2010 Record: (8-5, 6-2 in Sun Belt)
Head Coach: Larry Blakeney (161-82-1 All-Time)
Last Bowl Game: 2010 Season New Orleans Bowl: beat Ohio 48-21
Schedule
9/3: at Clemson
9/17: at Arkansas
9/24: Middle Tennessee (2010 result: won 42-13)
10/1: UAB (2010 result: lost 34-33)
10/8: at Louisiana (2010 result: won 31-24)
10/15: Louisiana-Monroe (2010 result: lost 28-14)
10/25: at FIU (2010 result: lost 52-35)
11/5: at Navy
11/12: North Texas (2010 result: won 41-35)
11/19: FAU (2010 result: won 44-7)
11/26: at Western Kentucky (2010 result: won 28-14)
12/3: at Arkansas State (2010 result: won 35-28)
2010 Offensive Statistics:
Scoring: 34.1 ppg (1st in Sun Belt, 20th in Nation)
Rushing Yds/Game: 158.38 yds/game (5th in Sun Belt, 54th in Nation)
Passing Yds/Game: 295.1 yds/game (1st in Sun Belt, 12th in Nation)
Total Yds/Game: 453.5 yds/game (1st in Sun Belt, 17th in Nation)
2010 Defensive Statistics:
Scoring: 30.2 ppg (5th in Sun Belt, 84th in Nation)
Rushing Yds/Game: 165.23 yds/game (3rd in Sun Belt, 73rd in Nation)
Passing Yds/Game: 244.6 yds/game (last in Sun Belt, 100th in Nation)
Total Yds/Game: 409.8 yds/game (8th in Sun Belt, 89th in Nation)
2010 Misc Stats:
Turnover Margin: -0.08 per game (4th in Sun Belt, 62nd in Nation)
Penalties: 72.7 yds/game (8th in Sun Belt, 117th in Nation)
Returning Starters:
Offense: 4
Defense: 8
Kicker/Punter: 2
Top Returning Statistical Leaders:
Passing: QB Corey Robinson, Soph (318 of 501 for 3707 yds, 28 TD, 15 INT)
Rushing: RB Shawn Southward, Jr (116 for 627, 5.4 ypc, 7 TD)
Receiving: WR Chip Reeves, Sr (30 rec for 515 yds, 5 TD)
Tackles: LB Xavier Lamb, Sr (91)
Sacks: DE Jonathan Massaquoi, Jr (12.5)
Interceptions: DB LaDarrius Madden, Sr; Jimmie Anderson, Sr (3)
The Troy Trojans joined the Sun Belt Conference in 2004 and it took them just two years to ascend to the top of the Conference. Since 2006, the Trojans have finished in 1st place in the Conference (or tied for first place) for the past five years. Despite finishing in a tie for 1st in the Sun Belt, 2010 was an up and down year for Troy. In the second game of the year the Trojans came within three points of upsetting Oklahoma State. The very next week Troy fell to UAB (who won just four games last year) on a last second play. One thing is for sure, when you watch Troy play you are going to see some yards put up. The most interesting stat for me is that Troy finished first in the conference in passing offense but on the flip-side they also finished last in passing defense. This year, Troy will definitely look to be more consistent on the defensive side of the football. To learn more about the 2011 version of the Troy Trojans we sought out Mike from GoTroyTrojans.com and he enlisted some help from his message board members to answer our questions in this fan-interactive version of our Pre-Season Previews.
Troy fell a little bit short of expectations last year at 8-5. What are the biggest issues that need to be addressed to improve this season?
Troyboy2003: Our defense, particularly our secondary. We finished 100th in the country in passing yards allowed, 73rd in rushing yards allowed, 89th in total yards allowed, and 84th in points allowed. Offensively we were in the top 20 in every category (stats provided by Fox Sports). Yes, Jerrel Jernigan’s departure hurts, but Troy has managed to keep reloading year after year offensively, and each season gets more impressive. However, defensively we seem to keep getting weaker and weaker until offensively we HAVE to score 30 points a game to win, which places an unfair burden on the offense.
For those that don’t follow Troy that closely…give us a couple of under-the-radar guys that can make a real impact for the Trojans this year.
Trojanbrutha: Brandon Boudreaux–DE (short, but strong and quick)
Tony Davis–DT/NT (small, but plays big)
Tyler Sizemore–DT/NT (was very active on the D line…impressive)
Who are some newcomers that can come in and immediately help this year?
Fliryvorru: Perhaps the biggest help any newcomer can give to our Trojan defense would be in the secondary. Ever since the likes of Leodis McKelvin and company graduated, we’ve been stuck with a depleted set of corners and safeties. While last year was a significant improvement from the pass-defense debacle that was 2009, we are still needing improvement all around in that department.
Angelo Hadley is a safety out of Armwood HS in Seffner, FL. He had originally signed with UNC out of high school as a 3-star prospect and held offers from Auburn, Georgia, Michigan, and others. However, Hadley enrolled in Butler Community College to work things out and apparently he did just that.
Last year he played in 10 games, accumulating 49 tackles, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 2 interceptions, and one INT return for TD. Hadley is an excellent pass defender, but an even better run supporter. So while this may not be the perfect free safety we’ve been needing to “play centerfield,” if you will, he’ll certainly be a significant strong safety that can take some pressure off the other secondary in the run-defense. This will hopefully leave the other DBs some room to focus on lock-down coverage.
Another JUCO safety everyone is excited to see play for the Trojans is Brynden Trawick. Trawick had some awesome highlight youtube videos that has the entire Trojan Nation ready to see what kind of improvements he can make in our secondary.
Looking at the schedule, what are the most important games for Troy this year?
Trojanbrutha: TROY has been the bully on the SBC block since entering this league. In order for us to take a step towards the next level, we need to win more of the OOC games on the schedule. The cliche’ is the most important game is the next one…that’s where it starts, in my opinion. But, if I had to rank them, I would say, Clemson (to set the tone for this season), UAB (in-state rival that has beaten us on the road the last 2 times), ULM (they seem to beat us at their place every other year), FIU (took it to us on our home field and that doesn’t happen very often).
What is the one game on the schedule that you want to win the most this year?
ArmyTrojan10: I would say a victory over Clemson would be huge, but I’m going to go with Arkansas because all the talk about the SEC. I would love to see Troy beat a “mighty” SEC opponent. My runner up game is against FIU. That lost left a sour taste in my mouth.
What is your gut feeling on the final record for the 2011 season and what makes the season successful in your eyes?
A successful season would be to win at least one of the games between Clemson and Arkansas, win the Sun Belt, and to have a 9 win season (10 wins counting a Bowl victory).
Go TROY!
Next Preview: Middle Tennessee
2011 Team Previews
C-USA- Houston
MAC- Bowling Green, Buffalo , Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Temple
Sun Belt- FAU, North Texas
WAC– Idaho
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