Sun Belt · Ryan Beard, year 1 (1-1) · Brooks Stadium (SC) · 21,000 · 18,113 avg in 2026
LastW 45–7 vs Fordham · Sat Sep 12 · Deuce Bailey 203 pass yds, 3 TD, 21 rush yds
Nextat Delaware · Sat Sep 19 · 11:30 am ET · Delaware Stadium · Delaware by 5 · Game preview
Updated Tue Sep 15 · through week 2
| Wk | Date | Us | Opp | Line | Opponent | Result | Record | Conf |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sep 5 | #231 | #182 | +21✓ | @West Virginia | L 24–31 139 | 0-1 | 0-0 |
| 2 | Sep 12 | #230 | #250 | -36.5✓ | Fordham | W 45–7 123 | 1-1 | 0-0 |
| 3 | Sep 19 | #190 | #40 | +5 | @Delaware | |||
| 4 | Sep 24 | #187 | #97 | Liberty | ||||
| 5 | Oct 3 | Georgia Southern | ||||||
| 6 | Oct 10 | @Marshall | ||||||
| 7 | Oct 17 | App State | ||||||
| 9 | Oct 31 | @Georgia State | ||||||
| 10 | Nov 7 | Old Dominion | ||||||
| 11 | Nov 14 | Arkansas State | ||||||
| 12 | Nov 21 | @Louisiana | ||||||
| 13 | Nov 28 | @James Madison |
| Date | Opp | Result | Yds | TO | TOP | EPA/play | Success% | Explosive% | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 12 | Fordham | W 45–7 | 460 | 0 | 29:55 | +0.267 | 47.1% | 126.1% | |
| Sep 5 | @West Virginia | L 24–31 | 425 | 2 | 27:04 | +0.219 | 43.1% | 151.4% | |
| Season average (2 games) | 442 | 1.0 | +0.243 | 45.1% | 138.7% | ||||
Coastal Carolina is the program that turned a teal field, a rooster mascot, and one undefeated month in 2020 into the most fun story college football had ever seen from a school that barely existed at this level.
Chanticleer fans heard the whole sport ask 'where is that?' during the 2020 run — and they say the same people who couldn't find Conway on a map were the ones most eager to call the whole thing an acc…
The season in chapters
What fans said
Real posts from the day of the game, chosen by community score · usernames not shown
What it is like to watch them2025 · 6-7 · last season
✓ measured from 13 games · ranks are among Sun Belt teams the same season
Recent form · last 10 games · incl. 2025
Cold. 5-5 over the last 10, and won the last one.
We have to get rid of the penalties. We have to be better on third downs on both sides of the ball, and you can’t turn the football over
Next Sep 19
vs Delaware · away
~ our read on style
Market outlook
Sportsbook consensus · best odds across multiple books · 2026-09-14
the open questioncan a new staff change the trajectory?
Beard, who previously coached at Missouri State, inherits a 6-7 roster and 97% returning production — the program's third head coach in five years means the identity anchor is whether.
our readdeveloping
Tim Beck enters his third season at Coastal Carolina with a 6-7 losing record, as the program's identity shifts amid its legacy as a Sun Belt disruptor.
our readdeveloping
Beard, who previously worked at UCF, inherits a 6-7 roster and 15% returning production — the third head coach in five years means Coastal Carolina's identity as a G5 disruptor.
our readbackground
Jalen John gets meaningfully MORE work in the fourth quarter with a lead than his overall workload would predict, mostly in real, competitive games -- not just mop-up snaps.
our readdeveloping
Jalen John sees a real spike in usage once the game is out of reach, and his efficiency in competitive snaps sits below the position baseline -- the numbers lean on the opponent giving up.
our readdeveloping
Ja'Vin Simpkins: a garbage time merchant signal screened this season.
our readbackground
Robby Washington is used almost exclusively underneath -- a low share of his targets are downfield shots.
our readbackground
Beck's top-22 portal class addresses P, RB, and WR — positions that matter for a 6-7 team with 97% production returning, aiming to recapture Chadwell-era magic.
our readdeveloping
Coastal Carolina: coordinator change reshaping a unit.
our readbackground
Trever Jackson arrives as Coastal Carolina's portal QB in a top-27 class — an addition to Tim Beck's 97% returning core, not a rescue for a 6-7 record.
our readbackground
Ryan Beard's first season at Coastal Carolina follows a 6-7 losing record, raising questions about whether the coordinator-driven reshaping can elevate a program still struggling in the bottom 25% of FBS power ratings.
our readbackground
Outcome band · Coastal Carolina · 2026
Floor, base and ceiling come from the season-path projection, which plays out conference title games and the CFP — so a ceiling can run past 12 games.
Ryan Beard took over as Coastal Carolina's head coach, replacing Jeremiah Johnson. It is the program's third head coach in five seasons. It's not the hire that's the story anymore — it's everything it set in motion. The room has bought in, but early believers have been wrong before.
The 'this hire changes everything' takes -- new-era believers making the case early.
The 'show me the body of work' counter -- resume gaps, scheme fits, and 'not that guy' reads.
Nothing in our corpus yet — this door stays open for when there is.
Only 2 of 194 board posts mention it — below our floor to call a community stance. Shown as texture, not a verdict.
The boards ≠ the fanbase: a vocal, self-selected slice.
The second-order trail: commits, decommits, portal and staff knock-on from the hire.
Coastal Carolina: the fanbase's identity shifting.
The optimistic read: momentum, and the 'this is real' takes.
The analytical counter: rankings, results, and 'the hype is ahead of the tape' takes.
Nothing in our corpus yet — this door stays open for when there is.
Only 11 of 194 board posts mention it — below our floor to call a community stance. Shown as texture, not a verdict.
The boards ≠ the fanbase: a vocal, self-selected slice.
Fan mood index · most recent r/cfb data
More in this tab
Coastal Carolina is the Sun Belt program whose 2020 11-1 + #14 final AP + teal turf + Jamey Chadwell era turned a 2017 FBS newcomer into national G5 disruptor.
The program ledger
since 2025EDGE DJ Wesolak transfer commits from Missouri State
Eight edge rushers out the door and Durham-Campbell gone — Wesolak is FCS production stepping into a starter-risk room that Beck hasn't patched yet.
WVU releases depth chart for Week 1
WVU's official depth chart hits and Beard's staff gets the first real answer on where the Chanticleers stand schematically — with QB pressure still unresolved and a class ranked 118th nationally, Conway needs every edge the portal class scraped together.
WR Tamarion LaFortune transfer commits from Western Connecticut State
Western Connecticut State to the Sun Belt is a steep climb — but Coastal's WR room churned hard (8 out, 10 in), and with Wiedner gone and QB pressure mounting, Beck needs bodies who can run routes under fire, not just fill a roster spot.
S Mason Moore transfer commits from Lehigh
Patriot League safety to Sun Belt — Moore brings four years of FCS starts to a CCU rebuild.
Coastal Carolina mourns Hall of Fame coach
Before the rebuild even gets going, Coastal Carolina pauses — the Hall of Fame coach who built this program into a Sun Belt contender is gone, and Ryan Beard inherits both the grief and the expectations.
Top 3 commits
Recruiting Footprint · 2026
GA leads the 2026 class with 5 commits. National footprint reaching 8 states.
Where they recruit · 2023-2026
90 signees across 22 states, 2023-2026. SC leads the pull.
Miles from home · 2026 roster
The median Coastal Carolina player grew up 425 miles from campus.
Half this roster came from closer than that; half came from farther.
Straight-line distance from each player's listed hometown to Brooks Stadium (SC). Hometowns are placed at city-centroid precision, not street address — fine at this scale, but a player's true door-to-door number can differ by a few miles. 98 of 106 listed players have a geocoded hometown. Source: CFBD roster hometowns.
Top community posts · last 12 months · r/cfb
The bounces have gone their way on their own fumbles: 60% recovered, vs. ~54% expected.
3 of 5 own fumbles recovered themselves, 2026 only.
Roughly even on flags: 16 penalties committed vs. 14 drawn on opponents.
110 penalty yards committed vs. 130 drawn on opponents, 2026 season total.
Outcome band · Coastal Carolina · 2026
Recruiting Footprint · 2026