly Accolades. November 29, 2021. November 29, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
48. Web site: Sun Belt Announces 2021 Football Postseason Awards & All-Conference Teams. December 2, 2021. December 2, 2021. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.