Coastal Carolina @ UTSA preview
Brooks Stadium (SC)
Coastal Carolina will enjoy an extra home game of sorts when it faces UTSA on Monday in the Myrtle Beach Bowl in Conway, S.C.
It marks the Chanticleers' (6-6) first appearance in the bowl game held on their campus. But they'll do so without their first- and second-string quarterbacks, Ethan Vasko and Noah Kim, who both entered the transfer portal.
Coastal Carolina coach Tim Beck said redshirt freshman Tad Hudson likely is the next man up. Hudson has not appeared in a game this season.
"Tad Hudson will probably be the starter. We have Alex Walker as well," Beck told reporters, "and then after this meeting, I'm taking all of you outside for tryouts."
It was an opportunity for Beck to say college football "free agency" makes it impossible to build a program in the current age; instead, coaches are building a new team each year.
"There was a lot of excitement at practice because there are a lot of guys that haven't played a lot that know they are going to," Beck added.
With Hudson under center, the Chanticleers may lean on their rushing offense that ranked 46th in the country with 178.7 yards per game. Braydon Bennett led with 727 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns, and Christian Washington added 537 and five.
UTSA (6-6) has far fewer defections to deal with than its opponent.
"Our kids intend to play and we are rooting and hoping that everybody passes their classes, stays healthy and chooses to play in the bowl game," coach Jeff Traylor said.
The Roadrunners recovered from a 3-5 start to the season and won three straight home conference games in November to become bowl-eligible.
"The world is telling (players) to collect (social media) posts and collect more offers and collect more attention," Traylor said. "Our guys want to collect bowl wins, so I'm very excited to be coaching these guys."
Owen McCown powered the offense by throwing for 3,170 yards on a 62 percent completion rate, with 24 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Eleven different players caught a touchdown over the course of the season.
Anchoring the UTSA defense is Brandon Brown, a defensive tackle who declared for the NFL draft but is not electing to skip the bowl game.
"I know people consider not playing, but it didn't even cross my mind," Brown said. "Some people may not want you to play, but I always wanted to play for my brothers. That's who I came in with, and that's who I want to finish with."
Brown had 24 tackles with two sacks this season. Jimmori Robinson racked up a team-high 10.5 sacks.
Both programs, which transitioned up to the FBS level during the 2010s, are making their fifth straight bowl appearance. UTSA lost three straight before capturing last year's Frisco Bowl for its first bowl win in program history. Overall, UTSA is 1-4 in bowl games, while Coastal Carolina is 2-2.
This will be the first meeting between the programs.
--Field Level Media