Saturday Blitz
Fansided

UAB Football: Preview, predictions for Blazers’ 2019 season

By Jake Mitchell

COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 17: Spencer Brown #28 of the UAB Blazers rushes past Tyrel Dodson #25 of the Texas A&M Aggies as Larry Pryor #11 pursues on the play in the first quarter at Kyle Field on November 17, 2018 in College Station, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)
COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 17: Spencer Brown #28 of the UAB Blazers rushes past Tyrel Dodson #25 of the Texas A&M Aggies as Larry Pryor #11 pursues on the play in the first quarter at Kyle Field on November 17, 2018 in College Station, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 4
Next

Schedule, predictions for 2019 season

Schedule

  • Week 1: vs. Alabama State (Aug. 29)
  • Week 2: at Akron (Sept. 7)
  • Week 3: BYE
  • Week 4: vs. South Alabama (Sept. 21)
  • Week 5: at Western Kentucky (Sept. 28)
  • Week 6: vs. Rice (Oct. 5)
  • Week 7: at UTSA (Oct. 12)
  • Week 8: vs. Old Dominion (Oct. 19)
  • Week 9: BYE
  • Week 10: at Tennessee (Nov. 2)
  • Week 11: at Southern Miss (Nov. 9)
  • Week 12: vs. UTEP (Nov. 16)
  • Week 13: vs. Louisiana Tech (Nov. 23)
  • Week 14: at North Texas (Nov. 30)

This schedule is definitely manageable for Bill Clark and the Blazers, but there are difficult spots. The November second trip to Knoxville to play Tennessee stands out. The Volunteers will be much improved in Jeremy Pruitt’s second year as head coach.

Within the conference, two road trips particularly stand out. On Nov. 9, the Blazers will visit Southern Miss. This is like looking in the mirror, as the Golden Eagles’ calling card was their defense in 2018. They finished first in the conference, and third nationally, in total defense.

The regular season finale is the other key matchup. North Texas is led by quarterback Mason Fine, who threw for 3,793 yards and 25 touchdowns last season. This is a meeting of the two best teams in the C-USA West, and could turn into a de facto division championship game.

It will be important for UAB to be healthy heading into November, as the three aforementioned matchups fall in the final month of the regular season.

Next. Top 30 skill position players for 2019. dark

Prediction: 8-4, 5-3

Despite losing so many players from the team that won the conference a year ago, UAB is still one of the stronger programs in the C-USA. They play in the conference’s stronger division, and with road trips to two of the west’s three best teams, it’s likely that they’ll narrowly miss out on returning to the title game. It will still be another strong season in Birmingham, but a slight drop-off is inevitable.

Home/Conference USA