Media Days = Countdown To Season

MeanGreen61 · July 25, 2005

http://www.dnj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?A.../507250314/1006

Sun Belt Media Days signal countdown to season

By ADAM SPARKS

sparks@dnj.com

NEW ORLEANS — Sun Belt football will not kick off for more than a month, but today the first signs of fall and the upcoming season will arise from a sweltering summer.

Sun Belt Football Media Days, a two-day event, will begin today as head coaches and selected players from all eight conference squads converge here to meet with league media and discuss the landscape of the upcoming season.

MTSU coach Andy McCollum will be joined by senior linebacker Dennis Burke as representatives of the Blue Raiders at the event.

Commissioner Wright Waters will hold a press conference today. Former Georgia coach and ESPN analyst Jim Donnan will serve as a guest speaker at the event.

Today will also stage the announcement of the Sun Belt preseason poll, where MTSU could be slotted as high as second, and the preseason all-conference teams, where several Blue Raiders could be placed.

Four-time defending Sun Belt champion North Texas should be again picked to win the league. However, the Mean Green's representation on the preseason All-Sun Belt squad could be lessened with only 10 starters returning.

Nevertheless, sophomore running back Jamario Thomas should be selected Sun Belt Preseason Offensive Player of the Year after earning the postseason honor in 2004.

Media Days will conclude Tuesday with open interviews for each coach and player in attendance.

Sun Belt Football Media Days will be broadcast on SIRIUS channel 123 on the "Rivals Radio Show" from 9-11 a.m. today and Tuesday. Host Bill King, a 20-year Nashville radio personality, is joined by co-host Chris Childers, an MTSU alum and host of the weekend show "The Blitz."

The duo will interview coaches and players from all eight Sun Belt teams during the two-day event, as well as college football gurus at Media Days.

MTSU's Burke is slated to be on the air Tuesday at 9 a.m.

Originally published July 25, 2005