The Tulsa Golden Hurricane came into the 2010 season off a 5-7 finish in 2009, but the team wouldn’t stay down for long.

After beating Hawaii 62-35 in the Hawaii Bowl, the Hurricane finished with a 10-3 overall record. It was the third time in four years that Tulsa won at least 10 games under head coach Todd Graham.

However, Graham has since left the program to become the new head coach at Pittsburgh, opening the door for assistant Bill Blankenship. Graham did a tremendous job bringing in very good football players. Blankenship will reap the benefits in his first season, as the Golden Hurricane return 18 starters from last year’s squad.

Here is a closer look at what Tulsa has coming back on both sides of the ball, plus my thoughts on where they will finish in the Conference USA standings.

Offense

The Golden Hurricane put on a show offensively in 2010. The team averaged 41.4 points and 506 yards of total offense per game. The player that makes it all happen is quarterback G.J. Kinne.

In 2010, Kinne threw for 3,650 yards with 31 touchdowns to just 10 interceptions, and was also the leading rusher with 561 yards on the ground.

What is impressive about Kinne leading the team with just 561 rushing yards, is the Golden Hurricane still managed to average 217 yards a game on the ground. Eight different players carried the ball at least 20 times, and seven different players found the end zone.

The top running back last year was Alex Singleton, who had 391 yards and nine touchdowns, but the expectation is that sophomore Trey Watts will emerge as the top running back this season.

Tulsa loses a couple of solid wide receivers in Charles Clay and Trae Johnson, but still has plenty of weapons left over from last year. The best of the group is senior Damaris Johnson, who led the team with 57 receptions for 872 yards and four touchdowns.

This year the Golden Hurricane will look to get more out of sophomore Thomas Roberson and juniors Ricky Johnson and Willie Carter, who combined for 81 catches, 1,017 yards and eight touchdowns last season.

On top of a loaded group of skill players back for the 2011 season, Tulsa will have all five starters returning on the offensive line. This unit is headlined by senior left guard Clint Anderson, senior left tackle Tyler Holmes and junior center Trent Dupy.

Defense

With just four starters back on the defensive side of the ball in 2010, the Golden Hurricane struggled to hold opposing offense in check. They allowed 30.3 points and 451 yards of total offense, which really put the pressure on the offense to score a ton of points.

Tulsa is making the switch to a 4-3 defense this season, and should field one of its strongest defensive lines in the last five years. Tulsa returns senior Tyrunn Walker and junior Corey Dorris, and these two are expected to start at the two defensive end spots. Both starting defensive tackle jobs are up for grabs, but senior Darrell Zeliars and junior Derrick Jackson are the front-runners to open the year in the starting lineup.

Making things a lot easier on the defensive line, is the fact that Tulsa should feature an outstanding trio at linebacker this season.

Senior middle linebacker Curnelius Arnick is one of the best middle linebackers in the conference. Arnick led the Golden Hurricane with 115 sacks and added five sacks and four interceptions. On the outside they have two more outstanding players in junior DeAundre Brown and sophomore Shawn Jackson. Brown missed last year but led the team with 102 tackles in 2009. Jackson finished second with 88 tackles and was the team leader with 8.5 sacks last season.

Tulsa should also have an improved bunch in the secondary this year. They have two of the top safeties in the conference in sophomore Marco Nelson and junior Dexter McCoil, and one of the better corners in the league in senior John Flanders.

Prediction

Second CUSA West—When you look at all the talent the Golden Hurricane has coming back from last year, you can see why this team is right there with Houston as the favorites to win this conference.

However, without Graham in charge, I think this team will go through some struggles this season. The Golden Hurricane does get the Cougars at home, which could very well decide who wins the West this year.

For more on the Hurricane's upcoming season, check out my Tulsa football predictions article. If you want to see where I have all 12 teams finishing in the conference, take a look at my 2011 Conference USA predictions.