Trojan Reboot: Comparing 2015 and 2024 Troy Football
The Gerad Parker era at Troy didn’t exactly get off on the right foot. A debut loss (which historically is a good sign) turned into a debut losing streak, and a 1-7 record.
The program may have turned a corner during that 7th loss, the 4th quarter defeat in Jonesboro, as the team followed up with a 3-1 record to end the season.
A 4-8 record in the coach’s first season?
A painful season that showed moments of triumph and fight?
A program reset because a beloved multiple-time Sun Belt champion coach left?
Troy has been here before—less than a decade ago, in fact.
Those questions all describe Parker’s first year… and Neal Brown’s first season in 2015. Being the first post-Blakeney coach, Brown set the standard for a first impression, and the two coaches since exceeded that mark one way or another in their inaugural campaigns.
The catch is: even though he hit many similar beats, Parker did a better job in 2024 than Brown did in 2015.
Whether he’s a better coach remains to be seen… but comparing the two seasons alone give me hope. And, since you’ve read the title already, you know that’s exactly what we’re going to do.
Back to the beginning, then.
Hiring a Kentucky Grad
Nine years and 17 days separate the official hiring dates of these Kentucky wide receivers, whose careers intersected once as players: the 2000 season.
If you want to get even closer, 3 hours and about 160 miles separate their hometowns.
Brown’s final year at Kentucky was Parker’s first, in which he redshirted. Brown left for UMass and both went into coaching.
Brown hired Parker at West Virginia in 2020, in 2021 Parker left for South Bend and two years later Parker followed Brown as Troy head coach.
Both hires were picked at times the program had big shoes to fill. On the one hand, Brown took over a losing Trojan program, years removed from its five-time conference championship streak.
On the other hand, Parker stood in the shadow of yet another UK grad, Jon Sumrall, a man who went 2-for-2 not only in conference championships but in 10-win seasons, a feat no Troy coach ever accomplished.
The difference is Brown came into a kitchen with a more complete cupboard, whether that’s because of stricter transfer rules or Blakeney’s recruiting.
That’s also not a diss at the players Parker started with. Goose Crowder, Chris Lewis, Damien Taylor, Devonte Ross and Ethan Conner, just to name a few, were proof the offense would be talented.
Unfortunately that all made for higher hopes before the season even began.
Big Ten Loss
The hope only grew when Troy rolled into halftime up 14-10 on Iowa. The last time that happened, Troy beat its last Big Ten team at Nebraska.
The Iowa defense proved its strength though, holding Troy to just one touchdown in the second half and winning 38-21.
Troy’s first post-Blakeney power 5 game was Brown’s debut loss at NC State. The Trojans scored 21 then too, but that game more closely resembled this year’s Memphis loss—a more talented southern team scored at will, and the Trojans couldn’t keep up in their first road game.
Troy couldn’t keep up two weeks later, either. The No. 24 Badgers held Troy to just a field goal.
Going on the road to a Big Ten school isn’t common for Troy, especially since the three games I’ve mentioned are the only three matchups since 2008. The fact Parker played one is a crazy coincidence.
Both games were examples of “taking your lumps.” Parker’s career started with a 1-7 record, and Brown’s had a 1-5 mark.
Both seasons showed the difficulty of the job ahead.
Fortunately, both coaches got one break early on.
FCS Win
Charleston Southern was Brown’s home debut and the first of 35 wins in four seasons. FAMU was a record-breaking tribute to one of Troy’s championship teams, which also gave Parker his first win as head coach (or interim head coach for that matter).
Devonte Ross caught for 229 yards against the Rattlers, breaking a 56-year old single-game record, but the Trojans gave up 288 yards passing to FAMU.
Similarly, Troy gave up 263 yards rushing to Southern in 2015, despite a 44-16 drubbing.
Both games were an opportunity to show what the team could do.
Both matchups were a release of pent-up frustration.
Incidentally, both times Troy missed a point after.
Unfortunately, the road didn’t get easier, even when conference play began. (Especially since the Wisconsin game actually came a week *after* Charleston Southern.)
Losing the Belt
Surprisingly, South has worn all-white in the debut for every Troy coach except Jon Sumrall. More surprisingly, Chip Lindsay is the only one of the three with a win.
2015 was the year The Belt was introduced, and South came out of the gate swinging. After the Jags led 21-15 at the half, both defenses stepped up and held either side to a field goal.
The Jags etched their name onto the Belt first, then again in 2017. That was the last time South held the Belt until Kane Wommack and Jon Sumrall both departed.
Major Applewhite, former Texas assistant head coach and former Houston head coach, took over in Mobile, maintaining most of the staff and a surprising number of players.
The comparison was not lost, as frustration built with each passing loss.
The following week saw a spark of life in the Troy locker room.
The Second-Half Spark
Troy was down 16-3 after three quarters against Idaho in 2015. Two field goals and a 43-yard pass later, the Trojans tied the ballgame.
Idaho responded, driving 73 yards down the field to take a 19-16 lead on Austin Rekhow’s fourth field goal of the game. Troy’s response took it 60 yards but ended with a miss and ultimately a loss.
Still, the spark after halftime was a clear sign that the team wasn’t going down without a fight.
Nine years and nine days later, the Trojans found themselves in a similar situation: down 23-3 at the half. Troy found the endzone three times in the third quarter, taking a 24-23 lead.
Arkansas State took the lead back with 49 seconds left in the third, but much like 2015 Homecoming, the Trojans had the momentum.
A back-and-forth fourth quarter came down to the wire. Troy retook the lead with 1:45 left in the game.
Arkansas State used most of that time, jumping ahead 34-31 with 33 seconds left. An interception in the end zone sealed the deal, but the fire was already sparked.
Troy took the momentum into the next few games.
Two Conference Wins
After a last-minute loss to Idaho, the Trojans rebounded by demolishing New Mexico State 52-7. If the Charleston Southern win was releasing frustration, this was an exorcism.
It was also Neal Brown’s first FBS win as head coach.
Two weeks later, Troy dropped another 50-burger on ULM, crushing two of the three teams at the bottom of the conference that season.
This was a common theme in the Neal Brown era, hanging 50 points on lesser teams. Texas State, UMass, North Texas and Austin Peay would end up being some of those victims.
Regardless, the explosion of offense restored a bit of hope. Not that Troy would be back any time soon mind you, but that winning the conference was possible.
That’s exactly what happened against Coastal Carolina on Homecoming 2024.
Troy, surging late in the season, exposed a weakened Coastal team, by putting nearly 350 yards on the ground. Damien Taylor and Gerald Green each had more than 100 yards each, and despite giving up 17 points in the third quarter, the Trojans kept the Chants at arm’s length for a 38-24 win.
Gerad Parker’s Trojans followed up his first FBS win as head coach with another strong performance. Matthew Caldwell threw for 288 yards, two passing scores and a pair of fourth-quarter rushing touchdowns to take down Georgia Southern—at the time, the Sun Belt’s East division leaders.
Two late-season wins had the Trojans getting hot.
A bowl game was out of reach, as was the conference. However, a massive test faced both incarnations of the program:
Road battles against division leaders.
Fighting a Losing Battle
On Halloween 2015, Troy took the field against Appalachian State in Boone. The Mountaineers held onto a 31-24 lead well into the fourth quarter, but the Trojans tied the game with less than 4 minutes left.
Neither team found an edge, so the game went into overtime.
Troy scored first, and App State responded. Second overtime.
Troy held the Mountaineers to a field goal, but App State returned the favor. Third overtime.
This time, App State held Troy to a field goal. Instead, the Trojans tried a fake; holder John Johnson tossed the ball to Clark Quisenberry… and the Mountaineers stopped him for no gain.
App State kicked a game-winning field goal and sent Troy packing.
Fast-forward to November 23, 2024. Troy took the field against Louisiana in Lafayette.
This time, Troy took a 14-7 first quarter lead before giving up 30 points in the second half. Over the next 14 minutes, Troy proceeded to climb back into the game.
The Trojans drove 83 yards, converted the two-point attempt, held Louisiana’s offense to a punt… then drove 82 yards and converted another two point attempt.
Just like that, Troy was only down 37-30. Then disaster struck.
Robert Williams returned the kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown, seemingly putting the Cajuns ahead for good 44-30.
After swapping punts, the Trojans got the ball on their own 3. The drive stalled by way of a penalty and a sack, so that’s exactly where the Trojans turned it over with 2:46 left in the game.
Not punting felt like a concession. If the offense can’t move the ball downfield, the comeback is over.
I guarantee the expectation was to let Louisiana run out the clock. Even in the next week’s press conference, Parker mentioned not be able to “survive after the big hit right at the end of the third quarter after our second score.”
That’s not what the Cajuns did. On Third and Goal, with 1:09 left in the game, Louisiana chose again to run the ball.
Bill Davis broke through, extending the Cajuns’ lead to 51-30.
Another fumble put the game away, notching the eighth loss in Troy’s season.
The 2015 game was used as a measuring stick moving forward. Not only did it show how much potential Troy had, it showed where Troy stood compared to championship-level competition.
The fact is, App State and Louisiana have contributed to seven of the last eight conference championships. Troy’s win over Coastal in 2022 is the only time neither has been involved, whether competing (Troy beating App in 2023) or sharing the title (App and Arkansas State in 2016, App and Troy in 2017, Louisiana and Coastal in 2020).
The takeaway, from the season as well as the game, was that Troy proved it wouldn’t go down without a fight, no matter the competition.
That was especially true in the final game of both the 2015 and 2024 campaigns.
Ending with a Blowout
Cajun Field featured prominently in the 2015 season’s closing moments for both Troy and UL. Neither team was bowl bound, so momentum into the offseason was the trophy each team desired.
Troy not only showed off its future as a 10-win team, Brandon Silvers made his presence known as the team’s quarterback moving forward. Silvers threw for 320 yards and four touchdowns.
The defense forced four turnovers and held the Cajuns to just one touchdown in the second half. Troy blew Louisiana out of the water 41-17, and excitement for the 2016 campaign took root.
The Trojans were at home for the 2024 season ender, and the final result was even wider.
Troy led 17-8 at the half against Southern Miss, when a pair of explosive plays for either team made the score 24-14.
The Trojans outscored USM 28-6 in the last 16 minutes of the game, running away with the season finale 52-20.
It was the first time Troy broke 50 points since the season opener against Southern—an FCS team—in 2021.
The Differences
In 2015, a 4-win season was an improvement, and it set the stage for the success to come. The 2024 season had higher expectations, coming off the back-to-back conference titles.
The difference is Sumrall’s departure caused an even deeper recession than could’ve been expected. We at the Wall counted at least 33 departures last offseason, 20 transfers and 13 graduates.
On defense alone, Troy lost 13 of the top 17 tacklers from 2023 to 2024. I did top 17 because that’s all I could fit in the screenshot, and I took the screenshot before the Southern Miss game.
If that change didn’t set enough of a tone, losing Chris Lewis for the season was a huge blow on paper.
Add the season-long injury struggles—especially starting QB Goose Crowder—and you get a recipe for disaster: a brand new coaching staff, a defense that’s newer than any unit in the country, and an offense that couldn’t find a rhythm.
Given these issues, Parker’s accomplishment—matching Neal Brown’s first season win total—is a massive victory by itself.
Statistically, they were similar. Brown’s first Trojan squad picked up 359.9 yards per game, while Parker’s picked up 369.2. The 2015 team scored 27.9 points per game, while Troy managed just 26 this year.
When Brown won, he won big, averaging 33.5 points in margin of victory. Parker’s Trojans were more consistent though, finishing the season 3-1 rather than 3-3.
Also, Parker did something neither Brown nor Sumrall (nor Lindsey for that matter; he had an offensive background) could—a thousand-yard receiver and rusher in one season.
Brown came close in 2015 and 2018 (Teddy Ruben and Damion Willis were 130 yards shy of the reception mark) and notably Jabre Barber was one yard short in Sumrall’s last season.
One could argue that Parker’s Trojans were better on paper than Brown’s debut squad. Given the circumstances, that argument is easier to make: Gerad Parker did a better job in his first year than Neal Brown did.
Coach Parker’s calendar has already moved to the offseason, but if Brown’s blueprint is any indication, this team could be back in the championship mix as soon as next year.