{"id":118395,"date":"2024-08-30T10:26:10","date_gmt":"2024-08-30T17:26:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/?p=118395"},"modified":"2024-08-30T10:27:14","modified_gmt":"2024-08-30T17:27:14","slug":"fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/","title":{"rendered":"2024 SoCon Football Preview"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Year in and year out, the Southern Conference<\/a> is the most parity-filled league in the FCS<\/a>, top to bottom. A team that seems to be in the bottom third can (and will) rise up and knock off a team in the top third, and there are countless examples. Even the Big Sky and MVFC can\u2019t boast that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Several of these programs have been around since the leather-helmet days, back when some of these teams played Alabama, Clemson, and Florida year to year, and sometimes won. Schools like Chattanooga, Furman, The Citadel, and even Mercer — during its first stint in football \u2013 roamed the gridiron and are still doing it today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So how does this conference look for 2024? We\u2019ll take the easy route out and just say there will be a lot of parity, again, and there isn\u2019t a clear leader because the league is so balanced. Here\u2019s our best guess at how things will go.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Preseason All-Americans<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Via FCS Football Central<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chattanooga (3) \u2013 WR Javin Whatley (1st Team); DL Marlon Taylor (1st Team); OL Reid Williams (2nd Team)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Samford (1) \u2013 LB Noah Martin (1st Team)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Western Carolina (1) \u2013 QB Cole Gonzales (2nd Team)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mercer (1) \u2013 LB Ken Standley (2nd Team)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ETSU (1) \u2013 LB William McRainey (2nd Team)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teams Bringing In The Most D1 Transfers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

FBS-to-FCS Transfers<\/em><\/a>\u00a0&\u00a0<\/em>FCS-to-FCS Transfers<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ETSU \u2014<\/em> 37 (9 FBS, 28 FCS)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Samford \u2014<\/em> 20 (13 FBS, 7 FCS)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chattanooga \u2014<\/em> 17 (11 FBS, 6 FCS)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mercer \u2014<\/em> 11 (8 FBS, 3 FCS)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Western Carolina \u2014<\/em> 7 (4 FBS, 3 FCS)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Names To Know<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

TOP OFFENSIVE PLAYER:<\/strong> Cole Gonzales, Western Carolina QB — This was a tough decision, as Gonzales and Chattanooga senior Chase Artopoeus were both outstanding in 2023. The nod goes to Gonzales for a couple of reasons. First, WCU beat Chattanooga, and his production was slightly ahead of Artopoeus. On the flip side, Artopoeus did lead the Mocs to the postseason for the first time in several years. You really can\u2019t go wrong, either way. Gonzales passed for 2,803 yards, 28 TDs, and 7 INTs last year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TOP DEFENSIVE PLAYER:<\/strong> Marlon Taylor, Chattanooga DL — Taylor is a terror, like an out-of-control bowling ball that ran into a wall and won. He\u2019s 6-foot-2, 322 pounds, and can flat-out move or plug a necessary hole and is already catching the eye of pro scouts. Last year he finished with 30 tackles, 9 TFLs, and 5.5 sacks. His career: 68 tackles, 16 TFLs as a block-absorbing \u201cNose\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TOP NFL PROSPECT:<\/strong> C.J. Williams, Western Carolina CB — Williams, an Alabama native, is 31 games into his Western Carolina career. He really broke out in 2023 and is respected as the No. 5 cornerback prospect in the FCS, according to Draft Scout. WCU had a breakout year in 2023 and looks to take it another step this fall, and Williams will be relied upon there. He finished last year with 59 tackles, 8 passes defended, and 3 TFLs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

HERO Sports\u2019 Predicted Order of Finish<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

1. Western Carolina
2. Chattanooga
3. Furman
4. Mercer
5. ETSU
6. Samford
7. VMI
8. Wofford
9. The Citadel<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We already mentioned that this league has a lot of parity. Case in point? How about Wofford\u2019s win over SoCon champion Furman last year? The Terriers were second to last in the group but knocked off the Paladins. How about VMI\u2019s victory over Western Carolina? Or ETSU being just two points away from knocking off playoff-bound Chattanooga. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That should sum up what we\u2019re talking about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year, the top of the order is tough to put in<\/em> order. Western Carolina<\/a> (7-4 last year) is the most intriguing team, one year removed from looking like the best team in the league before key injuries slowed down the Catamounts. They have the best quarterback in the SoCon, Cole Gonzales, and they\u2019ve been recruiting well while adding key transfers. WCU easily could be the leading contender, but it is hardly alone.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chattanooga<\/a> (8-5) picked up the vote in the coaches poll as the SoCon favorite, and with good reason. The Mocs loaded up on transfers, bringing in 10 from the FBS ranks and six more from the FCS. There are arguments to be made for them to be at the top of the league, and if this transfer class performs, this may be the best offensive line in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Furman<\/a> (10-3) was hit hard by graduation and transfers, and the Paladins aren\u2019t the kind of program that is going to stock up on transfers itself. This is likely why they didn\u2019t get the preseason nod from the coaches\u2019 vote, but they are still up high in the pecking order.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mercer (9-4) made the playoffs for the first time in school history. This is considered the dark horse candidate to do something special this year. It knocked off Western Carolina late last year but did struggle against Furman and lost to Chattanooga, too. Is this a program that could disrupt the trio above? Yes, possibly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As we already said above, the rest of the league can \u2013 and let\u2019s face it, will \u2013 knock off teams within this preseason top four. It happens every year in the SoCon and it is rare that one team goes undefeated, winning all eight of its league games (yes, they all play each other \u2013 isn\u2019t that nice?). ETSU (3-8) is intriguing with a new coaching staff and nearly 40 transfers on board. How will this translate to success? We shall see. Samford (6-5) had a winning season and throws the ball around as well as any program in the FCS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buckle up, folks, because in November, we\u2019re going to be trying to figure out this crazy and entertaining conference.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Year in and year out, the Southern Conference is the most parity-filled league in the FCS, top to bottom. A team that seems to be in the bottom third can (and will) rise up and knock off a team in the top third, and there are countless examples. Even the Big Sky and MVFC can\u2019t […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":118397,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28,3816],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-118395","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fcs","category-socon"],"yoast_head":"\n2024 SoCon Football Preview - HERO Sports<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Year in and year out, the Southern Conference is the most parity-filled league in the FCS, top to bottom.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"2024 SoCon Football Preview\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Year in and year out, the Southern Conference is the most parity-filled league in the FCS, top to bottom.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"HERO Sports\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/HEROSportsNews\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-08-30T17:26:10+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-08-30T17:27:14+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/c-j--williams-western-carolina.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1205\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"687\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Brian McLaughlin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/e8tpmrtk53q.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/c-j--williams-western-carolina.jpg?strip=all&lossy=1&ssl=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@https:\/\/twitter.com\/BrianMacWriter\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@herosportsnews\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Brian McLaughlin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Brian McLaughlin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#\/schema\/person\/eb52c1ef6b12cea6a351743139086eb1\"},\"headline\":\"2024 SoCon Football Preview\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-08-30T17:26:10+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-08-30T17:27:14+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/\"},\"wordCount\":914,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/e8tpmrtk53q.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/c-j--williams-western-carolina.jpg?strip=all&lossy=1&ssl=1\",\"articleSection\":[\"FCS\",\"SoCon\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/\",\"name\":\"2024 SoCon Football Preview - HERO Sports\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/e8tpmrtk53q.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/c-j--williams-western-carolina.jpg?strip=all&lossy=1&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-08-30T17:26:10+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-08-30T17:27:14+00:00\",\"description\":\"Year in and year out, the Southern Conference is the most parity-filled league in the FCS, top to bottom.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/e8tpmrtk53q.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/c-j--williams-western-carolina.jpg?strip=all&lossy=1&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/e8tpmrtk53q.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/c-j--williams-western-carolina.jpg?strip=all&lossy=1&ssl=1\",\"width\":1205,\"height\":687,\"caption\":\"Western Carolina Athletics\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"College Football\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/college-football\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"FCS\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/college-football\/fcs\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":4,\"name\":\"2024 SoCon Football Preview\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/\",\"name\":\"HERO Sports\",\"description\":\"College & Pro Sports News\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"HERO Sports\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/logo-hero-h-800x800.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/logo-hero-h-800x800.png\",\"width\":800,\"height\":800,\"caption\":\"HERO Sports\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/HEROSportsNews\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/herosportsnews\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/herosportsnews\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/hero-sports\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/c\/Herosportsnews\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#\/schema\/person\/eb52c1ef6b12cea6a351743139086eb1\",\"name\":\"Brian McLaughlin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ccdcc588f6f741059f8c1f3af7146ae2?s=96&d=mm&r=pg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ccdcc588f6f741059f8c1f3af7146ae2?s=96&d=mm&r=pg\",\"caption\":\"Brian McLaughlin\"},\"description\":\"Brian is an FCS and Group of Five contributor for HERO Sports. B-Mac was an integral part of HERO Sports' launch in FCS coverage back in the summer of 2015. As he put it, \\\"It was love at first sight. It was the perfect blend of two previous career stops -- the approachability and grounded nature of being around high school athletics combined with the high-end talent and impressive fan bases of big-time college football.\\\" Brian has covered football for many years, including stops in the newspaper world, The Sporting News, and PARADE Magazine.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/x.com\/https:\/\/twitter.com\/BrianMacWriter\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/herosports.com\/author\/bmac\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"2024 SoCon Football Preview - HERO Sports","description":"Year in and year out, the Southern Conference is the most parity-filled league in the FCS, top to bottom.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"2024 SoCon Football Preview","og_description":"Year in and year out, the Southern Conference is the most parity-filled league in the FCS, top to bottom.","og_url":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/","og_site_name":"HERO Sports","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/HEROSportsNews\/","article_published_time":"2024-08-30T17:26:10+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-08-30T17:27:14+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1205,"height":687,"url":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/c-j--williams-western-carolina.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Brian McLaughlin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_image":"https:\/\/e8tpmrtk53q.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/c-j--williams-western-carolina.jpg?strip=all&lossy=1&ssl=1","twitter_creator":"@https:\/\/twitter.com\/BrianMacWriter","twitter_site":"@herosportsnews","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Brian McLaughlin","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/"},"author":{"name":"Brian McLaughlin","@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#\/schema\/person\/eb52c1ef6b12cea6a351743139086eb1"},"headline":"2024 SoCon Football Preview","datePublished":"2024-08-30T17:26:10+00:00","dateModified":"2024-08-30T17:27:14+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/"},"wordCount":914,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/e8tpmrtk53q.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/c-j--williams-western-carolina.jpg?strip=all&lossy=1&ssl=1","articleSection":["FCS","SoCon"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/","url":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/","name":"2024 SoCon Football Preview - HERO Sports","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/e8tpmrtk53q.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/c-j--williams-western-carolina.jpg?strip=all&lossy=1&ssl=1","datePublished":"2024-08-30T17:26:10+00:00","dateModified":"2024-08-30T17:27:14+00:00","description":"Year in and year out, the Southern Conference is the most parity-filled league in the FCS, top to bottom.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/e8tpmrtk53q.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/c-j--williams-western-carolina.jpg?strip=all&lossy=1&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/e8tpmrtk53q.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/c-j--williams-western-carolina.jpg?strip=all&lossy=1&ssl=1","width":1205,"height":687,"caption":"Western Carolina Athletics"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/fcs-2024-socon-football-preview-bmbm\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"College Football","item":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/college-football\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"FCS","item":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/college-football\/fcs\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"2024 SoCon Football Preview"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/","name":"HERO Sports","description":"College & Pro Sports News","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#organization","name":"HERO Sports","url":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/logo-hero-h-800x800.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/logo-hero-h-800x800.png","width":800,"height":800,"caption":"HERO Sports"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/HEROSportsNews\/","https:\/\/x.com\/herosportsnews","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/herosportsnews\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/hero-sports\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/c\/Herosportsnews\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#\/schema\/person\/eb52c1ef6b12cea6a351743139086eb1","name":"Brian McLaughlin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ccdcc588f6f741059f8c1f3af7146ae2?s=96&d=mm&r=pg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ccdcc588f6f741059f8c1f3af7146ae2?s=96&d=mm&r=pg","caption":"Brian McLaughlin"},"description":"Brian is an FCS and Group of Five contributor for HERO Sports. B-Mac was an integral part of HERO Sports' launch in FCS coverage back in the summer of 2015. As he put it, \"It was love at first sight. It was the perfect blend of two previous career stops -- the approachability and grounded nature of being around high school athletics combined with the high-end talent and impressive fan bases of big-time college football.\" Brian has covered football for many years, including stops in the newspaper world, The Sporting News, and PARADE Magazine.","sameAs":["https:\/\/x.com\/https:\/\/twitter.com\/BrianMacWriter"],"url":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/author\/bmac\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118395"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=118395"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118395\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/118397"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=118395"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=118395"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/herosports.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=118395"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}