WHERE TO WATCH
Thursday, Sept. 19
South Alabama at App State
6:30 p.m. ESPN
Saturday, Sept. 21
James Madison at North Carolina
11 a.m. ACC Network
Saturday, Sept. 21
Tulane at Louisiana
11 a.m. ESPNU
Saturday, Sept. 21
Marshall at No. 3/3 Ohio State
11 a.m. FOX
Saturday, Sept. 21
Arkansas State at No. 20/21 Iowa State
1 p.m. ESPN+
Saturday, Sept. 21
Virginia at Coastal Carolina
1 p.m. ESPN+
Saturday, Sept. 21
Southern Miss at Jacksonville State
2 p.m. ESPN+
Saturday, Sept. 21
Florida A&M at Troy
6 p.m. ESPN+
Saturday, Sept. 21
Georgia Southern at No. 5/5 Ole Miss
6:45 p.m. SEC Network
Saturday, Sept. 21
ULM at No. 1/2 Texas
7 p.m. ESPN+
The Sun Belt—which continues to pace all non-autonomy conferences with four remaining undefeated teams—will put those records on the line against stout competition as part of a 10-game Week 4 schedule.
South Alabama and App State will kick off the 2024 conference season as a standalone game on Thursday evening on ESPN, ahead of a nine-game Saturday slate that features six autonomy five matchups—including four road clashes with ranked teams.
Following Georgia State’s victory over Vanderbilt in Week 3, the Sun Belt owns 20 wins over autonomy five foes since 2016, with 12-of-14 current members contributing to that total.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
• CONFERENCE KICKOFF – Two of the nation’s Top 30 offenses will be on display as South Alabama travels to App State for a Thursday night clash at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN to open the 2024 Sun Belt Conference slate. The Jaguars are coming off a Sun Belt single-game record 87-point outburst in an 87-10 victory over Northwestern State, while the Mountaineers return home following a come-from-behind 21-19 win at in-state rival East Carolina. South Alabama is averaging 514.7 yards of total offense per game, good for 12th in the country. App State sits 30th in the nation, averaging 456.0 yards of total offense per game. Mountaineer senior quarterback Joey Aguilar sits eighth in the nation individually, averaging 336.0 yards of total offense and 321.33 passing yards per game this season. App State senior wide receiver Kaedin Robinson (96.7 yards per game) and South Alabama senior wide receiver Jamaal Pritchett (95.7 yards per game) are 2-of-24 players in the nation averaging more than 95 receiving yards per game.
• ON OUR TURF – For the second-straight week, a Sun Belt program will host an autonomy five school on its home field when Coastal Carolina welcomes Virginia to the Surf Turf at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21, on ESPN+. Georgia State secured the Sun Belt’s first victory over an autonomy five foe this season, via a 36-32 win over Vanderbilt at home a week ago. The win was the Sun Belt’s 20th over an autonomy five opponent since 2016—with nine of those wins coming since 2022, when the league expanded to its current 14-member contingent. This weekend’s matchup will be the first-ever meeting between the Chanticleers and the Cavaliers, as well as Coastal Carolina’s first-ever home date against an ACC opponent. James Madison will also square off against an ACC foe when it travels to North Carolina at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21, on ACC Network. Both Coastal Carolina (3-0) and James Madison (2-0) carry unblemished records into the Week 4 showdowns.
• BAYOU BATTLE – Tulane will visit Louisiana for an in-state battle at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21, on ESPNU to close out the Sun Belt’s regular-season series with the American. The Sun Belt has already secured the series victory for the second-straight year, sitting 6-4 in 10 prior matchups heading into Week 4. The matchup is the 30th all-time between the two programs, but just the fourth-ever in Lafayette. The Green Wave leads the all-time series, 23-6. A victory would give Louisiana head coach Michael Desormeaux his first victory over a Jon Sumrall-coached team in three opportunities. Sumrall led Troy to a pair of one-score victories over Louisiana—23-17 in 2022 and 31-24 in 2023—en route to back-to-back Sun Belt titles before becoming the head coach at Tulane this offseason.
• TEST YOUR METTLE – Three of the top five teams in the country are in action on Saturday, Sept. 21, with each hosting a Sun Belt foe. Marshall visits No. 3/3 Ohio State at 11 a.m. on FOX, Georgia Southern travels to No. 5/5 Ole Miss at 6:45 p.m. on SEC Network and ULM takes on No. 1/2 Texas at 7 p.m. on ESPN+. Arkansas State will also face off against a Top 20 opponent for the second-straight week when it visits No. 20/21 Iowa State at 1 p.m. on ESPN+. The Red Wolves are coming off a 28-18 loss to No. 17/16 Michigan.
• ON THE LINE – The Sun Belt will put its unblemished records against Conference USA (2-0) and FCS (12-0) foes on the line on Saturday, Sept. 21, when Southern Miss travels to Jacksonville State at 2 p.m. on ESPN+ and Troy hosts Florida A&M at 6 p.m. on ESPN+. Southern Miss has outscored Jacksonville State 123-0 in the two prior games in the series but has not faced the Gamecocks since 1946. Troy will look for the first win of the Gerad Parker era as it returns to The Vet on Saturday for its seventh all-time meeting with Florida A&M. Troy leads the all-time series, 4-2, including a 2-0 mark with an 83-14 scoring margin since ascending to the FBS level in 2001.
