Troy University Athletics
Defending Champion Troy Wraps Busy Sun Belt Football Media Day
7/23/2018 3:28:00 PM | Football
NEW ORLEANS – Troy head coach Neal Brown and First Team All-Sun Belt selections Deontae Crumitie and Hunter Reese took center stage Monday at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome for Sun Belt Football Media Day.
The defending Sun Belt Conference champions spent the day visiting with regional and national media outlets plus those from across the league's 10 members in addition to filming promotional pieces for the National Football Foundation, the Sun Belt and the College Football Playoff.
"I really like our football team," Brown said to the assembled media on Monday. "We're young in age with only 12 seniors, but we have players on both sides of the ball that have a lot of game experience. We don't ever use the word repeat in our program. This is a new year with a new challenge, and I'm fired up to see who has gotten better over the last three months."
"It was good to see what other guys could do in the spring with all the injuries we had to some of our veterans," Crumitie said. "We've put in work, everybody has been doing their job and we're all just ready to get back in pads. We're excited to open with Boise State at home because our fans really make an effect on the game, it's always great to look up in the crowd and see packed sections"
Brown also have a live segment on ESPN3 to preview the upcoming season, while Reese was featured on Sun Belt Football Media Day Live. Troy led the league with 11 Preseason All-Sun Belt selections, including seven on the defensive side of the football. However, the Trojans were picked to finish second in the newly formed Sun Belt East Division. The winners of the two Sun Belt divisions will meet on-campus on Dec. 1 in the inaugural Sun Belt Football Championship Game.
"The biggest challenge this year is going to be making up for the game experience we lost from last year," Reese said. "We do have a lot of guys coming back and there are some big holes to fill. All the preseason stuff doesn't really matter to us. If the game was played on paper we'd never have a chance, so we just try to ignore it and prove it on the field."
With Media Day in the books, the Trojans now turn their attention to the start of fall camp. Troy's newcomers are scheduled to report back on Wednesday, Aug. 1, and the veteran players report on Thursday, Aug. 2, with the first day of camp scheduled for Friday, Aug. 3.
The Trojans set a school FBS record with 11 wins en route to their sixth Sun Belt Conference championship and a New Orleans Bowl title in 2017. Troy's 21 victories over the past two seasons are the eighth most in the country and the Trojans will carry the nation's fourth-longest active winning streak of seven games into the season opener against Boise State on Sept. 1 in The Vet.
"It is a big game for us at Troy and for the Sun Belt Conference," Brown said of the opener against Boise State. "They are going to have a quality football team, and I expect our fans to turn out. It is going to be a great game for college football."
Season ticket packages start as low as $60 and all ticket prices are identical to those from 2017. Troy plays host to six home games during the 2018 campaign, including visits from Boise State, Georgia State and Louisiana.
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