2024 Sun Belt Conference football season explained

2024 Sun Belt Conference football season
Color:	0A2240
Color Text:	ffffff
League:	NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision
Sport:	Football
Pixels:	200px
Duration:	August 31, 2024 – December 7, 2024
No Of Teams:	14
Draft:	2025 NFL draft
Draft Link:	2025 NFL draft
Season:	Regular season
Finals:	SBC Championship Game
Finals Link:	2024 Sun Belt Conference Football Championship Game
Prevseason Link:	2023 Sun Belt Conference football season
Prevseason Year:	2023
Nextseason Link:	2025 Sun Belt Conference football season
Nextseason Year:	2025

The 2024 Sun Belt Conference football season will be the 24th season of college football play for the Sun Belt Conference (SBC). The season is scheduled to begin August 31, 2024 and conclude with the Conference Championship Game on December 7, 2024. The season will be part of the 2024 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The conference will consist of 14 football member split into two divisions. The conference released its full season scheduled on March 1, 2024.^[1]

Previous season

See main article: 2023 Sun Belt Conference football season.

During the 2023 Sun Belt Conference season, the James Madison Dukes won the East division, while the Troy Trojans won the West division. James Madison was not eligible to play in the conference championship game due to NCAA rules regarding transitioning from FCS to FBS, and so East division runner-ups Appalachian State played in the championship game. In the Conference Championship Game, Troy defeated Appalachian State by a score of 49–23.

Preseason

Preseason Media Poll

The SBC released its preseason poll on July 22. Appalachian State was named the favorite to win the East Division, while Texas State was named the favorite to win the West Division.^[2]

East
1	Appalachian State	96 (12)
2	James Madison	79 (2)
3	Coastal Carolina	67
4	Georgia Southern	50
5	Marshall	49
6	Old Dominion	32
7	Georgia State	19

West
1	Texas State	92 (9)
2	Troy	68 (4)
3	Louisiana	66 (1)
4	Arkansas State	65
5	South Alabama	54
6	Southern Miss	31
7	Louisiana–Monroe	16

Preseason All-Conference teams

• Offensive Player of the Year: Joey Aguilar (Senior, Appalachian State quarterback)
• Defensive Player of the Year: Jason Henderson (Senior, Old Dominion, linebacker)

Position	Player	Team
First Team Offense
QB	Joey Aguilar	Appalachian State
QB	Jordan McCloud	Texas State
RB	Jalen White	Georgia Southern
RB	Ismail Mahdi	Texas State
OL	Jacob Bayer	Arkansas State
OL	Makilan Thomas	Arkansas State
OL	Cole Potts	James Madison
OL	A. J. Gillie	Georgia Southern
OL	Daniel King	Troy
TE	Eli Wilson	Appalachian State
WR	Kaedin Robinson	Appalachian State
WR	Derwin Burgess Jr	Georgia Southern
WR	Joey Hobert	Texas State
First Team Defense
DL	Santana Hopper	Appalachian State
DL	Nate Martey	Arkansas State
DL	Justin Rhodes	Georgia Southern
DL	Isaac Walker	Georgia Southern
LB	Nate Johnson	Appalachian State
LB	Marques Watson-Trent	Georgia Southern
LB	Jason Henderson	Old Dominion
LB	Ben Bell	Texas State
DB	Jordan Favors	Appalachian State
DB	Ethan Johnson	Appalachian State
DB	Gavin Pringle	Georgia Southern
DB	Jadin Voisin	South Alabama
First Team Special Teams
K	Mason Shipley	Texas State
P	Ryan Hanson	James Madison
RS	Zylan Perry	Louisiana
AP	Ismail Mahdi	Texas State

Position	Player	Team
Second Team Offense
QB	Jaylen Raynor	Arkansas State
RB	Kanye Roberts	Appalachian State
RB	Ja'Quez Cross	Arkansas State
OL	Chandler Strong	Georgia Southern
OL	Pichon Wimbley	Georgia Southern
OL	Tyshawn Wyatt	James Madison
OL	Logan Osburn	Marshall
OL	Eli Russ	Troy
TE	Kendall Karr	Coastal Carolina
WR	Courtney Jackson	Arkansas State
WR	Corey Rucker	Arkansas State
WR	Jamaal Pritchett	South Alabama
WR	Kole Wilson	Texas State
Second Team Defense
DL	Will Whitson	Coastal Carolina
DL	Eric O'Neill	James Madison
DL	Jordan Lawson	Louisiana
DL	Denzel Lowry	Old Domimion
DL	Wy'Kevious Thomas	South Alabama
LB	Charles Willekes	Arkansas State
LB	Kevin Swint	Georgia Southern
LB	Jordan Veneziale	Georgia State
LB	KC Ossai	Louisiana
DB	T. J. Smith	Georgia Southern
DB	Chauncey Logan	James Madison
DB	Tyrone Lewis Jr.	Louisiana
DB	Kaleb Culp	Texas State
Second Team Special Teams
K	Michael Hughes	Appalachian State
P	Robert Cole	Troy
RS	DeAndre Buchanan	Georgia Southern
AP	Ja'Quez Cross	Arkansas State

Head coaches

• On November 26, 2023, Louisiana–Monroe announced that it had fired head coach Terry Bowden after 3 seasons with the team.^[3] On December 5, 2023, the school announced that former UAB head coach Bryant Vincent would take over as the new head coach for 2024.^[4]
• On November 30, 2023, James Madison head coach Curt Cignetti announced that he would leave the school to take the head coach position at Indiana for the 2024 season.^[5] Assistant head coach and offensive line coach Damian Wroblewski was named the acting head coach for James Madison's bowl game. On December 7, 2023, the school announced that Bob Chesney would become the new head coach for 2024.^[6] Chesney had previously been head coach at Holy Cross.
• On December 8. 2023, Troy head coach Jon Sumrall was announced as the new head coach of Tulane in the American Athletic Conference for the 2024 season.^[7] The school's defensive coordinator Greg Gasparato was named the interim head coach. On December 18, 2023, Troy announced Gerad Parker as the new head coach for 2024.^[8] Parker was previously the offensive coordinator at Notre Dame.
• On January 15, South Alabama head coach Kane Wommack was hired as the defensive coordinator at Alabama.^[9] South Alabama promoted their offensive coordinator Major Applewhite to the head coach position to replace Wommack.^[10]
• On February 15, Georgia State head coach Shawn Elliott resigned from his position to join South Carolina as a Tight Ends coach^[11] On February 23, Georgia State named Dell McGee as the new head coach.^[12] McGee had previously been the Running Backs coach at Georgia.

Team	Head coach	Previous job	Years at school	Overall record	Sun Belt record	Sun Belt titles
style=	Appalachian State	Shawn Clark	Appalachian State (OL coach)	5			0
style=	Arkansas State	Butch Jones	Alabama (assistant coach)	4			0
style=	Coastal Carolina	Tim Beck	NC State (offensive coordinator)	2			0
style=	Georgia Southern	Clay Helton	USC (head coach)	3			0
style=	Georgia State	Dell McGee	Georgia (RB coach/run game coordinator)	1			0
style=	James Madison	Bob Chesney	Holy Cross (head coach)	1			0
style=	Louisiana	Michael Desormeaux	Louisiana (co-offensive coordinator)	3			0
style=	Louisiana–Monroe	Bryant Vincent	New Mexico (offensive coordinator)	1			0
style=	Marshall	Charles Huff	Alabama (associate head coach)	4			0
style=	Old Dominion	Ricky Rahne	Penn State (offensive coordinator)	5			0
style=	South Alabama	Major Applewhite	South Alabama (offensive coordinator)	1			0
style=	Southern Miss	Will Hall	Tulane (offensive coordinator)	4			0
style=	Texas State	G. J. Kinne	Incarnate Word (head coach)	2			0
style=	Troy	Gerad Parker	Notre Dame (offensive coordinator)	1			0

Rankings

See also: 2024 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
	C	RV
	CFP	Not released
Arkansas State	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Coastal Carolina	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Georgia Southern	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Georgia State	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
James Madison	AP
	C	RV
	CFP	Not released
Louisiana	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Louisiana–Monroe	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Marshall	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Old Dominion	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
South Alabama	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Southern Miss	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Texas State	AP
	C	RV
	CFP	Not released
Troy	AP
	C	RV
	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

The 2024 schedule was released on March 1, 2024

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

Championship Game

Sun Belt records vs other conferences

2024–2025 records against non-conference foes:

Power 5 Conferences	Record
ACC	0–0
Big Ten	0–0
Big 12	0–0
Notre Dame	0–0
Pac-12	0–0
SEC	0–0
Power 5 Total	0–0
Other FBS Conferences	Record
American	0–0
C-USA	0–0
Independents (Excluding Notre Dame)	0–0
MAC	0–0
Mountain West	0–0
Other FBS Total	0–0
FCS Opponents	Record
Football Championship Subdivision	0–0
Total Non-Conference Record	0–0

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, Notre Dame and SEC). All rankings are from the current AP Poll at the time of the game.

Date	Conference	Visitor	Home	Site	Score
August 31	ACC	Georgia State	Georgia Tech	Bobby Dodd Stadium • Atlanta, GA
August 31	SEC	Old Dominion	South Carolina	Williams–Brice Stadium • Columbia, SC
August 31	SEC	Southern Miss	Kentucky	Kroger Field • Lexington, KY
September 7	ACC	Appalachian State	Clemson	Memorial Stadium • Clemson, SC
September 7	ACC	Marshall	Virginia Tech	Lane Stadium • Blacksburg, VA
September 14	SEC	Vanderbilt	Georgia State	Center Parc Stadium • Atlanta, GA
September 14	ACC	Virginia Tech	Old Dominion	S.B. Ballard Stadium • Norfolk, VA
September 14	Big Ten	Arkansas State	Michigan	Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, MI
September 14	Big 12	Arizona State	Texas State	Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, TX
September 14	Big Ten	Troy	Iowa	Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, IA
September 21	ACC	Virginia	Coastal Carolina	Brooks Stadium • Conway, SC
September 21	SEC	Georgia Southern	Ole Miss	Vaught–Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, MS
September 21	ACC	James Madison	North Carolina	Kenan Memorial Stadium • Chapel Hill, NC
September 21	Big Ten	Marshall	Ohio State	Ohio Stadium • Columbus, OH
September 21	Big 12	Arkansas State	Iowa State	Jack Trice Stadium • Ames, IA
September 21	SEC	Louisiana–Monroe	Texas	Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium • Austin, TX
September 28	ACC	Louisiana	Wake Forest	Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium • Winston-Salem, NC
September 28	SEC	South Alabama	LSU	Tiger Stadium • Baton Rouge, LA
November 16	SEC	Louisiana–Monroe	Auburn	Jordan–Hare Stadium • Auburn, AL

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
August 31	C-USA	Coastal Carolina	Jacksonville State	Burgess–Snow Field at JSU Stadium • Jacksonville, AL
August 31	Mountain West	Boise State	Georgia Southern	Paulson Stadium • Statesboro, GA
August 31	American	James Madison	Charlotte	Jerry Richardson Stadium • Charlotte, NC
August 31	American	North Texas	South Alabama	Hancock Whitney Stadium • Mobile, AL
August 31	Mountain West	Nevada	Troy	Veterans Memorial Stadium • Troy, AL
September 7	Mountain West	Georgia Southern	Nevada	Mackay Stadium • Reno, NV
September 7	American	East Carolina	Old Dominion	S.B. Ballard Stadium • Norfolk, VA
September 7	American	Tulsa	Arkansas State	Centennial Bank Stadium • Jonesboro, AR
September 7	C-USA	Louisiana	Kennesaw State	Fifth Third Bank Stadium • Kennesaw, GA
September 7	American	UAB	Louisiana–Monroe	JPS Field at Malone Stadium • Monroe, LA
September 7	MAC	South Alabama	Ohio	Peden Stadium • Athens, OH
September 7	American	UTSA	Texas State	Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, Texas
September 7	American	Troy	Memphis	Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium • Memphis, TN
September 14	American	Appalachian State	East Carolina	Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium • Greenville, NC
September 14	American	Coastal Carolina	Temple	Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA
September 14	American	South Florida	Southern Miss	M. M. Roberts Stadium • Hattiesburg, MS
September 21	American	Tulane	Louisiana	Cajun Field • Lafayette, LA
September 21	C-USA	Southern Miss	Jacksonville State	Burgess–Snow Field at JSU Stadium • Jacksonville, AL
September 28	C-USA	Liberty	Appalachian State	Kidd Brewer Stadium • Boone, NC
September 28	MAC	Ball State	James Madison	Bridgeforth Stadium • Harrisonburg, VA
September 28	MAC	Western Michigan	Marshall	Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, WV
September 28	MAC	Old Dominion	Bowling Green	Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH
September 28	C-USA	Texas State	Sam Houston	NRG Stadium • Houston, TX

Sun Belt vs FBS independents matchups

The following games include Sun Belt teams competing against FBS Independents, which includes UConn, or UMass.

Sun Belt vs FCS matchups

Date	Visitor	Home	Site	Score
August 31	East Tennessee State	Appalachian State	Kidd Brewer Stadium • Boone, NC
August 31	Stony Brook	Marshall	Joan C. Edwards Stadium • Huntington, WV
August 31	Central Arkansas	Arkansas State	Centennial Bank Stadium • Jonesboro, AR
August 31	Grambling State	Louisiana	Cajun Field • Lafayette, LA
August 31	Jackson State	Louisiana–Monroe	JPS Field at Malone Stadium • Monroe, LA
August 31	Lamar	Texas State	Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, TX
September 7	William & Mary	Coastal Carolina	Brooks Stadium • Conway, SC
September 7	Chattanooga	Georgia State	Center Parc Stadium • Atlanta, GA
September 7	Gardner–Webb	James Madison	Bridgeforth Stadium • Harrisonburg, VA
September 7	Southeastern Louisiana	Southern Miss	M. M. Roberts Stadium • Hattiesburg, MS
September 14	South Carolina State	Georgia Southern	Paulson Stadium • Statesboro, GA
September 14	Northwestern State	South Alabama	Hancock Whitney Stadium • Mobile, AL
September 21	Florida A&M	Troy	Veterans Memorial Stadium • Troy, AL

Notes and References

1. Web site: Sun Belt Unveils 2024 Football Schedule. March 1, 2024. March 2, 2024. sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference.
2. Web site: Sun Belt Announces Football Preseason Awards & Poll. Sun Belt Sports. July 22, 2024. July 22, 2024.
3. Web site: ULM to Seek New Leadership for Football Program. November 26, 2023. November 26, 2023. ulmwarhawks.com. University of Louisiana Monroe Athletics.
4. Web site: Bryant Vincent Named ULM Head Football Coach. December 5, 2023. December 5, 2023. ulmwarhawks.com. University of Louisiana Monroe Athletics.
5. Cignetti Named 30th Head Football Coach at Indiana University . Indiana Hoosiers . November 30, 2023 . November 30, 2023.
6. Web site: Bob Chesney Selected to Lead JMU Football as New Head Coach. December 7, 2023. December 7, 2023. jmusports.com. James Madison University Athletics.
7. Web site: Tulane hires Troy's Jon Sumrall on 6-year deal, sources say. December 8, 2023. December 8, 2023. espn.com. ESPN.
8. Web site: Troy Hires Notre Dame OC Gerad Parker as head coach. December 18, 2023. December 18, 2023. espn.com. ESPN.
9. Web site: Sources: South Alabama's Kane Wommack to join Alabama staff. Christ. Low. Adam. Ritenberg. January 15, 2024. March 2, 2024. espn.com. ESPN.
10. Web site: Major Applewhite Named Head Football Coach at South Alabama. January 18, 2024. March 2, 2024. usajaguars.com. University of South Alabama.
11. Web site: Georgia State HC Shawn Elliott joins South Carolina staff . espn.com . Low, Chris. February 15, 2024 . February 15, 2024 . en-US.
12. Web site: Dell McGee Named Head Football Coach. February 23, 2024. March 3, 2023. georgiastatesports.com. Georgia State University.