Florida Atlantic coach Lane Kiffin did everything possible during the spring to keep his team grounded in spite of the high expectations entering this season.
Kiffin vowed overconfidence would never poison the locker room, so don’t expect anything to change after the Owls on Tuesday were chosen as the favorite to win the Conference USA East Division. They received 22 votes in a poll by a panel of league media. North Texas, which lost to the Owls in last year’s championship game, was picked to win the West Division.
After finishing 11-3 and winning its first bowl game since 2008, Kiffin has spent much of the offseason trying to keep the team level-headed.