Week 14 is here, and it all comes down to this:

The 2012 Sun Belt Conference football championship hangs in the balance as Arkansas State hosts Middle Tennessee on Saturday. Both teams enter the game at 6-1 in Sun Belt play on the year and the winner will be the outright champion. The game will be available on ESPN3 with a kickoff of 2 p.m. (CT) scheduled.

On Saturday, R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl Officials invited Louisiana-Lafayette to represent the Sun Belt Conference at the 12th annual game on Dec. 22nd at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. After being crowned champions of last year’s bowl, defeating San Diego State University 32-30 in a down to the wire thriller, the Ragin’ Cajuns have officially accepted the invitation to represent the Sun Belt Conference for the second year in a row.

WKU finished the regular season with a 7-5 record for the second straight year. That guarantees WKU of back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 2006 and 2007. With 2,977 all-purpose yards this season, Antonio Andrews ranks third on the NCAA single-season list behind Pacific’s Ryan Benjamin (2,995 yards in 1991) and Oklahoma State’s Barry Sanders (3,250 yards in 1988). Andrews is just 274 yards away from breaking Sanders’ single-season record set during his Heisman-Trophy winning campaign.

Louisiana-Monroe closed the regular-season on a two-game win streak to improve to 8-4 overall and 6-2 in the Sun Belt Conference. The eight wins by the Warhawks are the most of the FBS-era (1994-pres.) and the last time the squad won eight or more games was during the final year of FCS (1-AA) play in 1993 (9-3).

Five Sun Belt Conference teams are bowl eligible this season – marking a new record for the league. Additionally, the league has already set its all-time record for non-conference wins this season with more opportunities for wins still to come.

Source: Sun Belt Media Relations


Saturday will offer three games, as we put a wrap things for the 2012 regular season:


December 1st

Louisiana-Lafayette 35  Florida Atlantic 21

Middle Tennessee 0  Arkansas State 45

South Alabama 7  Hawaii 23


Enjoy the games!

FINAL:

ULL 35  FAU 21

Graham Wilbert three for 379 yards and 2TD in his final game as an Owl, with 209 of those going to William Dukes.

Three turnovers at opportune times were the difference in this one, as FAU outperformed the Cajuns 528-452 in overall yardage.

FINAL:

MTSU 0  ASU 45

The Red Wolves wanted to show who the king of the hill was, and did just that by blanking the 2012 Blue Raiders for the Sun Belt crown.

This is the second straight title for ASU, who held MTSU 189 yards below thier season average.

ASU led 35-0 at the break, and needed only one punt on the day.

Wow! What a statement ASU made.  No doubt who is #1

FINAL:

USA 7  Hawaii 23

With just 166 total yards, the Jags (2-11, 1-7) offense never got going, managing just one score with 6:22 to play.

Of major concern, 34 attempts by foot netted only 18 yards (.5 YPC).

The Warriors (3-9, 1-7) day's of being a pass happy team appear to have vanished, as they tossed the pigskin just 11 times on the night, while favoring the run 47.

Players of the Week…

Offense

Ryan Aplin (Arkansas State, Sr., QB)

Senior quarterback Ryan Aplin completed 19-of-21 passes (.905 percentage) for 238 yards and three touchdowns, while also adding 64 yards rushing and a touchdown on six attempts to post 302 yards total offense in Arkansas State’s 45-0 win over Middle Tennessee that clinched its second consecutive Sun Belt Conference championship. Aplin’s completion percentage tied the second highest in ASU history for a single game and his three passing touchdowns gave him a school-record 23 on the season. He 12.5 yards per completion without an interceptions and averaged 10.7 yards per rushing attempt. Aplin collected his 32nd career 200-yard passing game and went over 300 yards total offense for the 19th time of his career.

Defensive

Nathan Herrold (Arkansas State, Sr., LB)

Senior linebacker Nathan Herrold recorded a team-high 10 tackles, two tackles for a loss, an interception and a pass break-up in Arkansas State’s 45-0 win over Middle Tennessee that clinched its second consecutive Sun Belt Conference championship. Herrold posted double-figure stops for the fifth time this season and the eighth time of his career, pushing his season total to 109 to make him the first ASU player with over 100 tackles in a season since the 2007 campaign. His 109 tackles are also the most by an ASU player since Tyrell Johnson had 112 in 2005. Herrold’s interception gave him three on the season and he returned it 45 yards. With ASU leading 7-0, his pick stopped a Middle Tennessee drive at the ASU 31-yard line and set the Red Wolves’ offense up at the Blue Raiders’ 33 for its second touchdown of the game and a 14-0 lead.

Special Teams

Brian Davis (Arkansas State, Jr., K)

Junior kicker Brian Davis was responsible for 10 points by kicking, including seven extra points and a field goal, in ASU’s 45-0 win over Middle Tennessee that clinched its second consecutive Sun Belt Conference championship. Davis was a perfect 1-of-1 on his field goal attempts, connecting from 21 yards out to give him 40 career field goals that ties the second most in ASU history. He pushed his season field goals total to 16, giving him sole possession of the fifth most in school history for a single season. His 10 points by kicking gave him a school-record 100 on the season, topping his own record of 98 that was set last season.