Topic: H-D: UAB looking for a boost in '11

[ZackUSAF82]

HUNTINGTON -- At 3-5 in the 2010 season, UAB had its bowl game destiny in the tips of its football gloves.

The Blazers were coming off a dramatic 50-49, double overtime win at Southern Miss and its schedule down the stretch wasn't hardly daunting.

Three straight home dates with Marshall, East Carolina and Memphis and then the finale at Rice. Finish 3-1 and have the postseason come calling.

But the Thundering Herd started it and then the Owls finished the Blazers' slide, A potential 3-1 finish turned into 1-3 and UAB went bowl-less for the sixth straight season.

Coach Neil Callaway not only survived that 2010 disappointment but he received a one-year extension in June. So with administration still behind him, Callaway will try to somehow keep breathing life into a program that's in dire need of a boost.

He might want to start with building on what he had right in 2010 as those two pieces are back for 2011.

Quarterback Bryan Ellis finished fourth in Conference USA in passing yards per game last season. Running back Pat Shed finished fifth in rushing yards per game.

Link: http://www.herald-dispatch.com/sports/x1652340056/UAB-looking-for-a-boost-in-11