ASI's Sun Belt Picks: West Division

App State Illustrated takes a look at the Sun Belt conference for the 2018 football season. Here is our quick preview and predicted order of finish for both divisions. This is a two-part series, we begin with the West Division:

The program to beat in the West, the Red Wolves should field a team that doesn’t have another stalwart team to fend off in its division, as Appalachian State and Troy do with each other both in the East. Arkansas State has won more games than it’s lost for seven consecutive seasons now, and considering the rest of the programs in its division, merely playing to its potential means earning a spot in the Sun Belt Conference title game.

Offensively, it begins with quarterback Justice Hansen, a serious contender for the league’s Player of the Year honor. He will engineer an offense that scored 40 or more points in five games a year ago and also managed 36 in a narrow loss at Nebraska. Hansen passed for nearly 4,000 yards and 37 touchdowns, he also ran for more than 400 yards and scored 7 TDs.

Defensively, the Wolves gave up 32 or more points in each of their last three games after posting more respectable numbers during the season. Much of that unit must be restocked, but by the time they get to the league’s title game, the defense should be fairly formidable.

New head coach Steve Campbell takes over in Mobile with 159 wins under his belt coaching at Central Arkansas (most recently), Delta State and at two junior colleges. His record of 159-53 includes winning the 2000 DII national championship, a co-national JC title in 2007, and a Southland Conference championship a year ago. He’s won three Coach of the Year awards in as many levels and also has served as an assistant coach at Mississippi State and Auburn.

A former center in college, he was on a national championship team at Troy and was an all-conference selection. So he clearly brings a winning mindset and resume to USA. The Jaguars’ defense is well ahead of its offense at this time.

New head coach Billy Napier has worked at Clemson and Alabama for a combined total of 12 years in the 2000s and takes over the Ragin’ Cajuns after spending last season at Arizona State. Running back Trey Regas is a proven player and will handle a load of the offensive responsibility, but how the Cajuns do will ultimately depend on an unsettled QB situation. Its defense also must improve, which is a common theme across the league for the most part.

As if winning wasn’t hard enough for the Warhawks a year ago given how much the defense struggled, losing quarterback Garrett Smith (nearly 4,000 passing yards) as a transfer will only make matters more challenging this season. Monroe’s defense allowed 40 or more points in seven games last season, including an average of 49 points surrendered over their final four contests. This year may not be a whole lot different, but with an unproven quarterback.

The Bobcats could be in trouble this season, and if things go as projected, former UNC and James Madison coach Everett Withers could be out of a job. Major questions at QB doesn’t help, plus holes at WR and a couple of spots on defense don’t help, either.