Three storylines
Membership shakeup
SMU, Houston, Memphis and Central Florida transferred from Conference USA to the American Athletic Conference. C-USA has six new members this year - Florida International, Florida Atlantic, Middle Tennessee, Louisiana Tech, North Texas and Texas-San Antonio. In 2012, C-USA had 12 football members. In 2013, there are 14. Each team plays eight league games. Each team faces all six of the other teams within its division, along with two opponents from the opposite division.
Familiar names
With Todd Monken as the coordinator, Oklahoma State last season was fourth nationally in total offense. He now is the head man at Southern Miss, which in 2012 was winless and 106th nationally in total offense. Former Iowa State coach Dan McCarney is the head man at North Texas. Okemah native and Northeastern State University graduate Larry Coker enters his third season as the head coach at Texas-San Antonio. He is the only coach to have coordinated offenses at all three of Oklahoma's major-college programs - Tulsa, OU and OSU.
Primary threat
Having finished 11-3 overall and 7-1 in league play, the University of Tulsa captured the 2012 Conference USA title. Since TU joined the league in 2005, East Carolina is the only school to have successfully defended a conference championship (following its 2008 title with a 2009 repeat). League coaches unanimously voted TU the 2013 West Division favorite, while East Carolina is the East favorite. The Golden Hurricane and Pirates clash on Nov. 9 in Greenville, N.C., and they could be destined for a rematch in the Dec. 7 conference championship game.
Players to watch
Tommy Shuler, Marshall
With 9.2 catches per game in 2012, Shuler was the most prolific wide receiver in college football. Against Purdue, he had 19 receptions for 200 yards.
Phillip Gaines, Rice
A senior cornerback and the C-USA preseason defensive player of the year. Last season, he led the conference and ranked No. 2 nationally in pass break-ups with 18.
Cairo Santos, Tulane
A senior kicker, Santos savored a sensational 2012 season. He was 21-of-21 on field goals (and perfect on 11 tries from 40 yards and beyond). Captured the Groza Award, given annually to the best kicker in college football.
Vintavious Cooper, East Carolina
The 2012 C-USA newcomer of the year had four 100-yard rushing performances and finished with an overall total of 1,049 yards.
Zach Orr, North Texas
As a junior last season, the 220-pound linebacker totaled 108 tackles. In six games, he had at least 10 stops.
Quarterback rankings
1, Rakeem Cato, Marshall: As a sophomore in 2012, Cato led the nation in passing yards at 350.1 per game. He is the C-USA preseason offensive player of the year.
2, Cody Green, Tulsa: A quarterback's most important statistic is his winning percentage. As a starter, Green's career record is 14-3.
3, Shane Carden, East Carolina: An efficient QB who last season completed 66 percent of his pass attempts for 239.7 yards per game.
4, Taylor McHargue, Rice: Entering his senior season, McHargue is positioned on Rice's career top-10 lists for passing yards, TD passes and total offense.
5, Jameill Showers, UTEP: A highly regarded Houston-area recruit who signed with Texas A&M. With the emergence of Johnny Manziel, Showers transferred to UTEP and now is the Miners' junior starter.
6, Eric Soza, Texas-San Antonio: In 10 starts last season, Soza completed 59 percent of his passes for 2,085 yards and 20 TDs against only three interceptions.
7, Nick Montana, Tulane: The son of Pro Football Hall of Fame QB Joe Montana, Nick Montana transferred to Tulane after passing for 2,652 yards last season at Mount San Antonio College in California.
8, Austin Brown, UAB: Set a Blazer freshman record with 2,673 passing yards, but had only three more TD passes (15) than interceptions (12).
9, Logan Kilgore, Middle Tennessee: One of only two QBs in program history to record consecutive seasons of at least 2,000 passing yards.
11, Jake Medlock, Florida International: As a sophomore last season, Medlock made nine starts and passed for 2,127 yards, with 13 TD passes against only two interceptions.
12, Derek Thompson, North Texas: As a junior last season, Thompson passed for 2,649 yards - the fourth-best single-season total in program history.
13, Melvin German III, Florida Atlantic: He was an efficient passer as a junior-college QB, and now German - as a senior - gets a shot to run the Owls' offense.
14, Scotty Young, Louisiana Tech: Young hasn't taken a game snap since the 2009 season, when he was a high school senior. He transferred from Texas Tech.
15, Cole Weeks, Southern Miss: A junior who entered preseason camp as the No. 1 guy, but he's getting pushed by other QBs on the roster. Weeks' experience amounts to 19 pass attempts.
Power rankings
West Division
1, Tulsa: Since 2005, the Golden Hurricane has more overall victories (72) than any other program in the conference.
2, Louisiana Tech: Only six starters return for coach Skip Holtz's Bulldogs, who lost 31 seniors from last year's nine-win team.
3, Rice: After coaching the Owls to an Armed Forces Bowl win over Air Force, David Bailiff was rewarded with a contract extension.
4, UTEP: At slightly less than $300,000 a year, new coach Sean Kugler is among the lowest-paid head coaches at the FBS level of college football.
5, North Texas: With an impressive $78 million stadium and a proven leader in Dan McCarney, the North Texas program appears to have a bright future.
6, Tulane: Since a 12-0 season in 1998, the Green Wave program is 60 games below .500 (53-113).
7, UTSA: After only one season in the WAC, coach Larry Coker's fledgling Roadrunner program moves to C-USA.
East Division
1, East Carolina: After the Pirates allowed 31.6 points and 430 yards per game last season, veteran coordinator Rick Smith was hired to oversee the defense.
2, Marshall: The combination of QB Rakeem Cato and a veteran offensive line makes the Thundering Herd a formidable presence in the East.
3, Middle Tennessee: In the Sun Belt Conference last season, the Blue Raider defense allowed opponents to convert on 51 percent of their third-down plays.
4, UAB: After a 3-9 finish in his first season as head coach, Tulsa native Garrick McGee attempts to take the Blazers to their first bowl game since 2004.
5, Southern Miss: A perennially solid program endured a winless 2012, finishing 83rd in total defense and 106th in total offense.
6, Florida Atlantic: On consecutive Saturdays last season, FAU visited Georgia and Alabama. This year, there are trips to Miami (Fla.) and Auburn.
7, Florida International: The Golden Panthers' new coach is Ron Turner, formerly an NFL assistant and formerly the head man at Illinois and San Jose State.
