NEW ORLEANS — If the Sun Belt Conference had anything going for it when it became a football league early this decade, it was location.

The schools joining the new league had something to sell to the multitude of top recruits in the South. They offered a chance to play major college football close to home if the depth chart was a little too crowded at their preferred SEC or ACC schools.
If chances for playing time were slim at Alabama or Auburn, there was always Troy. If a south Florida standout couldn’t latch on with Miami, longtime college coach Howard Schnellenberger was waiting with open arms over at Florida Atlantic’s Boca Raton campus.
“The state of Florida is our recruiting area and most off the recruits who come from the state come to us from south Florida,” Schnellenberger says.
During its first eight seasons, Sun Belt teams have gotten better and the number of bowl tie-ins have grown.
This season, the league formally welcomes its ninth team, Western Kentucky, which played a Sun Belt schedule last season as it prepared to officially enter the conference in 2009.
In 2008, Troy and FAU both went to bowl games. Schnellenberger’s Owls beat Central Michigan of the Mid-American Conference in the Motor City Bowl — FAU’s second bowl triumph in as many years — while Troy lost in overtime to Southern Mississippi of Conference USA in the New Orleans Bowl.
Sun Belt coaches picked Troy to win the league for a fourth straight time, which would tie the mark set by North Texas in the conference’s first four years. Troy would like to take it a step further and become the Sun Belt’s first BCS buster. Coach Larry Blakeney figures the Trojans would need to win at least 11 of their 12 games to have a shot.
That might be more realistic if the Trojans’ Sept. 12 visit defending national champion Florida was the only difficult game on their schedule. Troy also must play at Arkansas on Nov. 14, and Blakeney doesn’t want to get ahead of himself when it comes to the Trojans’ league schedule, either.
“That doesn’t look like it would be very easy right now,” Blakeney said of the prospect of winning 11 games. “We’ve got teams in our league that can beat us.”
Troy was 8-5 overall last season, losing only one game in the Sun Belt, when Louisiana-Monroe (the same team that shocked Alabama in 2007), upset the Trojans 31-30.
Troy has key players back on its high-scoring offense, including quarterback Levi Brown (2,030 yards passing, 15 TDs), running back DuJuan Harris (1,077 yards rushing) and receiver Jerrel Jernigan (868 yards receiving).
Meanwhile, teams across the Sun Belt are putting a premium on games against other BCS non-automatic qualifying conferences. The hope is that winning more of those games will earn Sun Belt teams more consideration from bowl committees.
“The more out-of-conference wins you have in those type conferences, the bigger slice you get,” Middle Tennessee coach Rick Stockstill said. “When you have those type of wins, it helps your conference and it helps the perception of your conference.”
A capsule look at the teams in predicted order of finish:
TROY — Key Players: QB Levi Brown, RB DuJuan Harris, WR Jerrel Jernigan, DE Brandon Lang, CB Jorrick Calvin. Returning starters: 7 offense, 5 defense.
Notes: The Trojans averaged 414 yards and 33 points per game last season. ... The big question will be the offensive line following the departures of tackles Dion Small and Chris Jamison. ... Lang, Calvin, LB Bear Woods and LB Borris Lee all were preseason all-conference selections.
ARKANSAS STATE — Key players: QB Corey Leonard, RB Reggie Arnold, DE Alex Carrington, RB Derek Lawson. Returning starters: 6 offense, 8 defense.
Notes: The backfield is loaded, starting with Leonard, who passed for 2,347 yards and 16 TDs last season. Arnold has had three straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons rushing, and Lawson rushed for 685 yards and four TDs last season. ... The Red Wolves can gain the inside track to a conference crown if they can win their Sun Belt opener at home against Troy.
FLORIDA ATLANTIC — Key players: QB Rusty Smith, TE Jamari Grant, WR Cortez Gent, S Ed Alexander. Returning starters: 6 offense, 4 defense.
Notes: Smith passed for 3,224 yards and 24 TDs last season and could do even better this season with top playmakers at receiver and tight end. ... FAU is trying to become the first Sun Belt team to win bowl games in three straight seasons.
MIDDLE TENNESSEE — Key players: S Jeremy Kellem, LB Danny Carmichael, RB Phillip Tanner, QB Dwight Dahser. Returning starters: 9 offense, 7 defense.
Notes: Tony Franklin is the new offensive coordinator for the Blue Raiders. If their spread offense looks like Troy’s, that’s because Franklin was a Trojans assistant before a brief stint at Auburn. ... Dasher lost the starting job last season but his return gives MTSU a better scrambler at quarterback.
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL — Key players: WR T.Y. Hilton, OL Brad Serini, CB Anthony Gaitor, LB Scott Bryant. Returning starters: 10 offense, 5 defense.
Notes: Hilton had 41 catches for 1,013 yards and seven TDs during his freshman season. ... Golden Panthers hope they found a run stopper in 340-pound DT Jonas Murrell. ... Gaitor had five INTs and had 175 return yards and 2 TDs last season.
LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE — Key players: OL Brad Bustle, OL Chris Fisher, LB Antwyne Zanders, CB Orkeys Auriene. Returning starters: 7 offense, 9 defense.
Notes: The Ragin’ Cajuns will have some huge holes to fill on offense with the loss of QB Michael Desormeaux and career rushing-leader Tyrell Fenroy, the only player in school history to rush for 1,000 yards in each of four seasons. ... The offensive line has five returning starters.
LOUISIANA-MONROE — Key players: LB Cardia Jackson, S Greg James, RB Frank Goodin, QB Trey Revell. Returning starters: 7 offense, 7 defense.
Notes: Revell replaces seasoned quarterback Kinsmon Lancaster. Revell started only one game last season, but played a key role in ULM’s biggest win of the year. ... The defense is switching from four down linemen to three, and the scheme is expected to feature more blitzing.
NORTH TEXAS — Key players: WR Casey Fitzgerald, LB Tobe Nwigwe, QB Riley Dodge, RB Cam Montgomery. Returning starters: 8 offense, 9 defense.
Notes: After a redshirt year, Dodge is ready to step in as starting quarterback, the same position his father, current North Texas coach Todd Dodge, once player for the Texas Longhorns. ... The strength of the defense should at linebacker. Nwigwe led UNT with 111 tackles and also made 3 INTs.
WESTERN KENTUCKY — Key players: QB Brandon Smith, RB Tyrell Hayden, WR Jake Gaebler, FS Mark Santoro. Returning starters: 7 offense, 3 defense.
Notes: Smith, the likely starter, played in only four games last season and did not throw a touchdown pass. ... The Hilltoppers were 2-10 last season and little is expected of them in their first official year in the Sun Belt.