No witty introduction needed here. WKU's most hated rival by a mile...or 100 miles of hate if we are getting specific; comes in at #4 on our CUSA countdown.
Solid Football
As much as WKU fans would hate to admit it. MTSU is playing solid football as of late. In 2015 MTSU finished 7-6 after ending the season on a 45-31 loss to Western Michigan in the Bahamas Bowl. But a 6-2 conference record with their only losses coming to WKU and La Tech turned some heads in CUSA. The Blue Raiders stunned newly developing eastern division rival Marshall in a thrilling triple-overtime victory in Murfreesboro. MTSU finished the regular season by absolutely demolishing their opponents North Texas and UTSA by a combined score of 83-14. Granted the Mean Green and Roadrunners aren't the stoutest of competition. The Blue Raiders were clicking on all cylinders to end the regular season. They had a major let down against the Broncos of Western Michigan in the Bahamas Bowl. With the game tied at 31 with under 10 minutes to play. The Blue Raiders gave up 2 touchdowns in the final 7 minutes to seal their fate.
Talented Offense
MTSU will once again be led on offense in 2016 by sophomore QB Brent Stockstill, son of head coach Rick Stockstill. The younger Stockstill had a productive season in 2015. Most people were probably uneasy when the head coach installed his redshirt freshman son at the QB position. Had Brent Stockstill struggled it would have put coach Stockstill in a tough situation. Luckily for him that was not an issue. Brent Stockstill took the job and never looked back. Throwing the ball for 4,005 yards with 327 completions on 490 attempts. Stockstill also had an impressive 30 touchdowns to 9 interceptions ratio. Stockstill will also see 5 of his top 6 receiving targets back for 2016.
While Stockstill does lose one of his favorite targets in Ed'Marques Batties who hauled in 82 receptions in 2015. Stockstill does have productive sophomore wide out Richie James back however. James set single-season MTSU and CUSA freshman records in receptions and receiving yards with 1,346. He became just the second player in Blue Raider history to reach 1,000 receiving yards. James' 108 receptions was also good enough for third most in FBS. James was voted 1st team CUSA and also named to the CUSA all-freshman team. The next closest receiver behind James' 108 receptions and Batties' 82 is TE Terry Petties who hauled in 29 catches for 612 yards.
The Blue Raiders running back core was set to return a wealth of experience with 2 of their top 3 leaders coming back. The Blue Raiders were expecting to be led by senior Shane Tucker who carried the ball 127 times for 413 yards and 2 touchdowns in 2015. However Tucker suffered a leg fracture that will require surgery. Tucker will instead redshirt the 2016 season. Sophomore Desmond Anderson who finished last season 83 carries for 378 yards and 4 touchdowns will help to anchor a unit that struggled with fumbles in 2015. However, the running backs aren't called upon a whole lot in MTSU's quick pass offense.
Defense...well at least there is depth
The Blue Raiders aren't exactly known for their defensive prowess on the football field. Compared to most of CUSA, MTSU was able to remain relatively healthy on the defensive side of the football in 2015. The Blue Raiders finished with a defensive unit ranked 87th in the country last season. MTSU loses quite a bit of primary contributors in its front 7 unit in 2015. Losing 2 lineman along the defensive front and the top 3 at linebacker would normally be a worrisome proposition for a team. However, a lot of players got valuable experience for the Blue Raiders last season. Perhaps the biggest losses to MTSU on defense are All-CUSA linebacker TT Barber and NFL 3rd-round draft pick Kevin Byard at safety. Barber led MTSU with 89 tackles in 2015 including 11.5 tackles for a loss. Replacing his production at linebacker will be a tall task for anyone. DJ Sanders and Darius Harris will likely anchor the linebacking core in 2016. Sanders and Harris both contributed in 2015 combining for 88 tackles and 2 interceptions.
The top 4 contributing defensive lineman all return led by senior defensive end Steven Rhodes who finished with 35 tackles and 6 tackles for a loss to go along with 2.5 sacks. Rhodes suffered an injury in the off season and did not participate in spring practice, but is expected to return to full force this fall. Seniors Chris Hale, Raynard Felton, and Shaquille Huff also return and bring valuable experience to the defensive front 4.
The Blue Raider secondary has both good news and bad news. 5 of the top 7 CB's return for 2016 led by Michael Minter and Jeremy Cutrer who combined for 86 tackles, 9 tackles for a loss, 4 interceptions, and 22 pass break ups. Safety is a different story. The top 3 are all gone to graduation, the CFL, and NFL. Sophomore Jovante Moffatt who only registered 2 tackles in 2015 has emerged from camp as a guy who will likely command one of the starting spots. The other starting safety spot will likely go to senior Alex Dale who recorded 21 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 2 interceptions, and 3 forced fumbles in 2015.
Could this be the year?
With the talent returning on offense and some experience still there on defense. Could this be the year that MTSU takes the step to get back over the 10 win plateau and win a conference championship? MTSU has a tricky schedule to predict. They have multiple toss up games that could really go either direction. If they come out of September at 3-1 then the chance is there for it to be a special season for the Blue Raiders.
Schedule & Prediction:
Sept. 3 Alabama A&M
Sept. 10 @Vanderbilt
Sept. 17 @Bowling Green State
Sept. 24 La Tech
Oct. 1 @North Texas
Oct. 15 WKU (homecoming)
Oct. 22 @Missouri
Oct 29 @Florida International
Nov. 5 UTSA
Nov. 12 @Marshall
Nov. 19 @Charlotte
Nov. 26 Florida Atlantic
Prediction: 8-4 with wins over Alabama A&M, Vandy, BGSU, UNT, FIU, UTSA, Marshall, Charlotte
