The 68-year-old Painter has over 30 years of coaching experience at the college and professional levels, and spent the past two seasons as quality control coach at California University of Pennsylvania. He was on the staffs of the San Diego Chargers (1994) and Denver Broncos (1998) during Super Bowl seasons.

Craig has eight years of Northeast Conference playing and coaching experience. Most recently, he served as special teams and strength and conditioning coach for Saint Francis (Pa.).

Kaanapu has spent 15 seasons of coaching in California and is the former head coach at Merced Junior College. He also becomes Portland State's recruiting coordinator.

Seigler was a standout lineman at Oregon State from 2000-03. He then played in the NFL with Pittsburgh and San Francisco (2004-07) and two seasons in the Canadian Football League with the Toronto Argonauts. He was a member of the Steelers' Super Bowl XL championship team. This is his first coaching position.

Kaanapu has spent 15 seasons of coaching in California and is the former head coach at Merced Junior College. He also becomes Portland State's recruiting coordinator.

Seigler was a standout lineman at Oregon State from 2000-03. He then played in the NFL with Pittsburgh and San Francisco (2004-07) and two seasons in the Canadian Football League with the Toronto Argonauts. He was a member of the Steelers' Super Bowl XL championship team. This is his first coaching position.

"He's a scholarship player, he's a scholarship player, he's a scholarship player," Masella said at Patriot League football media day on Tuesday.

It's not that simple in the Patriot League. Caldwell, Magiera and Bledsoe are at Fordham on need-based scholarships, though Masella doesn't want to differentiate them from any other player who takes the football field. To Masella, they're all football players.

If Stephen F. Austin senior quarterback Jeremy Moses stopped to soak in his record-setting career-to-date, he would be impressed by the big numbers. They include his 41 touchdown passes in 2008 and another 40 last season. He is on pace to become the Southland Conference's all-time leader in completions, passing yards, touchdown passes and total offense Moses, though, is letting his statistics do the talking and focusing on the possible next step for SFA, which was 0-11 in his freshman season under coach J.C. Harper in 2007, 4-8 in 2008 and 10-3 in 2009 (including an FCS playoff win over Eastern Washington before the Lumberjacks were hammered by Montana).

What's the next step? Moses is anxious to find out.

Northern Iowa just might caution them to hold the applause until after the season, however. They don't have any plans to oblige the prediction.

UNI has been the premier program in the MVFC (and formerly Gateway Conference) since it won the first conference title in 1985. While something of a slight, the team's prediction of fourth in the preseason is also an indication of how the Panthers' elite play has prompted other programs to aspire to reach that level.

"A win-win situation," according to Norfolk State football coach Pete Adrian.

Just as the FCS is expanding its playoff format from 16 to 20 teams this season, Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference schools are weighing in on the idea of giving up the automatic bid afforded its champion, beginning in 2011, to return to a bowl game against the champion of the nation's other Historically Black Colleges and Universities league, the Southwestern Athletic Conference.

The rest of the conference, however, has motivation that goes way beyond feeling overlooked by the voters.

The chance to go to the FCS playoffs is all the buzz among Big South teams. The conference champion will gain an automatic bid for the first time when the playoffs expand from 16 to 20 teams in late November.

Highlighting the group are Football Bowl Subdivision transfers Carl Harris, a wide receiver from Rutgers, and Myron Walker, a nose tackle from Kentucky.

Harris, a walk-on with the Scarlet Knights in 2008 and 2009, will have three years of eligibility with SIU.

The site Smith refers to is Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas. The stadium, which is home to Major League Soccer's FC Dallas, has a capacity of 23,500. The city, which was recently named the nation's fastest-growing city by the U.S. Census Bureau, is the home of the FCS' Southland Conference.

Folks around the league, as you might imagine, are pleased.

No matter the direction, there rarely is a break for any CAA team in the FCS' premier conference.

"They put the teams on your schedule and you've got to go out and play 'em," Devlin said.

Do you know who else can play ball? Armanti Edwards. Namely for the NFL's Carolina Panthers. The Appalachian State Mountaineers, they are not.

Does Edwards' departure open the door for some other players to step up in the SoCon? Let us first establish that this is simply an exercise. An interesting hypothetical. Let us first recognize App State's right to the SoCon throne.

The matchup, scheduled for Sept. 3, is the first between the visitors from the Big Sky Conference and the Southeastern Conference power. Montana, the FCS runner-up in each of the past two seasons, will play an FBS program for the first time since losing 41-7 at the University of Iowa on Sept. 2, 2006.

The Grizzlies, who will receive a $500,000 guarantee for the game, will likely play in front of the largest crowd in school history. The capacity at the Volunteers' Neyland Stadium is 102,038. The largest crowd Montana has played in front of is 70,585 - in the 2006 loss at Iowa.

From playing before 104,000 fans at Penn State to winning on the road at rival Jacksonville State to having two four-game winning streaks to capturing the Ohio Valley Conference championship, the Panthers have a lot to remember.

Yet, no matter what, James' mind always flashes to the way EIU was whipped at then-No. 1 Southern Illinois in the first round of the FCS playoffs. He felt the Panthers let the OVC down, and, just as importantly, let their senior class down.

Defending FCS champion Villanova has the most players on the first team with three - senior wide receiver Matt Szczur, senior offensive tackle Ben Ijalana and senior linebacker Terence Thomas.

Smith, LeGree, Szczur and Ijalana were voted to the All-America first team at the end of the 2009 regular season by a national panel of sports information and media relations directors, broadcasters, writers and other dignitaries. Other 2009 first-team selections appearing on this year's preseason first team are Eastern Washington senior linebacker J.C. Sherritt, Grambling State senior defensive end C

Oh, was it ever "must-see TV".

First up, he caught Jovan Belcher, one of his former linebackers at Maine, make seven tackles for the Kansas City Chiefs against the Pittsburgh Steelers. After that game, the New York Jets and the New England Patriots aired on Cosgrove's TV, and he watched for Jets defensive end Mike DeVito and tight end Matt Mulligan, two of his former players, and Pats free safety Brandon McGowan, another of his former standouts.

"We had a plan, stayed on task with the plan, and haven't gotten off of it," the 2009 Southland Conference Coach of the Year said.

"That system relies on contributions from every aspect of Stephen F. Austin's football program, from the coaching staff, to the recruiters, to the athletic department to the players on the field. Harper notes that he "recruited guys that fit the system." The system is now bearing considerable fruit.

Villanova senior Matt Szczur was named in two spots, at wide receiver and return specialist, as well being named the CAA's preseason offensive player of the year. Wildcats senior linebacker Terence Thomas was selected as the conference's preseason defensive player of the year.

The two were joined on the All-CAA squad by five teammates who played for the national champions last season: quarterback Chris Whitney, offensive tackle Ben Ijalana, offensive guard Brant Clouser, place-kicker Nick Yako and safety John Dempsey.

Hemphill, a Delaware native, served on the Blue Hens' staff during the 2004-05 season. He spent the last four seasons as an assistant to head coach, and former UD defensive cooordinator, Dave Cohen, at Hofstra University. Hemphill acted as defensive backs coach and special teams coach for Hofstra before the program was dropped this past December.

Hemphill played strong safety for Ursinis College while earning his bachelor's degree in politics. He also holds a master's degree in education administration from Delaware.

"It kind of woke me up," said the field general of the reigning SWAC champions, and the 2010 SWAC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year.

It's not just Black. Everybody has to be on his toes in the SWAC, because everyone is watching each other.

From the top down, the conference is laden with talented, proven, and productive offensive threats.

Preseason favorite Montana boasts two Walter Payton Award watch lists members. Running back Chase Reynolds was a finalist in 2009, finishing 13th in the voting.

Montana's Chase Reynolds has been named the preseason offensive player of the year.

Both players were also named to the preseason All-Conference team.

In a twist, two of the returning finalists have brought a pair of teammates to the Watch List.

The Buchanan Award is in its 16th season and will be presented to the FCS' national defensive player of the year on Thursday, Jan. 6 in Frisco, Texas - the night before the national championship game. The 2009 winner was James Madison's Arthur Moats, a draft choice of the Buffalo Bills this year.

Skelton was the Cardinals' fifth-round draft choice out of Fordham, where he set numerous school records, including career marks of 802 completions for 9,923 yards and 69 touchdowns. Although terms of his deal were not revealed, the National Football Post reported the deal to be worth $1.97 million with a signing bonus of around $182,000.

Roberts, selected in the third round, set career records at The Citadel for receptions (285), receiving yards (3,743) and punt return yards (1,160). The National Football Post reported his signing bonus to be worth about $724,000, and the overall deal around $2.5 million.

The move is admittedly PR-driven, as athletic director Bill Chaves attempts to drum up interest in a program which averages around 5,000 attendees per home game.

"The uniqueness of the red field was able to generate an amazing amount of publicity," Chaves said after announcing his plan.