Sun Belt Conference Football Championship Game

{{Infobox NCAA conference tournament

| name = Sun Belt Conference Football Championship Game

| optional_subheader =

| defunct =

| image = File:Sun_Belt_Conference_Football_Championship.jpg

| caption =

| sport = Football

| conference = Sun Belt

| years = 2018–present

| most_recent = 2024

| current_champion = Marshall

| most_championships = Appalachian State
Troy (2)

| television = ESPN

| website = [http://sunbeltsports.org/index.aspx?path=football Official site]

| sponsors =

Hercules Tires (2021–present)

| all_stadiums = Kidd Brewer Stadium, Cajun Field, Veterans Memorial

}}

The Sun Belt Conference Football Championship Game is an annual college football game that determines the season champion of the Sun Belt Conference (SBC). The game is played between the SBC regular-season divisional champions from the East and West divisions. First contested in 2018, the game is typically played on the first Saturday of December. The current champion is the Marshall Thundering Herd.

History

{{OSM Location map

| nolabels = 1

| coord = {{coord|34.0|-88.0}}

| zoom = 5

| width = 575

| height = 300

| caption = 10px – East Division
10px – West Division

| mark1 = Blue pog.svg| label1 = Appalachian State | mark-coord1 = {{coord|36.213843|-81.678621}} | label-pos1 = bottom | label-color1 = black

| mark2 = Blue pog.svg| label2 = Coastal Carolina | mark-coord2 = {{coord|33.794722|-79.011667}} | label-pos2 = bottom | label-color2 = black

| mark3 = Blue pog.svg| label3 = Georgia Southern | mark-coord3 = {{coord|32.419448|-81.776698}} | label-pos3 = bottom | label-color3 = black

| mark4 = Blue pog.svg| label4 = Georgia State| mark-coord4 = {{coord|33.7527|-84.38611}} | label-pos4 = bottom | label-color4 = black

| mark5 = Blue pog.svg| label5 = James Madison | mark-coord5 = {{coord|38.4353|-78.8731}} | label-pos5 = bottom | label-color5 = black

| mark6 = Blue pog.svg| label6 = Marshall | mark-coord6 = {{coord|38.425|-82.4208}} | label-pos6 = bottom| label-color6 = black

| mark7 = Blue pog.svg| label7 = Old Dominion | mark-coord7 = {{coord|36.8889|-76.3049}} | label-pos7 = left | label-color7 = black

| mark8 = Red pog.svg | label8 = Arkansas State | mark-coord8 = {{coord|35.7663|-90.414}} | label-pos8 = bottom| label-color8 = black

| mark9 = Red pog.svg| label9 = Louisiana | mark-coord9 = {{coord|30.213|-92.019}} | label-pos9 = bottom | label-color9 = black

| mark10 = Red pog.svg| label10 = Louisiana–Monroe | mark-coord10 = {{coord|32.527|-92.074}} | label-pos10 = top | label-color10 = black

| mark11 = Red pog.svg| label11 = South Alabama | mark-coord11 = {{coord|30.697|-88.179}} | label-pos11 = bottom | label-color11 = black

| mark12 = Red pog.svg| label12 = Southern Miss | mark-coord12 = {{coord|31.3289|-89.3314}} | label-pos12 = left | label-color12 = black

| mark13 = Red pog.svg| label13 = Troy | mark-coord13 = {{coord|31.798|-85.954}} | label-pos13 = bottom | label-color13 = black

| mark14 = Red pog.svg| label14 = Texas State | mark-coord14 = {{coord|29.8884|-97.9384}} | label-pos14 = bottom | label-color14 = black

}}

In 1987, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) approved a proposal made by two Division II conferences that allowed any conference with 12 football members to split into divisions and stage a championship game between the divisional winners, with that game not counting against NCAA limits on regular-season contests. However, the rule would not see its first use until 1992, when the Southeastern Conference, which had added Arkansas and South Carolina the previous year, launched its title game. In early 2016, NCAA legislation was passed that largely deregulated FBS conference championship games, allowing a conference with fewer than 12 teams to stage a championship game that featured either (1) the top two teams at the end of a full round-robin conference schedule, or (2) the winners of each of two divisions, with each team playing a full round-robin schedule within its division.{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2016/01/13/ncaa-members-ok-college-football-championship-games-all-conferences-big-12/78756848/|title=NCAA members OK football championship games for all conferences|author=Dan Wolken|work=USA Today|date=January 13, 2016|accessdate=May 28, 2017}} Several months later, the Sun Belt Conference announced that they would be introducing a football championship game starting in the 2018 season.{{cite news|url=http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2016/06/sun_belt_conference_will_add_f.html|title=Sun Belt Conference will add football championship game in 2018|author=Creg Stephenson|work=AL.com|date=June 7, 2016|accessdate=May 28, 2017}}

In 2017, the conference announced the two divisions that teams would compete in, with division winners qualifying for the championship game.{{cite news|url=http://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/19447068/sun-belt-announces-divisions-2018-football-season|title=Sun Belt announces divisions starting in 2018 football season|author=AP|work=ESPN|date=May 23, 2017|accessdate=May 28, 2017}}{{cite news|url=http://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/sun-belt-announces-football-divisions-starting-in-2018-collaborative-replay-system/|title=Sun Belt announces football divisions for 2018, new collaborative replay system|author=Tom Fornelli|work=CBS Sports|date=May 23, 2017|accessdate=May 28, 2017}}{{cite news|url=http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2017/05/sun_belt_football_will_split_i.html|title=Sun Belt football will split into divisions with addition of championship game in 2018|author=Creg Stephenson|work=AL.com|date=May 23, 2017|accessdate=May 28, 2017}} As the conference would have 10 teams competing in football in the 2018 season, East and West divisions were created with five teams each, with the championship game to be played at the home stadium of the team with the best College Football Playoff ranking. If no teams are ranked in the CFP selection committee, the conference will determine home field using a formula based on six computer ratings that were used in the old Bowl Championship Series standings. Unlike the conference's sports of baseball and volleyball, which are also divided into divisions, the Jaguars of South Alabama competed in the West division rather than the East.

In 2018, Appalachian State qualified as the East division team, as they had defeated Troy head-to-head, with both teams finishing the regular season with 7–1 conference records.{{cite web |url=https://sunbeltsports.org/news/2018/11/24/football-appalachian-state-to-host-sun-belt-championship-against-louisiana.aspx |title=Appalachian State to Host Sun Belt Championship Against Louisiana |website=sunbeltsports.org |date=November 24, 2018 |accessdate=November 29, 2018}} Louisiana qualified as the West division team, as they had defeated Arkansas State head-to-head, with both teams finishing the regular season with 5–3 conference records. In the inaugural championship game, Appalachian State defeated Louisiana, 30–19. The 2019 game was a rematch of the same teams, and again saw Appalachian State defeat Louisiana, this time by a score of 45–38.

The 2020 championship game, set to feature Coastal Carolina and Louisiana,{{cite news |url=https://athlonsports.com/college-football/sun-belt-championship-game-louisiana-ragin-cajuns-vs-coastal-carolina-chanticleers-prediction-picks-2020 |title=Coastal Carolina and Louisiana meet for the second time on Saturday in the highly anticipated Sun Belt title game |first=Rob |last=McVey |website=athlonsports.com |date=December 17, 2020 |accessdate=December 18, 2020}} was canceled due to COVID-19 pandemic effects within the Coastal Carolina program.{{cite web|url=https://www.al.com/sports/2020/12/sun-belt-championship-game-canceled-due-to-covid-issues.html|title=Sun Belt championship game canceled due to COVID issues|date=December 18, 2020|website=AL.com}} As a result, the teams were declared co-champions for the 2020 season.{{cite web|url=https://www.wbrc.com/2020/12/18/coastal-carolina-louisiana-named-co-champions-after-sun-belt-championship-canceled/|title=Coastal Carolina, Louisiana named co-champions after Sun Belt championship canceled|date=December 18, 2020|website=WBRC.com}}

The 2021 game saw Louisiana and Appalachian State in the title game for the third time; however, unlike their prior two championship meetings at Kidd Brewer Stadium, Louisiana won over Appalachian State 24–16 at Cajun Field for their first outright Sun Belt Conference title.{{cite web |title=Louisiana Wins First Outright Conference Championship in Front of a Championship Game Record 31,014 at Cajun Field |url=https://sunbeltsports.org/news/2021/12/4/football-louisiana-wins-first-outright-conference-championship-in-front-of-31-014-at-cajun-field.aspx |publisher=Sun Belt Conference |access-date=December 4, 2021}}

With the addition of four new members in 2022—James Madison, Marshall, Old Dominion, and Southern Miss—the SBC adopted a new alignment for all divisional sports, with the new dividing line being the Alabama–Georgia border. Accordingly, James Madison, Marshall, and Old Dominion joined the East Division, with Southern Miss joining the West Division. Troy moved from the East to the West.

As of the upcoming 2024 season, the SBC is the only FBS conference that uses a divisional alignment in football. The other three conferences that had a divisional alignment in the 2023 season—the Big Ten, MAC, and SEC—eliminated their divisions after that season.

Results by year

Below are the results from all Sun Belt Conference Football Championship Games played. The winning team appears in bold font, on a background of their primary team color. Rankings are from the College Football Playoff committee ranking released prior to the game.

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" width=90%
Date ! colspan="2" \|West Division ! colspan="2" \|East Division !Site !Attendance !MVP
{{nowrap\|2018}} \| Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns \|19 \| style={{NCAA color cell\|Appalachian State Mountaineers}}\| 2018 Appalachian State Mountaineers football team \|30 \| rowspan=2\| Kidd Brewer Stadium • Boone, North Carolina \| 14,693 \| rowspan=2\| RB Darrynton Evans, App State
{{nowrap\|2019}} \| Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns \|38 \| style={{NCAA color cell\|Appalachian State Mountaineers}}\| 21 2019 Appalachian State Mountaineers football team \|45 \| 18,618
nowrap\|2020† \| 19 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns \| – \| 12 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers \| – \| Brooks Stadium • Conway, South Carolina \| – \| –
{{nowrap\|2021}} \|style={{NCAA color cell\|Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns}}\| 24 2021 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football team \| 24 \|Appalachian State Mountaineers \| 16 \| Cajun Field • Lafayette, Louisiana \| 31,014 \| QB Levi Lewis, Louisiana
{{nowrap\|2022}} \| style={{NCAA color cell\|Troy Trojans}}\| 2022 Troy Trojans football team \| 45 \| Coastal Carolina Chanticleers \| 26 \| rowspan=2\|Veterans Memorial Stadium • Troy, Alabama \| 21,554 \| QB Gunnar Watson, Troy
{{nowrap\|2023}} \| style={{NCAA color cell\|Troy Trojans}}\| 2023 Troy Trojans football team \| 49 \| Appalachian State Mountaineers \| 23 \| 20,183 \| RB Kimani Vidal, Troy
{{nowrap\|2024}} \| Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns \| 3 \| style={{NCAA color cell\|Marshall Thundering Herd}}\| 2024 Marshall Thundering Herd football team \| 31 \| Cajun Field • Lafayette, Louisiana \| 20,067 \| QB Braylon Braxton, Marshall

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" width=90%

Date

! colspan="2" |West Division

! colspan="2" |East Division

!Site

!Attendance

!MVP

| Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns

|19

| style={{NCAA color cell|Appalachian State Mountaineers}}| 2018 Appalachian State Mountaineers football team

|30

| rowspan=2| Kidd Brewer Stadium • Boone, North Carolina

| 14,693

| rowspan=2| RB Darrynton Evans, App State

| Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns

|38

| style={{NCAA color cell|Appalachian State Mountaineers}}| 21 2019 Appalachian State Mountaineers football team

|45

| 18,618

nowrap|2020†

| 19 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns

| –

| 12 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers

| –

| Brooks Stadium • Conway, South Carolina

| –

|style={{NCAA color cell|Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns}}| 24 2021 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football team

| 24

|Appalachian State Mountaineers

| 16

| Cajun Field • Lafayette, Louisiana

| 31,014

| QB Levi Lewis, Louisiana

| style={{NCAA color cell|Troy Trojans}}| 2022 Troy Trojans football team

| 45

| Coastal Carolina Chanticleers

| 26

| rowspan=2|Veterans Memorial Stadium • Troy, Alabama

| 21,554

| QB Gunnar Watson, Troy

| style={{NCAA color cell|Troy Trojans}}| 2023 Troy Trojans football team

| 49

| Appalachian State Mountaineers

| 23

| 20,183

| RB Kimani Vidal, Troy

| Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns

| 3

| style={{NCAA color cell|Marshall Thundering Herd}}| 2024 Marshall Thundering Herd football team

| 31

| Cajun Field • Lafayette, Louisiana

| 20,067

| QB Braylon Braxton, Marshall

† The 2020 game was canceled by Coastal Carolina due to COVID-19 issues.

=Results by team=

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" width=50%

!Selections

!School

!Wins

!Losses

!Win %

!Year(s) won

!Year(s) lost

!No contest

| style={{NCAA color cell|Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns}}| Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football}}

| 1

| 3

| {{winpct|1|3}}

| 2021

| 2018, 2019, 2024

| 2020

| style={{NCAA color cell|Appalachian State Mountaineers}}| Appalachian State Mountaineers football}}

| 2

| {{winpct|2|2}}

| 2018, 2019

| 2021, 2023

| -

| style={{NCAA color cell|Troy Trojans}}| Troy Trojans football}}

| 2

| 0

| {{winpct|2|0}}

| 2022, 2023

| -

| style={{NCAA color cell|Coastal Carolina Chanticleers}}| Coastal Carolina Chanticleers football}}

| 0

| 1

| {{winpct|0|1}}

| -

| 2022

| 2020

| style={{NCAA color cell|Marshall Thundering Herd}}| Marshall Thundering Herd football}}

| 1

| 0

| {{winpct|1|0}}

| 2024

| -

Arkansas State, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, James Madison, Louisiana–Monroe, Old Dominion, South Alabama, Southern Miss, and Texas State have yet to earn a Sun Belt Football Championship Game bid.

Game records

style="background:#0A2240; color:#FFFFFF; border:2px solid #F6A800;"\|Individual ! style="background:#0A2240; color:#FFFFFF; border:2px solid #F6A800;"\|Record, Player, Team vs. Opponent ! style="background:#0A2240; color:#FFFFFF; border:2px solid #F6A800;"\|Year
class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" ! style="background:#0A2240; color:#FFFFFF; border:2px solid #F6A800;"\|Team ! style="background:#0A2240; color:#FFFFFF; border:2px solid #F6A800;"\|Record, Team vs. Opponent ! style="background:#0A2240; color:#FFFFFF; border:2px solid #F6A800;"\|Year
Most points scored (one team) \|49, Troy vs. Appalachian State \|2023
Most points scored (losing team) \|38, Louisiana vs. Appalachian State \|2019
Fewest points scored (winning team) \|24, Louisiana vs. Appalachian State \|2021
Fewest points scored \|3, Louisiana vs. Marshall \|2024
Most points scored (both teams) \|83, Appalachian State (45) vs. Louisiana (38) \|2019
Fewest points scored (both teams) \|34, Marshall (31) vs. Louisiana (3) \|2024
Most points scored in a half \|35, Appalachian State (1st half) vs. Louisiana 35, Troy (2nd half) vs. Appalachian State \|2019 2023
Most points scored in a half (both teams) \|52, Appalachian State vs. Louisiana (1st half) \|2019
Largest margin of victory \|28, Marshall (31) vs. Louisiana (3) \|2024
Smallest margin of victory \|7, Appalachian State (45) vs. Louisiana (38) \|2019
Total yards \|513, Louisiana (354 passing, 159 rushing) vs. Appalachian State \|2019
Rushing yards \|271, Troy vs. Appalachian State \|2023
Passing yards \|354, Louisiana vs. Appalachian State \|2019
First downs \|31, Louisiana vs. Appalachian State \|2019
Fewest yards allowed \|255, Marshall vs. Louisiana (199 passing, 56 rushing) \|2024
Fewest rushing yards allowed \|56, Marshall vs. Louisiana \|2021
Fewest passing yards allowed \|75, Louisiana vs. Appalachian State \|2018
All-purpose yards	233, Kimani Vidal, Troy vs. Appalachian State	2023
Touchdowns responsible for	5, Kimani Vidal, Troy vs. Appalachian State	2023
Rushing yards	233, Kimani Vidal, Troy vs. Appalachian State	2023
Rushing touchdowns	5, Kimani Vidal, Troy vs. Appalachian State	2023
Passing yards	354, Levi Lewis, Louisiana vs. Appalachian State	2021
Passing touchdowns	4, Levi Lewis, Louisiana vs. Appalachian State	2019
Receiving yards	134, RaJae' Johnson, Troy vs. Coastal Carolina	2022
Receiving touchdowns	2, shared by: RaJae' Johnson, Troy vs. Coastal Carolina Darrynton Evans, Appalachian State vs. Louisiana Peter LeBlanc, Louisiana vs. Appalachian State	2022 2019 2019
Tackles	13, Jacques Boudreaux, Louisiana vs. Appalachian State	2019
Sacks	2, shared by: Javon Solomon, Troy vs. Appalachian State Nick Hampton, Appalachian State vs. Louisiana Zi’Yon Hill, Louisiana vs. Appalachian State	2023 2021 2021
Interceptions	1, shared by multiple players, most recent: Josh Moten, Marshall vs. Louisiana	2024
style="background:#0A2240; color:#FFFFFF; border:2px solid #F6A800;"\|Long Plays ! style="background:#0A2240; color:#FFFFFF; border:2px solid #F6A800;"\|Record, Player, Team vs. Opponent ! style="background:#0A2240; color:#FFFFFF; border:2px solid #F6A800;"\|Year
Touchdown run	56, Levi Lewis, Louisiana vs. Appalachian State	2021
Touchdown pass	67, RaJae' Johnson from Gunnar Watson, Troy vs. Coastal Carolina	2022
Kickoff return	97, Darrynton Evans, Appalachian State vs. Louisiana	2018
Punt return	12, Jacob Bernard, Louisiana vs. Marshall	2024
Interception return	32, Tae Hayes, Appalachian State vs. Louisiana	2018
Field goal	53, Stevie Artigue, Louisiana vs. Appalachian State	2019
style="background:#0A2240; color:#FFFFFF; border:2px solid #F6A800;"\|Miscellaneous ! style="background:#0A2240; color:#FFFFFF; border:2px solid #F6A800;"\|Record, Team vs. Team ! style="background:#0A2240; color:#FFFFFF; border:2px solid #F6A800;"\|Year
Game attendance	31,014, Appalachian State at Louisiana	2021
colspan="3" \|Source: Sun Belt Conference{{cite web \|title=2024 Sun Belt Media Guide\|url=https://sunbeltsports.org/documents/2024/7/22//2024_FB_Media_Guide.pdf \|access-date=December 7, 2024 \|website=sunbeltsports.com \|pages=31–32 \|via=}}

References

Category:Sun Belt Conference football

Category:2018 establishments in the United States

Category:Recurring sporting events established in 2018

Sun Belt Conference Football Championship Game

History

Results by year

=Results by team=

Game records

See also

References