A football team is only ever as good as the sum of its parts but when it comes to the Conference USA, there are a handful of stars that have separated themselves from the rest as the drivers of their respective teams. Even the casual college football fan will recognize Taywan Taylor’s name after he helped lead Western Kentucky to a division title in the C-USA East division while Nick Mullens is remembered for leading Southern Miss to the best record in the West division. This conference is mostly all about offense with all sorts of explosive weapons making this list. Even so, here is a look at the five most important players in the Conference USA heading in to this season.
WR: Taywan Taylor
Western Kentucky
It seems like just a couple of years ago, the Hilltoppers were making their move into the FBS via the Sun Belt and were just happy to be there. Now all of the sudden they’re at the top of Conference USA. That goes to show you that if they can do it, almost any program can.
The Hilltoppers recorded a perfect 8-0 record in conference play en route to a 12-2 overall record a year ago. There is a very good chance they can run the table again in 2016. Western Kentucky has some considerable depth but no one player is more important than the star wide receiver. Taylor had 86 catches for 1,467 yards to lead all receivers in the Conference USA. His 17 touchdown catches ranked second in the entire nation. Taylor has played an integral role in the Hilltoppers’ success and that will be the case again this coming season.
QB: Nick Mullens
Southern Miss.
Only five players in the entire country threw for more yards than Mullens did at Southern Mississippi last season when he passed for 4,476 yards and 38 touchdowns. Mullen was clearly the most integral piece in the Golden Eagles registering a 7-1 mark in conference play. Yes, the Eagles do miss former head coach Larry Fedora, who now orchestrates the show at North Carolina, but the Eagles are showing that they haven’t fallen far without him. Mullens will have every opportunity to match those totals as the top quarterback in the Conference-USA this season.
QB: Brent Stockstill
Middle Tennessee
Middle Tennessee made the rare move of switching to the son of the head coach at the quarterback position a year ago and the decision paid off big time as Stockstill went on to become the only freshman quarterback in the country to throw for 4,000 yards. Stockstill’s 77.7 QBR was the best mark in the nation as he threw 30 touchdowns compared to just nine interceptions with 66 completions for 20 yards or more. There is every reason to buy in to Stockstill’s ability heading in to his second year with the Blue Raiders as he continues his ascent to eventually becoming the top quarterback in the Conference USA.
WR: Trent Taylor
Louisiana Tech
Taylor finished with the fourth-most receiving yards in the conference a year ago when he had 99 catches for 1,282 yards. The star receiver caught 75.6-percent of the passes that were thrown his way. He will be relied on to match those numbers for Louisiana Tech as the leader of the offense again this coming season.
DL: Gary Thompson
Marshall
It’s not often that a defensive player in Conference USA gets acclaim. Not a lot will change in 2016 as the conference will be run by the offenses, but there is one key defensive player to note: Gary Thompson.
The Thunder Herd will rely heavily on their elite pass rush to lead the way for them on the defensive side of the football with Thompson their most explosive force off the edge. Thompson registered the second-most sacks in the conference a year ago when he finished with nine. The good news for a guy like him is that there is so much passing that happens in Conference USA games that he gets ample opportunity to in his ears back and rush the quarterback. The expectation will be that he challenges for a double-digit total as a senior this season.
