Sam Houston plays host to Western Illinoi in the Toyota Game of the Week on the Southland Conference Television Network as the 2011 league schedule begins Thursday.
In other Southland action, two-time defending champion Stephen F. Austin begins its chase for a third consecutive Southland Conference championship when it takes to the gridiron Thursday against McMurry at 6 p.m.
The three other league teams open the 2011 season Thursday as Northwestern State plays host to Delta State, Nicholls State welcomes Evangel at 6:30 p.m. in Thiboudaux, LA and Central Arkansas hosts Henderson State at 7 p.m. in the debut of college football's only two-tone, purple and gray artificial surface.
The other three Southland teams open play Saturday. Southeastern Louisiana visits Tulane at 2:30 p.m. McNeese State travels to Kansas at 6 p.m. and Lamar opens its first season in the Southland Conference since 1986 by hosting Texas College at 7:30 p.m.
Southland Ushers in 48th Season in 2011
The 2011 season will be the 48th for the Southland Conference, which began playing with five schools in 1964. Lamar was 3-0-1 that season to finish ahead of Arkansas State, Trinity, Abilene Christian and UT Arlington. The Cardinals return to the conference in football this season after restarting their program in 2010. While UT Arlington is a league member in its other sports, it has not fielded a football team since 1985. None of the other original members are currently in the Southland.
A Different Eight Southland Teams in 2011
There is a change in the Southland Conference alignment for the 2011 season. The league welcomes back Lamar to the conference gridiron. The Cardinals were an original Southland member in 1964, but became an independent in the Football Championship Subdivision following the 1986 season before they discontinued the program in 1989. Lamar reinstated football last year and played as an independent, going 5-6.
While Lamar joins the league, Texas State departs. The Bobcats began their transition into the Football Bowl Subdivision in the offseason and as a result became ineligible for the NCAA Division I Championship and also for the Southland Conference championship. Texas State will play the 2011 season as an FCS Independent, and, while it stays on the schedule for the eight Southland teams, it will count as a non-conference game.
McNeese, SFA, UCA Ranked in FCS Polls
Three Southland Conference football teams - Stephen F. Austin, McNeese State and Central Arkansas - are ranked in both The Sports Network and Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) Coaches polls. The Lumberjacks are ranked 14th in the coaches' poll, followed by McNeese State, which is ranked 20th and Central Arkansas, which is ranked 22nd. In The Sports Network poll, Stephen F. Austin is ranked 17th, followed by Central Arkansas (18th) and McNeese State (20th). Sam Houston State and Northwestern State received votes in each preseason poll.
McNeese State, SFA Picked as Favorites
Stephen F. Austin and McNeese State, which finished as the top two teams in the Southland Conference last season, were again picked as the favorites heading into the 2011 season as voted on by the league's coaches and sports information directors. McNeese State was the coaches' preseason pick, receiving three out of a possible eight first-place votes and 44 points to edge defending champion SFA by just one point. In the SID poll, the Lumberjacks garnered four first-place votes and tallied 44 points to edge the Cowboys by just one point.
SFA Leads with 12 Preseason All-Conference Selections
Five Southland institutions have at least six student-athletes named to the preseason all-conference teams. Stephen F. Austin, which won the Southland championship in 2010 to earn consecutive conference championships for the first time in school history, leads all universities with 12 selections, including a conference-best eight first-team honorees. Sam Houston State has 11 honorees, including five first-team members. Central Arkansas is next with 10, followed by McNeese State with eight and Northwestern State with six. Nicholls State had three players named to the teams and Southeastern Louisiana had two.
Southland TV Entering Fourth Season
As one of the nation's most innovative broadcast opportunities, the award-winning Southland Conference Television Network became a reality in 2008 and has broadcast nearly 100 events during its first three years. The network, which reaches homes in Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas, has earned a College Sports Media Award (2009) and an honorable mention (2010) at the College Sports Video Summit as well as four prestigious Telly Awards. The conference will feature 11 football telecasts in 2011, beginning Thursday with the Sam Houston State game vs. Western Illinois at 6 p.m.
New Announce Team for Southland TV
The Southland Conference Television Network has announced its primary football broadcast crew for its 2011 schedule of telecasts that begins Thursday night with the Western Illinois at Sam Houston State game. Randy McIlvoy, sports director at KPRC-TV in Houston, will handle football play-by-play duties this fall, and will be joined in the booth by color analyst Shea Walker, a former Texas A&M standout and veteran broadcaster for the last 17 years. Jane Slater, a reporter for WFAA-TV in Dallas, will serve as the network's sideline reporter.
Eleven Southland Games Scheduled Against FBS in 2011
The Southland Conference has 11 games scheduled against teams from the Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly I-A) in 2011. The Southland was winless in 11 games against the FBS last year, but did register one win against that subdivision in 2009 when Central Arkansas beat Western Kentucky for the Southland's 16th win against the FBS since 2000. This year, the Southland will play teams from Conference USA as well as the Big 12, Mid-American, Mountain West, Southeastern, Sun Belt and Western Athletic conferences. On Saturday, Southeastern Louisiana visits Tulane and McNeese State is at Kansas.
Frisco is Again the Goal
After a successful NCAA Division I Football Championship Game last year at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas, the destination remains the goal for every team in the Football Championship Subdivision. Eastern Washington beat Delaware, 20-19, in the first championship at the venue. It was the first of at least three scheduled championship games in Frisco, a north side suburb of Dallas and the nation's fastest growing city. The Southland Conference, along with the City of Frisco and Hunt Sports Group serve as hosts for the game, which moved to Texas from Chattanooga, Tenn., last year after 13 seasons. Last year's championship was played Jan. 7, 2011, to accommodate expansion of the playoff bracket from 16 to 20 teams. This year's championship moves to Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012 and will be played at noon, Central, on ESPN2.
