2009 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team
The 2009 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team represented Middle Tennessee State University as a member of the Sun Belt Conference during the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Rick Stockstill, the Blue Raiders compiled an overall record 10–3 with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, placing second in the Sun Belt. The team played home games at Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
| 2009 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football | |
|---|---|
New Orleans Bowl champion | |
New Orleans Bowl, W 42–32 vs. Southern Miss | |
| Conference | Sun Belt Conference |
| Record | 10–3 (7–1 Sun Belt) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Tony Franklin (1st season) |
| Offensive scheme | Air raid |
| Defensive coordinator | Manny Diaz (4th season) |
| Base defense | 4–3 |
| Home stadium | Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Troy $ | 8 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Middle Tennessee | 7 | – | 1 | 10 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Louisiana–Monroe | 5 | – | 3 | 6 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Florida Atlantic | 5 | – | 3 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Louisiana–Lafayette | 4 | – | 4 | 6 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arkansas State | 3 | – | 5 | 4 | – | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FIU | 3 | – | 5 | 3 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| North Texas | 1 | – | 7 | 2 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Kentucky | 0 | – | 8 | 0 | – | 12 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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In February 2009, Tony Franklin, former Troy and Auburn offensive coordinator, was hired to fill the vacant position of offensive coordinator at. He replaced G. A. Mangus, who left Middle Tennessee to become the quarterbacks coach at South Carolina.
The 2009 schedule featured an opener at Clemson on September 5. The game was followed by an in-state rivalry game against Conference USA member Memphis at Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium. The Blue Raiders returned to Maryland for a third time, and hosted their first ever Southeastern Conference (SEC) opponent, Mississippi State, in school history. Mississippi State was the third Power Five conference opponent, following Virginia in 2007 and Maryland in 2008, to visit Middle Tennessee.
Middle Tennessee ended the regular season with a 9–3 overall record, the best since 1992. The Blue Raiders accepted an invitation to the New Orleans Bowl to face Southern Miss, coached by former Blue Raider offensive coordinator, Larry Fedora. This was the second bowl game for the Blue Raiders in four years. The Blue Raiders won 42–32 for their first FBS bowl win in school history, becoming the first team in Sun Belt Conference history to win ten games in a season.