Team: Houston

Nickname: Cougars

Conference: Conference USA

Location: Houston

Coach: Kevin Sumlin (2nd season at Houston, 8-5)

Last Bowl: 2008 Armed Forces

Last Season: 6-2, 8-5

The Cougars were just one game behind Tulsa last season for the Conference USA West division title. Houston hung 70 points up on the Golden Hurricanes for Tulsa's only loss in the division, but road losses to Marshall...read more

Team: Navy

Nickname: Midshipmen

Conference: Independent

Location: Annapolis, Md.

Coach: Ken Niumatalolo (2nd season at Navy, 8-6 record)

Last Bowl: 2008 EagleBank

Last season: 8-5

Even though Navy returned just 12 starters the Midshipmen barely missed a beat in Ken Niuamatalolo's first season as coach. With an 8-4 record in the regular season, Navy made it's sixth straight bowl game...read more

Team: Mississippi State

Nickname: Bulldogs

Location: Starkville, Miss.

Conference: SEC

Coach: Dan Mullen (1st season at Mississippi State)

Last Season: 2-6, 4-8

Last Bowl: 2007 Liberty

The Sylvester Croom era didn't go exactly the way Bulldog fans had hoped with Mississippi State making just one bowl game in his five seasons. Dan Mullen takes over in Starkville, inheriting...read more

Team: Purdue

Nickname: Boilermakers

Location: West Lafayette, Ind.

Conference: Big Ten

Coach: Danny Hope (1st season at Purdue)

Last Season: 2-6, 4-8

Last Bowl: 2007 Motor City

Perhaps the biggest loss for the Boilermakers was not one of the 10 starters they lost, but rather coach Joe Tiller who retired after 12 seasons of strolling the sidelines in West Lafayette. Danny Hope...read more

Team: Kentucky

Nickname: Wildcats

Location: Lexington, Ken.

Conference: SEC

Coach: Rich Brooks (7th season, 32-41)

Last season: 7-6, 2-6

Last Bowl: 2008 Liberty

The Wildcats havn't been a contender in the SEC for a long time and don't seem destined to change that trend under head coach Rich Brooks. Brooks is 13-35 against the SEC since he began coaching the Wildcats in...read more

Team: Texas A&M

Nickname: Aggies

Location: College Station, Tex.

Conference: Big 12

Coach: Mike Sherman (2nd season, 4-8)

Last season: 4-8, 2-6

Last Bowl: 2007 Alamo

The 2008 season could have been worse for the Aggies, they easily could have lost every game in Big 12 play, but thanks to the Big 12 North the Aggies escaped with two conference wins against Colorado and Iowa State...read more

Team: Maryland

Nickname: Terrapins

Location: College Park, Md.

Conference: Atlantic Coast Conference

Coach: Ralph Friedgen (Ninth season, 64-36)

Last Season: 8-5, 4-2

Last Bowl: 2008 Humanitarian

The Terrapins lost 30 seniors from the 2008 team, the same team that defeated Nevada in the Humanitarian Bowl, 42-35. An easy non conference schedule plays into the Terrapins' favor...read more

Team: Louisville

Nickname: Cardinals

Location: Louisville, Ky.

Conference: Big East

Coach: Steve Kragthorpe (3rd season, 11-13)

Last season: 5-7, 1-6

Last Bowl: 2006 Orange

This may be the year the Cardinals become a contender in the Big East once again, but don't expect them to win the conference. Steve Kragthorpe enters his third year at the helm in Louisville after two...read more

Team: Connecticut

Nickname: Huskies

Location: Storrs, Conn.

Conference: Big East

Coach: Randy Edsall (11th season at Connecticut, 54-53 record)

Last Season: 3-4, 8-5.

Last Bowl: 2008 International

The Huskies have a tough task this season of replacing Donald Brown, who gained over 2,000 yards last season. Sophomore Jordan Todman is the only returning player who had more than 75...read more

Team: Louisiana Tech

Nickname: Bulldogs

Location: Ruston, La.

Conference: Western Athletic Conference

Coach: Derek Dooley (3rd season at La. Tech, 13-12 record)

Last season: 5-3, 8-5

Last Bowl: 2008 Independence

The Bulldogs will start the season by attempting to open the season by knocking off an SEC opponent for the second year in a row. Last year, they opened with a 22-14...read more

Team: UTEP

Nickname: Miners

Location: El Paso, Texas

Conference: Conference USA

Coach: Mike Price (6th season at UTEP, 30-30 record, 113-108 overall)

Last Season: 4-4, 5-7

Last Bowl: 2005 GMAC

With 55 lettermen returning, including 15 of the starters from last year's squad, the Miners are in a position to get to their first bowl game in four seasons. They've been one game...read more

Team: Virginia

Nickname: Cavaliers

Location: Charlottesville, Va.

Conference: Atlantic Coast Conference

Coach: Al Groh (9th season at Virginia, 5-7 record)

Last season: 3-5, 5-7

Last Bowl: 2007 Gator

The conference schedule sets up nicely for the Cavaliers. There's no Florida State or Wake Forest on the schedule. Games against Boston College and Virginia Tech are at home....read more

Team: Memphis

Nickname: Tigers

Location: Memphis, Tenn.

Conference: Conference USA, East Division

Coach: Tommy West (9th season, 78-79)

Last Season: 6-7, 4-4

Last Bowl: 2008 St. Petersburg

Despite a losing 2008 mark, the Tigers did manage to make it to a bowl game, losing 41-14 to South Florida.

Memphis coach Tommy West has led the Tigers to five bowl games during the last six...read more

Team: Temple

Nickname: Owls

Location: Philadelphia

Conference: Mid-American, East Division

Coach: Al Golden (4th season, 10-26)

Last season: 5-7, 4-4

Last Bowl: 1979 Garden State

Alas, Temple football really is going to be competitive. Really.

Despite an 18-year drought — and a move from a major conference to the MAC —the Owls are starting to turn it around.

Last...read more

Team: Ohio

Nickname: Bobcats

Location: Athens, Ohio

Conference: Mid-American (East)

Coach: Frank Solich (5th year at Ohio, 23-26 record, 81-45 overall)

Last Season: 3-5, 4-8

Last Bowl: 2006 GMAC

The Bobcats will be traveling quite a bit early on in the season with five of their first seven games on the road. After a tough game against Tennessee on Sept. 26, however, the schedule...read more

Team: UNLV

Nickname: Runnin' Rebels

Location: Las Vegas, Nev.

Conference: Mountain West

Coach: Mike Sanford (5th season at UNLV, 11-36 record)

Last season: 2-6, 5-7

Last Bowl: 2000 Las Vegas

The Rebels were able to win just two games a year in the first three years with Mike Sanford as head coach. They were just one win away last season from being bowl eligible for their first...read more

Team: Toledo

Nickname: Rockets

Location: Toledo, Ohio

Conference: Mid-American (West)

Coach: Tim Beckman (1st season)

Last Season: 2-6, 3-9

Last Bowl: 2005 GMAC

Last year was a step back for the Rockets, and it wound up costing coach Tom Amstutz his job. Toledo averaged 10 ppg fewer than in 2007 and lost by 17 points or more six times.

Beckman, the former DC at Oklahoma State...read more

Team: Hawaii

Nickname: Warriors

Location: Honolulu

Conference: Western Athletic

Coach: Greg McMackin (2nd season, 7-7 at Hawaii; 31-21-1 career)

Last season: 5-3, 7-7

Last Bowl: 2008 Hawaii

The 2008 campaign should be considered a success simply because McMackin took over for long-time coach June Jones and lost stars like Colt Brennan, Jason Rivers and Davone Bess.

Hawaii's...read more

Team: San Jose State

Nickname: Spartans

Location: San Jose, Calif.

Conference: Western Athletic

Coach: Dick Tomey (5th season at San Jose State, 23-25 record, 181-135-7 overall)

Last Season: 4-4, 6-6

Last Bowl: 2006 New Mexico

A tough non conference scheduled, followed by a tough road conference schedule could pose problems for San Jose State this season. The Spartans start out...read more

Team: Buffalo

Nickname: Bulls

Location: Buffalo, N.Y.

Conference: Mid-American

Coach: Turner Gill (4th season at Buffalo, 15-23 record)

Last season: 6-3, 8-6

Last Bowl: 2008 International

Buffalo may have won the MAC Championship, but the title game against then unbeaten Ball State was the only time they truly looked like an elite team. Three of the Bulls seven wins up to that...read more

Team: Akron

Nickname: Zips

Location: Akron, Ohio

Conference: Mid-American, East Division

Coach: JD Brookhart (6th season, 27-33)

Last Season: 5-7, 3-5

Last Bowl: 2005 Motor City

In the Mid-American Conference, pretty much every team has a chance to go to a bowl game, given the lack of top-tier teams. That may just be the motivation this offseason for the Zips, which despite low expectations...read more

Team: Central Florida

Nickname: Knights

Location: Orlando, Fla.

Conference: Conference USA

Coach: George O'Leary (6th season, 78-69 overall)

Last season: 4-8, 3-5

Last Bowl: 2007 Liberty

The offense was pretty poor last season, ranked last among all FBS teams. This year, the offense will return nine starters, which should obviously help. The defense, though, which was the team's strong...read more

Team: Colorado State

Nickname: Rams

Location: Fort Collins, Colo.

Conference: Mountain West

Coach: Steve Fairchild (2nd season at Colorado State, 7-6 record)

Last Season: 4-4, 7-6

Last Bowl: 2008 New Mexico

The Rams are coming off their first bowl win since 2001 but still have some holes they need to plug up. Despite getting 362 yards on the ground against Fresno State in their bowl game, Colorado...read more

Team: Rice

Nickname: Owls

Location: Houston

Conference: Conference USA

Coach: David Bailiff (3rd season at Rice, 13-12 record, 21-15 overall)

Last season: 7-1, 10-3

Last Bowl: 2008 Texas

Coach David Bailiff's third year at Rice is more likely to resemble his first season, when the Owls went 3-9, than his second season, when they had a 10 win season. A good chunk of the Owls offense from...read more

Team: Arkansas State

Nickname: Red Wolves

Location: Jonesboro, Ark.

Conference: Sun Belt

Coach: Steve Roberts (8th season, 37-47)

Last season: 4-3, 6-6

Last bowl: 2005 New Orleans

The Red Wolves have won five or more games in six of Roberts' seasons, but have yet to win more than six in one season. Arkansas State returns its top three rushers, top two receivers and long-time starting QB...read more

Team: Northern Illinois

Nickname: Huskies

Location: DeKalb, Ill.

Conference: Mid-Amercan

Coach: Jerry Kill (2nd season at Northern Illinois, 6-7 record, 55-32 overall)

Last Season: 5-3, 6-7

Last Bowl: 2008 Independence

The Huskies already know they can keep up with the best of the MAC. Last season they brought Central Michigan to overtime before the Chippewas prevailed 33-30. Non-conference...read more

Team: Alabama-Birmingham

Nickname: Blazers

Location: Birmingham, Ala.

Conference: Conference USA

Coach: Neil Callaway (2nd season, 6-18)

Last Season: 3-5, 4-8

Last Bowl: 2004 Hawaii

By shutting out Central Florida 15-0 in the last game of the 2008 season, the Blazers we're able to show their faces in Birmingham after giving up at least 33 points the previous four games. Callaway...read more

Team: San Diego State

Nickname: Aztecs

Location: San Diego

Conference: Mountain West

Coach: Brady Hoke (1st season, 34-38 career)

Last Season: 1-7, 2-10

Last Bowl: 1998 Las Vegas

After eight successful years at Ball State, head coach Brady Coke will make his coaching debut for the Aztecs at UCLA on Sept. 5. It will be Hoke's first game since the losing in the GMAC Bowl last...read more

Team: Duke

Nickname: Blue Devils

Location: Durham, N.C.

Conference: Atlantic Coast

Coach: David Cutliffe (2nd season at Duke, 4-8 record, 48-37 overall)

Last Season: 4-8, 1-7

Last Bowl: 1994 Hall of Fame

Duke began last season with a 4-3 record and in the hunt for its first bowl game in 14 seasons. However after suffering an overtime loss to Wake Forest, the Blue Devils finished the season...read more

Team: Washington

Nickname: Huskies

Location: Seattle

Conference: Pac-10

Coach: Steve Sarkisian (1st season)

Last Season: 0-12, 0-9

Last Bowl: 2002 Sun

The Huskies were the only winless team in the nation last season, and bring a 14 game losing streak into the season. A season opening game against LSU isn't likely to snap that, but the next week provides an opportunity as Idaho comes into...read more

Team: Bowling Green

Nickname: Falcons

Location: Bowling Green, Ohio

Conference: Mid-American

Coach: Dave Clawson (1st season, 0-0)

Last season: 6-6, 4-4

Last Bowl: 2007 GMAC

Head coach Dave Clawson has moved up the ranks as the new leader for the Falcons. Clawson was a former national coach of the year at the I-AA level. However, as the OC at Tennessee last season, Clawson did...read more

Team: Marshall

Nickname: Thundering Herd

Location: Huntington, W.Va.

Conference: Conference USA, East

Coach: Mark Snyder (5th season, 16-31)

Last season: 4-8, 3-5

Last Bowl: 2004 Fort Worth

In the end, the Thundering Herd did a bit better than many thought a season ago. However, a sub.500 record isn't quite where the program wants to be after so much success early this decade...read more

Team: Indiana

Nickname: Hoosiers

Location: Bloomington, Ind.

Conference: Big Ten

Coach: Bill Lynch (3rd season, 10-15; 47-68 overall)

Last season: 1-7, 3-9

Last Bowl: 2007 Insight

Though some nice defensive players return to the Hoosiers, talented QB/WR Kellen Lewis was kicked off the team, leaving IU pretty much devoid of playmakers.

The schedule: It may be tough for the Hoosiers...read more

Team: Iowa State

Nickname: Cyclones

Location: Ames, Iowa

Conference: Big 12

Coach: Paul Rhoads (1st season)

Last Season: 0-8, 2-10

Last Bowl: 2005 Houston

Two years after hiring Auburn's defensive coordinator (Gene Chizik), the Cyclones went back to the same well with Rhoads. However, the talent level in Ames is just not up to snuff in the high-powered Big 12.

Still, look...read more

Team: Middle Tennessee

Nickname: Blue Raiders

Location: Murfeesboro, Tenn.

Conference: Sun Belt

Coach: Rick Stockstill (4th season, 17-20)

Last Season: 5-7, 3-4

Last Bowl: 2006 Motor City

Last season, the Blue Raiders were a middle-of-the-road football team in the worst FBS conference. This season should be more than the same.

Though the team has 10 offensive returners back...read more

Team: Southern Methodist

Nickname: Mustangs

Location: Dallas

Conference: Conference USA

Coach: June Jones (2nd season, 1-11; 77-52 overall)

Last Season: 1-11, 0-8

Last Bowl: 1984 Cotton

June Jones knew he'd have his hands full when he left Hawaii for SMU, but a 1-11 season, with the lone win coming against its only non-FBS team, has to be tough to swallow.

This season should...read more

Team: Ball State

Nickname: Cardinals

Location: Muncie, Ind.

Conference: Mid-American

Coach: Stan Parrish (1st season)

Last Season: 12-2, 8-0

Last Bowl: 2008 GMAC

Just last fall Ball State captured the nation's imagination, starting out 12-0 and climbing as high as No. 12 in the polls. But two losses to end the season brought the Cardinals back down to earth. Now Ball State enters a season...read more

Team: Florida International

Nickname: Golden Panthers

Location: Miami, Fla.

Conference: Sun Belt

Coach: Mario Cristobal (3rd year, 6-18)

Last Season: 5-7, 3-4

Last Bowl: N/A

After finishing the previous two seasons with just one total win, the Golden Panthers came from out of nowhere to come within one win of being bowl eligible for the first time in program history. The Golden Panthers return...read more

Team: New Mexico

Nickname: Lobos

Location: Albuquerque, N.M.

Conference: Mountain West

Coach: Mike Locksley (1st season)

Last season: 4-8, 2-6

Last Bowl: 2007 New Mexico

The schedule is not kind to the Lobos this year. In addition to playing a full MWC schedule, which seems to get stronger every year, New Mexico has non conference dates with Texas A&M, Tulsa, and Texas Tech. They may escape...read more

Team: Kent State

Nickname: Golden Flashes

Location: Kent, Ohio.

Conference: Mid-American

Coach: Doug Martin (6th season, 19-39)

Last season: 4-8, 3-5

Last Bowl: 1972 Tangerine

Kent State averaged 5.3 yards per carry last season, but their leading rusher was its QB. Julian Edelman had 1,370 yards rushing to go with his 1,820 passing yards, but he graduated. Running back Eugene Davis had more...read more

Team: Tulane

Nickname: Green Wave

Location: New Orleans

Conference: Conference USA

Coach: Bob Toledo (3rd season, 69-80)

Last season: 2-10, 1-7

Last Bowl: 2002 Hawaii

The Green Wave suffered through their worst record last season since 2005, when Hurricane Katrina forced Tulane to play all of their games on the road. The schedule doesn't look to favor them this year either, with dates against...read more

Team: Syracuse

Nickname: Orange

Location: Syracuse, N.Y.

Conference: Big East

Coach: Doug Marrone (1st season)

Last season: 3-9, 1-6

Last Bowl: 2004 Champ Sports

It could be another slow start for the Orange in the first year of the Doug Marrone era. Five of Syracuse's first six games are against teams who played in bowl games last year.

Marrone has helped turn around Syracuse once before...read more

Team: Utah State

Nickname: Aggies

Location: Logan, Utah

Conference: WAC

Coach: Gary Anderson (1st season)

Last season: 3-9, 3-5

Last Bowl: 1997 Humanitarian

Here we go again ... .

Brent Guy was unable to get it going in Logan, now the Aggies turn to Gary Anderson to lead the team. The former Utah assistant for the past five seasons could be more of the same as both he and Guy...read more

Team: Louisiana-Monroe

Nickname: Warhawks

Location: Monroe, La.

Conference: Sun Belt

Coach: Charlie Weatherbie (7th season, 70-109)

Last season: 4-8, 3-4

Last Bowl: none

And it was only two seasons ago when Louisiana-Monroe beat Alabama, 21-14.

This season, the team can land a huge win during the first week of the season when the Warhawks face Texas, but that may be more than...read more

Team: Eastern Michigan

Nickname: Eagles

Location: Ypsilanti, Mich.

Conference: Mid-American

Coach: Ron English (1st season)

Last season: 3-9, 2-7

Last Bowl: 1987 California

If the Eagles have one thing going for them this season, it'll be the coaching. New head man Ron English, who was the defensive coordinator under Lloyd Carr at Michigan, should be an exciting change. EMU...read more

Team: Idaho

Nickname: Vandals

Location: Moscow

Conference: WAC

Coach: Robb Akey (3rd season, 3-21)

Last season: 2-10, 1-7

Last Bowl: 1998 Humanitarian

Can it really be another season of misery for the Idaho Vandals? It sure can be, especially if the Vandals allow nearly 43 points per game like they did last season.

In what might be a make or break season for Akey, the Vandals...read more

Team: Wyoming

Nickname: Cowboys

Location: Laramie, Wyo.

Conference: Mountain West

Coach: Dave Christensen (1st season)

Last season: 1-7, 4-8

Last Bowl: 2004 Las Vegas

Though the Cowboys won at Tennessee last season, they still were not able to perform well enough for Joe Glenn to keep his job. The Pokes were minus-22 on the season in turnover differential, plus got almost no production...read more

Team: Army

Nickname: Black Knights

Location: West Point, N.Y.

Conference: Independent

Coach: Rich Ellerson (1st season; 60-41 as coach at Cal Poly, S. Utah)

Last season: 3-9

Last Bowl: 1996 Independence

Stan Brock brought back the option to West Point in 2007, but he didn't last long, as the Cadets lost 18 games in his two seasons. Ellerson is an option specialist from the...read more

Editor's note: In Tuesday, July 7's IPT, the "impact player" was listed as Greg Trent, who in fact was a senior last season. The error has been corrected.

Team: Washington State

Nickname: Cougars

Location: Pullman, Wash.

Conference: Pac-10

Coach: Paul Wulff (2nd season, 2-11)

Last season: 1-8, 2-11

Last Bowl: 2003 Holiday

In Wulff's first season, the Cougars...read more

Team: Miami (Ohio)

Nickname: RedHawks

Location: Oxford, Ohio

Conference: Mid-American

Coach: Mike Haywood (1st season)

Last season: 2-7, 2-10

Last Bowl: 2004 Independence

The RedHawks came into 2008 with high hopes, but those came crashing down quickly with just one win over an FBS team (27-20 over Bowling Green). Miami (Ohio) was No. 101 or worse in scoring offense and scoring...read more

Team: Louisiana-Lafayette

Nickname: Ragin' Cajuns

Location: Lafayette, La.

Conference: Sun Belt

Coach: Rickey Bustle (8th season, 32-50)

Last season: 5-2, 6-6

Last Bowl: None

The Ragin' Cajuns will be losing a lot of yardage in 2009. All-time leading rusher Tyrell Fenroy (1,375 yards, 19 touchdowns last season) and crazy-legged QB Michael Desormeaux (1,035 yards) depart. The schedule...read more

Team: North Texas

Nickname: Mean Green

Location: Denton, Tex.

Conference: Sun Belt

Coach: Todd Dodge (3rd season, 3-21)

Last season: 0-7, 1-11

Last Bowl: 2004 New Orleans

North Texas' defense was even worse last year than expected — and that's saying a lot. After giving up 45.1 ppg in 2007, the Mean Green yielded 47.6 ppg last season. Mean Joe would not approve.

Record-setting...read more

Team: New Mexico State

Nickname: Aggies

Location: Las Cruces, N.M.

Conference: Western Athletic

Coach: DeWayne Walker (1st season; 0-1 overall)

Last season: 1-7, 3-9

Last Bowl: 1960 Sun

Hal Mumme is gone, and with him, the pass-heavy Air Raid offense departs. Walker, the former UCLA defensive coordinator, steps in with a lot of work to do. All-time leading passer Chase Holbrook is gone, and...read more

Team: Western Kentucky

Nickname: Hilltoppers

Location: Bowling Green, Ky.

Conference: Sun Belt

Coach: David Elson (7th season, 39-32)

Last season: 2-10, 0-0

Last Bowl: none

The Hilltoppers are coming off their first 10-loss season in program history, which came in their second year of transition to the FBS level. But now that WKU is a full-fledged member of the Sun Belt, will it all start to...read more