2026 Coastal Carolina
2–5 (1–2 Sun Belt Conference), coached by Ryan Beard. The season’s Wikipedia article records 2–4, over six games to the seven on file here. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat Fordham 45–7Sep 12
By 38 points, its widest win.
- Most excitingLost to App State 32–35Oct 16
The win probability swung the most, by CollegeFootballData.com’s excitement index.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 5 | at West Virginia | L 24–31 | 41% |
| Sep 12 | vs Fordham | W 45–7 | 89% |
| Sep 19 | at Delaware | L 14–22 | 42% |
| Sep 24 | vs Liberty | L 17–34 | 52% |
| Oct 3 | vs Georgia Southern | L 24–31 | 50% |
| Oct 10 | at Marshall | W 27–21 | 26% |
| Oct 16 | vs App State | L 32–35 | 52% |
| Oct 31 | at Georgia State | Preview | 35% |
| Nov 7 | vs Old Dominion | Preview | 47% |
| Nov 14 | vs Arkansas State | Preview | 49% |
| Nov 21 | at Louisiana | Preview | 24% |
| Nov 28 | at James Madison | Preview | 10% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
- Record
- 2–5
- Conference
- 1–2 tied for 9th in Sun Belt Conference
- AP now
- Unranked
- Points
- 183–181
- Coach
- Ryan Beard
- Elo
- 1398 −62 this season
- SP+ rating
- -11.0 No. 110 of 138; offense No. 96, defense No. 120, special teams No. 45
- SRS
- −10.2 No. 108 of 138 in FBS
- Returning
- 15% of last season’s EPA, No. 107 of 136
- Recruiting class
- No. 118 roster talent No. 105 in FBS
- Offensive coordinator
- Nick Petrino
- Defensive coordinator
- L.D. Scott
How good, play by play
| EPA per play | Success | Explosiveness | FBS rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 0.12 | 40% | 1.39 | 66th of 138 |
| Defense | 0.19 | 48% | 1.16 | 108th of 138 |
| Opponent-adjusted | 0.07 off 0.14 def | 38% off 45% def | — | 91st off 93rd def |
Passing and running
| Pass success | Depth of target | Deep throws | Line yards | Stuffed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 42% | 11.1 yds | 19% | 3.30 | 15% |
| Defense | 51% | 9.7 yds | 14% | 3.30 | 12% |
How these are measured
Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played. Passing and running: depth of target is how far downfield passes traveled in the air; deep throws are the share thrown deep, of the passes whose depth and direction the play-by-play describes (about half); line yards are the running yards per carry credited to the blockers; stuffed is the share of carries stopped at or behind the line. The defense’s line is what its opponents did. From CollegeFootballData.com, 2025 on.
Drives and havoc
| Points per trip inside the 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 3.5 | own 29 | 18% allowed |
| Defense | 3.3 | own 29 | 15% caused |
CORE rating -12.2, 113th of 138 (offense -5.8, defense 6.4).
A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.
Leaders
| Passing yards | Deuce Bailey QB | 1,638 yds |
| Passing touchdowns | Deuce Bailey QB | 16 TD |
| Rushing yards | Dominic Knicely RB | 452 yds |
| Rushing touchdowns | Dominic Knicely RB | 3 TD |
| Receiving yards | Colton Hinton WR | 297 yds |
| Receiving touchdowns | Colton Hinton WR | 4 TD |
| Tackles | Marcellius Pulliam LB | 68 tkl |
| Sacks | Ibrahim Diawara DE | 5 sacks |
| Interceptions | Ja’Marion Wayne CB | 2 INT |
Top recruits in the 2026 class
| Zeke Marshall LB | ★★★ | No. 966 |
| Osiris Lopez QB | ★★★ | No. 1523 |
| Kadarus Hainsworth WR | ★★★ | No. 1846 |
| Jax Pope S | ★★★ | No. 1976 |
| Michael Knight CB | ★★★ | No. 1976 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2026 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 1 | 3.0 | 0.861 |
| Receivers | 3 | 3.0 | 0.842 |
| Offensive line | 2 | 3.0 | 0.841 |
| Defensive line | 3 | 3.0 | 0.840 |
| Linebackers | 2 | 3.0 | 0.859 |
| Defensive backs | 2 | 3.0 | 0.852 |
| Whole class | 13 | 3.0 | 0.847 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
Roster 104
The 2026 roster104 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2026 line; 61 have a stat line. See the roster
Transfers in 32
The 2026 portal Donovan Grayson DE | ★★★ | from  Samford |
 Jalen B. Lee S | ★★★ | from  South Dakota State |
 Trever Jackson QB | ★★★ | from  Arkansas |
 Tristian Gardner WR | ★★★ | from  Missouri State |
 Apisa Poumele OL | ★★★ | from  Central Michigan |
 Azarel Juste LB | ★★★ | from  Bryant |
 Chandavian Bradley DE | ★★★ | from  Oklahoma State |
 Clayton Coppock WR | ★★★ | from  Kennesaw State |
 Daelen Alexander RB | ★★★ | from  Rice |
 Damill Bostic Jr. CB | ★★★ | from  Villanova |
 Jordan Thompson LB | ★★★ | from  Western Carolina |
 Marcellius Pulliam LB | ★★★ | from  Michigan State |
And 20 more, lower-rated or unrated.
Transfers out 43
 Ezekiel Durham-Campbell DE | ★★★ | to  West Virginia |
| Jordan Mack DL | ★★★ | to  Baylor |
| Darrion Henry DL | ★★★ | to  Virginia |
| Jayden Bryant DE | ★★★ | to  Kansas State |
| M.J. Morris QB | ★★★ | to  Texas |
| Nick Del Grande OT | ★★★ | to  Duke |
| Tad Hudson QB | ★★★ | to  NC State |
| Bryson Graves WR | ★★★ | to  Delaware |
| Ja’Vin Simpkins RB | ★★★ | to  UAB |
| Joseph Hanson OT | ★★★ | to Oklahoma State |
| Larell Howling CB | ★★★ | to  UL Monroe |
| Luke Murphy LB | ★★★ | to  UConn |
And 31 more, lower-rated or unrated.
2026 Sun Belt Conference standings
Conference page| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| James Madison | 4–0 | 7–0 | |
 South Alabama | 2–0 | 4–2 | |
 Louisiana Tech | 2–0 | 4–2 | |
| Louisiana | 2–1 | 5–2 | |
| Georgia Southern | 2–1 | 3–4 | |
| Georgia State | 1–1 | 4–2 | |
| App State | 1–1 | 4–2 | |
 Troy | 1–1 | 3–3 | |
| Arkansas State | 1–2 | 3–4 | |
| Coastal Carolina | 1–2 | 2–5 | |
| Old Dominion | 1–3 | 2–5 | |
| Marshall | 0–2 | 3–3 | |
 Southern Miss | 0–2 | 1–5 | |
 UL Monroe | 0–2 | 0–6 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.