The FCS is the least understood, yet most impressive college football level in Division I — and Gridiron Heroics is going to tell you all about it, 12 months a year, conference by conference, beginning with this week’s FCS football preview series for 2022. Today we publish the FCS’ Southland Conference Football Preview for 2022.
The college football programs are good, these programs produce NFL-level talent, they beat FBS teams every year (want evidence? stay tuned – we will publish this in the next week) and they still get overlooked. But Gridiron Heroics won’t be overlooking the FCS like everybody else does annually, we will be embracing the level and the stories these schools tell, year in and year out.
Enjoy the preview.
Also, from Monday, Aug. 22 until our FCS overall preview finale, Gridiron Heroics’ team of eight (yes, eight) FCS reporters break down the 15 conferences that make up the awesome, special level that is — the FCS. Check out the previews with the links below, conference by conference:
THE REST OF THE BEST FCS CONFERENCES IN AMERICA (click on links below)
OVERALL FCS PREVIEW: Overall FCS Preview
MONDAY, AUG. 22: ASUN-WAC & Big Sky
TUESDAY, AUG. 23: Big South, CAA, MVFC
WEDNESDAY, AUG. 24: OVC, Patriot
THURSDAY, AUG. 25: Pioneer, Southland
MONDAY, AUG. 29: HBCU DAY – MEAC & SWAC
TUESDAY, AUG. 30: NEC, SoCon
MONDAY, SEPT. 13: Ivy League (1st game Sept. 16)
RELATED STORY: The Top 30 for 30 Shows in College Football — We Rank Them
BMAC AND THE NACH PODCAST (Aug. 23 episode at top)
FCS NUTS AND BOLTS: All of the key facts for the 2022 FCS season
THE FCS CONFERENCE: Southland Conference (SLC)
THE TEAMS:
Incarnate Word (UIW), Texas A&M Commerce (TAMU-C), Southeastern Louisiana (SLU), Northwestern State (NSULA), Nicholls (NSU), McNeese (MCN), Lamar (LU), Houston Baptist (HBU).
THE 2021 CHAMPIONS:
UIW: sported a 10-3 overall record, 7-1 against Southland opponents.
THE NEXT BEST TEAMS:
Northwestern State & Texas A&M Commerce
THE FIVE BEST PLAYERS (STATS):
UIW quarterback Lindsey Scott Jr. is a familiar face for Southland defenses but will don a Cardinal uniform in 2022 after transferring from Nicholls. He came just 10 rushing yards shy of becoming the 15th quarterback in FCS history and the second in Southland history to pass for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in the same season.
After posting back-to-back 100-yard outings in weeks 3-4 last fall, Nicholls running back Julien Gums missed the remainder of the season with an injury but returns to the gridiron needing just 103 yards to set the program record for career rushing yards. His finest season to date came in 2019, when he led the league in yards per carry (5.76), rushing touchdowns (16) and rushing yards (1,232).
The reigning Southland Newcomer of the Year, UIW wide receiver Taylor Grimes led the nation with 15 touchdown receptions and ranked fourth among FCS receivers in receptions per game (7.2) last season. On Oct. 18, he was named the Southland Offensive Player of the Week after hauling in nine passes for 182 yards and a program-record four touchdowns. In all, he tallied six 100-yard performances in his first year with the Cardinals.
A transfer from the University of Kansas, Northwestern State quarterback Miles Fallin is a potential game-changer for NSULA in 2022. Competition from quarterbacks Fallin, Kaleb Fletcher and Zach Clement were seen in the Demons first scrimmage, earning a combined 34-for-59 for 502 yards and five touchdowns. Fallin and Clement each threw a pair of scores while Fletcher added a 40-yard strike to Jaren Mitchell for his touchdown toss.
A two-time FCS All-American, Southeastern cornerback Ferlando Jordan enters his final season looking to add to his career tallies of 11 interceptions and 35 passes defended. He picked up his third career Southland Defensive Player of the Week nod last September after recording his league-record fifth career interception return for a touchdown in a season-opening win over North Alabama.
THE GOOD:
The realignment of conferences has seen its fair share of struggles with the Southland. However, with newly selected commissioner Chris Grant at the helm, SLC opponents are some you don’t want to cross off of your list. UIW poses as the biggest threat to SLC teams this season, along with Southeastern Louisiana and Nicholls. Northwestern State’s new coaching staff and roster moves includes the Demons as a wild card in Southland games this season. Overall, each team in the conference should bring some fireworks in 2022.
THE BAD:
With realignment comes the teams that deserve rivalries and are left with none. Northwestern State is one team without any rivalries; the loss of Stephen F. Austin State moving to the Western Athletic Conference eliminates the famed Chief Caddo Game and the McNeese-Northwestern State Game also eliminated from the schedule due to Lamar and Texas A&M Commerce entering the conference.
THE BIGGEST CONFERENCE GAME OF THE YEAR (AND WHY):
UIW vs Northwestern State. This past offseason, Northwestern State added offensive coordinator Cody Crill, UIW’s former offensive coordinator. Potential quarterbacks––UIW’s Lindsey Scott Jr and Northwestern State’s Miles Fallin––are both transfers with experience in their former teams. What could be the difference maker will determine how well both teams succeed in the regular season, since this is the last conference game of 2022. NSULA’s changes plus UIW’s past dominance will potentially be a primetime showdown.
THE BEST CHANCE FOR AN FBS UPSET WIN (AND WHY):
Nicholls over ULM. The Colonels finished 2021 with a 6-5 record, marking their fifth consecutive winning season. Of the five losses, two were against FBS programs including nationally-ranked Louisiana, and the other three came against FCS playoff teams. Nicholls ended the year by winning four of the final five games, capped with a win over ranked Southeastern.
THE HAPPY CONFERENCE HISTORY NUGGET:
Southland cities encompass approximately 14 million people, and its geography covers many of the nation’s top 100 television markets. Those markets include Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio, New Orleans, Shreveport and Baton Rouge. The Southland has also taken a lead role in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision by serving as the host conference for the annual DI national championship game in the league office’s base of Frisco, Texas, since 2011.
THE PREDICTION — WHO GOES TO THE FCS POSTSEASON:
UIW and possibly McNeese. The Cardinals led the way with 16 total selections on the preseason all-league squads. UIW is aiming to become the first to win back-to-back outright titles since McNeese in 2006-07. The Cowboys look to right the ship and return to the FCS playoffs for the first time since 2015. He inherits a roster with eight preseason all-conference honorees, led by a front-seven trio of defensive linemen Mason Kinsey and Accord Green, along with linebacker Kordell Williams.
THE SURPRISE — WHO WILL SHOCK THE CONFERENCE:
I’m predicting Northwestern State to have a close to over .500 season. Within every program comes the positives and negatives, but NSULA’s motto of playing fast & physical will shape up in the upcoming season. Who will rise to the challenge of being QB1? Only time will tell, but look for an interesting and exciting season in DemonLand.
THE TOP THREE:
UIW, Nicholls, Southeastern. Southeastern looks to return to the FCS playoffs for the second straight season and third time in the past four seasons. SLU enters the season with a run of 26 consecutive weeks ranked in the FCS top 25. From UIW, Sixteen student-athletes were selected to the Southland’s 2022 Preseason All-Conference Football Team. The Cardinals led the way with the highest number of selections.