Bewerbungen » After missing the French Open because of a

(STATS) -- College football teams rarely kick off a new season with a conference matchup, but the Southern Conference is celebrating a return to nine teams with a beauty of a first game.The Citadel, which surprised most people in winning a share of the conference title a year ago, will get the fun underway at Mercer, and the host Bears look a lot like the Bulldogs going into last season.At least we will know where we are, first-year Citadel coach Brent Thompson said, and I think it made camp that much more interesting because we had to be prepared, we had to treat every single day like it was game day, every single week like it was game week and thats what made the difference for the most part in camp.FCS teams trying to knock off FBS teams and new coaches making their debuts are the other storylines of the first full weekend of action. Last year, there were nine FCS wins over FBS teams, including four on opening weekend. This season, there are 19 FCS programs that have new coaches.---=FCS GAME OF THE WEEK=The Matchup: No. 15 The Citadel (0-0, 0-0 Southern) at Mercer (0-0, 0-0)Kickoff: 7 p.m. ET Saturday at Five Star Stadium in Macon, GeorgiaTelevision: Fox Sports SoutheastSeries: The Citadel leads, 8-4-1 (last meeting: The Citadel won 21-19 last Oct. 31 in Charleston, South Carolina)The Skinny: Each of the last two meetings have ended with a two-point Citadel victory. This is the third meeting since Mercer returned to football in 2013.Brent Thompson, The Citadels offensive coordinator the last two seasons, is making his head coaching debut. His triple option offense averaged six yards per carry in last years win as Cam Jackson and Tyler Renew surpassed 100 yards and a third back nearly did as well in a 367-yard assault. But the big difference is returning quarterback Dominique Allen is suspended for the game and redshirt freshman Jordan Black is running the offense. Their defense, led by All-America cornerback Dee Delaney, forced 31 turnovers last season.Mercer upset Chattanooga at home last season to hand the co-champ its only SoCon loss. But the Bears won only one other conference game in a 5-6 season. Still, with 10 returning starters on each side of the ball, the Bears are the dark horse in a potentially deep SoCon title race. Fourth-year QB John Russ will have to produce more than he did in last years loss to The Citadel, but running backs Tee Mitchell and Alex Lakes form a 1-2 punch which takes pressure off Russ. Defensive ends Tosin Aquebor and Isaiah Buehler must protect the edge when the Bulldogs triple option seeks the perimeter.Prediction: The fashionable pick is to go with Mercer breaking through with a rousing win, but heres a guess The Citadels title experience pays off in the fourth quarter. The Citadel, 23-21.---=STATS FCS TOP 25 SCHEDULE=All Times ETX-Predicted WinnerThursday, Sept. 1Shorter (0-0) at X-No. 6 Chattanooga (0-0), 7 p.m. -- Alejandro Bennifield breaks in as Chattanoogas new starting quarterback. No pressure, hes just replacing a three-time Southern Conference offensive player of the year (Jacob Huesman).X-No. 20 Western Illinois (0-0) at Eastern Illinois (0-0), 7 p.m. -- It wont look good if debuting WIU coach Charlie Fisher beats third-year EIU coach Kim Dameron to the first non-conference win. Dameron led the Panthers to the playoffs last year, but hes 0-8 outside the Ohio Valley Conference. North Alabama (0-0) at X-No. 3 Jacksonville State (0-0), 7 p.m. -- JSU coach John Grass has filled some holes with FBS transfers, including former Auburn running back Roc Thomas. Can you smell what the Roc is cooking?X-No. 19 North Dakota (0-0) at Stony Brook (0-0), 7 p.m. -- In a matchup of similar styles -- run the ball and let the defense provide good field position -- UNDs playoff hopefuls have to prove they havent lost too much on the offensive line.X-No. 9 William & Mary (0-0) at North Carolina State (0-0), 7:30 p.m. -- The Tribe lost a lot on defense, but their dynamic offense, behind the triple threat of quarterback Steve Cluley, running back Kendall Anderson (whos nursing a shoulder injury) and all-purpose wideout DeVonte Dedmon, can outscore the Wolfpack.Friday, Sept. 2No. 21 Colgate (0-0) at X-Syracuse (0-0), 7 p.m. -- No Orange crush, this is the perfect storm for an FCS-FBS upset: a veteran Colgate squad taking on a rebuilding Syracuse team with a new coach in Dino Babers.Saturday, Sept. 3Kentucky State (0-0) at X-No. 7 Charleston Southern (0-1), 11:45 a.m. -- Buccaneers fans thank the schedule maker for putting a Division II opponent in between North Dakota State and Florida State.No. 23 Villanova (0-0) at X-Pittsburgh (0-0), 1:30 p.m. -- Nova coach Andy Talley, beginning his swan song, thinks his defense is ready to keep the Wildcats in games while the offense keeps maturing.X-No. 4 Richmond (0-0) at Virginia (0-0), 3:30 p.m. -- A deep, versatile defensive line will provide pressure on new Virginia QB Kurt Benkert, so the Spiders linebackers and defensive backs can try to force turnovers.Central Washington (0-0) at X-No. 17 Portland State (0-0), 5:30 p.m. -- After a difficult offseason (two players died less than three months apart), Vikings coach Bruce Barnum has another team feeding on emotion.Morehead State (0-0) at X-No. 12 James Madison (0-0), 6 p.m. -- JMU will score in bunches, but new Dukes coach Mike Houston will have a problem if his defense cant contain Eagles quarterback Austin Gahafer, the active FCS leader in passing yards (8,514).St. Augustines (0-0) at X-No. 25 North Carolina A&T (0-0), 6 p.m. -- A&T running back Tarik Cohen figures to be out of the game in the second half. By then, he should be well on his way toward a fourth straight 1,000-yard season.Valparaiso (0-0) at X-No. 10 Illinois State (0-0), 7 p.m. -- This is a good, easy way for the Redbirds to get the pieces in place following key senior losses.Tarleton State (0-0) at X-No. 11 McNeese (0-0), 7 p.m. -- Lance Guidry makes his McNeese head coaching debut. Heres how the Cowboys break in transfer quarterback James Tabary: Tartleton State ranked 168th and last in Division II in total defense last season.Oklahoma Panhandle State (0-0) at X-No. 2 Sam Houston State (0-0), 7 p.m. -- Lacking a big-time schedule, coach K.C. Keeler and Co. will try to put up some big scores for the FCS playoff committee to consider come November.No. 24 Towson (0-0) at X-South Florida (0-0), 7 p.m. -- The Towson seniors were part of the 2013 team that was the FCS runner-up. Theyll be thrilled to get back to the playoffs a second time this year.No. 5 Northern Iowa (0-0) at X-Iowa State (0-0), 8 p.m. -- UNI won in Ames in 2013, but fell 31-7 last year. While pass rusher Karter Schult returns, the Panthers need some other defensive stars to emerge after they lost a number of stars.X-No. 16 Coastal Carolina (0-0) at Lamar (0-0), 8 p.m. -- Terrific matchup as Lamar senior Kade Harrington begins chase of a second straight 2,000-yard campaign. The FCS community will likely shun the independent Chanticleers as they transition toward the FBS.No. 8 South Dakota State (0-0) at X-TCU (0-0), 8 p.m. -- Its a good thing Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium opens in another week because the Jackrabbits road schedule includes North Dakota State, Illinois State and Northern Iowa in addition to TCU.No. 14 Eastern Washington (0-0) at X-Washington State (0-0), 8 p.m. -- Oh, how Cougars coach Mike Leach would love to have wide receiver Cooper Kupp, the 2015 STATS FCS Offensive Player of the Year, on his offense.No. 22 New Hampshire (0-0) at X-San Diego State (0-0), 8:30 p.m. -- Will it still be sunny and 75 at game time?Saint Francis (0-0) at X-No. 13 Montana (0-0), 9 p.m. -- With all the transfers, the Griz might be sitting on a better team than people realize.No. 18 Northern Arizona (0-0) at X-Arizona State (0-0), 10:45 p.m. -- This time last year, nobody even knew about NAU greyshirt QB Case Cookus. All he did was go on to throw for an FCS freshman-record 37 touchdowns. Wholesale Hurricanes Jerseys . -- When the Florida Panthers fell behind by two goals in the first period to the top team in the NHL, it appeared they were on their way to yet another loss. Custom Carolina Hurricanes Jerseys . The Dutchmans tenure got off to a poor start when referee Guido Winkmann awarded a penalty within two minutes for Niklas Starks clumsy challenge on Alexandru Maxim. https://www.cheaphurricanes.com/ . Their experience showed Tuesday as the No. 10 Badgers blunted a Saint Louis surge to win 63-57 and advance to face West Virginia in Wednesdays finals of the Cancun Challenge. Carolina Hurricanes Shirts . The Dane followed up his first European Tour title last weekend with eight birdies and just a single dropped shot on Thursday for a one-stroke advantage over South Africas Allan Versfeld and Portugals Ricardo Santos. Hurricanes Jerseys China . Bradwell was scheduled to become a free agent Tuesday. Born and raised in Toronto, Bradwell is entering his sixth CFL season, with all six played for his hometown Argonauts. When the US Open begins next week, familiar, proven names will headline the daily schedules. But theres a good chance an outsider is going to safely navigate the crucible of the draw and grab instant attention.And to add to the intrigue, there are a host of up-and-coming competitors ready to break out. Will one shine in the New York spotlight? Here are our top five 20-and-under players to watch:1. Alexander ZverevTheres no avoiding the promise of this 19-year-old from Hamburg, Germany, and thats not just because he is 6-foot-6 with a booming game. Zverev can play on all surfaces: He reached his first ATP final at a clay-court tournament in Nice and later defeated Roger Federer?en route to the final of a grass-court event in Halle. After making the third round of the past two majors -- he was stopped by Dominic Thiem at Roland Garros and Tomas Berdych at Wimbledon -- you suspect it wont be long before Zverev makes more of an impression at the Grand Slams. After all, heres someone described by Rafael Nadal as a clear possible future world No. 1, who is amazingly talented and has all the shots. Zverev has yet to win a main-draw match at the US Open.2. Daria KasatkinaWill the 19-year-old Russian make the second week of a Grand Slam for the first time? She has reached the third round of this seasons first three majors, as well as the last 32 at the 2015 US Open, so its surely only a matter of time before she goes deeper into the draw. Kasatskina couldnt have come any closer to cracking the final 16 at Wimbledon. Venus Williams needed all her guile and power to fend off Kasatskina in their third-round match, with the former champion eventually taking the decisive third set 10-8. Still, its not as if Kasatkina missed out on beating Williams for the first time, as she had already done so in Auckland at the start of the season.3. Taylor FritzNo one has ever accused the Californian -- the youngest man inside the top 100 -- of meandering his way through life. At the age of 18, when his friends are preparing to go to college, Fritz is alreaady married (he proposed during this years French Open and the wedding took place just after Wimbledon) and has established himself as a top-level player.dddddddddddd Already this season, Fritz played in his first ATP final following a run on the hard courts of Memphis, where he was stopped by Kei Nishikori. And theres something this ambitious young man will want to accomplish early on at the US Open: winning a match in the main draw of a Grand Slam for the first time.4. Belinda BencicA quarterfinalist at Flushing Meadows in 2014, Bencic is still only 19 years old. As she once mused when trying to explain why Switzerland keeps producing such classy players: There must be something in the chocolate. And yet, after a summer of injuries, its difficult to be sure how she might perform on the cement of New York. After missing the French Open because of a bad back, she retired from a second-round match at Wimbledon after hurting her wrist. She also lost so many training days while healing that she decided it would be best to give the Olympics a pass and instead focus all her efforts on New York.5. Yoshihito NishiokaAt 5-foot-7, the 20-year-old Japanese player is almost a foot shorter than Juan Martin del Potro. Hes also three inches smaller than countryman Nishikori, the 2014 US Open finalist, who at 5-10 himself is considered to be on the short side for a professional tennis player. Still, that lack of stature hasnt stopped Nishioka from breaking into the top 100 or reaching his first ATP semifinal in Atlanta. This summers hard-court swing has seen a new, more stable version of Nishioka. While he was once, in his own words, very emotional, throwing rackets and getting frustrated, he has been much calmer on the court over the past few weeks. This will mark the third consecutive summer he has played at the US Open, but this is the first time he has gained direct acceptance after qualifying in 2014 and 2015. ' ' '